Escape Studios Blog

VFX on your tablet!

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:13:07 +0100

Cinefex, the long standing centre of behind the scenes VFX information is now finally available on the iPad and online, check out the free copy of issue 127.

The edition created for iPad, is jam packed with all the content you’ll find in the print version of the magazine – but this bad boy includes double the amount of photographs (some of which are interactive) allowing the reader to smoothly navigate between plates, comps and elements to see how a VFX shot is constructed – there’s also sure to be video clips and breakdowns included, it’s like tablets were made for this sort of thing!

It gets better too, as the first edition of the tablet-ized magazine is free, with all the previous editions also accessible on the app - check it out!

3D Print your way to your very own Golden Ticket!

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:44:29 +0100

There’s been a lot of controversy recently over the seemingly limitless possibilities to 3D printing, but for every gun that’s created, it looks like there will be hundreds of these bad boys made to level out the playing field of naughty vs nice.

Sugar sculptures. These awesome creations use white sugar as their base material and print the most bizarre looking of 3D structures that are also edible.

This idea was pioneered by a couple who wanted to make their friend a birthday cake but were without an oven, so they began experiments in 3D printing with sugar. The revelation came after their friend’s birthday, but I think it’s safe to say that these will become commonplace at special occasions in the future.

Remember that scene in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory where they go into the chocolate room and everything is edible? That’s right people, we’re one step closer to that becoming a reality!

Riding the storm

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:25:11 +0100

Helen Hunt ain’t got nothin’ on me…

Some of you may remember my previous blog anticipating a rather hectic conclusion to last week, with a Graduation, an Open Day and One-Day Taster Courses all in the space of three days my feet hardly touched the ground!

Well, I’m pleased to say it all went without a hitch and I survived - just.

Beer and conversation were flowing well on Wednesday night as we celebrated with our new batch of Escapees in the Breakout Space. Spirits got particularly high as the guys posed for their all-important ‘mug-shot’ against our signature height chart, as is demonstrated rather well below…

Looking good Declan!

Thursday and Friday saw us fill three studios with sold-out Taster Courses and I'm pleased to say that I was among the lucky ones who got to try out the Compositing Course on Friday. I had great fun working on a Dr Who scene in Nuke, learning about slap-comping, pre-multiplication, Nodes and RGB chanels. I don’t think I’ll be pursuing a professional career in 2D but at least I’ll be able to understand some of the conversations I overhear in the BOS now!

After a well-earned rest over the weekend we were straight back into it yesterday morning, welcoming two brand new groups to our VFX and Compositing Courses, so another set of new faces and new names to try to remember, bring it on!

Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore…

Wed, 15 May 2013 15:38:55 +0100

Escape whips up a whirlwind of activity this week.

It certainly felt like the calm before the storm when I came into work on Monday, there was a buzz of energy slowly building through the office in anticipation of what was going to hit us from today onwards. With Clementine Lo guest speaking at our Academy Tour this morning, three courses graduating this afternoon and our One-day Taster Courses taking place tomorrow and Friday I’m going to feel like I’ve been in a twister movie by the weekend!

Next week is a little less hectic so I’m looking forward to a short respite before being whisked off once again the following Wednesday when we welcome Blue Zoo co-founder Tom Box to our studios.

Tom will be our guest speaker at our next Academy Tour on 29^th May, so if you want to know what it takes to set up your own independent, multi BAFTA award winning animation studio then this is the one for you. Make sure you sign up to secure your place and we look forward to seeing you in a fortnight!

Just don’t be surprised if, on arrival, you see a girl wearing ruby slippers wandering around aimlessly repeating “there’s no place like home, there's no place like home”…

How's your trivia?

Mon, 13 May 2013 15:58:20 +0100

Everyone loves a bit of trivia, and for fans of US TV series, here’s a fun trivia site if you want to go above and beyond when it comes to televised entertainment, and learn more about the creators of your favourite shows.

This site 'universeries' has a vast collection of US series collected in a rather visually exciting multi coloured mind map, the site mashes up 3D data visualization with editorial profiles, created for easy browsing - you can click to your heart’s content and get your teeth into the details of the writers of your favourite shows, well worth half an hour – just make sure you get your pen and pad ready so next time you’re viewing, you can refer back to the huge amount of knowledge you’re bound to soak in!

Saddington Baynes heads to L.A.

