We are sad to have to tell you that due to our demand for such a massive amount of beef for our BBQ, Argentina has told us that they don’t have enough cows.
SIGGRAPH Round Up...
Another year another SIGGRAPH and what a packed in week it was. This year, LA didn't just give us earthquakes, heat waves and the biggest burritos known to man but also a full week of presentations from some of the biggest and newest studios plus an exhibition hall packed with the latest technology from around the world.
Here is a quick summary and a few favourites from last week. These are just some of the things to check out:
This Too Shall Pass
Musical originality and relentless visual ingenuity are two of the many reasons that make American indie rock outfit ‘Ok Go’, one of the most forward thinking, and simultaneously underrated, bands of the 21st century.
Having dazzled us with their treadmill synchronised choreography in the video for their single ‘Here it goes again’ back in 2006, (Which is, to the infuriation of many loyal fans, their most well-known hit to date, thanks to the video) they have continued to raise the bar.
2010’s ‘This Too Shall Pass’ is a single from their most recent studio album ‘Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky’, and shows their very own Rube Goldberg machine in action.
I was pleasantly surprised this week to discover that ‘the Mill NY’ had done some retouching on the final project.
A video which defies belief in the first place, It is understandable that the band had to call in the help of some fellow creatives.to ensure finesse in the final cut.
Fans of originality in all forms should set aside half an hour to peruse this group’s back catalogue. I can guarantee satisfaction.
Musical originality and relentless visual ingenuity are two of the many reasons that make American indie rock outfit ‘Ok Go’, one of the most forward thinking, and simultaneously underrated, bands of the 21st century.
The FREE tutorial for August!
August’s free tutorial goes out to all the Compositors. Take this opportunity to breathe a little life into your projects, using some NUKE trickery. Based on a technique applied while working on Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Compositing tutor and Head of 2D at Escape, Davi Stein looks at how to enhance basic elements within your scene for a more filmic look.
Eye-Eye!
These Autodesk eyeball sweets are causing quite a storm at Escape Studios—not least because a trail of Chinese whispers has led some students to believe we're giving away 'free Autodesk suites' ... awkward!
Also awkward: the look visitors give as you sit casually munching eyeballs, whilst taking a phone call.
14 Days and Counting...
There are just 14 days before the Assimilate and Escape Studios BBQ Round Two…not that we are counting!
That gives you only 14 days to nab yourself a spot at our exclusive BBQ event and after the success of the first event, places are limited. This second round BBQ will be taking place at The Shepherd’s Bar, Shepherd’s Bush on Thursday the 23rd of August and that is a date for your diary if I ever did see one!
Patching Up ZBrush
Last week it was announced that Pixologic released ZBrush 4R4, a free upgrade that is available for current registered license holders. But it seems that the love from Pixologic does not end there...less than two weeks after the release of 4R4, ZBrush has a patch upgrade.
NVIDIA: Live From SIGGRAPH
...New Lands...
Fans of French Electro Duo ‘Justice’ will be content this week as they release the adrenalin fuelled, VFX heavy video for their latest single ‘New Lands’. A brainchild of the bands work with production company ‘CANADA’, this video depicts a violent futuristic combination of American football and baseball, (with some motorbikes thrown in for good measure) VFX company Glassworks Barcelona bring the video to life, with sequences that match, and at some points, (speaking subjectively of course) exceed the excitement of the song.
Match It with 3.1
Last week we informed you of the new releases from the Pixel Farm, PFTrack and PFMatchit.
Maxon Cinema 4D
It has been announced this week that MAXON will be releasing CINEMA 4D R14 in September this year. MAXON have almost 20 years of programming innovation under their belts and CINEMA 4D is one of the best known and most successful 3D motion graphics, painting and rendering software applications around.
Ever Wanted To See Your Name In Lights?
Or wanted to be able to say, ‘I did that’, when watching a film and seeing a huge, breath taking explosion? Then maybe you should start to think about pursuing a career in Visual Effects. At Escape Studios, we want to make those first steps into the industry as easy as possible whilst providing you with the tools to succeed. Our Visual Effects Production course will not only give you the skills to progress in the exciting world of Film Visual Effects, but will also show you how to make an impressive show reel (which results in many of our students securing jobs once they have finished.)
Introducing the BOXX renderPRO
BOXX Technologies present the BOXX renderPRO, the first personal, dedicated, rendering solution for animation, VFX, engineering and architectural visualisation. The renderPRO is designed for desk-side rendering with easy configuring and a compact design for professional performance in minimal space.
Bring on the BBQ...Round Two!
Ladies and Gentlemen, prepare yourselves and dust off your knives and forks as we are happy to announce round two of the Assimilate and Escape Studios Technology BBQ!
On Thursday the 23rd of August at the Shepherd’s Bar we are hosting a second BBQ with Assimilate and HP, but this time we have also partnered up with NVidia and Red Digital Cinema Professional to showcase a SCRATCH turnkey package exclusive to Escape Studios Technology.
Like A Kid In A Candy Store
Last week I accompanied the current Compositing class on a trip to the MPC studio in London. It's all part of the industry mentoring scheme we're encouraging at Escape, as we work to prepare our students for the working world. With aspirations for one day working in the industry, we feel it's really important for all our students to get a taste for what is expected from them as early as possible in their training. Irene Bonilla was one student who joined us that day, and here's what she had to say about it...
Putting The "New" in PFTrack and PFMatchit
We are pleased to share you that The Pixel Farm products PFTrack and PFMatchit are now available on the Escape Studios Technology Store.
The Foundry Summer Spectacular
Yesterday we announced the 1-day sale for The Foundry’s MARI but what we didn’t mention is that The Foundry and Escape Studios are treating everyone to a super summer sale. And there is no need to wait until August for these ones!
The summer promotions come in three pretty epic packages:
RenderMan proves Brave enough!
MARI 1-Day Sale
Want to get your hands on MARI, The Foundry’s 3D texture painting tool? Well you can…for a fraction of the current price, but for one day only!
Do you only have eyes for NUKE?
A few months ago our very own Simon Richardson, Escape’s in-house 2D genius, posted a series of blogs declaring his undying love for NUKE.