Coraline Trailer – Behind The Scenes
December 30, 2008Coraline is a horror fantasy film based on the novella Coraline by Neil Gaiman. The film is the first stop motion animation to be created in 3D and is directed by Henry Selick. Coraline tells the story of a young girl who encounters a parallel reality when she unlocks and enters a mysterious door in her home. The new world through the door appears to be thrilling and fantastical, however events soon take a dark turn and Corlaine finds herself fighting to return to her real life. Reportedly a combination of Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter, Where the Wild Things Are and Pans Labyrinth, Corlaine is set to provide “terror and joy in roughly equal doses”.
Protect the Human with Amnesty International
December 23, 2008Director Kim Gehrig of Academy Films and New York-based Smoke & Mirrors New York (SMNY) Creative Director Sean Broughton create a compelling 1:30 tale for Amnesty International via Mother. With Michael Stipe’s arresting song, Until the Day is Done, playing throughout the spot, we are left simultaneously bewildered and proud. Bewildered at the astonishing violence in our world, and proud of the selfless among us attempting to hinder its relentless surge. Seven racially diverse individuals are superimposed onto scenes of violence wherein they appear to stand between aggressors and their targets; releasing prisoners, removing nooses off necks and withdrawing weapons from children. The heroes are placed in the heart of nations that are war-torn and plagued with cruelty, in order to attest our own capacity to protect human rights.
“Interaction was a key aspect of the film, so each ‘hero’ was shot against green screen, with the distance traveled, terrain, camera heights and angles calculated prior to shoot. Lighting was matched to the pre-selected background scenes and everything was shot with locked off camera in HD to allow for movement later in post. Kim wanted to make sure the heroes stood out, so it was an old VHS machine that finished the catalogue of work executed in each scene. The hero character was played off to the old tape format and then matted back in.”
Ed Sayers from Mother adds, “There are many ways to approach any post task and in this case we gained the eclectic opinions of all this top worldwide post talent and when anyone talked, everyone listened. So the film received the benefit of all that experience and the joy of all that talent. It couldn’t
have been done in the time without this total and ego-less cooperation, not to mention a client who allowed everyone to crack on and come back and truly wow them with a very powerful film.”
About SMNY:
New York and London-based design, animation and VFX studio, Smoke & Mirrors was founded by Creative Director/VFX Artist Sean Broughton (NY), Penny Verbe (UK) and Mark Wildig (UK). Production in the New York office is lead by Managing Director Jo Morgan and Executive Producer Celest Gilbert. Diverse projects range from work on the Harry Potter and Bond film series, to commercials campaigns for Mercedes, Burger King, Miller Lite and Sirius. Recent music vid clips include Feists 1 2 3 4, and I Feel It All.
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jumP & Disney Help Us Celebrate
December 23, 2008Partner/Editor Michael Saia of NY-based jumP cuts this magical Disney World campaign helmed by Jim Gartner via mcgarrybowen. In Anthem we see balloons emblazoned with Mickey Mouse’s face take on a life of their own as they comically trail blissful moments. The balloons carry an invitation, from Mickey himself and Disney to celebrate attendees’ birthdays at the place where dreams come true.
About jumP:
jumP is an award-winning, New York-based creative editorial boutique focusing on commercials, features, short films, music videos, and emerging media content. The firm works with a wide-range of top-tier brands, directors, and agencies continually delivering powerful and efficient results for each of its clients. The company roster includes Partner/Editors: Luis Moreno and Michael Saia, Editors: Lin Polito, William Zitser and David Bryen, Partner/Managing Director: Dee Tagert and Executive Producer Elizabeth Krajewski.
