NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM had a strong opening in IMAX theaters during the four-day Christmas holiday weekend, according to IMAX Corp. and Twentieth Century Fox, collecting $2.3M at 72 domestic locations, helping contribute to the film's number one bow.
Shortlisted for a Visual Effects Oscar, thanks to the contributions of Rhythm & Hues, Rainmaker, The Orphanage and Weta Digital, among others, NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM appears even more immersive in IMAX.
CafeFX was called upon to create the vfx in Twentieth Century's ERAGON (shortlisted for a VFX Oscar), in which the sorcerer Durza makes his quick getaways by transporting from the face of the planet.
"Durza dematerializes twice within the story, under two sets of circumstances," said CafeFX visual effects producer David Van Dyke. "So we used two separate effects for each instance. Once is his normal, everyday teleportation, and the other is done while he is wounded, which is slower and more elaborate."
eyeon Software has launched VFXPedia.com, a new online service for Fusion artists and compositors in general.
VFXPedia is a central resource for compositing artists who use eyeon Software's Fusion product line to produce visual effects. This website is used by the staff at eyeon to provide technical information, such as whitepapers, scripts, tips and examples. The main purpose of the site is to invite Fusion artists to share their expertise and learn more about Fusion and compositing in general.
Look Effects was the sole vendor providing visual effects for Sylvester Stallone's ROCKY BALBOA (MGM), working on more than 150 shots.
Imaginary Forces (IF) launches into the holiday season with main titles for WE ARE MARSHALL (opening Dec. 22) and CHARLOTTE'S WEB. IF creative director Karin Fong led the design effort working closely with directors McG on WE ARE MARSHALL and Gary Winick on CHARLOTTE'S WEB. Both projects required maintaining authenticity to the stories, but with vastly different design solutions.
The vfx experts at CafeFX went complete buggy to help the CIA stage a Cold War-era dirty trick in Latin America in the Robert De Niro-directed THE GOOD SHEPHERD, the Universal thriller starring Matt Damon, De Niro and Angelina Jolie, which opens today, Dec. 22, 2006. The act of sabotage, designed to undo the stability of a Latin American nation, involves bombarding a crowd with planeloads of destructive CGI bugs.
Registration for the Gnomon School Winter Term 2007 (Jan. 8 through March 18) has begun. You can register online at www.gnomonschool.com, in person, via mail or by fax. Office hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. If you would like to have a tour or get some advice on which courses to take, call 323-466-6663 to make an appointment with Michael "Santi" Santiago.
SIGGRAPH is introducing a new venue, Intellectual Property (IP) Marketplace, with the goal of simplifying the complicated process of matching parties for buying and selling of Intellectual Property as it pertains to the ever-expanding Computer Graphics (CG) and Human-Computer-Interaction (HCI) industries.
Ray Feeney, a pioneer of software solutions for visual effects in motion pictures, will receive the first Oscar this year when Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honors him with the Gordon E. Sawyer Award. Another VFX pioneer, Richard Edlund, will be awarded a John A. Bonner Medal of Commendation. The Oscar statuette and Bonner medallion will be presented at the Scientific and Technical Awards Dinner on Feb. 10, 2007, at the Regent Beverly Wilshire.
Sam Raimi has hired former Tribune Ent. and Universal exec William Hamm to head the newly formed Ghost House Television, writes VARIETY.
First up for the new television division of Ghost House Pictures is a miniseries based on Dean Koontz's THE TAKING. Raimi and Ghost House partner Rob Tapert are exec producing with the co-exec producer being Larry Block, who brought the project to Ghost House.
The novel centers on a small-town husband and wife as an apocalyptic rain precedes otherworldly invasion.
Rising Storm Prods. has started shooting horror thriller, PARASOMNIA, reports VARIETY. William Malone (HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL) has written the screenplay and will direct the film, which stars Cherilyn Wilson, Dylan Purcell, Patrick Kilpatrick, Jeffrey Combs, Timothy Bottoms, Kathryn Leigh Scott, Jeff Doucette and Dov Tiefenbach. Jane Hamilton is producing with Jon Jannotta serving as exec producer.
The story follows a woman who suffers from parasomnia, a medical condition that makes her sleep for extended periods of time, only waking occasionally in short bursts.
Dimension Films has hired George Huang (SWIMMING WITH SHARKS) to direct an adaptation of Michael Allred's comicbook MADMAN, VARIETY reports. Robert Rodriguez and Elizabeth Avellan are producing out of their Troublemaker Studios. Allred will pen the script.
A post-modern take on the Frankenstein story, the comic follows a man who dies in a car accident and is brought back to life by a mad scientist, who names him Frank Einstein. Empowered with super senses and psychic power, Frank Einstein dons the mask of his favorite superhero to hide his scars.
AMC is set the remake the 1960s sci-fi series THE PRISONER, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. AMC will co-produce the series with distributor Granada and Sky One.
The original series -- which starred Patrick McGoohan, who also created, produced, wrote and directed the show -- is set in "The Village" where the citizens suddenly finds themselves trapped, having no memory of who they are or where the came from. While under constant surveillance, the man named, Number Six, tries to uncover the truth and find a way to escape.
eyeon Software Inc. announced that Fusion for Linux is immediately available. Based on the recent December release of version 5.1, Fusion on Linux is the company's next universal platform initiative.
