-Research-

 

Visual effects -

1) Avatar

 

what is the intention of the effect?

the intention of the effect is to illustrate a world that is unfamiliar to the audience, however it makes us intrigued and fascinated by the scenes. as well as providing us with a sense of familiarity after watching similar visuals throughout the movie. the movie pulls us into what life is like in their world putting us in there perspective allowing the audience to be interested in their lives which is essential.

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is the effect successful in enhancing the scene?

the subtle elements such as the false flowers and vibrant plants within the forest enhances audiences experiences by making us feel as if we are really there. In addition to this the film  shows the swaying of the plants in the wind making it more realistic. the effects place great emphasis on primary colours further pulling our attention to the scene.

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how do you think it was made?

the use of photorealistic visual effect shots, basically means that the combination of drawings, paintings and graphic materials where used to gather information making it as life like as possible. in order to really capture the avatars facial expressions techniques such as facial motion capture where used. this allowed for markers to be attached to actors faces and with specially developed software they could map out which muscles where moving in their face. this translated data then was applied to a facial- animation system. specific programs used include (Sony cinealta Venice 3d) and the camera is rigged to a 3d stereoscopic beam splitter (which is a system of mirrors and prisms that fit in front of a normal lens).

evaluate enjoyment?

I think the the use of colour such as luminous makeup on the avatars, to the visually pleasing plants and the motions of the grass with small refined detail makes for a pleasurable experience for the human eye. the weather that mirrors character emotions from beautiful scenic sunsets to harsh rainfalls makes us understand the character more - meaning personally I'm not confused. the turquoise water and the reef peoples enchanted under water world is an example of how the VFX is well put together with a composition of blues and greens. the avatars facial expressions are evident and expressive. this all combined to make a compelling storyline and visually amazing movie, so to conclude i enjoyed this film!

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2) pirates of the Caribbean (curse of the black pearl)

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what is the intention of the effect ?

to tell their tales in the most captivating way possible. not to mention the director was questioning when  the last time a well made pirate movie was created - therefore i think his motive was to really try featuring as many grand gestures as possible to offer something new to the market. these effects along with the characters to the costumes made it all seem exiting and unimaginable.

is the effect successful in enhancing the scene? 

this enhances the scene by making realistic characters and an environment which is eye-catching. Moreover the creation of the skeletons tied in with the sound effects of their cracking bones makes the audience question how they manged to get something so supernatural appear believable.

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how was it made?

utilising motion-capture technology to create computer-generated characters. ILM (a company) made it possible for CG character performances. By shooting the scenes twice ( this was due to the fact that they will firstly take a reference shot then a clean take to insert the CG pirates into them). A lot of work was also put into the costumes, but again ILM used the same clothing stimulation software in order to make it realistic. Furthermore the crew went as far as to mapping out how much meat to bone ratio they wanted on the skeletons, and took further images of turkey jerky to create the texture on one of the pirates faces. each one of the pirates had a unique depiction of their decaying bodies. The team also took images of a  generic skull to then place the characters faces over so they could mould it to their desired look all on the computer.

evaluate enjoyment?

The humour and romance balanced with the gripping action scenes all make for an immerse watch, as we go along on this thrilling adventure with the characters. Overall this classic film never fails to be entertaining.

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3) Jurassic park 

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the intention of the effect?

Jurassic park took extinced dinosaurs and made them the driving feature which pushes the whole of its narrative along. I think its impressive that they heavily realised on visual effects for there main plot to be presented to an audience. The intention of course is for the audience to be able to imagine what life could have been like living among these gargantuan spectacular creatures.

does it enhance the scene?

the visual effects provide a "wow factor" for the audience and feature in nearly every scene. therefore intensifying the dinosaurs appearance and fitting it into the protagonists lifestyle. 

how was it made?

industrial Lights&magic where the company who worked with 63 computer generated effects within the film. The scenes that feature grand weather scenes where built and shot separately before the CGI discourses where added. Spielberg's original plan was to employ stop-motion techniques; full-scale animatronics for scenes that required full-range dinosaur movement. CGI was especially used when the T-Rex needs to move at full speed, but as the T-Rex is introduced in earlier scenes with the attack on the Jeep driven by (Bob Peck) it means that in later scenes where visuals may seem less convincing the audience have already accepted the reality of the highly animatronic T-Rex.

evaluate enjoyment?

the dinosaur movements are fluid with impeccable lighting, however from a actors perspective these dinosaurs are not tangible and somewhat seem artificial. I personally think that although the film is visually impressive the hybrid genre does not appeal to me; I'm not really a fan of dinosaurs either. Therefore the film was more enjoyable for my brother as oppose to me who would rather watch something a bit more realistic.

