(onlocationvacations.com)
Production Starts on Sci-Fi Pic "Life Tracker"
(comingsoon.net)
Red and Tan Productions announced today that principal photography has commenced in Los Angeles on their latest feature film Life Tracker. Written and directed by Joe McClean (How to Make a David Lynch Film), the movie stars Matt Dallas (ABC Family’s “Kyle XY,” The First Ride with Wyatt Earp), Rebecca Marshall (Saw 3D) and Barry Finnegan (How to Make a David Lynch Film).
Life Tracker is produced by Sarju Patel and Debbie Vandermeulen and is executive produced by Baron Davis and Marshall. The film is described as follows:
In the near future, a new device has emerged to detect the time of death of every man’s life through DNA analysis. A modern day palm reading, the device has ignited fear and paranoia throughout the world. The film follows an aspiring filmmaker, Dillon (Barry Finnegan), who chronicles the hysteria and stumbles upon the mystery behind Life Tracker Limited, the company behind the device. With the help of his friends, Scott (Matt Dallas) and Bell (Rebecca Marshall), they embark on a thrilling journey to find the real story behind the science, testing their friendship and faith along the way. Are the predictions true? Is a person’s lifespan ingrained in one’s DNA? The race is on to uncover the truth.
Weta Digital's Theory Behind Oscars' Tintin Snub
(3news.co.nz) Flight of the Conchords star Bret McKenzie got the nod in this year's Oscar nominations - but what happened to Tintin?
Was it a deliberate snub or just an oversight that saw it left out.
The Adventures of Tintin was not just nominated at the Golden Globes last week - it won.
But there was little love for Steven Spielberg and Sir Peter Jackson from the Oscars academy today, Tintin's glaring omission from the best animated feature and visual affects categories touted as one of the biggest snubs of the awards.
“I think that was a really big oversight... Not to recognise those achievements,” says Joe Letteri, senior visual effects supervisor for Weta Digital.
Mr Letteri's Weta team was responsible for the Tintin motion-capture animation, and he has a theory about why they missed out.
“The visual effects branch didn't recognise it, because they thought it was animation, and the animation branch didn't recognise it because it was using performance capture and visual effects techniques.”
Weta Digital was not entirely shut out of the Oscars, the perennial Oscar winner got the nod for their work on Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
“That's pretty good news to wake up to,” says Mr Letteri.
Eliminating Outsourcing: Obama Administration to Kill Tax Incentives?
(wgme.com) At last night's State of the Union Address, President Obama proposed eliminating tax incentives that make it more attractive for companies to ship jobs overseas. The proposal would require American companies to pay a minimum tax on their overseas profits in order to prevent other countries from attracting U.S. businesses with unusually low tax rates. Obama also wants to eliminate tax deductions companies receive for the cost of shutting down factories and moving production overseas. Instead, Obama wants to create a new tax credit to cover moving expenses for companies that close production overseas and bring jobs back to the U.S. He also wants to reduce tax rates for manufacturers and double the tax deduction for high-tech manufacturers in order to create more manufacturing jobs in the U.S.
Full article: http://www.wgme.com/template/inews_wire/wires.national/ 2eb9abcd-www.wgme.com.shtml
Tech Magic Behind ‘Best Visual Effects’ Academy Award Nominees
(techland.time.com)Pre-visualization work for Rise of the Planet of the Apes was done in Canada by Image Engine and the groundbreaking visual effects were created by Weta Digital in New Zealand. Both visual effects studios used Autodesk Maya at the core of their creative pipelines – Weta’s use of performance capture technology as well as its ... systems to create hair, eye and muscles helped create an extremely detailed, believable and realistic CG main character in Andy Serkis’s chimpanzee.
Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon’s lead visual effects houses ILM and Digital Domain used sophisticated animation techniques to humanize the transformer robots and display emotion through detailed facial animation. Lucasfilm Animation in Singapore also created 235 shots in stereoscopic 3D using Autodesk’s Digital ... Entertainment Creation software.
