LOADING P A G E , please Wait..................


.
      

Friday, April 04, 2008

SWAY Energizes Two-Spot Campaign for Pontiac


+ SWAY studio’s work on the new action-packed campaign introducing the 2008 Pontiac G8 explodes from the screen with thrilling driving action and great-looking CG environments. Currently airing nationwide, “Spy Hunter” and “Mine,” both :30-spots for Leo Burnett, Detroit, were created using SWAY’s renowned photo-real lighting techniques, as well as its secret weapon, the proprietary Drive-A-Tron™ driving simulator.

Spy Hunter
An homage to the classic 1983 Bally Midway arcade game, “Spy Hunter” opens with the vintage graphics and addictive theme music that captivated arcade fans over two decades ago. Under attack by a Switchblade vehicle wielding wheel-mounted tire slashers, the beloved G-6155 Interceptor is destroyed by the Mad Bomber helicopter. As the red truck pulls up to replace the hero car, a seamlessly integrated photo-real Pontiac G8 appears, races down the ramp and takes off swerving around dropping bombs and out-maneuvering enemy cars, leaving its nemeses in its dust.

To showcase the superior performance of the G8, SWAY introduced several “close call” hazards, such as tight turns, a large water puddle and a giant explosion. SWAY’s proprietary Drive-A-Tron driving simulator, which allows for real-time, interactive, accurate and realistic automobile animation, was even programmed to include Pontiac’s StabiliTrack and anti-lock braking. This gave the CG G8 more traction control and quick stopping capability.

Mine
“Mine” showcases a beautiful virtual playground, full of high-speed twists and turns. Sharp gradients, incredible turns and a giant loop add to the excitement of the life-size Hot Wheels track. For this spot, SWAY built a sleek and modern environment in CG, where all components and lighting features were designed to appear true to real life, in an effort to create a believable event spot. It takes place inside a giant blimp hangar, which in reality would be the only location large enough to house the construction of such a track. Once the track was complete, SWAY animators, as well as the agency, were able to virtually perform all stunt driving using the Drive-A-Tron simulator.
Realistically, “Spy Hunter” and “Mine” could only exist in fully CG worlds, yet it was important that the G8 could perform precisely as the actual car would. “The use of the Drive-A-Tron allowed us to create the action very efficiently and effectively,” said Chris Nichols, SWAY VFX supervisor. “The stunt driving performed by the simulator was possible due to the use of real physics simulation to achieve all the driving action, resulting in no actual animation of the G8 in either spot. This campaign really showcases just how sophisticated the Drive-A-Tron technology is.”

SWAY is one of the top animation, effects and design studios in North America, with the aim of advancing the artistry of visual content, enabling exciting new creative ideas in any media. SWAY’s world-class artists use cutting-edge and innovative technology to produce unforgettable imagery. SWAY’s headquarters is located in Culver City, Calif. For additional information on SWAY studio, visit its website at www.swaystudio.com.

Labels:

| PermaLink |        

Friday, March 07, 2008

damnfx wins kudos at Visual Effects Society Awards event


+ damnfx is proud to have received a Visual Effects Society award for Best Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project, for work delivered on Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure, an IMAX 3D stereoscopic film directed by Sean Phillips and produced and distributed by National Geographic.
damnfx Creative Director Mark Dubeau, who designed most of the underwater creatures, brought the VES trophy back to the studio following an emotional awards ceremony at the Kodak Grand Ballroom in Los Angeles: “It’s great to know that your peers look upon your work in such a flattering manner. The entire crew poured everything they had into this production, and they deserve the credit. Extra thanks to our department heads - they kept their crews incredibly motivated and productive.”
Visual Effects Supervisor Derek Wentworth, who oversaw shot production and final delivery at damnfx, added: “Sean Phillips’s deep understanding of IMAX and stereoscopic cinematography was invaluable as it was the foundation on which all of our work was built. And VFX producer Jack Geist’s steady stewardship was instrumental in maintaining an easy working relationship between everybody and keeping the FX houses in sync.”
Furthermore, damnfx would like to congratulate cinematics director CJ Cowan and his team at Bungie Studios, for snagging a VES award for Best Real Time Visuals in a Video Game for Halo 3, the wildly popular XBOX360 video game. damnfx contributed over 20 minutes of key-frame character animation to the game’s cinematic sequences. “We are extremely proud to have executed on the cinematic content for Halo 3,” said damnfx animation director Emilio Ghorayeb. “CJ Cowan was an engaging and focused director with tremendous foresight. We are incredibly thrilled that his vision, and the support given by his producer James McQuillan, have been honored by the Visual Effects Society.”
damnfx is an award-winning visual effects and animation studio located in Montreal, Canada, devoted to creating high-end digital imagery for film, television and commercials. The studio currently houses a team of over 80 artists and industry professionals, and its client/credit list includes Microsoft/Bungie, Sony Pictures, France 2, Marathon, BBC, Discovery Communications, National Geographic Society, Cirque du Soleil, TVA, Cossette Communication, and Galafilm.