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PolyU Student Challenge
December 20, 2008The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (香港理工大學） has held a competition inviting universities and highschool students across the world to participate. Participating students are given the chance to unleash their innovation and entrepreneurship potential through the events. It's also a great chance for participates to gain a valuable international challenge experience. Thirty finalist teams will be sponsored for their round-trip economy air tickets and accomodation during their stay in Hong Kong. Trophy, certificate and Cash awards will be awarded to the winning team. Each nominated team should complete registration online on or before 31 December 2008 and submit one entry of business proposal online on or before 31 March 2009. For more information, please visit http://www.polyu.edu.hk/PolyUChallenge. Key Dates to Remember:
| 31 January 2009 | Deadline for online registration |
| January - March 2009 | Preparation of business plan by contestants |
| 31 March 2009 | Deadline for business proposal submission |
| 30 April 2009 | Announcement of finalist teams |
| 15 May 2009 | Deadline for business plan powerpoint submission |
| 3 June 2009 | Arrival of non-local finalist teams in HK |
| 4 June 2009 | Training / Exhibition of prototypes [4th - 6th June] |
| 5 June 2009 | Semi-finals, Cocktail and announcement of teams into Finals |
| 6 June 2009 | Finals, Gala Dinner cum presentation |
| 7 & 8 June 2009 | Educational excursion programme |
| 9 June 2009 | Departure of non-local teams |
New Tutorial: Internet radio station permanent stream
December 19, 2008Quite often you will find yourself listening to an internet stream that you like and decide to add to your favorites for later listening to. Since internet radio stations use various streaming services for their station, live stream links may change from time to time. When a station decides to change their hosting provider, they will, in the process have to change their stream url. The problem is that the station url that you have saved in your favorites for later use will then become unuseable. You will get frustrated only then to move on to another source of your favorite tunes for your enjoyment. This happens all to often with many internet radio stations but there is a solution for this problem. By using an ASX file to store your streaming data and station description as metadata, you are able to host the ASX file at one place permanently but still providing you the flexibility to update your stream url without ever having to worry about your audience loosing connection to their favorite Internet Radio Station. You will be able to use an ASX file like a normal streaming media file allowing you to direct control the stream url providing instant access to your stream anytime, anywhere. This tutorial will show you how to achieve a permanent link for your Internet Radio Station! Lets start by opening a standard text document (note pad for windows users) and save it as "mystream" o.k. now lets look at the code below:
<asx version = "3.0"> <BANNER HREF="BANNER_URL"> <Abstract>DESCRIPTION_OF_BANNER</Abstract> <MoreInfo href = "HYPERLINK_FOR_BANNER" /> </BANNER> <entry> <ref href = "MY_STREAM_URL"/> <Title>MY_STATIONS_NAME</Title> <Author>MY_STATIONS_WEBSITE_URL</Author> </entry> </asx>Looking at the above sample code you will see some metadata tags in bold. Reading the above sample, BANNER_URL is the url of the banner image you may use for a logo of the station. DESCRIPTION_OF_BANNER is the description of the banner image. You may use special characters, spacing, letters or numbers in this field but remember to keep it short. HYPERLINK_FOR_BANNER is the url you wish to use on the banner as a hyperlink. This may be a link to your website or streaming server default page. Now we come to the MY_STREAM_URL. This is the field you will add your exact url to the streaming host. IF you are using shoutcast, you would enter the ip address and port only. Do not include "listen.pls" in the url. MY_STATIONS_NAME is the field you will add your description or slogan of your internet radio station. Keep this description short. Lastly, MY_STATIONS_WEBSITE_URL is used for the internet radio stations website address. You must use a direct url path (example: http://www.moo2u.com) in this field. Now after looking at the sample code lets make our own .ASX file. Start by copying the code shown above and replace accordingly. You may use this sample ASX code below as a guide. The banner is from moo2u and the internet radio station of choice is Club 977.
<asx version = "3.0"> <BANNER HREF="http://www.moo2u.com/blog-uploads/radio.png"> <Abstract>Visit Moo2u</Abstract> <MoreInfo href = "http://www.moo2u.com/" /> </BANNER> <entry> <ref href = "http://scfire-ntc-aa01.stream.aol.com:80/stream/1040"/> <Title>Club 977 - The 80's Channel</Title> <Author>www.977music.com</Author> </entry> </asx>When you are done, be sure to save your file as "mystream.asx" or save as a ".txt" file and rename the extension to ".asx" then all that's left is to upload to your Internet radio station's website and link to it on your web page. You may try this ASX file out yourself by using the following link: http://www.moo2u.com/blog-uploads/mystream.asx Remember, if you need to update your stream url all you have to do is edit the asx file in any text editor and save/upload. Since the asx file location stays the same, it's ready for use next time when your audience chooses to listen in. Also to note: ASX is NOT a form on XML, rather it is an implementation of SGML, just like HTML. XML is a simplification of SGML and requires you to declare any XML file as such. I hope you've enjoyed my tutorial. More to come!!Continue reading
SUSPECT Crashes The Party With Sierra Mist
December 18, 2008New York-based Conceptual Design, Animation and VFX studio SUSPECT added to its impressive string of work with a spot reintroducing Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash. Led by Co-Founder/Creative Director Tim Crean and Creative Director Hoon Chong, the SUSPECT team created a dynamic animated world to bring the popular soda back as the de facto party drink for this holiday season. The spot begins with a muted party atmosphere animated by a shifting gray silhouette of partygoers calmly mingling behind a carton of eggnog. The muted backdrop and subdued crowd create an ideal contrast to the excitable cranberries that appear in a vivid red armada to push aside and displace the status quo party drink.
