While the days are cold, the nights are long, and we’ve seen the back of Christmas and New Year festivities, at one point or another, we all find ourselves daydreaming about the return of the summer sun. The smell of sun cream, the call of the beach, and the excuse to whack on a pair of shades, making ourselves look AT LEAST 20% cooler, is but a dream away at this, the tail end of January.
Total Rigging in Total Recall: Webinar
On 7th of February 2013, Escape HQ will be welcoming Jakub Krompolc, who is head of rigging at London’s Prime Focus world.
Jurassic Park 4!
Students who have entered the doors at Escape (and left as artists) draw their inspiration from a number of VFX pioneering films, many cite movies such as Blade Runner, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings, as the reason they wanted to master the art of VFX.
Robin Squires VFX Course Diary: Week 12, Final week!
Having started a VFX course here at Escape Studios, I’m keeping a diary to share with you on how the course is going. Here's my update from my final week!
London's VFX Artists become Superheroes!
VFX fans and readers of WIRED magazine will have noticed a special feature in this month’s edition, as Soho’s VFX teams are made into super heroes by, well, themselves.
17th Art Directors Guild Awards: Nominees
Last week, nominees for the 17thArt Director’s Guild awards were unveiled.
Robin Squires VFX Course Diary: Week 10!
Having started a VFX course here at Escape Studios, I’m keeping a diary to share with you on how the course is going. Here's my update from week ten!
Webseries Spotlight; Blood and Chrome
Happy New Year folks, hope you all got the things you wanted for Christmas. I certainly did; that pony was a long time coming. Let's kick off the new year with another one of my trademark spotlight blogs, focusing on Battlestar Galactica; Blood and Chrome. (Shout out to user DHW who posted about this after my last blog)
The 3rd Dimension
Many 3D fans will be aware of the power of Maya, and the influence it has on the world of VFX, from blockbuster films to major games series, Maya is one of the most incredible creative tools on the planet. But like a pack of Arctic Huskies, it demands time and attention if you wish it to take you voyaging across the vast plains of 3D.
Kicking off 2013 with Head of 3D at Framestore Commercials, Diarmid Harrison Murray.
To see in the New Year in style, we have a number of events planned for January 2013, the jewel in this stone clad crown of a month though, is a live interview with escapee and head of 3D at Framestore Commercials, Diarmid Harrison Murray.
All-change at Escape Studios!
Another month and a half has flown by, and this afternoon we hosted the end-of-course presentation for our latest round of escapees. Gathered in our breakout space, the afternoon has been filled with laughter and applause. The quality of work on show has been, as ever, astonishing—it never ceases to amaze just how far our students progress in such a short period of time; and we feel confident these bright young things now stand in good stead to polish up those all-important industry-cracking showreels.
Escape Studios launch the VFX festival with star studded panel of industry experts.
Last Thursday, Escape Studios launched the UK’s first VFX Festival with an exclusive panel debate made up of the industry’s top flag bearers!
Happy Birthday Electric Theatre Collective!
We would like wish a big happy first birthday to Electric Theatre Collective who celebrate their first year with some massive success under their belts.
Union VFX's 'River Zoom'
In a bid to cure our post-Oylmpic blues, we've been re-watching Union VFX's fantastic opening sequence, comprising a mix of real photography, animation and CG elements, which helped to kick off the celebrations at the opening ceremony for the Games.
Total Recall, Terrific Reception?
This year’s remake of cult classic ‘Total Recall’ has sparked some serious controversy in the world of film. Here at Escape Studios we are PUMPED for its release, given the fact that a number of our graduates have been hard at work over the last year, on the VFX side of things.
A total of 1600 digitally enhanced shots are used in the film, the vast majority of which were worked on by our pals over at Double Negative in Soho – pretty damn cool right?
The hugely complex cityscape of a futuristic London was some challenge for the artists, and it required some high detail rendering, luckily these digital wizards called upon previous lessons learnt from their work on the ground breaking, Oscar winning, Inception.
Total Recall is yet to be released in the UK, so we can’t join the squabbling masses just yet. But if you do spend your bank holiday weekend watching this high action sci-fi flick, we want to know - Does this contemporary version do the original justice?
Twitter is telling me a number of different things, from…“WARNING: Total Recall remake is unbelievably boring.” To “Total Recall - Amazing cinematography, perfect execution. More exciting than Avengers. 9/10”
I just don’t know what to think!
