Oscar winning editor Mark Sanger showed off this screen grab from his timeline of the opening sequence to Gravity, in a talk he gave at the Avid booth during NAB 2014.
Showing posts with label Behind the Scenes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Behind the Scenes. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Monday, April 14, 2014
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Friday, December 20, 2013
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Behind the Scenes of Pacific Rim
I am animating giant crazy robots lately,
so this kind of thing is rolling round me head these days...
Monday, February 25, 2013
A Piece of the Pi
Have you noticed a lot of green profile pics on facebook? If you work in Visual Effects or have a friend who does, you might be seeing a lot of green on your feed. Most of my readers here work in VFX/Animation, so you should know what I am talking about.
However, I was shocked at some of my own animation student's impression of "what is going on" in the VFX/Animation field they hope to enter as a career... so let me explain.
Life of Pi cost $120 million to make, its current gross is $600 million. Ang Lee and Claudio Miranda won Oscars last night for Best Director and Best Cinematographer. Above is what their film looked like without the work of the hundreds of VFX artists whom neither man acknowledged or thanked.
THE GREEN BOX: For all the Non-VFX, rising students and animation folk out there, the green square you are seeing on facebook is to show solidarity for the struggling VFX and animation community. The snubs felt at the Oscars are the symptom of a very ill industry that is on the brink of imploding. Without the hard work of VFX facilities and artists on films like the Oscar Winning "Life of Pi", modern films would be nothing but green or blue screens and guys in funny body suits jumping around. I will attempt to explain the complex events that have led up to the current plight of our industry.
Scott Ross, who was a top manager of Industrial Light & Magic and a founder at Digital Domain, started the ball rolling with a tweet: "I had a dream, 500 VFX artists near the Dolby (Kodak) theater on Oscar day waving signs that say 'I Want a Piece of the Pi Too.'" Since then, the plan spread online, with protest organizers launching a Facebook page, and some investing in a banner that will be flown by a plane over the theater during the red-carpet ceremonies, reading "box office + bankrupt = visual effects vfxunion.com."
Photo permission Jon Tojek
Artists from VFX and animation carried signs up and down Hollywood and Vine to bring awareness to the issue. The protest came out of frustration among the artists. Contrary to what the rest of the world thinks, the artists working on movies are not rich. Artists receive no residuals, royalties or back-end bonuses from the award winning films they work on. On a union movie set every person working on a film is covered. They have a residuals, pension, health benefits, but not the post production artists. Even puppeteers are SAG covered. Thus, "If the work VFX/Animation/CG artists create is the main reason these movies are blockbusters, why don't they get a piece of the pi?"
Doing it for effects … a placard held by a protester from the visual effects industry at the 2013 Oscars. Photograph: Billy Brooks
PERCEPTION: Perception is what this protest was all about. It's not about punishing the VFX facilities, or the movie studios... it's about letting the rest of the world know what is going on. The KCRW Interview below reveals the perception of our industry. The director - Pete Berg sums it up at 19:24 into the show - link below.
VFX Industry in Trouble: Won and Oscar Now What?
Director Pete Berg says, "The Business to be is ILM. (Industrial Light and Magic) That is who is making all the money."
CULTURE: Most VFX/Animation studios today are nothing more than sweatshops with hundreds of artists working an average of 12-16 hour days. To make this crystal clear, the toughest run I worked in my career was 21 days (16 hour days) in a row. I seriously thought I was going nuts towards the end of that run. I have friends who have worked 9 months without a day off.
It wasn't always like this, though. I have seen the decline in culture at the studios since 2000 as CG and VFX driven movies continued to make more and more money. You would think if the movies are making more money, the folks involved would be too... right? Nope, the complete opposite has been happening. The last show I worked on was in 2011. I have purposely only accepted work from home because the culture at the studios has become one I do not want to work in.
The schedules presented today are 1/4th of what I saw ten years ago. A shot you would normally have 4-6 weeks to work on, is now bid at 4-6 days!! It is insane! No one leaves their desks. Everyone is tense, trying to make the impossible, possible. When I moved to LA in 2000, I was given benefits and sick days, permission to work out at the gym for free on lunch hours, 401k, and the animation facility even paid to move me and all of my belongings up from San Diego. Today, you will not see that. Today, your are lucky to have a job. It is a toxic, abusive working atmosphere. Why would I stay in this field?
