VFXWorld Magazine
Epic Games Releases Weta’s ‘Meerkat’ Hair and Fur Sample Project
VFX powerhouse has worked closely with Epic to fine-tune Unreal Engine’s strand-based Hair and Fur system; downloadable scene gives users a firsthand look at the production tool in action.
VES Honors 2020 – Gone Virtual Coming December 15 - 16
The online event celebrates industry’s innovators, artists and professionals; Ray Scalice, Ken Ralston, Irwin Allen, and Mary Blair among the Founders Award, Lifetime Members, Honorary Members, VES Fellows, and Hall of Fame honorees.
Amber Heard May Snag Aquaman Screen Time in Snyder Cut
The highly anticipated ‘Justice League’ re-cut may be marred by an alternate Knightmare scenario in which Mera wields the trident.
Parade Animation’s Quill-Created ‘Lifetime Achievement’ Now on Oculus TV
The new virtual reality project, created entirely with Oculus’ VR-native animation platform, is a whimsical tale about balancing work and family that immerses the viewer in a vivid and glittering wonderland.
‘BobbleHeads: The Movie’: First Film Finished Remotely with Nvidia GPUs and Azure
Cher, Jennifer Coolidge, and Luke Wilson star in animated film completed remotely, during the COVID-19 pandemic, with leading cloud-based technology including Chaos Group’s V-Ray renderer.
Teradici Releases ‘The Separation of Work and Place’ Report
Leading tech company’s findings, gathered from nearly 700 IT professionals, focus on lessons learned by organizations forced to face a ‘new normal’ amid the global pandemic.
David Beckham Aged Without Scans in ‘Malaria Must Die – So Millions Can Live’ PSA
Digital Domain added decades to the soccer star’s face without producing any geometry using their non-invasive face-swapping technology, Charlatan.
Why Ahsoka Tano Looks Different in ‘The Mandalorian’
Fans of the jedi’s character in ‘The Clone Wars’ animated series are puzzled at her shortened head-tails in the live-action series, but the change is for good reason.
Autodesk Announces Maya 2020.4
Update to Bifrost visual programming environment brings richer, procedural workflows to more areas of the pipeline and provides artists with powerful new scattering and instancing capabilities, along with volumetrics and FX tools.
ASIFA-Hollywood Announces New Officers for Executive Board of Directors
Veteran board member Sue Shakespeare named president; other appointees include Jerry Beck as VP, Brooke Keesling as 2nd VP, David Derks as 3rd VP, Jeff Wike as CFO, and Jeanette Bonds as secretary.
‘Willow’ to Cast Magic Once Again in New Disney+ Series
Warwick Davis to reprise his role as Willow Ufgood, along with three new female leads, as Lucasfilm will continue, not reboot, the story from Ron Howard’s 1988 dark fantasy.
Chaos Group Launches Chaos Vantage and ‘Building Utopia’ Contest
Join the rendering challenge focused on creating real-time animation using Vantage and a free futuristic 3D city model provided by KitBash3D; contest runs until January 25, 2021.
MPC Episodic Delivers During the Pandemic for Sky/HBO’s ‘The Third Day’
VFX team provided creatures, CG crowds, FX simulations, environment extensions, and seamless digital shot stitching for the miniseries; 100 artists delivered shots while working and collaborating from home during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Chapeau Studios Adds Troy Kelley and Jon Campbell to Leadership Team
Key additions come as the studio expands original content and strategic offerings; hires add depth to new and innovative work, better merging the creative with technology.
WATCH: Stan Lee Discusses His Favorite Curse Word
In memory of the Marvel legend, animator Aron Fromm has released an animated short featuring audio of the late great comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer speaking about the usefulness of cursing.
Peter Dinklage to Play ‘Toxic’ Hero in Upcoming Reboot
Original creators Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz are set to remake their cult classic film ‘Toxic Avenger,’ an exploration of ‘environmental themes’ mixed with the vibes of ‘Deadpool.’
FMX 2021 Online Edition ‘ReImagine Tomorrow’ Set for May 4-6, 2021
Virtual event will provide a platform for the global FMX community to reflect collectively on the disruption and reinvention of the industry.
SIGGRAPH Asia 2020 Virtual Edition Begins!
This year’s Conference, headlined by keynotes from Oscar-winning director Glen Keane and VFX supervisor Paul Franklin, kicks off its extensive program of live and pre-recorded sessions, running through December 13.
Amber Heard Reportedly in Talks for ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Reboot
While the hits keep coming for Johnny Depp in his continuing estrangement battles against his ex-wife, this time she’s coming for his most iconic role.
HBO Announces Production Start for ‘Game of Thrones’ Prequel Series
The ‘Thrones’ Twitter account reveals 2021 commencement for ‘House of the Dragon’ alongside some fiery images of the upcoming series’ eponymous dragons.
Explore Digital Humans, VR for Mental Health, and In-Camera VFX at SIGGRAPH Asia 2020
Conference spotlights major breakthroughs, current trends, and innovative CG projects in computer graphics, animation, visual effects and other interactive mediums; sessions begin December 4.
Warner Films to Hit Theaters AND HBO Max The Same Day in 2021
Warner Bros. Pictures Group announces new hybrid distribution model for next year’s feature film slate in a nod to the realities and impact on theatrical releases of the ongoing global pandemic.
Autodesk Releases 3ds Max 2021.3 Update
New release speeds modeling efficiency for artists, introduces viewport improvements, new remeshing algorithms, enhanced materials and shaders, and Arnold Renderer 6.1 for faster GPU rendering.
Teradici Releases PCoIP Ultra Auto-Offload 2020.10 Cloud Access Software
New feature optimizes network efficiency, overcoming bandwidth or latency constraints for employees working from home or other remote locations.