MORE
Full article: http://techland.time.com/2012/01/25/photos-the-five-movies- nominated-for-best-visual- effects-academy-award/#rise_ of_the_planet_of_the_apes
Sci-Fi Horror Film Sets Up at Sony
(justjared.buzznet.com)Ryan Murphy is set to write a sci-fi/horror movie for Sony Pictures, Variety reports.
The 46-year-old Glee and American Horror Story co-creator will pen the script, which is currently untitled, with Apollo 18 writer Brian Miller. Ryan will produce the flick with John Palermo, whose past projects include Drive and X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
The story is being kept under wraps – can’t wait to hear more about it!
Ryan is currently working on The Normal Heart, which is based on the Tony Award-winning drama of the same name.
Could the Next ‘Toy Story’ Be Rendered in the Cloud?
(mashable.com) Pixar, the animation studio behind Disney favorites like Toy Story, has made it easier and faster for artists and studios to create high-quality imagery.
The company teamed up with GreenButton, a cloud services company, to offer RenderMan On Demand. Now, any complex 3D animation can be rendered in a fraction of the time while being hosted in the cloud.
“Working within a tight deadline has always been difficult, especially when rendering animation at the very last minute,” said beta tester Nicolas Chaverou, a Golaem Crowd Project Manager. “In spite of the time difference, the process was very straightforward, asset upload and distribution on the cloud, and 54 minutes of cloud rendering later it was in a wrap instead of the 20 days it would have otherwise required.”
The new service is targeted for small and medium-sized studios that use Microsoft Windows. In the coming years, RenderMan On Demand will grow to include larger studios as well.
VIDEO - Take a look: http://mashable.com/2012/01/25/pixar-renderman-on-demand/
VFX Artist Aaron Sims Creates " Archetype", An Awesome Short Sci-Fi Film
Aaron Sims is one of the most successful special effects artists and art directors in Hollywood today, having worked on everything from Men In Black to Sucker Punch. But he has yet to helm a feature film as director. That might all change as the internet buzzes over his latest passion project. Archetype is a seven-minute short that puts lots of major sci-fi films to shame:
Wow. In less than 10% the time of an average movie (and with “zero budget”, in Simms words), Simms has shown better special effects and more heart than in most sci-fi thrillers. I have to admit that as a stand alone piece, I wish the short had a little more of a story arc, with a definitive ending; of course, I realize that this probably isn’t meant to be a stand alone film, and will hopefully tease studios into ordering up 90 more minutes of Archetype.
If Hollywood vets and workhorses making amazing sci-fi shorts is becoming a trend, I’m excited. Back in September, a commercial director named Dan Trachtenberg made an awesome short film based on the video game Portal, and I’m sure tons of artists out there have great ideas for gritty, human science fiction stories.
VIDEO - Take a look: http://live.drjays.com/index.php/2012/01/24/watch- archetype-an-awesome-short- sci-fi-film/
VFX Oscar Nom: The Contenders' Reactions
(hollywoodreporter.com)
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON
"There is nothing like it,” said Transformers: Dark of the Moon’s VFX supervisor Scott Farrar of receiving what is his sixth Oscar nomination. (He won the trophy for Cocoon.) “I got up, made coffee… picked up my mobile phone and saw what was happening. The first call was from Miles Perkins (ILM’s director of marketing and communications).” Farrar—who is currently working on World War Z—said of this year’s VFX nominations: “Every (nominated) movie is a different style; that is cool. The work is getting really good. It is an exciting time.” -- Carolyn Giardina
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
Senior VFX supervisor Joe Letteri of Weta Digital received the news that the Rise of the Planet of the Apes team had been nominated for its VFX from Wellington, where he is working on The Hobbit. “I woke up and checked email, and had a bunch of congratulations,” he said. “It feels great, it’s really pretty exciting.” This is Letteri’s sixth nomination for VFX work. He has won Oscars for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, King Kong and Avatar. “I enjoy using visual effects to create characters. It seems that was what was recognized this year,” he said, citing not just Apes, but several fellow nominees. “There is something that connects with the audience.” He added: “We still have a lot to do today (on The Hobbit). We’ll celebrate tonight.” Letteri is nominated for the VFX on Apes with Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett. -- Carolyn Giardina
