Disney’s “The Jungle Book” took home major honors at the 15th Annual Visual Effects Society Awards at the Beverly Hilton on Tuesday evening. Comedian Patton Oswalt served as host to more than 1,000 guests gathered at the Beverly Hilton to celebrate visual effects talent in 24 awards categories – and to mark the VES’ 20th……
via ‘Jungle Book,’ ‘Game of Thrones’ Dominate Visual Effects Society Awards — Variety
I have had a productive meeting with both of my supervisors Angela and Charlotte to review my current progress on my research. We disused my primary research, which focus on the survey and interview with professionals in visual effects companies. I also reported my experience of conducting survey with professionals in visual effects companies located in London Soho area. Further more we discuss my trip to Siggraph Asia conference in 3rd of December. I also received feedback on my writing about the industrial contexts of digital compositing networks in UK. The advices on my writing are very useful, which includes adding more discussion about the diagram and wordle picture in the body of the article. The discussion of our meeting also includes the method of critical analysis of my research data and overall structure of my thesis. My supervisors also encourage me to make plan for publish my research on Journals.
We have achieved the following action plan after this meeting:
1. I will email the link to my survey monkey survey to all of the contacts I have obtained so far in VFX industry.
2. Prepare the poster for the coming Siggraph conference
3. Develop a marking system to make effeciet notes on the survey after conducting them for the purpose of further analysis
4. Make notes while conducting my survey face to face and get audio recorder to record any oral feedback from VFX professionals if it is possible.
5. Identify relevant academic journals for publishing my research
6. Keep contacting with targeted interviewee as well as work hard on conducting survey and interview in order to get as more primary data for my research as possible.
7. Identify trade journals to publish my interview with VFX companies if my interviewee. Prior to contacting trade journal I will inform my interviewee and get their permission first.
8. keep posting my survey on Siggraph Aisa mailling lists, conducting the survey during the conference time as well as interview the VFX community coming to the conference.
9. Reconsider the structure of my whole thesis. By the end of Jan, 2015 I will submit a edited chapter plan with my critical analysis of the primary data I have obtained so far in each chapter.
I had a supervision meeting with my supervisor Angela on 25th, October for my research. We review my current progress in Writing as well as primary research. We discussed my writing about the UK contexts of visual effects industry and my research questions list for British Film Instituion regarding the recent changes in film tax relief. After this meeting I will take action in the following points:
1. Contact SIGGRAPH Asia conference committee and propose to exhibit a poster. I will also send them my enquiry for carrying out interview on the conference to collect data for my research.
2. Research into the trade show that my targeted interviewee might attend and explore chances to put poster there and interview them.
3. Keep writing about my research
4. Visit BFI in london and research into their documents as well as finding more interview chances
5. Design a questionnair and visit the targeted visual effects companies in Soho London
6. Draft a interview questions lists which contains ten questions and send to Double Negetive visual effects companies in London.
7. contacts more visual effects companeis overseas
8. Keep research into trade journals
I have met my supervisor today to review and plan my research. We have discussed my current researches into UK and Australia contexts of the visual effects industry, the analysis of the information from the website of visual effects society (http://www.visualeffectssociety.com), as well as theoretical readings such as the recent research of Aylish Wood Talk about Maya.
We have made the follow progress during the discussion :
1. I will create a list of all visual effects companies in the transnational compositing networks that I could identified and visualise the datas of these companies and their locations on map. More research will be done into these companies in order to gain more accuracy of my research and also deeper the understanding of the transnational compositing networks.
2. Get in contacts with wider institutions such as BFI and Creative England to gain datas relating to the market, policy, and other context of British Visual Effects industry and their links with British Film industry. The overall aim of contacting them is to defining the key factors for the further development of Visual Effects industry in UK. Especially I aim to discuss the response of BFI to HM Treasury ‘s consolation for providing further support to visual effects industry, the recent revising of cultural test for film on BFI website in relating to tax relief. According to BFI, there will be an increase on the points of visual effects. The purpose of contacting these institutions also includes finding answer to questions such as why British Film such as the Young Victoria and the Hunter Lockers chose visual effects from overseas.
3. Be active and send more interview request letters to the visual effects companies the I plan to interview with. Further research them through analysis of trade journals. Keep Follow up with the existing contacts that I have already made with the companies.
4. Analysis how the compositors/ visual effects supervisors are trained in relating to UK contexts as the HM Treasury ‘s consolation for providing further support to visual effects industry highlight that training and education of employees work for the VFX industry is crucial to the current development of the industry in UK. I will research into the relevant training providers in UK and the education backgrounds of the key compositors and visual effects supervisors in UK. Further interview could be conduct with the professionals and institutions who involved in the eduction of them.
6. Building contacts with more organisations such as Screen Australia to gain deeper understanding the national contexts of the translational compositing networks. For example I aims to get further discussion of the article Visual Effects, Australian envelopment which is published on Australia Government website through contacting Screen Australia. Specially how frame the national evolvement of visual effects industry in this transnational networks.
