When people want to start a new career, time and time again the age old question asked is – how do I get started when I have no experience? The answer to this question can be addressed under three main topics, which we refer to raffishly as:
Congratulations to Our Friends on Their Oscar Win
Our sincerest congratulations to our friend Angus Wall for his second consecutive Oscar win for Film Editing! Angus and Kirk Baxter won for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, directed by David Fincher. The duo won last year in the same category for The Social Network.
News Round-Up: Monday 27 Feb, 2012
Setting aside all the Oscar related stories that dominated last week's papers, there were lots and lots of news gems. Among my picks was a cool set of video breakdowns from Transformers, Pixomdo's making of Hugo, and the making of Rango. To get the full list, just read on...
The End is Just the Beginning
The inaugural VFX and Compositing courses at Escape Studios ended on Friday, February 17. On the last day of the courses, the students presented their work to the group in our screening room. Each went through their projects and explained the process they went through to get to that point.
The 3 Commandments: Know Thyself
As our Fall 2011 courses come to a conclusion, I find that I spend much of my time having one-on-one meetings with our soon-to-be graduates, discussing the "after" part of our curriculum.
Looking for a Way to Finance Your Dreams?
Finding the cash required to make your dream of working in VFX a reality can sometimes be difficult. That’s why we’ve come up with a way for you to finance your courses at Escape Studios in a way that’s easier on your wallet. After all, it would be a shame to miss out on your life long dreams just because you don’t have immediate access to cash.
Darin Grant from Digital Domain Joins our Advisory Board
Darin Grant, Chief Technology Officer of Digital Domain Media Group, just joined our Advisory Board. You’ll see when you click through to his biography that he has an enviable set of credentials.
Words, Words, Words!
Here are some shots of our newly installed VFX tag cloud! This is something we've been thinking about creating for a while and now we have the wall real estate I thought it was time. Our Operations Director Susan O'Neal and I sat down and came up with as many VFX terms as our brains would allow, then our designer friend and gentleman Mick Hodgson from PhD worked his magic and turned it into reality.
@Escape_Studios follow: @Pojemotion
Five questions finding out more about our Twitter followers, how and why they got started, and what they feel about the industry asked by Social Media Manager @TobyJOYdigital
Stash Best of 2011
As award season rolls in, it’s a good time to look back over the most notable projects of 2011. To save you from trawling the net looking for the best and worst of last year’s CG offerings, check out Stash's Best of 2011 list. Separated into categories such as Best Cinema and Television Commercials, Best Music Videos, Best Broadcast and Title Design and many more, it’s a great way to see some extremely inspiring work from the top studios across the world.
News Round-Up: Monday 20 Feb, 2012
After a week's absence, there was a great deal of news to sort through. Here's what grabbed my attention during the last seven days. There's news of new VFX for The Muppets, talks of DreamWorks investing in China, various interviews with VFX pros and much more.
Free Demo Reel Reviews With Professionals
Is your demo reel ho-hum? Not sure it catches recruiters’ attention? Well then let us take a look! We’re happy to announce that we are now offering free Demo Reel Reviews by VFX professionals in our Santa Monica studio. You’ll have an opportunity to share your reel with one of our talented VFX professionals in a one-on-one session. They will give you expert advice on how to make your reel stand out from the crowd. Plus, they’ll assess your skillset and help you determine if you need to improve in any areas of technical expertise.
Film vs. Digital "Side by Side"
I’ve written many blog posts about the advancements of technology and my desire to cling on to the tools and traditions of the past, mainly due to my inability to pick up new technology quickly and efficiently. Well, there’s been a movement in the film industry over the last 5-10 years which certainly reflects this trend. It’s no secret that film is becoming a thing of the past, and that more and more major movie projects are being shot using digital cameras. For the purists this is a big shame, as they want to cling on to the heritage of the film industry, and believe that film is still the best medium. However, like so many forms of technology the advancement into a digital format has made things easier for those people without the classical training or money required to shoot in traditional methods. It also allows for new methods in film making, in particular stereoscopy. Certainly for visual effects, the use of digital cameras and the kinds of digital rigs available now have made large scale effects movies that much easier.
Learn about VFX Workflows in the Commercial Industry from John Leonti at The Mill
We’re having a gathering at Escape Studios on March 15, 2012 for students and recent graduates who are curious and interested about VFX workflows in the Commercial/Advertising industry. John Leonti, head of 3D at The Mill, will be our guest speaker and he has some fantastic stuff to show us. He has promised a behind-the-scenes look at the work for the VES award-nominated spot “Immersion” for Mattel’s Hot Wheels, and the backstory behind Playstation’s cult-phenomena “Michael”.
Failure is an Option
“All of old. Nothing else ever. Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
The Joys of Children's Television
I have recently been exposed by my kids to the joys of a very special cartoon. Adventure Time is a newish series on Cartoon Network. It is by far the most inventive and original series I've seen in years. The creator Pendleton Ward has combined a ton of stuff from my childhood into a very surreal setting, a combination of Dungeons and Dragons, Felix the Cat and the humour from the likes of The Simpsons and Futurama. It is a very good watch for geek dads as well as anyone interested in the world of surreal animation.
Our friends at Side Effects are Busy!
Have you always wanted to learn more about Houdini? Are you in Los Angeles? Does the idea of attending a two-day boot camp float your boat? You're in luck!
Free Tutorial: Learning Dynamics in Maya
It’s been awhile since I last did a tutorial, but I made up for the long absence by preparing a little gem for you. It’s the ideal tutorial for people who have been dabbling with Maya but need to start delving deeper into all of its features. More importantly, it will give you a skill that all aspiring CG artists should demonstrate on their demo reel.
Enthusiastic Group Attends Event to Hear Pam Hogarth
An enthusiastic group arrived at the Escape Studios in Santa Monica the morning of February 4th to hear industry veteran Pam Hogarth talk about what it takes to succeed as an artist in the VFX industry. Always entertaining and informative, Pam gave the audience solid, practical advice that they can use as they pursue their careers in VFX.
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