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4)the lord of the rings 

The intention ?

Portraying thousands of elves and men with ungodly creatures and gloomy sky's with arrow shooting action the main intention is to drive the audience to keep watching as the visuals continue to amaze you.

enhances the scene?

now although there are some questionable CGI during one of the battle's this is all resolved by the depiction of the creature Gollum. This is down to technology that created the look; texture of his skin, as well as its flexibility not to mention his motion and how that was achieved. This character enhances the scene by presenting something peculiar to us that we are bewildered by such "thing" all whilst gaging our attention to the minute details of the character.

how it was made?

wetafx are the company which build these digital assets and environments combining them with digital puppets driven by motion capture. this virtual view is then fed into the viewfinder of a physical camera.  To create Gollum's motion rotomation (a technique animating a 3D component on top of the motion picture footage, frame by frame matching an actor or an object) with keyframe animators mimicking movements. Also motion capturing where data is collected during motion-capture rafter which, the live actors performed to an imaginary Gollum in real time. And they also used traditional key frame animation all of which is intertwined to create compelling visual effects.

enjoyment and why?

After watching the trailer alone i find that it replicates something similar to Harry Potter. Most of the films in harry potter where well fabricated, therefore i dont see why i wouldn't take pleasure in watching what seems to be a action packed tale centred around a ring with enchanting visual effects.

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5) planet of the apes 

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intention?

To demonstrate the apes as if they where humans interacting, talking and even fighting war. The visual effects tries to trick the audience into the ideology that these animals are realistic and it manages to successfully do so as well.

enhances scene?

the broad facial expressions that the apes can express makes it feel less superficial and more like actual actors with a real presence offering a storyline to viewers. The concept of choosing to ever side with the humans or the apes in the great war is original.

how it was made?

From the apes down to even the environment such as the forest all these CG effects are effortlessly placed to from a world that look so believable. It was made by the art of performance capture, which is putting specialized cameras around the set to record the motions from different angles. the actors wear helmets with a head rig and a little camera mounted in front of their face. They use the information to construct the body motions of the apes and the motions of the apes' faces. And then make sure that everything fits into the three-dimensional real world that's happening in front of the camera. It requires thinking outside the box for all the details which makes something realistic, which is why artificial lighting is even implemented in. Even the fur the apes needs to be  simulated the right way. Deatails even goes as small as - the light bouncing in that virtual world needs to match up to the light bouncing in the real world. 

enjoyment and why?

the juxtaposition of the visual effects alongside special effects placed with the "humans" makes for a tense and peculiar watch. It defiantly subverts from what animals can actually do, but still remains entertaining with how unusual the idea is. Although the way the apes are animals they seem to at times just act human with slight anthropomporhic characterisitcs. I think this is highly enjoyable as it keeps the audience questioning reality.

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Special effects-

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1) no time to die (James bond)

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intention?

I think the main intention was to have a closing statement for the retiring James Bond and these impressive visuals most definitely give him credit for the training to he had to endure in order to shoot some scenes. The visuals want to captivate our attention and not only help make the storyline interesting but also show off the resources used. Such as their impressive props ( like the Aston Martin cars used in the car chase scene).

enhances scene?

The effects allow for scenes to be memorable; truly brilliant. the conceptualization that this is all happening in reality enhances the scene furuther as we have greater appriciation for the bold stunts. 

how it was made?

Chris Corbould who restlessly made sure that the special effects was as enthral as possible, made sure to consider how the car chase scene would plan out. He decided that on top of James's car there would be a driving pod due to the fact that an actual race driver was at the steering of a replica car which was placed alongside. This allowed for cameras to look into James's car and make it appear as if he is driving the vehicle. The smoke bombs where all real, but the guns which come out from the headlights of the car where all specially designed by Aston martin who has also create 8 other replicas of there silver car. The hurdle was  the team had to be considerate of the location in which they were shooting. As the old building's which surrounded the place needed to be preserved. Therefore extravagant explosions needed to be carfully thought out otherwise it  would be highly detrimental to some of the prehistoroic buldings. By locking the front wheel of the protagoninists car and using a pivot James's was able to actually do a 360 spin where a 800 year old church was. However everything from 3feet down along the walls  the cast made sure the bulding was protected. The team aslo divided a circle into 8 segments to carefully coordinate where the bombs would go off. They emphasise how they needed to communicate with the local town people in order to shoot their, which goes to show how further considerations on location also comes into play with special effects.

enjoyment and why?

