Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1011500
22 #SIGGRAPHcaf | #SIGGRAPH2018 LAIKA's "Missing Link": Raising the VFX Bar Tuesday, 14 August, 3:45 pm – 5:15 pm West Building, Ballroom AB LAIKA is a studio whose mission is to realize the potential of stop-motion animation by fusing old-school artisanship with cutting-edge technology. This production session will highlight the work done by LAIKA's in-house visual effects team on the studio's fifth film, "Missing Link" (in theaters 19 April 2019). During this session, the LAIKA team will highlight its unique production pipeline and how its digital efforts were created in concert with the puppet-makers and set builders at the studio. The team will discuss their adoption of RenderMan's RIS and how LAIKA was able to leverage new workflows to quadruple their output of photoreal, design-intensive background puppets, props, and environments for the film. "Missing Link" required a great deal of collaboration between the studio's on-set camera team and visual effects. This session will also underscore the challenges faced when fusing boundless digital scenes with camera setups dictated by an animator's ability to reach a puppet. The team will show examples of how camera data was shared, scaled, and augmented during the film's production. Three Keys to Creating the World of "Ready Player One" – Visual Effects & Virtual Production Wednesday, 15 August, 10:45 am – 12:15 pm West Building, Ballroom AB In this deep dive into Steven Spielberg's "Ready Player One," teams from Industrial Light & Magic and Digital Domain will showcase the breakthrough virtual production techniques and technology deployed for the film and the visual effects involved in bringing the film's dystopian vision of life in 2045 to the screen. In addition, the teams will delve into the immense artistic and technical challenges of designing, building, and animating every aspect of the expansive virtual universe known as the OASIS. Panelists: Production Sessions Panelists: Eric Wachtman, CG Look Development Lead Rick Sevy, CG Supervisor Michael Cordova, Lead Compositor LAIKA Grady Cofer, Visual Effects Supervisor David Shirk, Animation Supervisor David Dally, Visual Effects Supervisor, Industrial Light & Magic Jose Astacio, LAB Master Scene Lead, Digital Domain