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: REAL STEEL
"My producer called my cell phone at 5:45, but I wasn’t asleep,” said Real Steel VFX supervisor Erik Nash of how he learned of his second Oscar nomination. “It feels great; I felt it was a long shot because it was such a huge year for visual effects. It’s a real honor.” The bot fights in Real Steel were created on a motion capture stage, in advance of principal photography. “The virtual production pipeline enabled us to shoot the movie in 71 days, which for a VFX movie is short, especially as there was no second unit. … I think it opened some eyes to ways to do different types of effects. (Virtual production) added flexibility and efficiency that could be game changer." Nash is nominated for Real Steel along with John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg. -- Carolyn Giardina
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: HUGO
“Everybody was up early,” said Hugo VFX supervisor Rob Legato, who learned of his third Academy Award nomination at home. He previously won an Oscar for Titanic. “My daughter woke up early, put on the TV. We watched the announcement and then went to the website." “It’s such a rare thing, it wonderful how supportive and gracious everyone is,” he added of the congratulations that he received. “For me, it is the calibre of the collaborators, starting with Marty,” Legato said of Hugo. “He has an adoration of movies -- making them and watching them. Everyone shared that… It is a collective of all of these great artists making a movie about a great artist.” Hugo’s VFX nominees are Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning. -- Carolyn Giardina
‘The Hobbit’: Andy Serkis says Gollum is ‘Printed Into My DNA’
(herocomplex.latimes.com)Hero Complex sat down with Serkis earlier this month in a video chat with readers to talk about “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and his other projects — including Peter Jackson’s upcoming two-part adaptation of “The Hobbit” and Steven Spielberg’s current release, “The Adventures of Tintin” — and what performance-capture technology means for the future of acting, animating and filmmaking. Here are a few highlights from the interview.
On returning to Gollum for “The Hobbit”: Gollum’s never really gone too far away from me because he’s indelibly kind of printed into my DNA now, I think. I’ll tell you what was weird is going back and playing a character that has been so sort of absorbed into public consciousness that you almost don’t feel like you own it anymore. And to sort of gather it back — I mean, I did feel, I think, probably in the first couple of days going back into it that I was sort of doing a weird impersonation of him rather than being him because there have been so many spoofs and people’s impersonations and so on, and some people’s impersonations are really great. And I’m kind of thinking, “Oh gosh, that’s how to do it, yeah.” And you know, then you get back into it. … Meaningfully getting back into it was really exciting.
On performance-capture technology: Actors often ask that question, “Are we going to be replaced by digital characters?” I think this is all part of the bigger debate about the notion of what performance capture really is all about. For me, I’ve never drawn a distinction between live-action acting and performance-capture acting. It is purely a technology. It’s a bunch of cameras that can record the actor’s performance in a different way. In terms of animation, animators are actors as well. They are fantastic actors. They have to draw from how they feel emotionally about the beat of a scene that they’re working on. They work collaboratively. They all have to understand the psyche of the role that they’re developing. And that will never change. It’s an art form. It’s like saying, “Well, now that photography has arrived, nobody can paint anymore.” Or, “Now that we’re shooting on digital, nobody can use film anymore.” No one’s saying anything is to the exclusivity of anything else. … Without taking away any of the visual effects work that animators and visual effects artists and programmers and technicians in the visual effects world, in my mind, it is a form of digital makeup. … But look, Pixar’s not going to go away. All of those great animation studios, they’re doing fantastic, beautiful work with scripts that are just brought to life in a different way. … [Performance capture is] such a liberating tool. I am quite evangelical about it to other actors because I think it’s such a wonderful — it’s a magic suit you put on that allows you to play anything regardless of your size, your sex, your color, whatever you are. As long as you have the acting chops and the desire to get inside a character, you can play anything. so I long for it to be accepted by the acting profession so that it can proliferate.
