New confirmations include a look at Yorgos Lanthimos’ ‘Poor Things’ VFX, and the crafting of animated features ‘Nimona’ and ‘Leo;’ 4-day conference returns in person April 23-26, and on demand April 27-May 31.
FMX 2024 teased more confirmed programming and updates, including insights into Yorgos Lanthimos’ world vision seen in Poor Things, the life-and-death struggle of a young demigod in Percy Jackson, and the teenage shapeshifter Nimona. Attendees will explore this year’s theme, “Connecting Ideas,” in Stuttgart April 23-26 and on demand April 27-May 31.
Here are some program highlights:
VFX for Features: The VFX of Poor Things:
Yorgos Lanthimos’ multi-award-nominated feature Poor Things has left audiences pleasantly disturbed. Join the BAFTA-nominated creative director and visual effects supervisor Simon Hughes (Poor Things, All of Us Strangers, The French Dispatch, District 9) for a deep dive into how visual effects can bring worlds of pure imagination to life.
VFX for Episodic: Road trip in the USA (and beyond) with Percy Jackson:
Raynault VFX's mandate on the first season of Percy Jackson was to bring Rick Riordan's world to the screen: from Camp Half-Blood to Olympus, travel through the intricate domains of the Underworld as well as various iconic cities and landmarks of the United States.
The small team at Raynault VFX produced more than 10 extensive photorealistic CG environments of this mythical journey. Their work on the Percy Jackson series included involvement in virtual production sets, early development concept art, and on-location photography shoots.
Feature Animation: Crafting the look and feel of Nimona through bespoke character surfacing and unique environment builds:
Learn more about Oscar-nominated Nimona’s creation with DNEG Animation’s Avril Hug (character surface lead) and Marco Manzini (environment model supervisor), who will explore the craft behind character surfacing and the environment builds in the film. They will dive into how the DNEG team brought life to the story's characters and world, touching on elements from lighting on clothing to staying true to the feel of the original comics' 2D environment.
Feature Animation: Landing on Leo:
Netflix and Happy Madison Productions’ recent release Leo tells the story of a 74-year-old lizard that’s been living in the same Florida school for decades but one day decides it’s time to escape!
Join the film's art director, Kristen Anderson (Animal Logic), and animation director, Jason Figliozzi (Netflix), as they take you through the character design process from concept to animation and all the iterations in between, with a focus on Leo and Ms. Malkin from an animated cast of over 200. They'll explore the vast range of scale in their hero characters and will break down the most challenging scene to reveal how they pulled off this beautifully crafted, 3D-animated musical comedy.
Animated Shorts: War Is Over! Animation Meets Real-Time at Wētā FX:
Learn about the art and technology employed across the production of Oscar-nominated War Is Over, inspired by the music of John & Yoko. Wētā FX’s team crafted unique visuals on this short, leveraging their VFX and animation pipeline with the strengths and efficiencies of real-time filmmaking.
VFX for Features: Inside creative VFX development for Marvel Studios' The Marvels:
Join a behind-the-scenes discussion about The Marvels with VFX supervisors Tara DeMarco and Sarah Eim, alongside vendor supervisors Dominik Zimmerle, Ernest Dios (both Trixter), and Pietro Ponti (Industrial Light & Magic). They will discuss asset and FX ideation, creation, and collaborative sharing as they unravel the magic behind the visual effects crafted for Goose, Saber Space Station, and the elements that bring this film to life.
Virtual Production: Getting to Final VFX in Doctor Who:
UK Studio REALTIME provided cutting-edge virtual production and futuristic CG for Doctor Who: "Wild Blue Yonder," a special episode commemorating the show’s 60th anniversary featuring David Tennant’s return as the Doctor. The episode takes fans to the edge of the universe, where sinister alien doppelgangers steal the show. James Coore, VFX supervisor, and Jonathan Rawlinson, head of episodic, will talk through the process, from the onset of virtual production to final VFX.
THEN & NOW, curated by Ian Failes:
Going old-school: Breaking down the practical and in-camera effects in I’m A Virgo
Director Boots Riley’s series I’m A Virgo (Prime Video) used a lot of "old-school" effects filmmaking, including in-camera effects with forced perspective shooting, large and small puppets, miniatures, practical effects, and many specialized scale set-ups. VFX supervisor Todd Sheridan Perry will share the secrets of these in-camera approaches, which complemented the digital VFX techniques.
Learn in-camera effects filmmaking with Todd Sheridan Perry:
In a follow-up to Perry’s talk, VFX journalist Ian Failes (before & afters) joins Perry in delivering a masterclass on how to set up a forced perspective shoot right there as a hands-on demo for attendees.
What you need to know to build VFX software: Mark Elendt:
Failes joins SideFX senior mathematician in a discussion of Elendt’s 30+ year history in building visual effects software. Houdini, a mainstay for VFX, animation, and games studios, will be the subject of Elendt’s dive into the tool's history and intricacies, especially relating to rendering and its earlier incarnation as Prisms. Elendt will talk to attendees in a more intimate setting to share the finer details of building VFX tools.
More programming information is available here.
Source: FMX 2024
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