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Saturday, February 16, 2008

SWAY Drives Effects for Multi-Spot Toyota Corolla Campaign


+ SWAY studio recently added liveliness, detail and a touch of whimsy to the 2009 Toyota Corolla campaign entitled “Through the Roof” for Saatchi & Saatchi LA. With their renowned image-based lighting and animation techniques, SWAY’s team of artists delivered over five minutes of moving live action, 2D matte painting and full 3D shots, contributing to multiple customized regional :30 second commercials as part of this modular-based national campaign.
“Through the Roof” began airing in local markets across the country on Feb. 9. It features the Corolla sweeping through a striking environment of green countryside and urban landscapes on a mission to absorb available features typically found only in luxury cars: satellite radio, leather trimmed seats, an MP3 jack, Bluetooth® capability, traffic control and navigation, and more. SWAY’s computer graphics and matte painting techniques were combined with a live miniature set to create the extraordinary backdrop. “The challenge of this project was to create a balance between real and surreal,” said Chris Nichols, VFX supervisor at SWAY studio. “The directors at Buck were inspired by a miniature set, but we needed to make it appear believable on a real-world scale. SWAY’s advanced compositing, image-based lighting and animation methods were able to bring this feeling to life and further proved our ability to work with any type – or size – of environment.”
Working with the miniature set, SWAY meticulously collected tracking and lighting data to ensure that each car was correctly integrated into the shot, allowing the final product to appear believable on a real-world scale. SWAY’s team then utilized their data to exactly match the camera, geometry and lighting to make certain that each car’s movements, lighting and shadows matched precisely. SWAY employed their proprietary Drive-A-Tron™ driving simulator to create the exact movements made by the Corolla. Instead of using traditional animation techniques, Drive-A-Tron allows SWAY artists to literally get behind the wheel and drive the car on even the most challenging CG terrain, creating the desired performance without compromising the reality of the driving. “The Drive-A-Tron provides SWAY a large advantage over other studios, allowing us to complete the most precise and detailed animation available,” said Mark Glaser, owner and creative director of SWAY. “Using this proprietary tool over the past three years has allowed us to perfect these difficult animation techniques making SWAY the studio to call upon for automobile animation.”
>> Watch da Spot - Click here video

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Imaginary Forces Creates Magical Sequences for "The Spiderwick Chronicles"



