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Bits & Pieces Alex CrossfeaturesLook VFX L OS ANGELES — Look Effects (www.lookfx. com) created more than 125 visual effects shots for the new feature film Alex Cross. Directed by Rob Cohen, the film is based on the best- early enough in the production to work with the director and creative team in crafting effects that drive the story. The film was shot in Cleveland, though much of the story takes place in Detroit, requiring the studio to create matte paint- ings, elements and backgrounds to support the storyline. In one major fight scene, the planned location — the attic of an old theater — was deemed to dangerous to shoot in, so Look Effects worked with the director and the rest of his creative team to developed a solution that involved a practical set and digital set extensions. Another scene involves the vil- The studio created over 125 visual effects shots, calling on Nuke, Maya, Flame, Boujou and Shotgun software. selling novels of James Patterson and stars Tyler Perry in the lead role as a homicide detective. The cast also includes Matthew Fox, Edward Burns and Jean Reno. Alex Cross was released in mid October, and as an action, detective story, offered plenty of opportuni- ties for visual effects. Look Effects was brought on lain traveling through large water pipes. Digital set extensions and natural water behaviors helped to create a realistic effect. In a pri- mary scene that involved the firing of a rocket from a vehicle into the steps of a government building that's crowded with security forc- es and vehicles, the studio created and placed vehicles, the rocket and the resulting explosion. Look Effects relied on Nuke, Maya, Boujou, Flame and Shotgun software to complete the project. Derek Bird was visual effects supervisor and Jenny Foster was visual effects producer. Check out www.postmagazine.com in the coming weeks for an interview with director Rob Cohen. ArsenalFXpromotes Silbermantopartner S ANTA MONICA — Visual effects studio ArsenalFX (www.arse- nalfx.tv), which has operations on both coasts, has promoted senior visual effects compositor Terry Silberman to partner at the facility. Silberman is a 20-plus-year veteran who has worked on com- mercial campaigns for national brands such as Pepsi, Gatorade, HBO, Nike and Mitsubishi. Most recently, he worked as a Flame artist on the viral campaign for Smartwater, called The Jennifer Aniston Security Tapes. The video features Aniston mocking recent baby bump rumors with a larger- than-life belly, among other exaggerated security tape antics. Silberman got his start in the VFX industry as a runner for a post house and quickly rose within the ranks, mastering linear and nonlinear editing systems. Determined to learn as many aspects of post as possible, Silberman moved into audio engineering, where he began to design, edit and compose sound effects for commercial projects. He continued in sound design until his company expanded into VFX. He has since become expert in all Autodesk platforms, as well as in Nuke. 8 Post•November2012 www.postmagazine.com On November 19, the live concert film CELEBRATION DAY will be released, recaping the 2007 reunion of Led Zeppelin. Music filmmaker Dick Carruthers turned to editor Henry Stein to cut the project. The team has a long history of collaborating, including on the band's 2003 DVD. Stein used Lightworks exclusively to edit the per- formances. The latest version of the NLE for Windows is available to download for free at www.lwks.com, with an upgrade to the Pro version available for $60/year. Linux and Mac versions will soon be released too. margmix.com) Audio house Margarita Mix (www. in Santa Monica has added PAUL HURTUBISE to its roster. A highly regarded sound designer/mixer and music composer, Hurtubise has worked on numerous Super Bowl spots throughout his 20-year career. His client list includes Honda, Toyota, Old Navy, AT&T, Qualcomm, Burger King and Nike. Grass Valley's senior account execu- tive for the Central Region/North America, T.J. SCOTT, has been elected to join the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) board of governors as governor representing the global standardization organization's Southern US Region. Scott will serve a two-year term, running from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2014. at a glance Montreal's X2O MEDIA (www. x2omedia.com) has launched X2O, a new platform that allows companies to communicate more effectively using TV-like channels across multiple devic- es. Built using the HTML5 standard, the X2O platform allows users to create rich media channels featuring HD video, 3D animation, charts, graphs, and links to live data sources. Users can then publish those channels across desktop PCs, smartphones, tablets, and digital signage displays.