Visible Pure: 2011

Monday 19 September 2011

Toon Boom vs Flash

Toon Boom Strengths

There are many things that Toon Boom can do that Flash animators wish they had access to. Note that some of these can be accomplished in Flash via additional plugins, but not by default.

Parent Child Relationship - The most powerful integrated tool in the Toon Boom arsenal is proper parent child relationships between elements. The ability to attach one drawing to another and have it mimic the parent’s movements is a key feature of limited animation. Flash users have been begging for this functionality for years but neither Macromedia or Adobe has seen fit to grant this feature.
Detailed Camera Controls - Toon Boom you to easily pan, zoom and track your camera. The system offers budding directors all the camera control they’ll need.
Cell Controls - Used for quickly changing a drawing for a frame of any particular element, Toon Boom Studio can inherently do what Flash requires a plugin for (AnimSlider Pro).
Z-Axis Control - The ability to place elements with a z-axis 3D environment is an important tool in the animator’s arsenal. By default Flash hinders animators by forcing a dual-plane environment.
Exposure Sheet - Traditional animators are accustomed to using exposure sheets to draw their characters. This allows you to view many drawings at once and really nail your timing.
Library Management - While Flash allows you to import and export items from other movies there is no distinct library management tool. Toon Boom allows easy drag and drop capabilities to quickly managed your digital assets.

Flash Strengths

Actionscript - The scripting language integrated into Flash continues to be a powerful asset, allowing Flash to do what it’s best at: web publishing. Database interaction, custom forms, interactive quizzes are all possible with Actionscript. This advanced scripting can be put to good use in animation as well, especially for things that would be difficult to animation by hand like particle effects.
Blur Effect - Flash MX saw the first bitmap blur effect for vector graphics, and this has proven to be a useful tool for animators looking to push the envelope with impressive realism.
Customizable Preloaders - Toon Boom currently has a default preloader that can be assigned to SWF files but it can not be modified. Flash allows you to create and edit your preloaders how you see fit.

So Which is Better?

If your animation requires interaction Flash is the clear choice. Toon Boom is centered around animation throughout, which makes it preferred by animators. Toon Boom has great integration with Flash though, so using them both together makes a great animation studio.

Wednesday 31 August 2011

Press Release from Prime Focus Film

Prime Focus Adds Noted Exec Producer Nancy St. John

By Rick DeMott | Thursday, August 31, 2011 at 12:20 pm | AWN News

Posted In | News Categories: Films, People, Visual Effects | Geographic Region: All | Site Categories: Films, People, Visual Effects

Press Release from Prime Focus Film

Vancouver - Prime Focus Film has announced the appointment of Nancy St. John as the Executive Producer for its Vancouver facility. Nancy will lead the feature film visual effects team while also working closely with the Prime Focus VFX teams in London and Mumbai.

Nancy was most recently the VFX consultant at Relativity Media and Senior Visual Effects producer on “Limitless” starring Bradley Cooper, “Season of the Witch’ starring Nicolas Cage and the much anticipated ‘Immortals’ directed by Tarsem Singh releasing 11/11/11.

Nancy has also VFX-produced for most of the major studios, including Disney, Dreamworks, Fox, HBO, Paramount, Walden Media, Universal and Warner Bros.

Recognition of her excellence in leadership includes two Academy Awards – for ‘Babe’ (1996) and ‘Gladiator’ (2000) – and an Oscar nomination for ‘I-Robot’ (2004).

Nancy is a highly visible and respected industry figure who, earlier in her career, led teams at major VFX facilities such as ILM, Rhythm & Hues, Robert Abel & Associates and Mill Film.

Having left her native Canada over 27 years ago to pursue a successful career in Hollywood, Nancy is now returning home to lead Prime Focus in Vancouver.

‘When I left Vancouver to seek fame and fortune in Hollywood, I always hoped I would return home one day to support and help grow the VFX community here,’ said Nancy St John, Executive Producer, Prime Focus Film. ‘My aim is to attract my Canadian ‘wild geese’ friends and colleagues back to Canada – those who, like me, went abroad to work. Here at Prime Focus, we are building what I know will be one of the best VFX facilities in the world – and that is certainly something worth coming home for.’

‘We’ve searched for some time to find the right person to help us lead the Vancouver facility and we feel that Nancy is about as right as it gets,’ said Terry Clotiaux, President, Prime Focus International. ‘She is one of the industry’s most respected producers: she has been part of every size and kind of film project required by the industry and has led some of the most successful VFX teams both on the client production and facility sides of the business, including two Oscar-winning efforts for Best Visual Effects. We are extremely proud and excited to welcome her to the Prime Focus global family.’

‘We are working hard to attract the very best talent to our Prime Focus leadership team globally. Nancy’s arrival in Vancouver adds immeasurably to our talent base and to our ability to bring proven, world-class skills and experience to our clients’ projects,’ said Martin Hobbs, Managing Director, Prime Focus Film, Vancouver and London.

‘Vancouver is increasingly important in the VFX and CG world, as evidenced by its inaugural hosting of Siggraph 2011 this week,’ added Namit Malhotra, Founder and Global CEO, Prime Focus. ‘Nancy’s appointment will further raise our profile as a key player in this market and firmly position our Vancouver operation as a core component of the Prime Focus global network VFX offering, working seamlessly with our European and Indian facilities.’

Nancy’s experience will be called upon immediately, as Prime Focus gears up for a busy end to 2011 – a year which has seen them contribute stunning VFX work to projects such as ‘Immortals’, ‘Final Destination 5’, ‘Tree of Life’, ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’, ‘Sucker Punch’ and ‘TRON: Legacy’.

Beyond this Prime Focus is currently partnering with the filmmakers of ‘Dredd’ providing conceptual, planning, production design and pre-vizualization work in addition to supplying a full slate of stereo VFX services.

Prime Focus will also be converting key shots for ‘Dredd’ to stereo 3D using View-D™, Prime Focus’ proprietary 3D conversion process, most recently used to convert ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2’, ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’, ‘Green Lantern’ and ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace’.

Prime Focus Film is a film VFX specialist, with offices in London, Vancouver and Mumbai. We offer an exciting alternative to other VFX companies, challenging the conventions and traditional practices of the industry and promoting a new way of engaging with filmmakers. As a partner in the filmmaking process, Prime Focus Film provides conceptual planning, production design and pre-visualization work in addition to a full slate of stereo VFX services, and 3D conversion using View-D™, our world-leading 3D conversion process.
Website:

www.primefocusfilm.com ;

www.primefocusworld.com