Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/759864
AWARDS SEASON HAS BEGUN – HOW WILL YOUR FAVORITE FILMS STAND UP TO THE COMPETITION? BY KAREN MOLTENBREY ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET A s most of us prepare for the holiday season and festivities with friends and family, Hollywood is busy preparing for awards season – filling out entry forms, preparing materials, and so forth. Studios and fans take the competitions seriously. And why shouldn't they? Aer all the time, work, and investment that go into a major feature, recognition is certainly warranted for the multitude of talent who made the film a reality. Here we look at some of the year's more complex digital work appearing in theaters, or about to debut before the end of the year, and their likelihood for becoming a viable contender for the many awards com- petitions, including the Oscars. Visual Effects ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS In this continuation of the Alice in Won- derland story, Alice travels through time to save the Mad Hatter and Underland's fate from the evil Red Queen and a clock- like creature known as Time. The digital technology used for the film continues the tradition of photographic manipulation, greenscreen elements, as well as CG char- acters and environments, all used on the previous Alice films. While the effects are as wondrous as always, the work may not get as much attention as it did the first time we saw the techniques in 2010. ASSASSIN'S CREED Assassin's Creed is an action/adventure film based on the mega-popular video game franchise of the same name. The film contains a new story, as Callum Lynch participates in a secret project whereby he experiences the memories of his ancestor, an Assassin, during the time of the Spanish Inquisition, and uses that experience to bring down the Templars, enemies of the Assassins, in present day. The graphics in the game series have always been ex- traordinary, painting a vivid picture of the period depicted in each title thanks to the captivating backgrounds, environments, and characters. The expectation is that the prerendered imagery in the movie will