Iron Man 3 Eyes North Carolina Shoot

(Latino Review)                Though the armored hero will make his presence known on the big screen next summer as part of the superhero ensemble, The Avengers, Marvel Studios is already prepping Tony Stark's next solo adventure with Iron Man 3. While the first two Iron Man films shot primarily in Los Angeles, Latino Review reports that the third outting is eyeing production in Wilmington, North Carolina.

If all goes according to their reports, Iron Man 3 will take over 10 sound stages at the city's Screen Gems Studios with production targeted to begin next June.

Little is known about the plot of the film, but Shane Black will take the director's seat (replacing the first two films' Jon Favreau) and will lend his writing talents to the script by Drew Pearce. At this time, Robert Downey Jr. is the only confirmed cast member, though it's highly likely that Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle will be returning as well.



Thor,  X-Men & Star Wars Top the DVD Charts

(SuperHeroHype)               The Hollywood Reporter says that Paramount Home Entertainment's Thor topped the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert sales chart for the week ending September 18, pushing X-Men: First Class down to second place.

The two both beat "Star Wars: The Complete Saga," which took third but also cost a lot more than the two superhero titles.

Thor also topped Nielsen's dedicated Blu-ray Disc chart, with "Star Wars" coming in at No. 2 and X-Men: First Class slipping to third. Thor generated 61% of its sales from Blu-ray and X-Men: First Class, 54%.

On Home Media Magazine's rental chart for the week, Thor also received the top spot and was followed by Something Borrowed, Everything Must Go and Paul.

Thor has earned $449 million at the worldwide box office, while X-Men: First Class took in $353 million globally.




Avoiding the Uncanny Valley: How to Keep Your Animations from Creeping People Out

(animation.about.com)                So...recently, I finally caved in and watched the Green Lantern film with Ryan Reynolds. I'd been avoiding it for a number of reasons, among them being that as much as I like Ryan Reynolds, the choice of him for this role just felt strange to me. What was even more strange, though, was the CGI used in the film - especially for Reynolds' superhero garb as the eponymous Green Lantern. In the commercials it bothered me on a deep-seated level, with that mixture of comic-book exaggeration combined with oddly realistic (but anatomically incorrect) textures and oh, hey, Reynolds' real head on top of it, in many instances. Opinions on the quality of the film itself aside, Green Lantern definitely hit the Uncanny Valley for me. There are just a few rules you don't break when blending CGI and realism - that is, if you don't want to squick people into leaving the theater.

The Uncanny Rules:    http://animation.about.com/od/relatedtopics/a/Avoiding-The-Uncanny-Valley-How-To-Keep-Your-Animation-From-Creeping-People-Out.htm



Cameron Previewing New Cirque du Soleil 3D Movie

James Cameron and Vince Pace, co-founders and co-chairmen of Cameron | Pace Group, have started to preview 39 minutes of stunning new footage of a Cirque du Soleil 3D movie, directed by Andrew Adamson and shot using CPG’s Fusion 3D camera system, for industry audiences.

The production, which does not yet have a title, is a partnership between Cameron, Adamson and Cirque du Soleil and uses a new story as a device to weave together acts from various Cirque du Soleil shows, such as Ka, with its climatic battle on a vertical stage, and O, the water-themed production that includes an acrobatic act on a ship that floats above the pool of water.

“The performers are in jeopardy the entire time,” Cameron said of the shows. “The 3D camera gets right up there with the performers, you feel the height when they are performing 90 feet above the floor. You see the amazing physicality of the performance--the strength, the grace, the beauty.”

The multi-camera production was lensed both during actual performances as well as during separate shoots.

“We combined all of the newest technology innovation for this production. The footage is spectacular,” Pace said.  “CPG delivered ‘Slate2Screen’ services including 23 Fusion 3D systems and a new underwater Fusion 3D system, Fusion H2O/20.”

The Fusion 3D camera system has been used on productions from Avatar to Justin Bieber: Never Say Never to coverage of live events such as the recent US Open tennis championship.

Theatrical distributers for the Cirque du Soliel production have not yet been announced.