Quote:
| “This Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash spot was an incredible challenge and opportunity for us,” noted Crean. “Renewing interest in a seasonal product is always tricky because consumers haven’t thought about it in awhile. Luckily we were able to collaborate with the expert team at TracyLocke to come up with something creative and memorable.” |
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| “Any time you’re working with a brand as widely known as Sierra Mist, you have to get every detail perfect, and our team was able to create an incredible visual universe to perfectly capture the mood of this holiday drink,” noted Chong. “Most impressive, however, is how our studio put a laser focus on this project to turn it around under such a tight deadline.” |
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| “We saw this spot as an opportunity to create a real showcase for what SUSPECT can do,” said Executive Producer Rob Appelblatt. “We’ve spent the last several months adding some incredible new talent to our team, and this recent effort further solidifies that we’re evolving into a truly dynamic company capable of delivering every component of a project.” |
Delgo – From Fathom Studios
December 18, 2008In a divided land, it takes a rebellious boy and his clandestine love for a Princess of an opposing race to stop a war orchestrated by a power hungry villian. From Atlanta-based Fathom Studios comes an epic computer animated fantasty film starring the voices of Freddie Prinze Jr, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Anne Bancroft. Directed by Marc F. Adler and Jason Maurer, Delgo was released on 12 December 2008. The story tells of the land of Jhamora that is torn apart by the mutual prejudice of two races: the winged Nohrin, masters of the skies, and the terrestrial Lockni, who harness the mystical powers of the land.
Quote:
| Delgo-ing where no one has gone before. Fathom Studios makes a bid to change the very process of filmmaking. Georgia is a long way from Hollywood, but Atlanta-based Fathom STudios doesn’t care - they plan on revolutionizing the film industry anyway. Chris Wyatt - Cinescape |
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| It’s clear that Delgo has the potential to be a truly groundbreaking movie, proving that independent studios can hold their own. Atlanta’s Fathom Studios is taking on the big boys,producing a CG movie that’ll go up against the best the likes of Pixar and Square can offer. Stuart Dredge - 3d World |
Hush Slows it Down for Amex
December 17, 2008New York-based content creation studio HUSH has teamed up with advertising agency Momentum Worldwide on a lightning-fast live action, design and animation production. The effort is part of American Express' new focused campaign showing on 20+ screens at the popular LA Live outdoor space adjacent to the Los Angeles Staples Center. Each of the six original pieces, bookended by the AMEX card graphic, show close-up live action shots framed as if from the perspective of a privileged fan. The pieces show basketball players, hockey players, and musicians suspended in time at the apex of their extraordinary performances.
Quote:
| "We wanted to really capture the feeling of front-row access that American Express customers are used to getting," noted HUSH Co-Founder/Co-Director Erik Karasyk. "By zooming in tight and shooting our subjects at high speed with the Phantom HD camera, we created `frozen moments' that capture the experience of being in the middle of the action." |
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| "Given the multifaceted nature of this effort, with its mix of live action and VFX, we are really proud of our team for pulling all of this together on such a short timeline," said HUSH Co-Founder/Co-Director David Schwarz. "I think we achieved a nice balance between creative concept and production efficiencies. In order to stand out amid the frenzied 24-hour shuffle of rapidly moving imagery ripping across the 20+ media screens, I think our use of extreme slow motion will separate AMEX from the other sponsored media being showcased." |
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| "We worked closely with the creatives at Momentum to expand upon the great ideas they'd already used to make this a successful campaign," stated HUSH Executive Producer Casey Steele. "We were able to create the style, flavor and feel of the content to mirror their existing campaign." |
Freestyle Create Open for Fusion Fall
December 17, 2008An unstoppable force has travelled the Galaxy for millennia, consuming countless planets and civilisations. It’s next target is Earth - and you are the last line of defence! Freestyle Collective recently created a dramatic opening sequence for a new Cartoon Network online game. Fusion Fall is Cartoon Network’s first massive multiplayer online game. From futuristic skyscrapers to mystical ruins, enter an enormous, action-packed universe unlike anything you’ve seen. Mix it up with stars of Cartoon Network like Ben 10, and Billy and Mandy - but expect a surprise when you do! The Freestyle Collective used a combination of Photoshop, Illustrator, Maya and Z Brush to create the Fusion Fall game open.
