Reviews

Book Review: The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How it Changed America

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld
Ellen Wolff gets deeper into Meet Dave with VFX Supervisor Mark Stetson.

The HP xw8600 Workstation Review: Worth a Second Look

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Bryan Hoff tests the new and improved HP xw8600 workstation, now boasting Xeon 3.16 processors.

Summer 2008: Tools That Push Visual Limits

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Eric Post takes us on a ride through some of the summer tools that are setting new standards for vfx excellence.

Book Review: Unfiltered: The Complete Ralph Bakshi

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld
The former work-for-hire power transitions into a source of proprietary animation for the global market.

Book Review: Working with Walt: Interviews with Disney Artists

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld
In Don Peri's new book, insights abound, but the real Walt Disney remains elusive.

Jonesin’ for a fix…

Posted In | Blog Categories: Reviews | Site Categories: Films, Visual Effects
Hey kids! Play the Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Drinking Game! It’s easy! It’s fun! You’ll get boozed out of your mind! Here’s how to play…

fmx/08: Expanding the Global Animation & VFX Connection

Johannes Wolters dives into fmx/08, which this year offered an even greater number of stimulating discussions on the state of artistic and technological visual content.

3ds Max 2009 Review: More Lighting, Rendering, Navigation

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Ryan Lesser tests the new 3ds Max 2009 and is pleasantly surprised at how useful the new tools are, even for a humble game developer.

Frantic Films Integrates with the Prime Focus Family

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Karen Raugust reports on how the famed AI-based 3D animation system is being adopted by key VFX/animation schools.

Anime Reviews: Light, Brains, and Kakuganes

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld | Columns: Anime
Alain Bielik visits The Ruins with Rising Sun Pictures, which devised a new system for animating the nasty, man-eating vines.

Houdini 9.1 Review: Added Value and Improved Problem Solving

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Anupam Das of EA tests Houdini 9.1 and discovers several improvements, including FBX support and new additions to fluid and animation tools.

Mind Your Business: Move It

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld
In this month's "Mind Your Business," Mark Simon touts the benefits of living where the work is.

The HP xw8600 Workstation Review: Can You Say Fast?

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Bryan Hoff compares HP's new xw8600 workstation with the xw8400. Is it worth the upgrade? Read on.

Career Coach: The Times They Are A-Changing

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld | Columns: Career Coach
In the first "Career Coach" of 2008, Pamela Kleibrink Thompson discusses the only constant in life -- change.

2007 Year in Review: Digital Acting and 3D Environments

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Beowulf marks the first vfx-intensive performance capture hybrid, so Jerome Chen offers his perspective on entering it in the Oscar race.

Flame 2008 Review: A Proper Timeline At Last

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Ellen Wolff discovers the charmed life of Enchanted from Tippett VFX Supervisor Thomas Schelesny.

Book Review: Secrets of Oscar-winning Animation

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld
Tara DiLullo Bennett chats with VFX Supervisor Gary Hutzel about the fourth and final season of Battlestar Galactica and the challenges and opportunities of doing the vfx in-house.

Anime Reviews: Karas & N-H-K Welcome, Hammerboy Not So Much

Posted In | Magazines: AnimationWorld | Columns: Anime
MPC had numerous challenges to contend with on the more action-oriented Elizabeth: The Golden Age, and Alain Bielik reports on the results.

3ds Max 2008 Review: Boosting Performance

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Ryan Lesser tests 3ds Max 2008 and finds great productivity improvements, particularly for those specializing in architectural design, previs and lighting/composition.

Maya 2008 Review: Workflow is Key

Posted In | Magazines: VFXWorld
Fred Galpern tests Maya 2008 and discovers a significant change to Autodesk's approach to Maya development well worth the investment.