7. Building contacts with Visual Effects society to get broader networks for this research.
8. Archive the source and writings of this research projects. Get both digital (includes backup) and printed our versions the materials and data of this research.
9. Do 500 words writing practice very day to reflect on the research and readings of the day.
10. Draft 200 words abstract for this research
Useful Links,
Website of visual effects society :http://www.visualeffectssociety.com
HM Treasury ‘s consolation for providing further support to visual effects industry: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/264920/PU1603_Visual_effects_summary_of_responses.pdf
Screen Australia: http://www.screenaustralia.gov.au
BFI cultural test for film: http://www.bfi.org.uk/film-industry/british-certification-tax-relief/cultural-test-film
BFI Award for UK films and British talents in 2010 :http://www.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/downloads/uk-film-council-awards-for-uk-films-and-british-talent-in-2010-2011-03-10.pdf
I have been working on the analysis of the interview with Pixomondo Beijing and trying to illustrate the connections among Pixomondo Beijing and other factors visually.
I have met with both of my very supportive supervisors Angel Piccini and Charlotte Crofts on 22nd of April to discuss the progress of my research. The purpose of the meeting includes reviewing the current progress of my research, preparing upgrade interview and planning tasks such as further readings and interview with professionals in the VFX industry.
I have received very constructive advice from both of my supervisors and the outcomes of the meeting includes:
1) Action points for getting ready for the upgrade interview on the 16th of May which are in-depth reading of the materials I submit and trying to identifying any possible gaps by myself; wider reading and increase the understanding of the border fields of theory and methods in film studies in order to get a deeper critical understanding of the methods/theories I choose for my research; generating a note for me to effectively communication my research ideas with upgrade examiner orally.
2) Schedule for processing my research. After the meeting, I will focus on building further contacts with visual effects companies that I planned to interview which aims to get an understanding of the contemporary practice and networks of visual effects industry for digital compositing. I will also prepare a more specific interview questions lists in relating to each company and the key films that I am researching into. I will also further analysis the trade publication in relating to the key films and continually generate maps/chats and other visual materials to illustrate the different layers/types of networks during the process of compositing practice. My supervisors also advice me to be aware the accountability and editorial police of the trade publications in order to avoid possible bias of their opinions.
3) Theoretical readings. During the discussion, we also identify the needs for me have a deeper understanding of theories relating the networks of practice/actor-networks theories such as Bourdieu, John Law, Knorr Cetina, Comolli, Wood and Foucault. I will write annotated bibliography while doing the theoretical readings.
I have been analysing the interview I did with the head of the production in Pixomondo Beijing. The interview is structured along themes relating digital compositing, for example the communication between post-production companies and production companies before and during the making of Hugo (2011, Martin Scorsese); the frequency and topics of communication between visual effects producers in Beijing with compositors and visual effects supervisors before and during the post-production period; the cooperation between different post-production companies on the film; the influence of the location of the companies on its operation; the experience of the organization of the multi-production network; identification of the influence of post-production companies on the aesthetics of film.
Special thanks to Pixomondo Beijing for your contribution to this research project.
One of the important aims of digital compositing and visual effects is to achieve photorealistic effects in Hollywood cinema. I have been reading literature that discussing this topic. I am writing this post to share what I have read and I think in relating to photorealists effects of digital compositing: Scholars such as Prince (1996 and 2001), Rodowick (2007), Giralt (2010) and Davies (2012) focus on to what extent digital imaging practices challenge theories about the nature of cinema, especially that of its relationship with reality. During the history of film theory scholars such as Bazin (2005), Cavell (1979) and Kracaucer (1997) believe cinematic realism is associated with the concepts of indexicality between the photographic image and its objects. The others such as Metz (1974) state that one of the important ways film affects audiences is to represent their impression of reality. The reason for the discussion of realism and the digital visual effects is that the computer-generated images on one hand do not have the indexical relationship with reality. On the other hand, computer generated images could be combined with other source of images through digital compositing to persuade audience what they see is real or the audio-visual recording of reality.
Regarding photorealistic effects in cinema, Prince (1996) suggests a new ground for realism critics, which are based on “perceptual and social correspondences, of how the cinema communicates and is intelligible to viewers” (28). Prince (2011) further argues that computer technology equips filmmakers with numerous tools for producing more convincing effects, which are closer to the visual experience of audience in the real world than what analogue film can achieve. Giralt (2010) argues that digital postproduction technology offers more possibility and potential for filmmakers to produce and visualize the “subjective reality” (14), which is their imagination or interpretation of the real world. As a result the artistic purpose of visual effect film directors shifts from representing reality to the mastery of using technology. Davies (2012) believes that the lack of indexicality of digital images does not have significant influence on the concepts of realism and reception of cinema. He explains that these digital images still aim to achieve a photographic reality and generate the same effects and feelings for the audience. Furthermore, Rodowick (2007) indicates digital compositing covers the natural look of digital images and give birth to a new imagery, which is the “the composition of elastic reality” (170). Furthermore it also shifts the object and focus of traditional “perceptual criteria for realism” to “imagination, fantasy, and the counterfactual powers of possible worlds”(170).
