Computer Animation Arts

"Star Wars Concept Trailer" by The DAVE School graduating class of August & October 2017 This film trailer was made by a group of graduating students from the DAVE school in Florida. It uses live action and 3D to recreate Ralph McQuarrie's original concept art for 'The Star Wars' (based off of an early draft script written by George Lucas in the early 1970's). Watch and enjoy....and make sure to WATCH THE END CREDITS. "A long time ago in a galaxy far far away... we might have seen a version of Star Wars that featured a Han Solo with green skin and gills, Stormtroopers with lightsabers, and a female heroine named Luka Starkiller. Many of these anomalies can be seen in concept artist, Ralph McQuarrie's early illustrations of the Star Wars universe. While looking back at these early paintings we can't help but wonder what Star Wars would have been like had it remained loyal to the concept art and early drafts of the script. The DAVE School gradua...

"Jackie Chan - How to Do Action Comedy" by Every Frame a Painting Some filmmakers can do action. Others can do comedy. But for 40 years, the master of combining them has been Jackie Chan. Let’s see how he does it. "Buster Keaton - The Art of the Gag" by Every Frame a Painting Before Edgar Wright and Wes Anderson, before Chuck Jones and Jackie Chan, there was Buster Keaton, one of the founding fathers of visual comedy. And nearly 100 years after he first appeared onscreen, we’re still learning from him. Today, I’d like to talk about the artistry (and the thinking) behind his gags

"The Early Animated Films" by The Royal Ocean Film Society The early history of animation is widespread and worldwide, and chalk full of marvelous films showcasing the lengths to which animation can strive towards. Let's take a look at a handful of filmmakers and the technical innovations they developed that got us from the turn of the century to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Peter Ellenshaw - Matte Painter and VFX Pioneer (Documentary) by VFX Geek Peter Ellensaw started work at Walt Disney Studios beginning with their first completely live action feature film, Treasure Island (1950). He went on to work on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) and Mary Poppins (1964), for which he won an Academy Award. He retired after his work on The Black Hole (1979), but contributed matte paintings for Dick Tracy (1990). His son Harrison is also an Academy Award-winning effects designer. After Peter Ellenshaw retired from the film business, he dedicated his life to his passion for painting. Numerous works were created, of both Disney and non-Disney themed subjects, which have been highly collected. He was named a Disney Legend in 1993.

"Smell-O-Vision, and Other Glorious Gimmicks" by The Royal Ocean Film Society At its purest, the theatrical experience has always consisted of an individual sitting down in a dark theater watching a bright screen and nothing else, however for many years there have been those who've tried adding onto that experience in wild, obnoxious, or just plain goofy ways. Let's dive into the gloriously hammy world of film gimmicks.

"Star Wars - Episode IV Sound Design Explained by Ben Burtt" by In-depth Sound Design Legendary sound designer Ben Burtt (Lucasfilm, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and more) explains how he 'found' the iconic sounds for Star Wars from the world around him.

"How MacGuffins Can Ruin Movies" by Just Write MacGuffins are ubiquitous in Hollywood blockbusters, and are often the root cause of overly simplistic storytelling. In this episode, I take a look at the pitfalls of using this narrative device, as well as 5 ways to make this trope more interesting, unique and effective.

" "The Life and Death of 3D" by The Royal Ocean Film Society The Royal Ocean Film Society explores the history of trying to make the movie going experience 3D (Stereography) and the latest attempt and decline.

Ben Burtt is an American sound designer and the winner of four Academy Awards . He has worked as sound designer on various films, including the Star Wars and Indiana Jones film series, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), WALL-E (2008) and Star Trek (2009). He is most notable for creating many of the iconic sound effects heard in the Star Wars film franchise , including the "voice" of R2-D2 , the lightsaber hum, the sound of the blaster guns, and the heavy-breathing sound of Darth Vader . Burtt is also known for "voicing" the title character, Wall-E, in the 2008 Pixar movie WALL-E . He also created the robotic sound of Wall-E's voice, along with all the other characters in WALL-E, and was the sound editor of the movie. (Extract from Wikipedia... See his full bio here...) Part 1 Part 2

With over 9 million views in one day, just dropping this here for anyone who hasn't already seen it.   Looks quite fun, heck it  is  about Dory after all. Let's hope it's fin-tastic ! (sorry)

Hey Everyone. I thought this was an interesting thing to share, to see the making of Avengers and how so much details is being put in to visualise if the scene will work in the movie. Age of Ultron Previs Reel from Chris Olsen on Vimeo .

A great montage of the physical style and comedy of the amazingly talented Buster Keaton (1895 - 1966)

It's already old news that Disney's pop-culture behemoth Frozen is gay-propaganda... What?  You haven't heard the theories that make Frozen the gayest movie of the year?  Here's a quick summary for those of you who've not been paying attention, courtesy of Steven D. Greydanus @ www.ncregister.com . "With her ice powers, Elsa is notably different from other people. “Born this way or cursed?” asks the troll king, and her parents confirm that she was born that way. Nevertheless, her difference is an occasion of fear and secrecy. Misguidedly, her parents teach her to “conceal it, don’t feel it.” This repression of her true nature leads to isolation, anxiety and finally a meltdown at Elsa’s coronation, at which she inadvertently outs herself, revealing her ice powers for all to see. Regarded with fear and revulsion by others, Elsa defies the society that has rejected her as well as the unjust strictures placed on her by her parents, celebrating her ...

This is very useful! The Basics of Lighting for Film Noir from FilmmakerIQ.com on Vimeo .

A delightful bauble of Hitchcockian lustre!  This gave me a small, delicious thrill.. .

Below you can find a series of production videos released by Imageworks  which reveal the impressive pipelines behind the intricate VFX seen within 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2'. These range from the build up of each shot, through to animating the characters and compositing each pass.

'The History Of The Movie Trailer'

Martin Scorsese has always been an extraordinary man, not only due to his own directorial achievements, but also because of his huge knowledge and love for the history of cinema. Scorsese has not only marked his name in the time line of the art form, but also spent countless hours discussing, preserving and  documenting the history that he is now a part of. Video Essay: "The Martin Scorsese Film School" from Flavorwire on Vimeo . This recent video essay by Flavorwire discusses some of the films that make up a brief history of cinema. You can find out more at www.nofilmschool.com or visit www.fastcocreate.com for a list of the films. (Ignore their utterly stupid, hyperbolic titles and the comments section.)

'In 1977, a specific award category for visual effects was reintroduced with the current name, "Best Visual Effects"...'

Some top-notch smoke and mirrors from Blur Studio , as seen in the recent Thor sequel. Blur: Thor: The Dark World VFX Breakdown from Blur Studio on Vimeo .