Decision Making in VFX Production: What is “correct”?
Recently I was part of an interesting discussion about doing things the “correct” way in a VFX production pipeline. Specifically, we were talking about scene scale and relative object scale. In general it is a good idea to build geometry to “correct” scale and to...
Contact Shadows & Cast Shadows: A myth
I have worked with hundreds of digital artists over the years, many of whom distinguish between what they call “Contact Shadows” and what they call “Cast Shadows”. Cast shadows, we are told, are the sharp shadows you can see cast by an object that is lit by a light...
Major labor shortage: B.C. VFX artists & animators in demand!
What an incredible time to be a VFX artist or animator in digital media in Vancouver. This region has established itself as the largest visual effects hub in North America. Tax credits and the lower Canadian dollar initially attracted investment in our industry. Hard...
University-itis: Why it is so hard to train university graduates.
Smart people tend to come to CG Masters for visual effects training. Often these smart people will already have a credential from another institution, usually an accredited university. Sometimes they have completed a visual effects training program at a university....
Do You Want Your Animation & Visual Effects Business to Thrive?
1. Don’t buy into the culture of crisis. The culture of animation and visual effects today embraces the concept that the production line must be in constant crisis which forces us to work insane hours to do impossible things. It repeats again and again that there is...
If you don’t like your VFX job, quit. Seriously.
Below are excerpts from an article, the full text of which can be found here: http://m.broadcastnow.co.uk/5073081.article In the article, addressing an investigation into poor VFX working conditions, The Mill chief creative officer Pat Joseph said that although the...
How to be a great commercial digital artist: Collectivism
How to be a great commercial digital Artist through Collectivism Being a great commercial digital artist only BEGINS with your technical and aesthetic skills. Beyond this, it is about how you work in a collective, whether or not you maintain situational awareness,...
Why you can’t learn CG Lighting over a beer.
I have had quite a few requests from people to "pick my brains" over a beer and learn the secrets of great lighting. I'd be happy to do this, but I can't. In order to explain why, you'll need a little background, so here it is: As a professional CG Generalist of some...
Learning Animation & VFX at a University?
(edit: May 20): It has been suggested that the purpose of this post may be to "attack" universities. I thank the university gentleman for his remarks and concerns and offer the following. Quite to the contrary, this article is part of a much larger discussion which...
Troubleshooting: Not taught enough in animation/vfx schools
Troubleshooting is a critical primary skill in digital media, including 3d animation and visual effects. It is critical because so much can go so wrong so quickly. ‘Primary’ because things often do go wrong and it’s up to us as animation / visual effects artists and...
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