Art Directors Guild Pushes to Organize Previs Artists

(AWN News)                             The Art Directors Guild has launched a new website called Artists for Direct Action (http://www.directactionartist.com) that is encouraging previs artists to organize. The site calls for artists to contact the Guild to obtain and sign an IATSE representation card, highlighting the fact that their employer will not be notified that they signed this card. The Guild is looking to gain representation of a major of previs artists in order to negotiate a union contract for the workers.




Captain America 2 Likely for 2014

(comingsoon.net)                With two new films hitting in the next two weeks (Puncture and What's Your Number?), Chris Evans has been making the press rounds. The Playlist caught up with the actor and managed to get a question out about potential upcoming appearances as Captain America in Marvel Studios' cinematic universe.

“They may wait until 2014 until they release the next 'Cap'," he said, "Marvel has a lot of balls in the air. They aren’t going to cannibalize their films.”

That means that after appearing in next summer's The Avengers, Steve Rogers is likely going to lay low for two years, presumably then taking over one of the already-announced Marvel release dates of either May 16 or June 27, 2014. Unlike Robert Downey Jr., who appeared between Iron Man and Iron Man 2 in The Incredible Hulk, Evans suspects that cameos are out. Contracted for six films altogether, Evans believes he'll split his roles between three Captain America films and three Avengers films.

“Out of those six films, if I pop up in one of those [other films], it counts as part of the deal," he continued, "So if they needed me in a third 'Cap', and I say, ‘F--k you, give me $30 million,’ well, they want to avoid that.”




Talking Tech: James Cameron at the 3-D Summit

James Cameron, director of the film 'Avatar,' discusses plans to open an Avatar-themed land, first at Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida, at a news conference at Disney Imagineering in Glendale,
Avatar director James Cameron and business partner Vince Pace stopped by the 3-D Entertainment Summit in Los Angeles this week to talk up 3-D, and their go-go plans to go forward with more 3-D in the future.

The leaders of the Cameron/Pace Group, which works with sports broadcasters such as ESPN and CBS Sports on 3-D sporting events, and films, including an upcoming production from the theatrical group Cirque du Soleil, sat down with us after their keynote to talk 3-D.

VIDEO - http://content.usatoday.com/communities/technologylive/post/2011/09/talking-tech-james-cameron-at-the-3-d-summit/1



"Monster" Director To Helm "Thor 2"

Patty Jenkins is in early talks to helm the "Thor" sequel for Marvel Studios and Disney Pictures says Variety.

Jenkins directed acclaimed 2003 indie drama "Monster" and has since worked on TV shows like "Entourage," "Arrested Development" and more recently the acclaimed two-hour pilot for AMC's "The Killing".

The hiring of Jenkins is decidedly unconventional, but so was the hiring of Kenneth Branagh for the first film which collected $447 million at the worldwide box office, a risk that definitely payed off.

Jenkins beat out another acclaimed cable series director who was previously linked as the favourite - "Game of Thrones" episode helmer Brian Kirk. Kirk opted out during negotiations.

Others reportedly considered for the job include the likes of Drew Goddard ("Cabin in the Woods"), James McTeigue ("Ninja Assassin"), Noam Murro ("300: Battle of Artemesia") and Breck Eisner ("The Crazies").

Don Payne, who co-wrote "Thor," is writing the sequel which is already scheduled for a July 26th 2013 release.




GREEN LANTERN Coaster CGI

VIDEO - Take a look:    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2wVj57vLus




Visual Effects Community Releases Bill of Rights

(hollywoodreporter.com)                 The Visual Effects Society—representing roughly 2400 members in 23 countries—has released a Bill of Rights that aims to address issues affecting its industry including the downward spiral of VFX working conditions and facility profit margins. These and related issues were outlined in an open letter to the entertainment industry that VES produced several months ago.

The VES board of directors unanimously voted to approve this new Bill of Rights, which addresses topics including overtime, credits, change fees and ownership of intellectual property. Input in developing the document was solicited by VES in numerous meetings, blogs, and forums with entertainment industry representatives.

“It is list of aspirations and things that we’d like to see people come together and try to achieve,” Eric Roth, executive director of VES, told The Hollywood Reporter.

