Check out these never before seen sketches from the hand of Walt Disney himself. Classic Mickey Mouse animation is simply one of my favourite things to watch, conveying a story, emotion or an idea in such simple drawings, for me really highlights to skill of this art, and art I have the utmost respect for.
Industrial Light and Magic - Path to the Death Star
As readers of our blog will know, we grab any Star Wars news by the horns, grind it into a couple hundred words, and blog the Sith out of it.
This occasion is no different, and while just last month, Star Wars fans everywhere were petitioning to get a death star built and launched into space, Industrial Light and Magic (VFX Brainchild of Star Wars creator George Lucas) were busy putting together a timeline of their journey, creating the Death Star for it’s first appearance in ‘Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope’.
It shows the milestones of an iconic studio as well as the creation of one of the most iconic images in cinematic history.
HaZ Dulull presents: Project Kronos
We were rather happy this week to hear from an old friend of Escape HaZ Dulull, a) because he has just been appointed as director for ‘IAM entertainment’ Hollywood, which is awesome! and b) because he is promoting his second VFX heavy short, Project Kronos.
Weta Featurette-a
The Oscars is on Sunday (anyone staying up for them?) and in preparation, the team over at Weta Digital has released a couple of pretty awesome behind the scenes/breakdown featurettes, discussing the creation of ‘The Goblin Caverns’ and ‘Rivendell’.
Framestore Recreate 1865 America for Lincoln
Lincoln is very much a hit with the award bodies this year. Having only just recently hit the cinemas, the film has already scooped up a Golden Globe and a BAFTA as well as being nominated for 12 Oscars. And although this is all very lovely, we’re more interested in the stunning results achieved by Framestore for this epic biopic. Providing the backdrop of 1865 America, a country ripped in two by civil war, Framestore worked alongside the filmmakers to make a historically accurate recreation that was both invisible and believable. And having already proved their expertise on Spielberg’s previous project War Horse, Framestore have obviously earned the trust and respect of Steven and his team.
A woman's touch...
The role of Visual Effects Supervisor is hugely important on set as well as during the whole post production process. This person works with both the Director and Clients to convert artistic concepts to stunning visual imagery.
Now THAT'S a portfolio!
Tomorrow, Escape Studios will be hosting another industry visit to the heart of Soho, where our friends over at Cinesite will be showing attendees exactly where the lifeblood of UK VFX is pumped from.
Pixar artists grab funding by the horns
These days, it is commonplace for new projects to be funded by creative idea fuelling website – ‘kickstarter’. This is not your only option of funding if you’re a legendary artist from Pixar though.
An Insight to Industrial Light and Magic
Industrial Light and Magic was created back in 1975 by the legend that is George Lucas, and has kept going ever since, racking up work on over 300 movies to date.
Behind the scenes at Cinesite - See you there?
View Conference announces cash prizes for 2013 winners!
Our friends over at View Conference Italy, last week unveiled that they will be providing cash prizes for winners of their different awards. The prizes vary from top of the range tablets to a lump sum of 2000 Euros. The categories for application are as follows (complete with direct links)
C (299,792 km/s)
The phrase ‘put your money where your mouth is’, is rarely put into practice. However, over the last few years, website kickstarter.com has bucked the trend by allowing generous and creative types to come together and put their money into projects that they genuinely believe in.
Bad Robot & Valve - Oh yes!
My goodness, it’s only January but for games and scifi fans dare I say it, Christmas is coming early.
Animation Ireland
And how has this happened? Well a decade of tax breaks and investment basically. Tax breaks to aid production costs and funding for development prior to production from various sources. Very interesting given the impending tax breaks around the corner in the UK. Could this be a new dawn in film and broadcast for us here?
I was amazed by how many companies are turning out real quality work in Ireland. The tax breaks have not affected the passion for excellence. In fact I would say it has merely fuelled it - the companies are competing against eachother to produce the best work. And as the industry steadily grows there are now whispers of full length animated movies being made there.
If you are curious about what has been happening in Ireland check out the Animation Ireland showreel on their website...
Here's something you may not know. Ireland has a booming animation industry. No I didn't know that either until I went to the Cartoon Finance conference in Dublin last year. In fact the animation industry is doing so well, that in the face of the downturn, it has become one of their major exports. At the conference, it was quipped that the animators are now the ones with the proper jobs.
A giant robot, loud music, and plenty of explosions, what's not to like?
The office here at Escape is usually bustling with an array of different musical sounds, and it’s rare we fully agree on what radio station to keep on for more than an hour and a half.
FINALLY, The Rock has come back, to the big screen!
Dwayne Johnson, known to most as wrestling icon ‘the Rock’, is to play the role of a snitch in his new movie, aptly named, ‘Snitch’, set for release February 22nd..
It's Superman, but not as you know it...
This project has amazed and dumbfounded us this morning, as a) We've had to deal with the whole concept of a Superman movie – directed by Tim Burton and starring Nicolas Cage, that never was, and b) We discovered that a documentary is set to be created, about this semi-mythical piece of film history.
2013, the year of the special effects film?
It’s no secret, here at Escape, we love special effects. For that reason, we are especially pleased that someone (Cinefex) has taken the time to find out what VFX clad films we’re set to expect in 2013/14, and compiled them into a succinct, chronological list for our (and your) perusal.
Home-made CG Speed bump!
Joy riders are a worry in many communities, and at a time of year when the icy roads have us all thinking twice about our speed, here’s a little bit of CG that lowers the speed limit.
Toy Story - Remade!
Someone once told me, that life is like a marmalade sandwich; the more you put into it, the more you’ll get out of it.