Mon, 13 May 2013 12:37:07 +0100

Taking newly appointed MD, Jigisha Bouverat along for the ride…

It’s exciting times ahead for the guys at Saddington Baynes who announced recently that they will be opening an office in L.A. this coming June. Formerly Director of Art Production at TBWA/Chiat/Day, Jigisha Bouverat has left her 24 year post to spearhead the imminent launch of the new premises.

Saddington Baynes’ CEO Chris Christodoulou is excited about the new opportunities that will arise from opening a local studio across the pond; “Beyond the great collection of creative agencies out West, there is the technology sector in Silicon Valley and the start-up automotive businesses, the web tech in San Francisco, as well as the entertainment industry. Having a local office means we can more easily reach these sectors.”

We’ve always had an excellent relationship with the guys at SB - some of you may remember the successful Graduate Reunion Party they kindly hosted for us last July - so everyone here at Escape would like to pass on our warmest congratulations to the team and wish them the utmost success!

Iron Man 3 - VFX Straight out of London

Fri, 10 May 2013 12:22:15 +0100

It’s a delight to say that a sizeable chunk of the VFX for Iron Man 3 were produced right here in London, and many of them by our friends at Framestore. Their contribution to the project undeniably creates the all-round key look for the movie.

The third instalment of the Iron man trilogy has been received very well all over the world, directed by Shane Black, this movie is, in Stark’s words… “just good old-fashioned revenge,” which as you can imagine offered a lot of scope for some serious visual action.

VFX Supervisor Chris Townsend commented “This is the second time I've worked with Framestore, and again, it was an absolute pleasure… they have a truly talented group of artists and a dedicated production team and, from the outset, I was impressed with not only their creative solutions, but also attention to detail and the overall quality of work."

You can see the full length trailer for the film above, and keep your eyes peeled over the coming months for what will no doubt some of the most awesome VFX breakdowns of the year. For more information on Framestore’s work on the film –have a look at this article on their site!

MPC comes to Escape

Thu, 09 May 2013 09:12:46 +0100

Okay folks, our Academy Tour is almost upon us; on Wednesday 15^th May Escape Studios will once again open its doors to all you VFX lovers out there wishing to get ahead of the game in the industry.

We’ve been spoiling our attendees recently with special talks from the guys at Framestore, 2d artist Simon Richardson and esteemed animator Paul Chung and I’m pleased to say that this time is no different.

MPC's very own FX TD, Clemetine Lo will be joining us next week to impart her wisdom and share her experience of working in the visual effects industry. With her recent work including blockbusters Prometheus and Jack the Giant Slayer it looks set to be an interesting day, so if you haven’t already bagged yourself a place, sign up here before you miss out!

Ray Harryhausen - A VFX Legend.

Wed, 08 May 2013 10:00:22 +0100

Very sad to hear that VFX legend Ray Harryhausen passed away yesterday, at the grand age of 92. Harryhausen created such films as Jason and the Argonauts (1963) and The Clash of the Titans (1981).

He created his models by hand and shot them frame by frame to create some of the best known battle sequences in 20^th century cinema. An official announcement from the Ray Harryhausen Foundation was released yesterday “Harryhausen's genius was in being able to bring his models alive… whether they were prehistoric dinosaurs or mythological creatures, in Ray's hands they were no longer puppets but became instead characters in their own right”

As well as inspiring such legendary directors as Steven Spielberg, James Cameron and Peter Jackson (to name a few) he also inspired a whole generation of VFX artists, and we can’t keep count of how many people we speak to who have entered VFX because they wanted to make skeletons fight! Thanks for the inspiration Mr Harryhausen, rest in peace!

A Deadly Combination!

Tue, 07 May 2013 10:44:43 +0100

In this modern age, the desk of the busy designer is likely to be filled with graphics tablets, laptops and PC’s, and let’s be honest, there is such a thing as too much clutter. But hopefully when this invention hits the design world, things will change!

French designer Amir Labidi has developed a laptop concept with the working title ‘LapTouch’ and it’s designed specifically for the creative community.

Its aim is to combine design functions and thus reduce desktop congestion. Labidi himself is also a user of a graphics tablet and computer; they say necessity is the mother of invention!

Although there are touchpad laptops already on the market, Labidi has formulated his idea with a specific group of people in mind, and its killer feature is a larger removable touchpad which also doubles up as a graphics tablet, saving the user valuable time when they would usually have to move their hands over to the keyboard for navigation.