+ On February 14th, the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies feature film, “The Spiderwick Chronicles,” will open nationwide. Based on the beloved best-selling series of fantasy adventure books, the film opens with a riveting prologue created and produced by entertainment and design company Imaginary Forces (IF). Filmmakers also tapped IF to produce two key flashback sequences in the film, the whimsical end titles, as well as the teaser trailer. The prologue, flashback sequences and end titles were designed and directed by IF Creative Director Ahmet Ahmet. They were produced by IF’s Kathy Kelehan.
"I can't imagine ‘The Spiderwick Chronicles’ without the incredible contribution Imaginary Forces made to three crucial sequences,” says Director Mark Waters. “Ahmet [Ahmet] and Kathy [Kelehan] and their team added texture and nuance and mystery in a way that really sucks the audience into the world of Spiderwick." “Imaginary Forces definitely lived up to its name,” adds Producer Kathleen Kennedy. “Between crafting a lush and lyrical title sequence and shaping the look and style of segments within the film itself, their creative contributions to ‘The Spiderwick Chronicles’ really helped to elevate the story’s magical realism. I look forward to collaborating with them again on future projects.” The suspenseful opening sequence takes viewers back 80 years to the secret study of Arthur Spiderwick. For the two-day prologue shoot at Paramount, Ahmet collaborated with renowned Director of Photography Caleb Deschanel. “Ahmet and the team from Imaginary Forces brought great ideas and a wonderful visual and rhythmic sense to all the sequences they created for Spiderwick,” comments Deschanel. “They worked with Mark Waters to develop the storylines, then found powerful visuals to get those ideas across. They were a delight to work with, and the results of their work made everyone involved in Spiderwick excited and proud. Ahmet’s end titles make you want to stay to very last note of the movie – clever and fun. I look forward to getting a chance to work with them again.”
“Working with this team of talented filmmakers enhanced the entire process,” concludes Ahmet. “There was a level of dialogue that allowed us to hone our ideas, and focus on the storytelling and creative content within the sequences to produce something quite unique. The sequences, while imbued with magic and mystery, are set in a tangible scientific world. Spiderwick’s meticulous documentation of scientific discoveries in his field guide, coupled with the macro photography of collected specimens, lab jars and collaged book pages, helped to propel the narrative and convey his obsessive character.”

Labels:

| PermaLink |        

Friday, February 08, 2008

Method Studios Delivers Bridgestone Super Bowl Spots


+ Method Studios the innovative Los Angeles-based visual effects and animation studio, collaborated with Director Kinka Usher on a new campaign for Bridgestone via The Richards Group. Aimed at “drivers who want to get the most out of their cars,” “Scream,” and “Unexpected Obstacles” aired during Sunday night’s Super Bowl while “Lucky Dog” began airing yesterday. Designed to highlight the enhanced traction of Bridgestone tires, “Scream” and “Lucky Dog” take a clever look at other things on the road, presenting both real and CG animals while “Unexpected Obstacles” takes a slightly different turn with celebrities Alice Cooper and Richard Simmons. “This project seamlessly unites 3D and live action,” says Method’s Andy Boyd, lead 3D artist on “Scream.” “It is always our philosophy to shoot as many elements in-camera as possible, just because it looks best that way. On these spots, of course, real animals couldn’t do exactly what we wanted them to, so we had to create photorealistic 3D animals that could cut directly with live action footage to give us the performance shots needed to sell the story. Delivering at HD1080 resolution, close-ups of the animals faces was a huge challenge, there was no way to cheat; they just had to be perfect. The quantity and variety of animals meant great fun for our team of artists.”
>> To Watch spots, please visit:
Scream - Click here
Lucky Dog - Click here
Unexpected Obstacles - Click here

Labels:

| PermaLink |        

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Warner Bros.(MPI) and Prime Focus - Form Strategic Alliance


+ Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging and Prime Focus have entered into a strategic alliance that will allow both companies to expand their abilities to offer their state of the art digital post production capabilities to filmmakers on a global scale. The agreement will provide filmmakers around the world with access to the expert talents and services both companies have been providing through their state of the art facilities. It also allows both companies to manage their workflows more efficiently between Warner Bros. MPI in Burbank, and Prime Focus’s facilities throughout multiple locations in India and London as well as in New York, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Los Angeles.
The two companies will be able to move content seamlessly from facility to facility, using the most cost efficient method, which will allow them to process work in the time zone that most closely meets individual filmmaker’s needs and schedules. It is also expected that Prime Focus’ world class digital VFX capabilities will compliment and enhance the offerings and services required by the increase of local productions developed globally.Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging (MPI) is a state-of- the-art post-production facility. Located on the Warner Bros. Studio lot in Burbank, MPI’s services and experts are equally available and have been used by Warner Bros. films as well as those of outside clients. MPI is also a leader in the field of film preservation and restoration and has developed a unique and patented process to digitally restore classics from the vast Warner Bros. Studios film and television library as well as those of other clients. The facility has received safety certification to store and work with nitrate film stock.
Prime Focus offers a comprehensive spectrum of services ranging from editing, visual effects, digital film lab (Digital Dailies, DI, film scanning and film recording), film restoration and remastering, camera and motion control rentals for film, television and advertising productions. The company was founded in 1997 and continues to expand to offer clients in film, television and advertising the industry’s top talent and technologies from premium facilities around the world. After achieving a leadership position in India and successful establishment in the UK, in December 2007, Prime Focus acquired Post Logic Studios and Frantic Films which are the two specialized post production and visual effects companies in North America. Currently the group employs nearly 1500 people and operates out of facilities in India, London, New York, Winnipeg, Vancouver and Los Angeles.