‘Pixar in Concert’ Part of Hollywood Bowl 2012 Line-up
(stitchkingdom.com)Just a week prior to Disney D23′s ‘Destination D: 75 Years of Disney Animation’ at the Disneyland Resort, the Hollywood Bowl will pay homage to more recent animation from Disney/Pixar with the ‘Pixar in Concert.‘
According to the site’s description, ‘from the Toy Story trilogy to The Incredibles and Up, Pixar has forever changed filmmaking and given audiences of all ages some of the most beloved characters in cinematic history. Now, for the first time ever, the Hollywood Bowl presents “Pixar in Concert,” with visually stunning clips and memorable scores from each of Pixar’s movies (including its latest release, Brave) performed live by the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.’
‘Pixar in Concert’ will be performed August 3-5 with the conductor to be determined at a later date. Currently only subscription holders can purchase tickets to the event (new subscriptions available today). The event will also be available as part of the ’5 or more’ package beginning March 13, with remaining tickets available to the public in early May.
VFX Artist Says ‘Potter’ Best Pic Snub ‘A Shame’
(latimesblogs.latimes.com)Warner Bros. campaigned heavily for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” with hopes that the final installment in the eight-movie series could get some awards attention in best picture and best adapted screenplay categories. But the Oscar nominations announcement revealed Tuesday morning that the fantasy film would only get attention in technical and craft categories.
The movie, based on the second half of J.K. Rowling’s seventh book in her beloved series, received Oscar nominations for visual effects, makeup and art direction.
“It’s a shame it didn’t get more nominations in categories like best picture,” said Tim Burke, one of the filmmakers sharing the visual effects nomination. “It’s difficult to know quite why ['Harry Potter' films] are often shunned by the academy and especially in the U.K. -– where it’s homegrown –- with the BAFTAs. Maybe it’s negative response to the commercialism, that these are very successful films at the box office that puts people off.”
Burke said he was still “absolutely thrilled” to learn about his nomination when he saw several texts from friends and family from London upon waking up in his Los Angeles hotel room. The visual effects artist is currently in L.A. working with Disney on a project in development.
Burke, who supervised visual effects on all eight “Harry Potter” movies, earned Oscar visual effects nominations for two other films in the franchise. He won the award in 2001 for “Gladiator.”
Despite any lingering disappointment at “Harry Potter’s” snubs in other categories, Burke noted there’s still cause for plenty of butterbeers and fire whiskeys -– or at least the Muggle alternatives.
“There will be a few drinks when I get back to London with my crew,” Burke said. “We’ll have a little toast to the success of ‘Harry Potter.’”
1st Science Fiction Movie Filmed in Space Stays Underground
(space.com) A new documentary about space tourist Richard Garriott's flight to the International Space Station is hitting theaters now, but the sci-fi movie he made aboard the orbiting lab remains under wraps.
"Man on a Mission," which opens today (Jan.13), chronicles Garriott's journey to the station in October 2008, a trip that cost him $30 million of his own money. While up there, the video-game designer made a playful eight-minute film called "Apogee of Fear," with some standout acting assistance from a Russian cosmonaut and two NASA astronauts.
"Apogee of Fear" is the first science-fiction movie ever made in space, Garriott said, and he would like to let the public see it. There has been some demand, with the Smithsonian Institution even asking to put the film in its permanent archives because of its historical value.
But NASA hasn't given the necessary go-ahead, according to Garriott.
The Ham-Handed 3-D Effects That Ruin Hugo
(slate.com) Oscar-voters were filled with wide-eyed wonder at Martin Scorsese’s Hugo, nominating the film for 11 Academy Awards this morning, the most for any film. Notably, Hugo is the third 3-D film ever to be nominated for Best Picture, and, like Avatar two years ago, it has a shot at winning for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects, too. The Academy was dazzled!
I don’t get it. Some films in 2011 made brilliant use of 3-D—Cave of Forgotten Dreams and Pina come to mind—and many did a fine job, adding stereo effects that enhanced the action without getting in the way. For me, the 3-D in Hugo was the opposite.
