VFX Basics

The Core of VFX is something I've been trying to explain to anyone who is interested for as long as I have known about how the magic of movies actually get made. As much as I would like to pretend. This is not very long. But being deceived as long as I have been. You get angry and try to decipher how these magicians do what they do, and do it consistently, without disrupting the eye of the viewer. As 3D becomes a staple in film production and exhibition, I truly do believe it is here to stay. The entanglement of the movie business pipeline is for another post...I know this blog is all over the place, for one way or another, we have to talk about the ever expanding industry that is really fueling what we need to believe in, as the digitized world. Practical vs Digital vs Minimal DVFX or PVFX. Pros and cons to each and everyone one of them. Christopher Nolan, (The Rise of the Dark Knight), who is noted for his use of special effects in his blockbusting films (The Dark Knight Franchise) and The Illusionist and so forth. But, his early films, Following (1998) and Memento (2000) feature very minimal VFX comparing to his latter films. On the way to the VFX house I was working at, him and I agreed on one thing that I found very serendipitous, that VFX is a tool, not a way of life. Some of the classics, and mostly most of our favorite visual story tellers first movies, except for Mr. Lucas and Mr. Cameron, were made with minimal effects at all! There is always room for stop motion and practical methods, which I would love to explore one day! But, As I have been given a gift from when I got to work on my first 3-D movie, it would be selfish to not share at least some of what I am trying to learn. I am on LINKED IN, chatting away, and hopefully they will jump over the the dark side and chat over here a bit. At least the basics. As you learn I learn. Win, Win. So, when you look at movies, you are truly witnessing PURE illusion from the get go. But as magicians never show the audiences their tricks... This will be really just an overview, skimming the surface of how much you and I really don't know about cinema. I am cinema's fool. No doubt about it. I love it. To start off slow, one of the hottest shows breaks down how your eye is not as sharp, or how great these VFX artists are! Without further ado, Game of Thrones VFX Breakdown.