Until the patent is approved, you creative types will have to stick with the desk clutter, but keep your eyes peeled for this creation - we also have our fingers crossed that it’s not too far away!

Check out the Labidi’s blog for a better look at the prototype!

VFX vs Motion Graphics

Fri, 03 May 2013 10:04:42 +0100

In my early career exploring VFX Vs Motion Graphics; I was very tempted to try my hand at film title sequences. I loved the design aspect, the story telling requirement and strong visuals used to captivate the audience right from the start.

But in the end, my decision to go down the compositing route came down to two basic reasons, a) Because at the time jobs on film titles were far and few between, and b) There were far more innovative techniques being explored in full film visual effects.

I still have that appreciation for the artistry though and how far and creative these people have become, especially in the last few years. I’m always sure to keep my eye out for some cool ones on the big screen! This article in particular caught my eye recently.

What is your favourite film title sequence of all time?

Denmark Invasion!

Thu, 02 May 2013 15:10:48 +0100

Escape takes on a decidedly Nordic air…

We’ve had the pleasure of welcoming 3D College Denmark to our studios this week. Over the last two days the college’s first year VFX and Game Art students have arrived in their droves, eager to find out what delights await them should they decide to continue their studies here after they complete their current courses. The poor guy on the main reception didn’t know what hit him!

Chaperoned by the college’s Senior Advisor/Associate Professor Jacob Honore, the guys and girls joined the Academy Tour yesterday and were lucky enough to catch our guest speaker Simon Richardson in action before taking a peak into one of our Accelerated Classroom sessions.

I have to say I was rather taken by the cool jackets the students were wearing; I’m hoping I might be able to sweet talk Professor Honore into sending me one!

Ladies medium size if you’re reading this Jacob…

McLaren P1 Light Painting Video - Check it out!

Thu, 02 May 2013 09:51:16 +0100

Feast your eyes on the behind the scenes footage of the McLaren P1 Light Painting video.

You may remember the launch in 2012 but I've only come across the 'behind the scenes' footage now and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.

This motion light painting film consists of stop-motion, long exposure photography, light painting animation, driven by real-life wind tunnel data and two motion control rigs. It is a photographic technique in which exposures are made by moving a hand-held light source or by moving the camera. Light painting has been around for decades but has never been put into full motion until the last couple of years. And I have a feeling we will be seeing more of this technique in the present and beyond.

Here is what the artists who did the light painting, MarshmallowLaserFeast, and James Medcraft, had to say about it:

“Working with McLaren we were able to process their wind tunnel airflow data and score out paths for individual trails of light. Each frame was then sliced into 650 frames that represent depths of 3D space and a plasma screen, mounted on a motion control rig, was used as a 3D light printer to play back the 650 slices as it moved through the space. We then repeated the move a thousand times for each frame of the animation and with each frame the camera, mounted on another motion control rig, moved a few millimetres so that over the course of the shoot we were able to create the effect of a moving camera.

I'm not sure if you'd agree with me but the result looks sleek, futuristic and simply stunning. The finished video merges photography, sculpture and animation into one neat package. It is a truly unique way of representing the aerodynamics property of the McLaren.

A big shout out to guys in MPC who have worked on this project as well!

3DCS 2013

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:15:49 +0100

Kicking yourself that you missed this year’s 3DCS?

You might remember back in March I wrote about how the 3D Creative Summit was causing a bit of a stir among my colleagues here at Escape. With the legendary Sir David Attenborough leading an impressive line-up of key figures in film and TV there was certainly a reason to get a little excitable.

Well, those of you who didn’t manage to make it to the BFI on London’s Southbank for the actual event will be pleased to hear that lectures and discussions from the summit are now available to watch on YouTube.

New videos are being posted every day so make sure you subscribe to the 3DCS channel to receive your daily updates!

Monsters & Legends - Nothing like a bit of cryptozoology!

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:51:53 +0100

As every grown up kid knows, good children's books are a pleasure, and appeal as much to the adults reading it as they do to the kids.

The general rule for me is that the better the illustrations the more engrossing the book, and this one hits the nail on the head, ‘Monsters and Legends’ is described as a ‘magic of reality’ book and within it's pages explores the wealth of possibilities that come with decorating a book on cryptozoology – in short, the visuals look fantastic.