THE BUSINESS MODEL: The VFX/Animation industry has a shaky business foundation on which to build a business model.
- very small profit margins
- no trade organizations to work towards raising those profit margins
- no unions to work on the artist's behalf
- subject to the whims of client, revisions and schedule changes
- no way to cover overhead in between show schedules
ENTER SUBSIDIES: Government funded movie productions (up to 30% of the budget) pop up in London, Vancouver, India, Singapore, China, Australia and various other places around the world. These VFX/Animation facilities find a way to pay for the overhead of keeping artists employed and the lights on, in between the schedules of each show, with this extra money in countries with lower costs than the US.
HOW CAN A U.S. STUDIO COMPETE?
The US studio has no cash flow, everything that comes in goes right back out and now their competition has the upper hand with the extra money to float in between projects and lure cheap talent with the work. I heard Scott Ross give a great analogy in an interview. He said owning a VFX/Animation facility is like owning an airline. You aren't making money unless the planes are in the air. So, you fill the seats at any price. He said VFX facilities are run the same. Get the bid in low, so you can get the cash flow in to keep the place afloat.
Runaway production, overseas competition and government subsidies have forced domestic VFX houses to survive on less than 5% profit margins. Of the many studios I have worked at over the years, five have gone out of business or bankrupt:
Digital Domain,
Asylum FX,
Cinesite: Hollywood ,
Cafe FX,
and now Rhythm and Hues.
The company behind the Life of Pi's stunning visual effects, which made the movie possible, Rhythm & Hues went bankrupt as the film just passed the billion dollar mark in global ticket sales. The CG & VFX (visual effects) facilities that make the Hollywood blockbuster movies possible bid shows at a loss. The Hollywood production companies walk away with profits. Artists who dedicate their lives to their craft get the boot.
NOT JUST VFX: The folks working in CG Animation for studios like Dreamworks, Disney, Pixar, BlueSky, etc. are feeling the push to create more profit too. See the breakdown below of recent closings of VFX and Animation Facilities.
From Reddit:
Digital Domain: September 11th, 2012 Closed Florida facility, laid off 350 employees
Pixomondo: February 24th, 2013 Closing Detroit & London Offices http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118066500/
Electronics Arts: February 21st, 2013 Extensive Layoffs http://www.polygon.com/2013/2/21/4014372/ea-montreal-los-angeles-layoff
Rhythm and Hues: Feb. 16th, 2013 Bankruptcy, Layoffs
Junction Point (Makers of Epic Mickey): Jan. 29th, 2013 Extensive Layoffs
Disney Interactive: Jan. 29th, 2013: 50 employees laid off
Valve: (Makes of Half-Life): February 13th, 2013 30 Employees Laid offhttp://www.forbes.com/sites/danielnyegriffiths/2013/02/13/layoffs-at-valve-senior-staff-among-rumoredreported-departures/
Sony: January 28th, 2013 Major layoffs
Activision: February 19th, 2013 Major Layoffs http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/122232-Activision-Realigns-With-Layoffs-and-New-Focus
Funcom: Jan 25th, 2013 Closes Beijing, layoffs elsewhere: http://www.neoseeker.com/news/22039-funcoms-beijing-studio-to-close-staff-layoff-in-montreal-and-north-carolina-locations/
Dreamworks: Feb. 7th, 2013 Several hundred upcoming layoffs http://www.businessinsider.com/dreamworks-animation-layoffs-2013-2
Technicolor: Feb. 21st, 2013 Closing Facility
THQ Jan. 23rd, 2013 Studio Closure, Massive Layoffshttp://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/01/23/thq-layoffs.aspx
Eurocom Dec. 23rd, 2012
Double Negative Oct. 20th, 2012 Layoffs of 150-200 individuals http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/sky-falls-in-for-bond-workers-as-effects-firm-slashes-jobs-8218096.html
THE RACE TO THE BOTTOM
Although the green square on facebook makes reference to the behind the scenes of VFX, CG Feature Animation is suffering the same layoffs and outsourcing. Artists at big studios working on intellectual properties fear losing their job. Staff positions with benefits and sick days no longer exist. Newbie animators with little to no experience are being hired and trained only to find a sink or swim attitude. If the newbie doesn't cut it in production, they are let go. You get three weeks to prove you can work at the same level as a seasoned artist. The race to the bottom is about to hit rock bottom. The next few months, will reveal what is in store for the industry as a whole.
