Aug 13

PFTrack Export Problem

Posted in: Matchmoving Software
So…I’m new to PFTrack, and this seems like it would be fairly easy to solve, but I can’t figure out why this is happening:

I have a project that is 230 frames long. I export my camera from pftrack as a .ma Maya Ascii scene.

Everything comes into Maya fine. The scale, the tracking locators, the image plane, but the camera’s baked animation stops….at frame 183. The image plane’s movie goes on to 230, so thats still fine.

Its like the camera is set to a MUCH faster frame rate, or something. I’ve tried stretching the animation out in maya, to terrible results. Please help!

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Aug 13

Friday Mix: Alex Moulton “Time Traveler”

Posted in: General

time traveler

It’s Friday. Your aching brain machinery needs a little lubrication, some sonic petroleum to rejuvenate your synapses.

We’ve got just the thing. Lovingly mixed for Motionographer by Expansion Team’s Alex Moulton, “Time Traveler” is a feel-good journey through sine waves, black holes and the fourth dimension.

This is our first ever guest DJ mix. If you like it, let us know. Maybe there’s more where this came from…

Download audio file (AlexMoulton_TimeTraveler.mp3)

Download the mix from File Dropper


Felix Da Housecat “Elvi$” [Nettwerk]
Ilya Santana “Fable” [Manuscript]
Lucy Montenegro “Lucy Loves Hairy Boys” [Moustache]
DJ Mujava “Township Funk” (Crazy P Mix) [This is Music Ltd]
Drrtyhaze “Lazer Sex” [Tirk]
Tam Cooper “Galactica” (Jimpster Remix) [Simple]
Futurecop! “NASA” (Cryptonites Remix) [Southern Fried]
Sebastien Tellier “Broadway” (Chicken Lips Mix) [Record Makers]
Duck Sauce “You’re Nasty” [Fool’s Gold]
Wolfgang Gartner “Wolfgang’s 5th Symphony” [Kindergarten]
Fukkk Offf “Bloodfuck” [Coco Machete]
Chemical Brothers “The Salmon Dance” (Crookers ‘Wow’ Mix) [Virgin]
Dilemn “Modern Slave” [Because]
Vitalic “Your Disco Song” [Different]
Birdy Nam Nam “The Parachute Ending” (Vitalic Remix) [Jive]
Breakbot “Penelope Pitstop” [Because]
Knightlife “Crusader” [Cutters]
DatA “One In A Million” (Club Version) [Naïve]

Posted on Motionographer

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Aug 13

Cinematographer covers AD and Transformers 2

Posted in: Angels & Demons, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

The August 2009 issue of American Cinematographer covers Angels Demons and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

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Aug 13

ILM – Inferno/Compositor Software Engineer

Posted in: The Job Lot
Industrial Light & Magic, better known as ILM, has set the standard for visual effects, creating some of the most stunning images in the history of film since its founding in 1975 by George Lucas. ILM houses the leading effects facility in the world, one that has served the motion picture industry for 30 years. It’s been awarded 16 Academy Awards for Visual Effects, 20 Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards, and played a key role in 5 of the top 10 worldwide box office hits of all time.

ILM is currently looking for an Inferno/Compositing Software Engineer!

Summary:

The Inferno Software Engineer is responsible for maintai ning Sabre (Flame/Inferno) and Compositing Department software and scripts. Will assist Sabre artists and compositors with technical support under the guidance of the de partment leads. Will work with other departments (IS, IT, R&D) to maintain consistency and integrate tools with the other Computer Graphics departments. Will work with the artists to develop new tools and techniques to improve creativity and efficiency within the departments.

Responsibilities:

  • Develop, design, write, distribute and document applications, plugins, and scripts used by the Sabre and Compositing Departments.
  • Collaborate with artists and technology leads to help develop new plugins, applications and scripts.
  • Troubleshoot and update both external and internal software.
  • Maintain working relationships with tech support from 3rd party software vendors.
  • Work with artists and supervisors on productions to solve workflow bottlenecks.
  • Work directly with artists to troubleshoot individual scripts and solve challenges specific to a particular shot or sequence.
  • Monitor and troubleshoot I/0 and rendering technology unique to ILM’s Sabre Department.
  • Create and update technical department documentation for artists and other support personnel to use as reference.
  • Collaborate with the department supervisors in setting up and maintaining resources and standards for the department.
  • Try to anticipate potential problems before they occur and follow through on every task assigned.
  • Keep everyone in the loop and up-to-date on the status of all tasks.
  • Manage time effectively and prioritize tasks in a production oriented environment.
  • Listen well to directions and ask questions to confirm that directions are clearly understood.
  • Quickly learn new software, operating systems scripting languages, and procedures.
  • Coordinate with other departments to help manage site-wide technology resources.