The above discussion about realism and digital compositing is mainly focused on the final composition in film text, in which the works of digital compositing mean to be invisible. For example, in the first scene of visual effects breakdown of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012, Peter Jackson). The scholars above are concerned mainly with the outcome of digital compositing, which is the character Gandalf’s interaction with the Hobbits in their Hobbit hole. However as shown in the video, digital compositing is a process, during which the images of the characters and different backgrounds of the scene in Hobbit were being manipulated and put together. Therefore, further research need to be done to reveal the process of compositing, especially relating to the current industrial workflow for the creation of digital visual effects in Hollywood cinema. Furthermore, the researchers discussed above indicate that digital composting offers more space and chances for the influence of human on the compositing. The human influences identified by them are: the perception of the compositor as well as the audience (Prince: 1996), and the imagination of filmmakers (Giralt: 2010). This research will investigate more about the way that the factors influence the look of composition during the process of digital compositing.
Reference:
Davise ,D.(2011), Digital Technology, Indexicality, and Cinema Rivista di estetica, 46(1).
Giralt, G. (2010), Realism and realistic representation in the digital age. Journal of film and video,62(3),3-16.
Prince, S. (1996), ‘True Lies: Perceptual realism, digital images and film theory’. Film Quarterly 49 (3), 27- 37.
Prince,S. (2004), ‘The Emergence of Filmic Artifacts: Cinema and cinematography in the digital era’. Film Quarterly 57 (3), 24-33.
Prince, S. (2011), Digital visual effects in cinema: The seduction of Reality. Rutgers University Press, US.
Rodowick, D.N. (2007), The virtual life of film. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England.
Creative Skill Set, which is the licensed Sector Skills Council for entertainment media, fashion and textiles, publishing and advertising, marketing and communications in UK lists the following points for understanding career in visual effects industry:
1. VFX is a team sports
2. VFX needs both efficiency and creativity
3. VFX is not about single software solutions is about the pipeline
4. Deadlines are real deadlines
5. Somewhere, there is a client
You are working towards a clients satisfaction
6. Explaining yourself and communicating your ideas to the team are important
7. VFX is often about creating photoreal imagery, but only within the context of making the image believable and familiar within the world being portrayed.
8. Realising what works visually and how to mimic it are core skills across VFX.
9. Being able to dissect both shots and tasks into constituent steps or elements is a highly prized skill that needs to be worked on.
10. The best Visual Effects tool is paper
11. The visual effects Lexicon
(As with any discipline or sector, there is a shared language across VFX companies that enables clear communication of concepts and day to day processes.)
12. VFX is cinematography and maths-If you’re an artist don’t worry, this isn’t essential (just as life drawing isn’t for a programmer) but an appreciation of what each other needs to know will help you bridge the artist-techie gap. It’s really about thinking logically and mental arithmetic.
13. Computer literacy with UNIX/LINUX is essential in today’s VFX house
14. Optics: Understanding how the eye works, how it can be fooled and even directed to certain areas of the screen, is useful.
15. Film Theory : Film theory can be really useful if you can apply it
to practice.
16 VFX is not new. A sense of pre-CGI VFX history and context can help understand where we are now, culturally as well as technologically, and can open new insights into current practice.
Background: HM treasury ran a consultation between 21may to 2 July 2013 on options for providing further support to the visual effects industry through tax system. This consultation is responding to part of the announcement of the UK chancellor at Budget 2013. Now HM treasury are analysing the feedback and will publish the result soon.
Policy context:
According to the policy context of this consultation document of HM treasury, the Government is committed to supporting the creative industries, which were identified in the Plan for Growth as having the potential to drive significant growth in the UK. This includes providing targeted support for the creative industries through specific spending and tax measures.As part of its wider ambition to support technological innovation and to help the digital, creative and other high technology industries grow, the Government is now looking to explore options to further support the visual effects industry through the tax system.
Key points for this consultation:
The Government are responses from external stakeholders in the following key points:
• the current size and composition of the UK visual effects industry;
• details of the economic and cultural contributions of the industry;
• any recent trends within the industry; and
• the factors driving any change within the industry and their likely longer term impacts.
They are seeking responses from external stakeholders
The responses will inform its decision on providing further support for the visual effects industry through the tax system.
This consultation and related document provides useful context for understanding visual effects industry in UK. It informs me to look further about the influences of government policy as well as tax system on the development of visual effects industry. And also its impacts on Spec its the global visual effects market as well as the position of UK in it. For example, the costs of doing visual effects in UK, the number of visual effects companies in UK, practitioners and their skills.
Moreover this consultation document states that their decision will be made on if visual effects industry has cultural benefits to UK. After reading this, I am if it is possible or in which way visual effects can embody certain culture? Moreover according to the report on screen digest, South Korean and Chinese government seeking cooperation to support the visual effects industry in this two. How about other countries such as US, Australia and Canada? If their governments are providing support for their visual effects industry? And what are the consequences of these government involvement in this field? Are they leading to the visible of their culture in the visual effects films? I will do more reading about this point.
Digital Compositing and visual effects in Contemporary Popular Cinema 