Visual effects artist Doug Drexler recently uploaded this cool demo reel from BSG: Blood and Chrome, showing off the before and after of the CG ship interiors. What strikes me most is just how little the actors had to work with on set. Most of the shots shown here are almost entirely green screen with very few real world objects. It all came together impressively in the end.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes featured some amazing visual effects. Those monkeys were so realistic it was scary. But that doesn’t happen by magic. There are scores of talented people behind the scenes making it a reality.
Weta Digital has created this amazing behind-the-scenes featurette that highlights all of the CGI work that went into making it feel so natural and real. Andy Serkis is a big factor in why this worked so well too. When you have great CGI with such great acting, you have something really special.
Check out this neat behind the scenes look at how PIXOMONDO created the dragons for the fourth season of Game of Thrones. It takes a lot of work to make dragons look this good on screen and they have pulled it off quite nicely. These are probably the best dragons to appear on screen in the history of TV and film.
This video is worth your time if you are a fan of the show and want a glimpse at what goes into making these beasts look so alive. This show does CGI right.
When we think about Darth Vader, we usually picture him doing something sinister. Like Force Choking someone or blowing up a planet. That’s why it’s so striking and fun to see images like this. This put a smile on my face. This CGI photography is titled Kid Vader. It was a personal project from London based photographer Parker Biley.
Here we see Darth Vader as a young kid, playing with all of his toys. Not sure if he is putting that LEGO Yoda together with the Force, or tearing it down, but I love it.
These days we all know about computer generated imagery. In fact many of us think that the Star Wars prequels had way too much of it and suffered because of this. Star Trek has always been a pioneer of the art-form and as such has helped shape the technology behind it. These videos are from a 1987 Open University documentary on computer aided design, highlighting some early examples of CGI and how it was used in Star Trek.
Both are well worth your time. It’s a fascinating look back at effects that we take for granted today. The first video looks at Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. The second video looks at some of the work done on the Genesis Device sequence from Star Trek II.
Is there anything that ORBOT can not do? Watch this CGI short from Giovanni Bocchi and find out. This impressive short looks absolutely smashing and although ORBOT has a simple design, it is amazing how much personality Giovanni was able to give it as the robot overcomes one obstacle after another. Now my only question is, where can I buy one?
Welcome to the ORBOT System 1.0: the perfect way by which you can improve your life.
Orbot’s artificial intelligence is limited, but it is able to learn very quickly from the experience and to rework information to overcome obstacles never met before.Its versatility combined with its learning ability makes it a perfect all-rounder machine used in a variety of non-industrial occupations. The various gadgets available are sold separately in order to customize your device according to your practical needs. Its power is provided by a set of nuclear cells and their continuous operation is guaranteed for life.
WARNING: Orbot does not have a soul.
Conceptual illustrator, Gregory Hill has updated his website with some stunning concept art that he created for Ron Howard and Universal’s cancelled film based on Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series. The plan was for Howard to make three movies and at least a television mini-series or two, but sadly Universal passed, due to financial concerns.
It looks like we will not get to see this beautiful world(worlds) come to life anytime soon, which is extra sad after seeing this concept art that seems to capture the spirit of the books so well. Now I want to see Roland and the gang on screen more than ever.
