For Dragonheart (released in 1996), ILM needed a facial animation system. So they made one and called it Caricature (they almost called it ‘Fanny’). Here’s a new retro vfx piece at Cartoon Brew.
Month: May 2016
When 3D and anime meet
Love this new short film from Valere Amirault called Symphony of Two Minds. My piece also has the exclusive premiere at Cartoon Brew.
The vfx of ‘Civil War’s’ opening battle
One Perfect Shot has posted my piece on RISE FX’s vfx for the opening battle sequence in Captain America: Civil War.
Translating ‘Angry Birds’ from app to film
Here’s a new story in Cartoon Brew which looks at Imageworks’ animation for Angry Birds – a tough film to make to keep the characters simple and play homage to the mobile game app.
‘Mission: Impossible’: ILM’s pioneering vfx 20 years on
1996 really was a big year in film releases and in vfx break-throughs. Mission: Impossible might not necessarily be thought of as a vfx blockbuster in the same vein as Twister or Independence Day from that year, but in many ways it ushered in several new techniques and drew upon a raft old ones to help tell this thrilling first story in the M:I franchise. Now 20 years old, here’s a quick look back at one particular technique – projecting mapping – that was used on the film at a time that the effect was still not all that common. Continue reading “‘Mission: Impossible’: ILM’s pioneering vfx 20 years on”
How animators kept ‘Jungle Book’ real
I explored with MPC how animators on The Jungle Book kept the animals real, in this piece for Cartoon Brew.
Simpsons live – what could go wrong?
Here’s a tech piece at Cartoon Brew I wrote about the Simpsons live segment which utilised Adobe Character Animator and an extra keypad approach to adding animated elements.
Craving behind the scenes?
Sometimes I will watch a film or see a game and really, really want to know what work went on behind the scenes. Sometimes I’m lucky enough to have covered the film or game, sometimes there’s a great making of book. But often there isn’t. Enter: Craft, a new site that’s looking to show tons and tons of behind the scenes materials for animated films and games.
Top Gun turns 30
It certainly doesn’t feel like it. Here’s a 2013 piece I wrote for fxguide on the film’s miniature jet effects and the stereo conversion for a cinema re-release.
The Bare Necessities of VFX
For One Perfect Shot, I took at look at how the VFX team from The Jungle Book made the Bare Necessities scene.
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