I'll be heading out to buy this one from a real book shop to complete the old school adventure.

Even with iPads, tablets and smart phones a plenty, there is still something special about exploring real books like this with your kids.

Step-By-Step

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:30:00 +0100

Each time I watch a student show reel I am always blown away by how professional they look and this one (above) by Escapee Alastair Cross has impressed me in particular. Being a novice to the world of visual effects I’m always interested in getting to know how it all comes together and the ‘step-by-step’ breakdown he includes is extremely insightful.

Alastair studied a VFX course at Escape and is now working at Blue-Zoo Animation, stopping off to collaborate on a project with the creative team at MPC on the way, not bad eh? He has kindly agreed to share his experiences and knowledge in a Webinar on Thursday 30^th May, so if you would like to know more about how he got where he is today and pick up some useful tips then why not sign up for it here? If his reel is anything to go by then it’s not one to be missed!

The Da Vinci of Dust: Works of Art on a Dirty Car Window

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 15:58:16 +0100

I grew up with parents who couldn’t bear driving around in a dirty car. It just wasn’t socially acceptable in Ireland amongst that generation. And so, many a weekend during my childhood was spent polishing car windows. However, little did my parents know, we were washing away free art materials. Yep, that seems unlikely right? I thought the same, until I read about Scott Wade, the Da Vinci of dust!

Like many of us, at an early age Scott couldn’t help drawing words or cartoons onto a dusty car window. But as he matured in age and creative ability, so did his dust graffiti. Now he’s creating fully-fledged works of art… and they’re pretty unbelievable!

I can’t wait to show the parents!

Summer’s here?

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:44:41 +0100

With temperatures managing to, ahem, ‘soar’ into the low 20s this week I’ve become accustomed to spending my lunch break basking in the sun on Shepherd’s Bush Green and even dared to dig out the sun cream at one point!

So imagine my dismay when I opened my curtains this morning to a drizzly, grey and pretty damn cold day, I shouldn’t be surprised really considering this country’s track record.

However, my glum mood was quickly dispelled when I got in to work and watched this year’s Summer of Cinema promo on Coming Soon. Being a big fan of Simon Pegg it was a real treat to see the first ever clips of his latest movie The World’s End, pay attention though, if you happen to blink at the wrong time you might just miss them.

My Dream Home?

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:24:41 +0100

I’ve always said that when I grow up I want to live in a tree house. I’m really drawn to the idea of being raised high up off the ground in a home built among the trees, preferably with a natural spring or waterfall running nearby. Well, the Sky Tower in Tom Cruise’s latest movie, Oblivion has certainly given that idea a run for its money.

Universal Pictures have kindly released this short featurette showing how the production team created the background for the Sky Tower scenes, a multi-purpose home/office/military outpost which rests on a tiny spindle at 3000 feet. One would assume that blue screen technology was applied here but, as the video reveals, that is not the case…

Director Joseph Kosinski describes how they chose to take a more ‘organic’ approach and travelled to the Hawaiian Island of Maui to film on top of the Haleakalā Volcano. Using 3 cameras, they took footage of sky, cloud, sunrise, sunset, stars etc. and then front projected it onto a huge 360 degree screen back on set.

One of the advantages of this approach was that the crew were able to use the footage to light the set and actors, giving the scenes a much more natural look and feel. Production Designer Darren Gilford explains how using blue screen would have been a “virtual nightmare” as all the blue would have spilled onto the surfaces and glass on set.

I have to say the results are stunning and the idea of living amongst the clouds is very appealing, maybe I’ll start with my tree house and, as technology develops, slowly work my way up!

Another outstanding exhibition from Ron Mueck

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:49:16 +0100

If there’s one thing VFX artists appreciate, it’s the time and effort that goes into making a piece look unquestionably and perfectly lifelike.

If you have a deep found respect for this precision, you’ll certainly enjoy this amazing new Paris show of sculptures from Australian artist, Ron Mueck. The exhibition consists of 3 new pieces that go by the name of ‘Young Couple’, ‘Woman with Shopping Bags’ and ‘Couple under an Umbrella’. On each Mueck shows human interaction on a several different levels.

Mueck began his career as a model maker for children’s TV, and made his way into advertising where he really honed his skills. Now as a fully-fledged artist Mueck has had several exhibitions globally and even had a documentary put together about his artistic process.

Well worth a watch for all those artists out there, regardless of the medium you work with.