There are, first of all, several distracting moments where Scorsese “breaks the stereo window,” by having an object pop out off the screen toward the audience. While a few 3-D cinematographers have argued that this ought to be avoided at all costs—that everything should extend backwards, away from the audience (as if the action were unfolding through a window)—most deploy the pop-out effect as an occasional gimmick, to remind the audience that they’ve paid for a premium ticket. Think of the paddle-ball sequence from 1953’s House of Wax:
In Dial M for Murder, Alfred Hitchcock chose to break the stereo window only twice: First, when Grace Kelly reaches out of the screen as if to ask the audience for help when she’s being strangled; and later on, when a key piece of evidence is finally revealed. Hugo’s pop-out effects have no such logic: They appear to serve no purpose at all. The one that sticks in my mind is when Scorsese has the train inspector’s dog poke its snout into the theater—a nosy, eye-crossing special effect that induces more annoyance than pleasure.
There are a few lovely visual effects in the movie—the chase up the clock tower, for example—but, for the most part, the 3-D felt brutish and clumsy, as if Scorsese were trying to beat child-like glee into me with a metal rod. Consider the end-credits sequence, delivered in an old-fashioned-looking parade of title cards. The text appears above and below a horizontal squiggle, with stars in the corners. Simple enough, but Scorsese layers a 3-D effect over the frame, such that the stars are out inexplicably in front of the credits, while the squiggle hides behind them. Why set up this confusing visual space? Oh right, it’s… the… magic… of… cinema.
Beyond the special effects, Scorsese’s film dispenses with internal logic for the sake of would-be enchantment and film-nerdery. The image shown in the movie’s poster, for example—of Hugo clutching the hand of a giant clock—is a contrived reference to a Harold Lloyd bit. But the action doesn’t make a bit of sense in context. Hugo is hiding from the train inspector and hanging on for dear life, though the ledge is just a few inches below his feet, and he could just as well have hidden there instead. Then there’s the scene in Hugo where a screening of the Lumières brothers’ seminal L’arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat causes panic in the theater, as audience-members duck out of the way of what they think is an oncoming train. It refers to a famous moment in film history that may never have occurred.
The movie is so in love with its source material, and so devoted to spectacle as an end in itself, that it loses all sense of what might motivate a nifty visual in the first place. It’s not surprising, then, to see that the Georges Méliès movies that inspired Hugo—and which take up a significant portion of its run-time—fell victim to the same hubris of special effects more than 100 years ago. Go ahead and watch one. Disappearing chairs and magic pixie dust were innovative in 1905, but they’re tiresome today. The same could be said for the 3-D in Hugo: Its cornball effects are stuck in the past.
Animation Oscar Nominees React to Happy News
(animationmagazine.net)We were lucky enough to catch up with some of the talented artists who were nominated for Oscars this morning. Here is what they had to say about waking up and getting the big courtship call from Mr. Oscar himself!
Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Jennifer Yuh Nelson, director of Kung Fu Panda 2:
“I was in bed and watching the news on my laptop. It feels absolutely amazing, wonderful and overwhelming. When we started the project over two and half years ago, nobody was even thinking about awards. Today, I’m going to just go to work at DreamWorks and hug, kiss and congratulation a lot of people. It’s going to be great to see so many happy people. This year, I’m developing a new project at the studio, but I can’t tell you much about it because it’s all very hush-hush!”
“Today’s nomination is a huge boost of encouragement for the hundreds of dedicated cast and crew that have created such a beautiful film. I am deeply proud of what we have achieved together and honored by the Academy with this recognition.”
Chris Miller, director of Puss In Boots:
“I was in bed, unconscious at the time the news was announced, because I couldn’t go to sleep last night. I got the call from [publicist] Jerry Schmitz who gave me the good news. He was the first human I spoke to this morning. It feels absolutely great, surreal and thrilling at the same time. I’m in a dreamlike state. We had zero expectations when we were making the film. Our focus was simply making a film that we would be proud of, and we had the best time making it.”