I could go on about this topic, but I think this a good time to stop, take a breath and see what happens next. I will say this. I love to animate. I had fun when I first started in the business. I won't return unless the biz model and culture changes, though. I am hopeful there will be change. Artists are not asking for much... live where they already have planted roots and/or own their house and not have to uproot their families to find work every 6 months, work a respectful 8 hour day, fair pay, benefits, health care, and the like.
In the meantime, here are some more articles on the subject.
http://www.kcrw.com/etc/programs/tb/tb130225vfx_industry_in_trou
http://www.animationmagazine.net/vfx/vfx-community-reacts-to-ang-lees-oscar-speech/
http://www.fxguide.com/quicktakes/visualeffectsprotestatoscars/
http://thebigsocialpicture.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-oscar-protest-that-you-didnt-know.html
http://www.studiodaily.com/2013/02/getting-our-piece-of-the-pi-for-real/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/feb/25/oscars-protest-life-of-pi
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/oscars-2013-vfx-artists-blast-424304
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/24/jaws-oscars-life-of-pi-_n_2756380.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Life of Pi - Behind the Scenes with Ang Lee
Life of Pi Associate Producer and author Jean-Christophe Castelli presents a behind the scenes look at the making of the film in a special event, February 9 at Fiber Flame Studio.
The long time confidante of director Ang Lee and author of "The Making of the Life of Pi" will be on hand to talk about the magic behind the four year journey to make this year's hit film.
(Woodstock, NY) January 24, 2013- Jean-Christophe Castelli, long time associate of director Ang Lee and author of "Making of the Life of Pi" will be on hand for a special talk and book signing event hosted by Pondicherry of Woodstock in collaboration with The Golden Notebook.
The event will be held at Fiber Flame Studio in Saugerties on February 9 from 5:30-7:00pm and proceeds will benefit the Woodstock Film Festival. Life of Pi, directed by Lee who spent time in Woodstock while shooting his previous film Taking Woodstock, has garnered 11 Academy Award nominations. The film is Lee's most profitable film to date grossing nearly 500 million dollars worldwide, however it did not come easily as the book was long considered unfilmmable.
The filmmaker spent nearly four years developing the story and planning how to film the monumental tale of a boy stranded on a boat with a tiger. Jean-Christophe will give anecdotes and the back story of the making of Life of Pi as well as talk about the technical magic which went into making the film. Tickets for the event are $15 and can be purchased in advanced at www.woodstockfilmfestival.com.
For more information contact the Woodstock Film Festival at 845.679.4265 An Ang Lee autographed copy of the book will also be auctioned off. This special event is sponsored by Pondicherry of Woodstock, The Golden Notebook and Fiber Flame Studio.
ParaNorman Booklet
PARANORMAN
Available to Own on Blu-Ray, DVD, Digital Download & On Demand
Story: The new 3D stop-motion comedy thriller from animation company LAIKA, reteaming the company with Focus Features after the groundbreaking Academy Award-nominated “Coraline.” “ParaNorman” is, following “Coraline,” the company’s second stop-motion animated feature to be made in 3D. In “ParaNorman,” a small town comes under siege by zombies. Who can it call? Only misunderstood local boy Norman (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee), who is able to speak with the dead. In addition to the zombies, he’ll have to take on ghosts, witches and, worst, of all, grown-ups, to save his town from a centuries-old curse. But this young ghoul whisperer may find his paranormal activities pushed to their otherworldly limits.
CLICK HERE to view/download an interactive booklet and experience a closer look at the members of the filmmaking team and their handiwork.
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Thursday, January 10, 2013
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Toy Story 3:Behind the Scenes
A friend of mine pointed this article out to me from this months Wired Magazine online. It's an quick read on some of the behind the scenes work that goes into a Pixar's film over the life of three years. It has some good examples and breakdowns. Head on over and check it out here.
Enjoy
JP
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