Labels:

| PermaLink |        

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

The Mill & Psyop Get Juicy with Orangina



+ After a two-day, highly detailed and choreographed motion-capture shoot involving professional dancers performing the moves and acting out the central story, , a basic edit was completed, to be replaced later on with the 3D animated characters. The Mill’s 3d team led by CGI & Animation supervisor Juan Brockhaus then took all the motion-capture data in to ‘motion builder’ where it was mapped to the rough 3D models to establish the timings of the edit. It was then brought into XSI, where hand animation of details such as fingers and facial expressions was carried out including some major re-animation of the characters. It was one thing motion capturing a dancer and quite another translating human motion to that of a ten foot high giraffe! Meanwhile, the Mill’s environment team were busy collaborating on the look and feel of the scenery, mixing 3D elements such as grass, shrubs, trees and the stage with matte paintings for the landscape. In-house tools gave the Mill artists the opportunity to .........Read more!!

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Thursday, November 22, 2007

SWAY Uncorks Animated Dancers for Chandon Sparkling Wine Spot


Top VFX Studio Showcases Ground-Breaking Animation Techniques; Owner and Creative Director, Mark Glaser, Serves as Spot’s Director
+ Capturing the essence of the holiday season, SWAY studio adds life, spirit and a sense of romanticism to the newest Chandon Sparkling Wine commercial entitled “After Party.” SWAY’s talented team of artists combined detailed character animation with high dynamic range imaging (HDRI) and their renowned photogrammetry techniques to add precision and energy to this fanciful spot which is currently airing on select US cable and network broadcast stations.
The :30 spot captures a private moment between two magical characters, evolving from a Chandon bottle’s wire cage and foil, as they share a secret tango among romantic computer generated table top candles, chilled bottles of Chandon, and the sparkle of city lights.
“The challenge in this project was to evoke passion and emotion from characters made simply from foil and wire,” said Mark Glaser, owner and creative director of SWAY. “I was really pleased with the way the characters turned out, especially the woman. She has a lot of personality and attitude. I really wish this was a :60 spot as I would have loved to have had the opportunity to develop these characters even more.” SWAY started with a professional live action tango duo, directing them to create the performance that would be used for the wire characters. Because the dancers were so intertwined at times, SWAY opted to use motion capture techniques, instead of multi-camera video reference. To provide the correct quality of movement, SWAY used the motion capture data applied to the wire characters as a reference to animate the hero wire characters in 3D space. Once the wire characters were moving in 3D via motion capture, Glaser was able to shoot a variety of action coverage as if he had a virtual camera crew and dancers on stage.
“It was important to me that the characters were shot using techniques that would be used if I were shooting real dancers,” Glaser noted. “I didn’t want live action plate shots of a life size camera trying to capture angles looking into the dancers’ miniature world. To help immerse the audience in that world, I wanted the camera to dance with the characters and move at their scale as if we had a 6-inch tall film crew.” To allow complete freedom in shooting the dance sequence, SWAY additionally recreated the entire interior location, including the champagne bottles, table candles and twinkling city lights, utilizing their renowned photo real CG, HDRI, compositing and photogrammetry techniques. The end result is a spot that is almost entirely computer generated as only seven of the 24 shots contain live action. SWAY used a variety of off-the-shelf hardware and software to complete the Chandon spot. The most prominently used tools were NVIDIA Quadro professional graphics boards, Nuke for compositing, Scratch for color grading, V-Ray for lighting and rendering and After Effects for logo treatment. 3ds Max 9 was used as the primary animation tool while Lumonix Puppetshop was also used for final character rigging and animation.