Caligari & Free Turbosquid Tentacles Plugin
December 16, 2008|
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Once installed, you will find a new Tentacles toolbar in trueSpace7.6.
Tentacles makes it easy to distribute your content to other trueSpace users, letting you use TurboSquid as a one-stop warehouse to share or find trueSpace and Virtual Earth content. Uploading via the new toolbar automatically captures important metadata about any scenes or objects, such as the polygon count. The Tentacles wizards make it easy for you to manage thumbnails, tags, descriptions and other data that will help TurboSquid users find your content.
The main page for Tentacles for trueSpace.
You can read more about Tentacles for trueSpace here:
http://www.turbosquid.com/caligari
Or go directly to downloading this free plug-in here:
http://www.turbosquid.com/tentaclesContinue reading
Star Trek – Trailer for Eleventh Star Trek Film
December 6, 2008Directed by J. J. Abrams, Star Trek is the eleventh Star Trek film and features the original main characters as they set out to become USS Enterprise crew members. These Star Trek early years are portrayed by a new cast and follow James T. Kirk as he enters the Starfleet Academy. The film stars Chris Pine as James T. Kirk who took inspiration to play the part from Harrison Ford and his portrayal of the characters Han Solo and Indiana Jones. Hero's star Zachary Quinto plays a young Spock but the film will also feature Leonard Nimoy, the first actor to play the half vulcan character. Nimoy reprises his role to return as the ‘old Spock’ who comes back from the future, to give a helping hand to his friends.
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| "Not to say that I modelled my version of James T. Kirk on anything in particular but I think I definitely have wanted to bring that kind of Harrison Ford humour to Kirk." Pine has said of his role in the film. |
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| Explaining his interpretation of Dr. McCoy, Keith Urban has stated: "it is a case of not doing some sort of facsimile or carbon copy, but really taking the very essence of what DeForest [Kelley] has done and honouring that and bringing something new to the table" |
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| "It's how a family comes together. And then more specifically, the story of two brothers, Kirk and Spock. It's the first time [co-writer] Alex [Kurtzman] and I got to really write about our friendship, in a way. So that was a big inspiration for us — the coming together of opposites in a partnership that takes you to places you can't even believe." Writer Roberto Orci on the film's emotional context. |
Rhinofx Transforms For Verizon Fios
December 6, 2008In a recent branding campaign for Verizon FiOs, rhinofx created a series of surreal fantasy design/animation spots to promote Verizon's fiber optic television programming service. Developed by the creative directors Arman Matin and Natasha Saenko, the campaign uses hi-tech particle progressions to piece together a wide array of animated scenes. Laced with embedded iconic imagery, the spots are designed to showcase Verizon's limitless range of On Demand media and entertainment options and programs. The spots, which incorporate theatrical trailers and clips of Verizon's featured programs, culminate with hi-tech light particles forming the company's core message, "This is FiOS. This is Big."
Elements of fiber optics and speed lace through every scene, integrated into the feathers of a giant eagle and the body of speeding car, adding realistic textures into the technologically advanced world of FiOs.
Each of the spots opens with a beam of blinding light as high-speed fiber optics cable streams information into a customer's home. In a vibrant explosion, the light reforms into the shining blue On Demand button of a television remote. As the remote itself shatters, the jagged shards reunite into classic, high-excitement On Demand moments.
An action hero plunges from an exploding helicopter; a hoop star's dunk obliterates the backboard; a nineteenth-century couple twirls into a carriage, locked in a first kiss' loving embrace; and an intense police chase ends in a wreck of twisted metal. As one iconic scene erupts, millions of tiny fragments of CG debris instantly and seamlessly recombine and transform into the next scene.