This year’s remake of cult classic ‘Total Recall’ has sparked some serious controversy in the world of film. Here at Escape Studios we are PUMPED for its release, given the fact that a number of our graduates have worked on it over the last year, on the VFX side of things.
Our latest escapees break out!
A fresh batch of escapees have broken out of the Escape studio and what a talented bunch to emerge, even if we do say so ourselves...
Fubar Redux - A must watch!
Escapee Hasraf Dulull's fifteen-minute film is a true work of art! Set in an alternate reality with cats and dogs, it mixes some intense action with some serious drama, all emphatically enhanced by a unique animation visual style.
Rock on...another escapee success!
Adam Esat explains, that like many video games industry professionals, the first seeds of inspiration were sewn as a child, playing the likes of The Legend of Zelda, Metal Gear Solid and Pokémon.
We soon found out that like the protagonists of his childhood inspirations, Adam had embarked on a pretty exciting journey of his own.
We caught up with this escapee in the wake of a recent poll from ‘develop online’, indicating Travellers’ Tales (His employers, and main producers of games under the Lego franchise) to be the number one UK game developer.
Adam explains that although he knew he wanted to enter he world of gaming, he didn’t quite have a clear cut vision so early on, and it took him three years at university to make a decision as to what he wanted to specialise in.
‘I loved 3D modelling most of all, which I dedicated my efforts to from then on.’
From here the foundations were set, and Adam could start stacking the building the blocks of his career. (If you’ll excuse the pun) Speaking of his time with us, he acknowledges the premium level of teaching and positive learning environment that Escape Studios has to offer.
‘The quality of the tutoring is what I consider to be world class; it truly was a creatively charged, collaborative place to study, which frankly made me strive to improve myself even more’
As with all of our success stories though, our resources are matched, if not trumped by the infallible commitment of our students, and it took Adam four patient months of meticulous alterations to his show reel before he felt it ready for job applications. These were four months though, that surely pale into insignificance now…
‘Since then I've been happily employed at TT, whilst also pursuing my personal work in my free time’
We asked Adam to dispatch some industry wisdom for our students and any potential VFX artists out there who may be reading his success story
I would say the most important thing is decide exactly what you want to do within the games industry, and focus on it, the key is to specialise. Work as much as you can on creating an awesome showreel targeted at the area you wish to specialise, It's incredibly competitive out there and if you want to succeed, you need to work hard. Show your prospective employer that you're the right person for the job and most of all that you want it more than anyone else.
Adam knows not what the future holds, as the industry is always evolving. But with a work ethic and skillset like his, we can be sure that this escapee has a very bright future.
Adam Esat explains, that like many other video games industry professionals, his first source of inspiration came as a child, playing the likes of The Legend of Zelda, Metal Gear Solid and Pokémon.
Online Academy - Free Trial!
Is your mind a whirling dervish of creativity? Do your Ideas formulate out of the blue, and evolve from non-existence to an intrinsically detailed vision, in a matter of minutes?
Maybe you need to apply the reins to such skills, and materialise your ideas in an industry where the boundaries are near limitless…
There is a universal rule for all occupations, and whether you’re a butcher, baker, or a candlestick maker, the only way to get to the top of your game, Is to learn from the best in the business. Escape studios is a testament to such a statement. Coupled with a healthy dose of hard work, our experienced professional tutors can keep you on the straight and narrow path towards VFX success.
We understand though, that in the bustling 21st century one of our classroom courses is not the most ideal option for everyone. Which is why we’ve invested a lot of time making our online VFX academy as close to our classroom course as possible.
Mentored by one of our expert tutors on a weekly basis, you’ll be guided personally through each project, all the while receiving feedback on your progress. Our virtual classroom also allows you to meet, chat and see critiques of other students work. Isn’t technology marvellous?
We’re so pleased with our online set up in fact, that we’re inviting you to take part in a one week free trial of it! You’ll be taken on a tour of our online academy by one of our fantastically helpful training advisors, after which you’ll proceed swiftly onto your costless one week trial.
Don’t pass up the chance to get stuck into a piping hot, plentiful serving of VFX expertise. It really is an opportunity not to be missed!
Is your mind a whirling dervish of creativity? Do your ideas formulate out of the blue, and evolve from non-existence to intrinsically detailed visions, in a matter of minutes? Channeling these skills can be an adventure, especially if you enter an industry where the boundaries are seemingly limitless…