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Monday, November 05, 2007

Framestore CFC : The Age Of Aquariums



+ With almost two million You Tube hits in just a couple of months, the promo for The Salmon Dance is The Chemical Brothers most successful video yet. Its digital fish were bred at Framestore CFC, Visual Effects Studio. Framestore CFC has recently completed work on a trippy, fishy little promotional video for The Salmon Dance, a new single by The Chemical Brothers, featuring vocals by ex-Pharcyde rapper, Fatlip. With a cast of over 300 piscine performers, the video is the latest collaboration between directing team Dom & Nic and Framestore CFC. Drawn from the Brothers' latest album, We Are the Night, the video was produced by John Madsen for Factory Films.
>> Read more!

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Thursday, October 11, 2007

SWAY studio’s VFX work on a recent Nissan Rogue commercial entitled “Seamless”



+ Visual Effects Studio "Sway" delivers New Nissan Rogue Commercial spot, which showcase quite Astonishing Virtual Environment and Ground-Breaking VFX Techniques. For this stunning Nissan Rogue commercial entitled “Seamless,” Sway VFX team integrated live action, motion control and PhotoReal computer graphics (CG) techniques to create an astounding virtual environment. The :30 spot creates the illusion of the Nissan Rogue on a real studio set, surrounded by virtual projection screens displaying the environment through which the car is traveling. The strong CG imagery in “Seamless” allows the viewer to journey in and out of this illusion by creating the impression that the car is actually traveling through a real live environment.
“This commercial required intense planning and pre-visualization,” noted SWAY Visual Effects Supervisor, Wayne England. “An elaborate single shot camera move required many motion control passes to account for the spot’s complex and ambitious nature, but once combined with our photorealistic CG methodologies and compositing, the project gained a great deal of dynamic and compelling motion.”
A precise CG replication of the vehicle’s exterior was seamlessly integrated with a live action interior, which required intense 3D tracking and compositing techniques. This combined with flawless compositing of all motion control passes, allowed the characters inside the car to appear and change as the camera moved throughout the shot. Because the car could not physically move within the visible soundstage setting, the ground beneath the Rogue required a large amount of CG effort for which careful reference photography and high dynamic range (HDR) images were taken. Through texturing and modeling details, the car appears to roll on a large conveyor belt, while simultaneously driving on a realistic road. To further create the Rogue’s apparent motion, SWAY captured live-action high-definition footage using a specially configured three camera rig that collectively captured a 150 degree field of view. The footage was then stabilized, re-timed and projected onto virtual screens which appeared to surround the Rogue. This required considerable synchronization inside the 3D scene, so that the content of the screens would appear in exact alignment with the 3D elements within the shot.
During the live-action shooting process, SWAY additionally captured HDR images of sky environments, and after careful editing, used them as the primary CG lighting source for the entire spot. SWAY utilized a variety of off-the-shelf hardware and software to complete the Nissan spot. The most prominently used tools were NVIDIA Quadro professional graphics boards, NUKE and After Effects for compositing and LightWave for pre-visualization animation. Autodesk’s 3ds Max 9 was used as the primary 3D package while PF Track was used for 3D tracking.
>> Visit Sway Website
>> Watch Nissan Rogue Seamless video

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Monday, October 01, 2007

"Hurt" Great CG music video by LRR



+ Some great inspirational stuff coming your way;... Have a look at this stunning all-CG Music video "Hurt", created by San Francisco based motion graphics and visual effects studio "Little Red Robot" (LRR). The Little Red Robot studio is hired by Capitol Records for creating music video of song "Forever" by their new recording artist "Hurt"....Really Awesome enviroments and you may say; Who need superficial reality when you can create such incredibly unbelievable all-CG visual effects and environments for a music video? (superficial thought :)...The LRR Studio rendered the Music video entirely using NVIDIA Gelato rendering software. You can also check-out the "making of music video", which includes; 3d animation, character development and visual effect techniques used by the Studio.
Little Red Robot studio is run by the directing duo of Hasraf “HaZ” Dulull and Seth Shukovsky with a team of top Visual effects artists, animators and film professionals. For more information and LRR demo reel, please visit www.littleredrobot.com
>> Making of Music Video (vfx) video
>> Hurt - Forever (video) video