“The list of Best Animated Feature nominees is quite amazing. We have hand-drawn films like A Cat in Paris and Chico & Rita from France and Spain, and there’s Kung Fu Panda 2 and Rango, all very diverse and impressive. It’s great to see a mix of technologies represented in this category.”
“I have no plans for the rest of the day. I’ve left it wide open. I’m beginning to think about my next project. It’s definitely going to be animated. There’s even the possibility of a second Puss film. It’s all fun to think about. Thank you to the Academy on behalf of the entire cast, crew, our swashbuckling cat and his boots! This is beyond a thrill…and I’m pretty sure I’m awake.”
Gore Verbinski, director of Rango:
“It is an incredible honor to be nominated this morning. We set out to do something different with Rango, and this distinction is a testament to everyone who tirelessly dedicated themselves to creating our neurotic lizard. Rango was looking for an audience who shared his love of cinema and I’m humbled that he found one. It has been a remarkable journey, and one that I am grateful to share with our entire creative team, Paramount, and all of the virtuosos at Industrial, Light and Magic.”
Grant Orchard, director of the short, A Morning Stroll:
“Cock-a-hoop. Over the moon. MEGA CHUFFED!!!! We just scrolled down the Oscar website and saw our name there. We went bananas. So much for keeping our cool. We are incredibly, clothes-shreddingly excited.”
Sue Goffe, producer of A Morning Stroll:
“Wow! An Oscar nomination!! On a gray rainy day in London it feels like the sun has come out over a small building in Soho! I didn’t realize a smile could make your face ache so much!”
Enrico Casarosa, director of the short, La Luna:
“La Luna is a deeply personal story for me, and to have it recognized by the Academy is an honor both profound and exhilarating. I know this also means so much to the crew, who believed in this whimsical idea and brought it to life with amazing talent and expertise. On behalf of all of them, I’d like to thank the Academy. This must certainly be how it feels to be over the moon!”
William Joyce, co-director of the short, The Magical Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore:
“We made Morris Lessmore with passion, sweat and every nickel we could rub together. To see it embraced by the Academy is the biggest smile imaginable.”
Brandon Oldenburg, co-director of the short, The Magical Flying Book of Mr. Morris Lessmore:
“Lessmore’ has paved the way for a whole new class of storytelling. We envision a future where stories transcend boundaries between traditional film and written text to transform the art of storytelling into a seamless multimedia experience.”
Graham King, producer of Rango and Hugo [from Variety.com]:
“It is just amazing to see Hugo get all of this love and that Rango got a nomination is a great surprise and a great reward as well. It is especially sweet that Marty at this point in his career can come along and do a (type of) film that he is not known for and get recognition for it. It’s nice to see.”
Scott Farrar, VFX supervisor of Transformers: Dark of the Moon [From hollywoodreporter.com]:
“There is nothing like it. I got up, made coffee… picked up my mobile phone and saw what was happening. The first call was from Miles Perkins (ILM’s director of marketing and communications. Every (nominated) movie is a different style; that is cool. The work is getting really good. It is an exciting time.”
Alain Gagnol, director of A Cat in Paris:
“My first reaction was: I hope it’s not a joke! My second reaction is that American movies are so important to my love of cinema, that nobody can really imagine how happy I am. Thank you!”
George Lucas Never Making Another Star Wars Film
(gizmodo.com.au)Relief or disappointment? Joy or sadness? Ecstasy or depression? The news that George Lucas has told the world he won’t be making another Star Wars film is bittersweet.
Lucas told the New York Times in an interview about his new movie Red Tails that he wouldn’t be making any more Star Wars films:
“Why would I make any more, when everybody yells at you all the time and says what a terrible person you are?”
Fanboys can be so cruel.
Lucas was also stung by criticism about him changing the original trilogy for different releases:
On the internet, all those same guys that are complaining I made a change are completely changing the movie. I’m saying: ‘Fine. But my movie, with my name on it, that says I did it, needs to be the way I want it.’
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