In this new column (which could hopefully come back on a weekly basis, depending of my busyness at work) I will try to share the main news of the Visual Effects world. In addition to the traditional VFX Breakdowns that you can find on WikiFX it will also allow me to share some great articles or resources.
INTERACTIVE WEBSITE
PACIFIC RIM: UPRISING – Visual Effects interactive website.
In a very original way Universal Studios released last month a pretty cool website featuring the visual work done on the “Pacific Rim” sequel.
Throughout the website you can discover the different steps that make a final visual effect shot from previz to animation, FX, matte painting or compositing – and all of that in an interactive way! Looking forward to see more of that kind of content in the future!
ARTICLES
FXRant – “Be Prepared for Dailies”
Todd Vaziri’s blog is a gold mine for any visual effect artist who want to progress in this industry. I recently came across an old post about how to deal with dailies and help both yourself and your supervisor during the production process. Those “dailies” are a daily meeting where you get to show your latest work to your visual effect supervisor which in return gives you some notes/feedbacks to push the shot to final.
While most of what is said makes sense and seems obvious it’s easy to forget about the basics and get lost when you are dealing everyday with dozens/hundreds of shots and tight deadlines… and a reminder like this one is always welcome to keep the focus on what really matters and remain efficient at work!
Here are four questions I had asked my visual effects team to prepare for me each day for each shot.
1) what to look at and what not to look at2) what changed from the previous version3) what the artist thinks should be done to improve their shot4) any questions or concerns about this shotThese questions came out of my years of working at studios in Los Angeles, a composite of the things I learned from my supervisors about how to speed the dailies process. I started using these questions when dealing with a Chinese team in Beijing. This gave time for the crew to write out their comments and allow time for the translator to prepare. […]— Todd Vaziri – FXRant
Effects Corner: What makes a good visual effects artist?
Another priceless blog resource for Visual Effects artists is Scott Squires’s Effects Corner. While his website hasn’t been updated for a while now it’s still full of great articles that you can apply at work everyday.
In this specific post you will find a detailed to-do list on “How to be a good visual effects artist”, with subjects such as how to take pride of your work, how to make fast quality work (but not too fast), how to deal with the unexpected (shot omitted, software crashes, …). A must-read!
Problem solving
Much of what a visual effects artist does involves problem solving of artistic or technical issues. If you understand the artistic and technical fundamentals and know your tools you should be able to solve many of your own shot problems. You should be somewhat self-sufficient. However, if there is a problem that doesn’t seem to be easily solved then consider talking to your lead or supervisor. Don’t spend a week trying to fix something that just required clarification or that might require a different task by a different artist.[…]— Scott Squires – Effects Corner
VFX BREAKDOWNS
LOST IN SPACE (Netflix) – Creature and Environments by Image Engine
In this new Netflix TV Series – remake of the classic Sci-Fi show from the 60’s – the Robinson family encounters numerous new environments and creatures.
Check out how Image engine – among a dozen of other VFX Studio around the world – managed to create the Robot and enhanced the environments across THE 10 episodes of this first season.
ANNIHILATION (Netflix) – Seamless work by Union VFX
While we are hoping to get some sneak peak of DNEG’s beautiful work on the last Alex Garland’s project, Union Visual Effects just released a short breakdown of their seamless work on Annihilation.
KING ARTHUR: LEGEND OF THE SWORD – Cavern sequence by Scanline
In last year Guy Ritchie’s blockbuster Scanline VFX has been responsible for the cavern sequence, featured in the breakdown bellow.
https://vimeo.com/265800852
LOGAN – X24 Digital Double
As the main VFX vendor on last year superhero’s hit “Logan” – which saw the last apparition of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine – Image Engine did quite a lot of work, including digital double of the main actors, CG wounds and full CG environment. But only recently they released a new VFX Breakdown showcasing the work they did on creating Logan’s clone X24.