Requirements:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or other technical degree.
  • Have a good working knowledge of Flame/Inferno, Shake, and Nuke.
  • Have a good knowledge of Python, and Python GUI packages such as GTK, FLTK, wxPython, etc for use in both Linux and Windows.
  • UNIX, Shell scripting experience (csh, perl)
  • Proven knowledge of and experience with UNIX, Linux, Windows, and Mac operating systems.
  • Experience with C or C++.
  • Demonstrated ability to serve as an effective contributor on mid to large scale development projects.
  • Have a good working knowledge of HTML and ability to create web apps using Python. XML as well.
  • Experience writing file conversion tools, e.g. between 3D scene formats or 2D image formats.
  • Familiar with software development and Quality Assurance practices.
  • Production compositing experience at a VFX house is a plus.
  • Good project management, communication, and organization skills.
  • Good documentation skills and basic html/xml writing skills.
  • Have a good knowledge of Oracle, SQL and asset management systems in general a plus.
  • Knowledge of, and experience with, 3D modeling/animation software (i.e. Maya) highly desired.
  • Experience with computer graphics production a plus.

How to Apply:

Online: https://jobs.lucasfilm.com/

Mail Submissions to:
Industrial Light & Magic
Attn: Recruiting
1110 Gorgas Avenue, San Francisco, 94129

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Aug 13

Trade reel for crits? (vfx and motion)

Posted in: Demo Reels!
Hi,

I’ve posted this in a few other places, but I’d love some serious feedback on it.

Vimeo:
http://www.vimeo.com/5863504

Full version here:
http://www.virtualmatter.org

I still have a year left in school and am not sure what area to concentrate on. I like compositing and modeling but need more work to create a specialized reel. Any suggestions? Let me know what you think.

Thanks for your time.

—
Sincerely,
Kevin Whitfield

Attached Thumbnails
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Aug 13

Layout rename

Posted in: NUKE from The Foundry
Hello, I was organizing my layouts in Nuke, but i can’t find any way to rename them (ex. Compositing, Roto etc).

Is it possible to do so?

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Aug 13

Shadow casting issue

Posted in: Maya
I’m relatively new to Maya, and I stuck on something. I have a CG character that, when eventually composited, will enter my scene from behind a building. So in Maya I have the character walking on a ground plane, and I set up a "physical sun and sky" light and another directional light to simulate the position of the sun. The ground plane has a "Use Background" shader applied and everything looks good. The character casts shadows on the ground nicely. The render looks good. But I also need the building to cast a shadow on the character when it emerges from behind it. So I made a cube and scaled and positioned it to simulate where the building is, and put the"use background" shader on it. Now the cube makes a nice shadow on the character, and the render looks great. Except.. the cube also casts a shadow on the ground, which i don’t need. Is it possible to have the cube only cast shadows on the character? Or do I need to set up seperate lights for that? Any clues?
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Aug 13

Dell ‘Treats’ TVC by The Mill NY

Posted in: 1

A behind the scenes look at the Dell "Treats" commercial, with vfx by The Mill NY.

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Aug 13

Star Trek Genesis sequence

Posted in: 1

Making of the Genesis Sequence from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

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Aug 13

SCREWING AND SHOOTING ARE THE SAME.

Posted in: Film, Gallery, Revolution, Terror, The Baader Meinhoff Complex

terrorDM0703_468x398

The Baader Meinhoff Complex is set to hit the US sometime in August after struggling to find a distributor for it’s racy depiction of the RAF’s reign of hailing bullets, flaming bombs, and death. For now, stoke your revolutionary terror flames with this awesome trailer and get ready to fandango that shit as soon as it hits the theatre!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Germany in the 1970s: Murderous bomb attacks, the threat of terrorism and the fear of the enemy inside are rocking the very foundations of the still fragile German democracy. The radicalized children of the Nazi generation led by Andreas Baader (Moritz Bleibtreu), Ulrike Meinhof (Martina Gedeck) and Gudrun Ensslin (Johanna Wokalek) are fighting a violent war against what they perceive as the new face of fascism: American imperialism supported by the German establishment, many of whom have a Nazi past. Their aim is to create a more human society but by employing inhuman means they not only spread terror and bloodshed, they also lose their own humanity. The man who understands them is also their hunter: the head of the German police force Horst Herold (Bruno Ganz). And while he succeeds in his relentless pursuit of the young terrorists, he knows hes only dealing with the tip of the iceberg.

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