fxpodcast #341 Star Trek: The Artistry of Dan Curry

Dan Curry (right) on set

Star Trek: The Next Generation and the Trek shows that followed, pioneered many of the visual effects that today are commonplace. The central to the VFX story of those shows is the seven-time Emmy award winner Dan Curry. Celebrating a career of creative problem-solving in the Trek universe is a new book by Dan Curry and Ben Robinson.

 

Dan Curry’s amazing contributions have ranged from directing, title design, and concept art to practical on-set effects and weapon design. From The Next Generation to Enterprise, and even today in the new series of Picard, Dan’s incredibly diverse Star Trek work and artistry has resulted in some of the series’ most memorable moments.

Perhaps one of the most grisly and grusome ST:TNG Shots ever put on screen.

Star Trek: The Artistry of Dan Curry is a new book that reveals the many and varied techniques used to produce some of the most spectacular visual effects used in the various series. In this episode we talk to Dan and go in-depth to divulge the secrets of some of his own personal favorite effects.

The Dan Curry painting seen in ST:TNG as Data’s exploration of art

In this episode, Mike and Dan discuss the actual art that Dan produced some of which ended up On screen in Trek (Data’s painting above) and some were privately done in the edit suite while waiting for a show to be finished, as in this pencil drawing below that Mike and Dan discuss.

This book is as much a story of Star Trek as it is of the birth of episodic digital visual effects from companies such as Digital Magic, CIS, The Post Group, POP and Digital Domain. The book is not a lightweight coffee table book, but a serious look at a world of visual effects from models to digital characters. It is a joy to read.

Voyager: Tom Paris being set alight (by accident)

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