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Montreal-based visual effects and animation studio damnfx tag teams on Halo 3



+ damnfx is pleased to announce the completion of 20 minutes of cinematic animation for Halo 3, the third chapter in the immensely popular videogame franchise from acclaimed developer Bungie Studios. Halo 3’s release on September 25, 2007 is one of the most highly awaited entertainment events of the year. James McQuillan, lead producer at Bungie Studios, tapped damnfx to assemble a cinematic animation team capable of everything from subtle, character-driven performances to all-out action sequences, and tasked them with providing some of the character animations for Halo 3’s in-game cinematics. “We wanted damnfx to bring their attention to character detail to our cinematics, their ability to work shots from blocking to final polish and deliver renderable Maya scenes in a very tight production pipeline.” Once incorporated into Bungie’s game engine, these scenes are rendered on the fly by the Xbox 360 in high definition as players reach cinematic sequences.
“Having recently worked on two large format stereoscopic films for IMAX theatres, it was refreshing to focus simply on delivering outstanding animation, while letting Bungie’s Halo 3 game engine worry about lighting, rendering and compositing the shots!” said damnfx executive producer Peter Skovsbo.
CJ Cowan, Bungie’s cinematics director, worked closely with damnfx animation supervisor Emilio Ghorayeb to develop a standard of quality for all of the animation. “Bungie provided us with assets for each shot, from rigged and textured models to layouts for animation scenes, and provided clear reviews so we could maintain our level of quality and deliver on schedule,” said Ghorayeb.
After an initial trip to Bungie Studios outside Seattle last January to mind-meld with Cowan, Ghorayeb and Skovsbo returned to Montreal to gear up for an intense six months of work. Autodesk Maya 3D software was used by a team of 25 animators whose previous projects included such films as The Lord of the Rings, Shrek, King Kong, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Transformers. “One amazing aspect of the Halo franchise is its ability to attract top-notch artists who normally work exclusively on films,” said damnfx producer Chris Capell, who oversaw the day-to-day running of the project. “It’s just that highly regarded as an entertainment franchise.” "It's been a true pleasure working with such talented animators. They took the layout we gave them and were able to add personality, character, and subtle detail that is really hard to find in most animation houses, and was exactly what I was looking for. I look forward to working with them again," added Cowan. Capell and Ghorayeb worked together to create a very specific pipeline that could distribute and manage all the various shots and sequences amongst animators working both in-house and remotely. “With today's technology, I was able to work with animators in locations such as Montréal, Québec City, Los Angeles, Seattle and New York, to name a few, and deliver on time.” said Ghorayeb.
Reacting enthusiastically to the animation they saw from the damnfx team, Bungie brought Ghorayeb and a crack team of animators to Seattle near the end of production for some last minute fine-tuning and additional animation. “Being invited out for these last minute tweaks at Bungie was the icing on the cake. The animators knocked themselves out and it was tremendously rewarding to give them the opportunity of seeing Bungie from the inside, of collaborating with CJ and his team face to face. Halo 3 was a fantastic experience. Would I do it again? Most definitely,” added Ghorayeb.
>> http://www.bungie.net/
>> http://www.damnfx.com/ (UC)

Labels: ,

| PermaLink |        

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

SWAY Adds CG Flair to Subaru Impreza Spot



+ SWAY studio, one of North America’s leading visual effects studio have recently created a new Spot for Subaru Impreza. Capturing the fun, freedom and adventure of the Subaru brand, SWAY studio brings liveliness and precision to the newest Subaru Impreza commercial entitled “Peel Out,” currently airing. SWAY’s team of talented visual effects artists utilized a series of high-end animation and photorealistic techniques to bring life to cars, living room spaces, magazine pages and people. The :30 spot, which relied heavily on SWAY’s computer graphics (CG) work, features photography of a young couple as they “peel” themselves from a modern magazine page, right into the driver’s seat of the sophisticated Subaru Impreza. The car then races across a table and through a series of flipping magazine pages into a colorful world of twists and turns.

Labels: ,