But with directives to keep costs down and many VFX facilities operating on razor-thin margins, he added: “We recognize that there are various pressures on each of these components to allow these pieces to go forward. This is going to have to be collaborative and with tons of education.

“At this time we have engaged in a vigorous dialog with key stakeholders at all levels and believe our Bill of Rights lays out the vital concerns of each segment of the industry. Our next step is to focus on bringing all parties together to seek solutions.”

Roth noted that some of the items in the Bill of Rights--including credits--have been subjects for collective bargaining and would therefore be a “future focus. … by bring people together and trying to do what’s right.”

VES is an honorary society and doesn’t have collective barging power. Separate from VES, two unions--IATSE and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers--are trying to organize the field.

The complete text of the Bill of Rights follows:

VISUAL EFFECTS INDUSTRY Bill of Rights

The Situation Today

The global visual effects industry is in transition. Because visual effects now play a central role in today’s feature films, television programming, animation, video games, commercials and virtually all forms of entertainment, they have become critically important to the entertainment industry.

43 of the top 50 films of all time are visual effects driven. Today, visual effects are the ‘movie stars’ of studio tentpole pictures – that is, visual effects make contemporary movies box office hits in the same way that big name actors ensured the success of films in the past.

It is very difficult to imagine a modern feature film or TV program without visual effects. Visual effects drive the entertainment marketplace which entertains billions of people across the globe, and earns billions of net profit dollars each year.

Technology, local tax policies and the current business model have transformed the visual effects industry over the last 30 years from a provincial business with a few locations primarily in California, working on a relatively small number of projects, to a global market of projects and providers. Though the number of jobs has grown worldwide, job security and working conditions have significantly eroded.

Caught in these changing conditions are the visual effects artists, practitioners, and facilities that actually do the work and are finding the business landscape more difficult to navigate. In some parts of the world, many artists and practitioners do not have access to health care coverage (primarily in countries without nationalized health care); in many areas of the world, non-paid and unchecked overtime, lack of access to pensions and day-to-day job security are key issues facing visual effects artists and practitioners. Similarly, many facilities are experiencing tremendous difficulties keeping their doors open because they are finding out that their current business models are broken.

The Visual Effects Society (VES) is an honorary Society of artists and practitioners, and is currently the preeminent visual effects organization in the industry. Our mission is to further the art and science of visual effects, to address conditions impacting artists and practitioners, facilities, directors and studios, and to reflect the needs of our membership, therefore enhancing the artistic and business lives of our members around the world. Addressing these challenges will require the collaboration and cooperation of all sectors of the entertainment industry.

In response to this environment, the VES offers this visual effects Bill of Rights, and a dedication to work with the entertainment industry at large to transform the visual effects industry into a model that is mutually sustainable for artists and practitioners, facilities and studios.

Therefore be it resolved that:

A Visual Effects Artist or Practitioner has the right to:

--A clear understanding of the work he/she is being hired to perform, including knowing what they are being paid per hour, per week or per job, as well as the duration of the assignment, with strict adherence to all local labor laws and tax codes regarding overtime, sick time, vacation time, working conditions, safety and other aspects of a professional work environment. This would include a minimum of an industry-standard turnaround between work shifts;

--Negotiate a modification in the terms of employment should the realities of the position change in any material way, or decline work that is outside the terms of the employment agreement;

--Quality health care coverage no matter where in the world he/she may be working;

--Be paid on time;

--Work under conditions conducive to the work they are expected to perform and the creative process it entails;

--Be given a reasonable amount of notice when being asked to work overtime. If asked, to be able to turn down such requests without reprisals;

--An appropriate and certifiable credit;

--Show their work after the project is commercially released for the purpose of securing more work.

A Visual Effects Facility has the right to:

--A clear and reasonable deal memo with the artists and practitioners for hire delineating the scope of the work, the schedule from commencement to completion, and the agreed upon price;

--A clear and reasonable contract, signed before their work begins, with the producers or studio hiring the facility, delineating the scope of work, production schedule and payment schedule;

--Expect to make a fair and reasonable profit for work performed;

--Expect the highest level of professionalism from artists, practitioners, and studios;

--Turn down projects, or additional work on projects already awarded, without fear of reprisal on future projects;

--Charge for material changes and delivery schedule changes that impact the ability to deliver or the quality of work to be delivered;

--Retain ownership of their intellectual property and proprietary tools;

--Fair and reasonable credit for services rendered and/or risks taken;

--Show their work after the project is commercially released for the purpose of securing more work.