"We have been working hard on Fusion Linux, discovering along the way the necessary changes required to provide a product equal to the task of both the Fusion and Linux communities," said eyeon ceo Steve Roberts. "And we're really proud to deliver this in time for the holidays..."
Following the first two volumes of the JAMES BOND ULTIMATE EDITION, comes the remaining third and fourth volumes (Fox Home Ent./MGM, $89.98 each) on Dec. 12, 2006. Featuring five films each (not in order), these are the best looking transfers yet on DVD, thanks to Lowry Digital Images (the original STAR WARS and INDIANA JONES trilogies). Lowry scanned the original negatives at 4K and then digitally cleaned and color corrected them. They have never looked this dazzling at home. Can't wait for Blu-ray!
As 2006 draws to a close, VFXWORLD provides a YEAR IN REVIEW of our top five picks in the areas of digital acting and 3D environments, bolstered by impressive clips for each entry in our Media Player. Meanwhile, Peter Plantec, our virtual acting authority, has an in-depth overview of the state of the art. Also, Tara DiLullo takes in the sweet smell of epic vfx in CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER, and Alain Bielik uncovers the secrets behind NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM, which has just been shortlisted for a VFX Oscar.
Bill DesowitzEditor
Extension 1 for the Autodesk Lustre 2007 digital color grading system is now available exclusively to Lustre subscription customers. With this extension, Lustre 2007 extracts greater performance from the graphical processing unit (GPU) on Windows-based personal computers (PCs), thereby accelerating the digital grading process. By using Lustre 2007, colorists can work in parallel with Autodesk Flame and Autodesk Smoke systems users, improving collaboration and completing projects faster.
NaturalMotion Ltd., developers of the highly-acclaimed Dynamic Motion Synthesis (DMS) technology, announced its new Academic Partner Program, which offers leading colleges, universities and 3D animation schools subsidized fast-track access to endorphin and select upcoming 3D technology from NaturalMotion. The new Academic Partner Program is NaturalMotions first step in a sustained effort to establish a growing network of students who are skilled in next-generation animation technologies.
Preparations for fmx/07, the 12th International conference on Animation, Effects, Realtime and Content, has a new advisory board, and The Haus der Wirtschaft in Stuttgart will once again host the international digital community from May 1-4, 2007.
The website has been updated and companies are welcome to participate in fmx/forum, fmx/workshops or fmx/recruiting. You can receive a special offer until Dec. 31.
Joining the fmx/07 team are:
The 9th edition of the Future Film Festival, the first and most important Italian event dedicated to the latest digital technologies applied to cinema, television and the Net, will take place in Bologna from Jan. 17-21, 2007. The program includes homages, premieres and meetings with special effects production companies from all over the world. Amongst the Italian premieres: ARTHUR & THE MINIMOYS by Luc Besson, ORIGIN -- SPIRITS OF THE PAST by Keiichi Sugiyama; FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST by Seiji Mizushima, PRINCESS by Anders Morgenthaler and SILK by Chao-Bin Su.
The SIGGRAPH team is preparing for the 34th annual conference in San Diego, Aug. 5-9, 2007. Student Volunteers are an integral part of the conference, providing needed assistance to conference attendees and participants in exchange for entrance to the conference and, in some cases, hotel accommodations and travel grants.
Some of the benefits Student Volunteers may receive:* Full conference access* Travel and housing assistance possibilities* Special sessions featuring industry professionals* Career mentoring opportunities
Paramount Pictures has tapped Steve Oedekerk to rewrite the script for RIPLEY'S BELIEVE IT OR NOT!, according to VARIETY. The project will still be a starring vehicle for Jim Carrey and a directing job for Tim Burton. Studio hopes to start production in China in winter 2008 with an eye on 2009 for a release date.
PETER PAN IN SCARLET, the authorized sequel to J.M. Barrie's PETER PAN, have been bought by Headline Pictures, BBC Films and the U.K. Film Council, writes VARIETY.
Commissioned by the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, which was awarded the PAN copyright by Barrie, Geraldine McCaughrean's book find grown-up Wendy, her brothers and the Lost Boys traveling back to Neverland after Wendy dreams that the fantasy world is in peril.
London and Newcastle-based Headline Pictures, is headed by producers Stewart Mackinnon and Mark Shivas and writer Kevin Hood.
From sizzling dramas to science fiction adventures, Autodesk Inc. Media & Ent. solutions are shaping more than 40 new and returning TV shows. Numerous post-production facilities are relying on Autodesk visual effects, editing and finishing, and 3D animation, modeling and rendering software to create captivating, future-proofed TV content.
Twentieth Century Fox's NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM, an adventure comedy directed by Shawn Levy (THE PINK PANTHER and CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN) and starring Ben Stiller and Robin Williams, will come to life in IMAX's DMR (Digital Re-mastering) format when it opens in 72 IMAX theaters in North America on Dec. 22.