Each scene's big, dense visual feel parallels and promotes the scope of Verizon's FiOs technology and On Demand services. Verizon's core visual identity is also infused into the spots, as the red, black and gray are the predominant hues showcased throughout each piece of content.
The scenes also incorporate a unique functionality-they can be pieced together in any order and combination, evolving from one shattering explosion to the next, to appropriately frame Verizon's On Demand programming trailers.
rhinofx's artists also used intricate compositing to augment and enhance the detailed progressions to create fluid pieces with fast-paced vibrant designs and animated imagery.
Leveraging significant growth and access to a deeper resource pool, rhinofx has been able to consistently deliver high-quality work, with notable recent commercial projects including Toyota, ESPN, Kmart, Dell, and Mercedes.
About rhinofx:
Since its launch in 2000, rhinofx has created award-winning visual effects, design, and animation for commercials, VFX for feature films, episodic television, webisodic mini-series, and videogame cinematics. The company's principals and artists have also led the industry's exploration into the boundless potential of branded digital content. By cultivating extensive relationships with key brands, advertising agencies, and film/TV studios, rhinofx utilizes its creative directors and artists to develop and execute powerful branded entertainment to build both identity and awareness. The company's principals include: CD/Director Vico Sharabani, CD/Director Harry Dorrington, CD/Director Arman Matin, CD/Director Natasha Saenko, COO/EP Camille Geier, Managing Director Rick Wagonheim, and CEO North America Zviah Eldar.
CREDITS
Agency: McCann Erickson
SVP, Group Creative Director: Chris Quillen
Senior Art Director: David Estoye
Senior Copywriter: Tom Weingard
SVP, Dir. of Verizon Production: Michele Ferone
Producer(s): Rainbow Corcoran, Eric Tao
Post/Effects: rhinofx
Creative Director(s): Natasha Saenko, Arman Matin
Producer: Nancy Giandomenico
Production Manager: Lauren Montuori
Lead Modeler: Brian Dinoto
Modeler(s): Piotr Glabinski, Andreja Vuckovic, Dragan Miokovic
Lead Animator: Goran Ognjanovic
Animator: Rob Dollase
3D Generalist: Justin Kurtz
Lead Lighter: Jasmine Katatikarn
Lighter(s): Veronica Skogberg, David Bernkopf
Lead TD: Ivan Guerrero
TD: Ken Wesley
Lead Compositor: Chris DiFiore
Compositor(s): Nitant Karnik, Makoto Sato, Aleksandar Djordjevic
Editor: Marc Steinberg, Katie Abel
Storyboard Artist: Mark D Bright
Storyboard Artist/Concept Art: David Zung
Concept Art: Sergio De La Parra
(article by cgnews)
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Quote:
| Commenting on the overall process, Saenko explains, "In each scene, we came up with a core element of the genre, then built the complexities of the design around it. Our idea was to show evolution in motion in which one icon splinters and the fragments reform into another-FiOs as a form of media technology that transcends genre-boundaries." |
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| Matin elaborates, "We wanted to create a sense of modularity, to efficiently break up objects in a stylized way that also really served a practical purpose. Because the visual progressions are flexible and versatile, we were able to deliver dozens of cohesive and interchangeable combinations instead of a just few static spots." |
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| rhinofx COO Camille Geier adds, "Collaborating with McCann really gave us the latitude to brainstorm and come up with solutions that enhanced the original concept, both to support Verizon's brand and really frame the content. Design is in our DNA and I think the output really shows the power of our studio and the large-scale projects we are able to tackle under tight time constraints." |
DUCK Designs Titles for Madagascar : Escape 2 Africa
December 2, 2008Director/Animator Jamie Caliri of LA-based production studio DUCK recently designed and animated the 02:18 title sequence for the highly anticipated feature film Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, which opened nationwide November 2008 and features the voices of Ben Stiller, Chris Rock and Alec Baldwin. I Like to Move It, one of four songs from the film's soundtrack created by Will.I.Am of Black Eyed Peas, moves the action along while the film's whimsical characters shamelessly provide their modern dance interpretations. Each film credit beckons a change in tribal-inspired backdrop and hilarious performance. The animation exhibits an almost 3D appeal, consequently engaging the audience.
