For those of you who have always dreamt of using MARI, now is your chance. The Foundry and Escape Studios are running two training programs, each broken down over two evenings for MARI and the NUKE <> MARI bridge, both held at Escape Studios.
23 MARI Tips In 23 Days on Twitter
MARI is a relatively new piece of software, and is becoming more popular with artists as its reputation for efficiency and adaptability becomes more widely known. As with any piece of new software there is a period of trial and error before you really get to know its full capability. It is in light of this that Henry South, lead texture artist at Framestore, is offering to share his top 23 tips when working with MARI.
We Have an Inkling that Wacom Has a Great New Product
On Tuesday the 30th of August Twitter streams of digital artists across the globe were buzzing with news of Wacom's new baby - the #Inkling. Everyone who currently draws digitally using the Wacom tablet, will be familiar with its advantages over the mouse, however, if the Inkling lives up to its anticipated hype, it will make creating digital drawings easier, more immediate and vitally speed up your workflow.
Autodesk 3D Subscription Advantage Packs, Coming Soon…
Our friends at Autodesk have just announced that from 27 September 2011, selected 2012 versions of Autodesk software will be available for download for subscription customers. Autodesk Subscription Advantage Packs offer early access to new product enhancements, giving you the very latest in Autodesk software. Subscriptions are available to contract managers, software coordinators or anyone who has been granted access to Autodesk product extensions.
Lucian Freud Dies at 88
A great artist died yesterday and whilst his death has nothing whatsoever to do with the world of CG and VFX, I thought many of you would be mourning the death of this great artist.
Hollywood Composer Hans Zimmer on Writing for 3D
Behind every great director is a great composer; where Steven Spielberg had John Williams and Sergio Leone had Ennio Morricone, it might be said that Christopher Nolan has Hans Zimmer.
The Hidden Beauty of Pollination
Those of you who, like me, enjoy beautiful photography are in for a real treat with this one. Louie Schwartzberg has spent a life time filming flower pollination in its most minute details and his work is of breathtaking beauty.
DNeg Snaps up Two VFX Professional Escapees
When I see students go from first day newbies to fully-fledged VFX artists I can’t help but feel that they absolutely deserve it. After weeks of rigorous training learning how to create believable CG, the moment comes when they start looking for a job. And that’s exactly what happened to Pasquale Riefoli and Maria Busco who have both secured jobs at Double Negative!
Industry Coaching Diary of Compositing Escapee Clement Roland
Some of you may have seen a series posts from students' 'coaching diaries' on our blog recently. For those of you who don't know, some of our students studying our classroom courses are being coached by the industry's biggest post houses; The Mill, Double Negative and Framestore. This week, compositing student Clement Roland shares his experience with us.
Escape Studios Courseware On The iPad?
We had an enquiry from one of our online students asking if she could view our online courseware on an iPad via the Skyfire app to view flash content... As we have not yet worked on mobile releases of our learning system (busy building fab courses), I thought I would take a look at it as I was kind of intrigued.
So I invest my £2.99 and loaded her up! I was amazed I could get in to our system and play the video content! Sadly my joy soon tempered when I could not make out the text in the 3DS Max interface. #disappointed!
The loading was also a little clunky to be honest, you would select a video to view and it would load a little window in the bottom left hand of the screen and find the video. Not elegant.
Not to be beaten I decided to look at some additional apps. Whilst I am sure there are others I came across iSwifter. It was also cheaper at £1.79 ;-)
So I was again a little disappointed, this time with the speed of scrolling in our system... However - once I played a video it was seamless, no drop outs excellent quality and I was really very happy with the results.
Whilst we do not 'officially support' the iPad or mobile devices, I now know at least I can grab iSwifter and load up a video with my iPad. If you do have an iPad and want to try this out iSwifter do allow you to take a peak so why not grab one of our free tutorials and give it a go?
Have a great weekend everyone.
Autodesk 123D?
Carl Bass - CEO of Autodesk - announced at the Wired Business Conference that they were launching a new product... Wait for it, it's called 123D. OK, so forget about the naming convention... What does it actually do and what does it mean for 3D artists?
Professional VFX & Compositing Freelancers Are in High Demand
Are you looking for a job in the CG Industry? Here at Escape Studios Recruitment, we’ve never been busier. It’s a great time for the UK Post-Production industry and we have been inundated with requests for professional artists.
Escapee Ben Cantor Gets Dream Job at MPC
We’re always pleased when our students start work in the industry working for their dream company or in their dream job. That dream recently became reality for Ben Cantor.
The Google Art Project
If you're like me and often plan to go to art galleries but never actually make it, Google have introduced an amazing alternative. What's great about this new tool is that you get to see some of the great master pieces from all around the world, from the comfort of your front room. OK, so it's a little bit lazy but it does mean that you get to stay on top of what's going on in the art world. The 'Google Art Project' was only launched on Tuesday and brings over a thousand artworks by various artists to anyone with an internet connection.
The 5 Miserable VFX Jobs That Make Movies Possible
I came across this blog on the 5 miserable VFX Jobs that make movies possible and found it quite amusing... ;-)
Thank you technology customers!
Last night we had some of the finest brains and talent in Soho out for our Technology Christmas drinks.
We just want to really thank all those who came along and hope you enjoyed the evening.. We certainly did and it was great to see so many new and familiar faces!
The wait’s finally over – CG Whiz 2010 shortlist
We said it was going to be tough to judge and we were right. The entries for this year’s CG Whiz competition blew us away (quite literally!) and the quality of the reels overall impressed each and every judge.
Weird and Beautiful Effects with Acrylic on Flesh
Dom – our CEO – sent me a link to Alexa Meade’s website some time ago and I have been meaning to write about it ever since.
More VFX Wizardry from Framestore with Harry Potter
Here I am, sat in the airport with some time to kill – so I start reading the papers and the front pages are all covered with reviews of last night’s premiere of Harry Potter (The Deathly Hallows Part 1) in London. That’s lucky, because I really like Harry Potter and I am quite looking forward to seeing the film.
CG Whiz is closing
We’ve had some fantastic entries for CG Whiz 2010, but the deadline is fast approaching. Any entries submitted after midnight tonight (Pacific Time – 8 am GMT or 7 pm in Sydney, Australia) will not be counted, so you’ve only got a few more hours to get your reel in. You can do this via Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube or Facebook, but remember to email CGWhiz@escapestudios.com with your contact details too.