A Studio has the right to:

--A clear and reasonable contract delineating the scope of the work, the schedule from commencement to completion of the project, and the payment schedule based on the agreed upon price;

--Be informed in a timely manner before incurring any excess charges, delays or problems with work for which it has contracted;

--Shorten or lengthen a schedule as long as they are willing to compensate facilities;

--Change direction on any aspect of the show in question, as long as it fairly compensates facilities and artists and makes the necessary contractual and time accommodations, on any changes that affect them;

--Expect professional work from facilities, artists and practitioners;

--Expect a high degree of productive collaboration between facilities on shows that have multiple visual effects facilities working on the same project;

The Future

These goals must be sought with an overriding concern for improving the artistic quality and value of the films, TV shows, commercials, animation and new media we produce.

We believe that achieving these outcomes – which will benefit visual effects artists and practitioners, visual effects facilities, directors and production studios – will be a collaborative process. This Bill of Rights is only a starting point for a meaningful discussion that will unfold over the months ahead. Each geographic community that is involved in the crafting of visual effects has different needs. VES’s goal is to play the role of catalyst to bring together all the participants in the entertainment industry who interact with visual effects.

This Bill of Rights is also a “bill of responsibilities:” it must be implemented in a manner that strengthens the visual effects industry. We recognize that the responsibility of moving this program further lies primarily with the VES. This is a global issue---by working together, we will benefit together, and so will the entertainment industry at large.




VFX Time Warp:   2008 VES Awards Outstanding Models & Miniatures

VIDEO - Take a look:    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-QXNdONCgo




James Cameron Wants to Certify 3D Filmmakers

(thewrap.com)                James Cameron wants to create veritable Good Housekeeping seal of approval for 3D filmmakers.

The “Avatar” director and 3D evangelist told TheWrap Wednesday that his company, the Cameron-Pace Group, has developed just such a certification process for 3D filmmakers.

“We want to be the Dolby of 3D,” he said.

He said that Real D handles that function on the display side, but no one’s doing it for filmmakers.

Also read: James Cameron on 3D and 'The Lion King': 'All It Takes Is Greed'

A "Cameron-Pace Group-certified" stamp of approval would do just that, he said.

Cameron added that he wants the certification program to be a way for filmmakers to know that they’re using 3D technology in the best possible way.

“It’s about the planning, the acquisition … delivering it to display,” he said. “We want to work with the filmmakers, we want to work with the standards entities  … to create a consensus about the best practices and standards on the way the set is run, the cameras are used and so on.”

He said any company that uses his group’s services -- rents its equipment, for instance -- will be eligible for certification.

They’ll pay for the services, he said, but not for the certification.

“Any company that works with us is going to have the benefit of our 12 years of experience doing it not right in a sense of, there’s a right and a wrong, but in a way that’s qualitatively better for the audience ... We’ll show you how to do it in a way that doesn’t hurt peoples’ eyes.

“We’ll work with everybody who’s out there doing something in 3D to create a consensus around best practices, standards and so on.”

Of course, Cameron is a busy man, so finding time to set up the certification process will be its own challenge.

“I’ve got a window of time now before I really knuckle down on ‘Avatar’ day to day, which will be after the first of the year, to really get this company launched to the next threshold and after that it’s just a time management issue,” he said.




Want to dine with George Lucas?

(marquee.blogs.cnn.com)                   Through Friday September 23, you can bid on one-of-a-kind "Star Wars"-related goods on eBay - including dinner with Lucas. (Francis Ford Coppola, John Lasseter, Chris Columbus and Phillip Kaufman will be there, too!) Other items for bid include a "Star Wars" edition 2012 Volkswagen Passat and over 100 collectibles.

The current bid for dinner with Lucas at the time of this post was $8,550...so like we said, save up if you're interested.

Bid today:   http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290607988421&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT#ht_4993wt_1270