This jaw dropping action pact film transports you to feeling like a real life superspy. the explosive bombs, cashing trains and gun bullets keeps us wanting to sit through the entirity of the film without loosing our attention. I say that the special effects allows for the film to really stand out making it an enjoyable watch.

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2) Terminator 2 

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intention?

as the first film was such as success the special effects in terminator intended to push above what had already been done.

enhances scene?

It made the science fiction action film more convincing for the protagonist who is a highly advanced killing machine. On the other hand some could argue that for a modern audience the stunts are not as impressive due to the fact that bigger better stunts with high-end props are now being released in cinemas.

How was it made?

 With a (10-month) schedule and about $17 million of the film's budget allocated to special effects. Via location scouting; storyboarding,  choreographing vehicle scenes with toy cars and trucks, filming the results, and printing out the frames for the storyboard made it possible. None of this could be tested out beforehand leaving a level of uncertainty on the day of the shoot. Apparently for some of the stunts involving the use of props  "the camera is locked off and there is another puppet shot against a rear screen projector, projecting more miniatures".

enjoyment and why?

Again although this is not my type of film i cannot fault the amount of work that has been put in to pull of some of the stunts that were performed such as highway chases. All of which meant the production had to hire cables from many studios such as Disney.

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3)Life of pi

intention?

The main plot is about a young boy struggling to survive through seemingly insurmountable odds. in order for these odds to seem significant to the audience they need to really push what is so "hard" about the lifestyle the boy was living in.  Hence the need to build props such as a massive water tank so that some of the stormy wheather shots with large scale fans creating humangous waves could be filmed.

enhances scene?

The real life water in which most of the protagonist spent his time in meant that the scene could look as visually pleasing as possible with the motions of water replicating real life.

how it was made?

for shots that where underwater giant wave tanks where built in an abandoned airport, with surrounding curtains; opening doors to let in or out light to provide the perfect ligting. Four real life tigers were used for refence and motion capture as their was some incorporation of visual effects. 

enjoyment and why?

The stormy weather conditions immerses us in the tough life that our protagonist has to endure in order to survive. The adventure, hope; triumph of the film joint in with the surroundings makes it enjoyable to watch.

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4)euphoria 

intention?

To be able to present characters emotions thought the use of special effects. This includes scene where colour and lighting is essential in order to display emotions without the character speaking.

enhances scene?

these effects allows for the audience to understand the character, and have them be more relatable. Having relatable characters is principle otherwise viewers wouldn't be interested in thir journey; would loose interest.

how was it made?

The crews use of blue backlights and yellow-tinted streetlights enhanced night scenes in Euphoria. Many of the lighting came though LED lights and skypannels along with more traditional lightboxes and special light rigs.

enjoyment and why?

By placing importance on the characters moods and displaying this thorough visuals it means that the bold lighting and unexpected camera movements make it an enjoyable watch.

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5)the walking dead 

intention?

 The intention is to bring the story to life with the walking dead literally approaching you.

enhances scene?

Now although zombies are not as realistic the cinematography and special effects help to amplify the scene making us feel more apart of the story. But there is still a parts of me that isn't convinced by this special effect as I feel visual effects would have been better to provide a more realistic and less "halloween dress up" look.

how it was made?

prosthetic makeup is a time consuming job hence why the zombies were segregated into 3 categories (hero, midground; background). The hero zombies would be fully covered from head to toe. whereas the midground would maybe require some highlights and shading to their faces. the background zombies mainly wore masks. In order to film in some locations whole cities and streets need to be shut down, but sometimes additional sets for buildings where constructed.  Some of these sets where crushed down as the seasons continued however objects from some where reused.

enjoyment and why?

The gruesome zombies and bloody scenes keep you right on the edge of your seat. The prostheici makeup was as close to "zombie" like as possible, but in my personal opinion i felt this special effect ineffective in this instance.