Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/426320
n o v e m b e r . d e c e m b e r 2 0 1 4 c g w 4 3 CafeFX, Scanline, Stereo D, and Lidar VFX, with previs by The Third Floor. Panorama photos of San Francisco were used to generate a 3D map of the city that filled in during the bridge shots, done in Vancouver. G U A R D I A N S O F T H E G A L A X Y RELEASE DATE: August 1 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Marvel Studios, Marvel Enter- prises, MPC The ragtag crew in Guardians of the Galaxy hardly look like heroes on a mission, but they are. Among them are the all-CG characters Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon, and Groot, a tree-like humanoid. To bring the film to the screen required several VFX studios, with more than 850 shots completed by MPC, includ- ing Groot, environments, and the spacecra. Framestore, mean- while, tackled the work required to bring Rocket to life, while Sony Imageworks' work entailed shots in the engine room of the Dark Aster, the big ship. I N T E R S T E L L A R RELEASE DATE: November 7 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Legendary Pictures, Lynda Obst Productions, Paramount Pic- tures, Syncopy, Warner Bros. Interstellar promises to be one of the top thrills of the year in this science-meets-enter- tainment film. From Christo- pher Nolan, the movie pushes scale and scope, with vast CG creations of space and the cosmos. One of the most breathtaking scenes involves a realistic portrait of Gargantua, a monstrous black hole at the movie's center. So strap in, this movie is taking viewers for an aesthetic ride they will not soon forget. I N T O T H E S T O R M RELEASE DATE: August 8 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Broken Road Productions, New Line Cinema, Village Roadshow Pictures Storms, such as tornadoes, are intense forces of nature. Bringing that force to the screen is a complex job. For Into the Storm, the artists at Method added wind and flying debris to the climax, when two major funnel clouds join to form a massive tornado that touch- es down and causes massive destruction in its wake. Artists at Cinesite, Hydraulx, Scanline VFX, Digital Domain, and Rhythm & Hues acted as storm generators, as well. I N T O T H E W O O D S RELEASE DATE: December 25 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Lucamar Productions, Marc Platt Productions, Walt Dis- ney Pictures When you have a number of fairy-tale characters from different worlds converging in the same film, it can add up to a plethora of effects. In the film, a witch teaches lessons to char- acters including Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Jack (from the beanstalk fame), and Rapunzel. The characters themselves require digital magic, as do the environments and elements, such as Jack's beanstalk, in this live-action presentation. The effects are stylized, which work perfectly in this make-believe world. It surely will not disappoint. L U C Y RELEASE DATE: July 25 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Canal+, Cine+, EuropaCorp., TF1 Films production In this movie, the visual effects are abstract CG imagery gener- ated at ILM. The film is about a drug mule, Lucy, who begins to hallucinate when the drugs seep into her system, and it was up to ILM to provide the imagery for those hallucinations. She also acquires superintelligence and superpowers, and again, the stu- dio was called on to provide the effects for her state, including CG backgrounds as her mind dris back in time. An impressive se- quence contains cosmic images, including nebulae. M A L E F I C E N T RELEASE DATE: May 30 PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Roth Films, Walt Disney Pictures The retelling of the Sleeping Beauty tale from the villain's point of view makes for an interesting story. But what's more interesting are the visual effects in the film. Of most interest are the digital characters, the pixies. Digital Domain created these photoreal characters, which are stylized versions of the actors, in a way only that studio can do. The complicated costumes worn by the pixies challenged the artists at the facility, as well. Another big challenge came in the form of Maleficent's wings, also created by Digital Domain artists. DISNEY'S INTO THE WOODS TAKES MOVIEGOERS ON AN INCREDIBLE JOURNEY THROUGH FANTASTIC ENVIRONMENTS. IMAGE ©2014 DISNEY