Computer Graphics World

Editor'sNote iCons and Icons I n early October, the CG industry—and the world—lost a visionary. When other people were viewing the future in black and white, Steve Jobs saw it in vivid color, and revealed that vision to us through many unique inventions that today are part of our daily lives, whether at work or at play. One would be hard-pressed to find a company with a more devoted or loyal customer base than Apple, which Jobs founded in the mid-1970s. Apple com- puters were aesthetically, and functionally, different from their PC cousins. When Jobs wanted to introduce the Macintosh, he did so in grand fashion with a big-budget Super Bowl commercial that heralded the Mac as a shift from the status quo—a position that holds true nearly three decades later. Perhaps it's this label of "uniqueness" that continues to attract bands of loyal Apple cus- tomers, whether in the consumer or professional space. Although Jobs will be forever linked to the iProduct revolution, his vision helped foster another iconic brand: Pixar. Starting with its first CGI movie, Toy Story, Pixar would continue to spin box-office gold under the guidance of CEO Jobs. He saw the potential when he pur- chased the Lucasfilm division and turned it into the world-renowned animated film company. Under Jobs' watchful eye, Pixar developed technology and married it with visual storytelling, resulting in hit after movie hit—titles that are wo- ven into our cultural fabric today, and certainly tomorrow. Many have tried to emu- late Jobs and his inventions, but he, like his legacy, is one of a kind. He recognized potential long before others. And he made his visions realities. He was a true iCon. Terra Nova. Innovation in CG on TV required baby steps, starting with logos and eventually commercials by the late 1980s. A few years later, the "Dancing Baby" phenomena began, and CG/VFX began to show up in our favorite series, sometimes as invisible effects, other times as apparent (and, at times, in-your-face) effects. Increasingly, VFX specialists are asked to produce feature-quality work on a television budget and time frame. The results have been impressive. One of the most anticipated effects-heavy new series is Terra Nova. (For an in-depth look at the work, see "Turning Back Time" on pg. 42.) Puss in Boots. In 2011, DreamWorks established itself as a top CG animation stu- dio when it released the unique fractured fairy tale Shrek. During the next decade, we were introduced to a number of new characters and new technology within this fairy- tale world in subsequent films. Just recently, DreamWorks shed the spotlight on Puss in Boots, giving this previously supporting character his own film. (To find out how artists prepared Puss and his co-stars for their premiere, see "Holy Frijole!" on pg. 10.) CGW. For nearly 30 years, CGW has been covering the ever-evolving digital content creation industry. Over time, technical innovations have found their way into the mainstream, touching our everyday lives. And still, the industry contin- ues to innovate. The publishing model has changed over the years as well. Digital has transformed the way we communicate, the way we produce and receive in- formation. As a result of these changing times, CGW will be printing bimonthly. We will still be covering cutting-edge applications and important news in the industry, but will do so through the various media available —print, digital publi- cations, newsletters, Web, video, social media, events, and more—as we optimize the tools of today and tomorrow to do our job even better (see the accompanying Publisher's Letter). Real icons are not just made, they evolve to stay ahead of the latest trends and technologies. And they do it to the best of their ability. ■ 2 October/November 2011 The Magazine for Digital Content Professionals EDITORIAL KAREN MOLTENBREY Chief Editor karen@cgw.com • (603) 432-7568 CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Courtney Howard, Jenny Donelan, Kathleen Maher, George Maestri, Martin McEachern, Barbara Robertson WILLIAM R. RITTWAGE Publisher, President and CEO, COP Communications NATASHA SWORDS Vice President of Marketing nswords@cgw.com (818) 291-1112 ADVERTISING SALES JEFF VICTOR Director of Sales—West Coast jvictor@cgw.com (847) 367-4073 GARY RHODES Sales Manager—East Coast & International grhodes@cgw.com (631) 274-9530 KELLY RYAN Marketing Coordinator kryan@copcomm.com (818) 291-1155 Editorial Office / LA Sales Office: 620 West Elk Avenue, Glendale, CA 91204 (800) 280-6446 CREATIVE SERVICES AND PRODUCTION MICHAEL VIGGIANO Art Director mviggiano@copcomm.com CUSTOMER SERVICE csr@cgw.com 1-800-280-6446, Opt 3 ONLINE AND NEW MEDIA Stan Belchev sbelchev@copcomm.com is published by Computer Graphics World, a COP Communications company. does not verify any claims or other information appearing in any of the advertisements contained in the publication, and cannot take any responsibility for any losses or other damages incurred by readers in reliance on such content. cannot be held responsible for the safekeeping or return of unsolicited articles, manuscripts, photographs, illustrations or other materials.Address all subscription correspondence to: Computer Graphics World, 620 West Elk Ave, Glendale, CA 91204. Subscriptions are available free to qualified individuals within the United States. Non-qualified subscription rates: USA—$72 for 1 year, $98 for 2 years; Canadian subscriptions —$98 for 1 year and $136 for 2 years; all other countries—$150 for 1 year and $208 for 2 years. Digital subscriptions are available for $27 per year. Subscribers can also contact customer service by calling (800) 280 6446, opt 2 (publishing), opt 1 (subscriptions) or sending an email to csr@cgw.com. Change of address can be made online at http:// www.omeda.com/cgw/ and click on customer service assistance. Recent awards: Postmaster: Send Address Changes to Computer Graphics World, P.O. Box 3551, Northbrook, IL 60065-3551 Please send customer service inquiries to 620 W. Elk Ave., Glendale, CA 91204 C o mp u t e r G r ap hi c s W o r l d M a g a zi n e C o mp u t e r G r ap hi c s W o r l d C o mp u t e r G r ap hi c s W o r l d

• Cover