BAFTA VFX Noms, Rodeo FX, & Spiderman 4...

VFX & Anim BAFTA Nominations Announced

(hollywoodindustry.digitalmedianet.com)          Nominees for the 60th Anniversary of The Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) have been announced.  The UK awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, February 11.

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
CARS - John Lasseter
FLUSHED AWAY - David Bowers/Sam Fell
HAPPY FEET - George Miller

ACHIEVEMENT IN SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
CASINO ROYALE - Steve Begg/Chris Corbould
CHILDREN OF MEN - Frazer Churchill/Tim Webber/Michael Eames/Paul Corbould
PAN'S LABYRINTH - Edward Irastorza/Everett Burrell
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN\u2019S CHEST - John Knoll/Hal Hickel/Charles Gibson
SUPERMAN RETURNS -3 Mark Stetson

All the nominatiuons:  http://hollywoodindustry.digitalmedianet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=96601

Fourth ‘Spiderman’ Film In Sam Raimi’s Pipeline
 

(news.sawf.org)            Director Sam Raimi is planning to make a fourth and final movie in the famous Spiderman series, even though its third film is yet to touch the silver screen.

He hinted that he might helm the fourth movie because he still adored the web-slinging character.

Raimi is also sure that if he goes ahead with his plan, actor Tobey Maguire and new leading lady Bryce Dallas Howard will also join him for the production of the film.

"I love Spider-Man and I love working with Kirsten (Dunst), Tobey, James (Franco)...I have to make sure that when I'm done with this picture (Spider-Man 3) I'm really still fascinated with the character (before signing on for another)," Contactmusic quoted him as telling Premiere magazine.

"At this moment I'm fascinated with him." But Raimi insists he couldn't imagine making a fourth installment if Maguire didn't sign on for it. He adds, "I'd rather not... I couldn't imagine it," he added. (ANI)

The chronic back injury that actor Tobey Maguire suffered while filming Spiderman 3 has earned him the respect of director Sam Raimi, who always has great respect for stars who do their stunts on their own.

The Hollywood filmmaker insists that he always keeps stuntmen ready during the shoots, but often encourages his star to perform some dangerous acts so as to get shots of the real Spiderman in action.

"He's got to do everything he could possibly do as Spider-Man. Stuntmen can fill in for the wide shots... but he's had to do a tremendous amount of physical action, of rolling, tumbling, leaping, landing, punching, fighting, falling," Contactmusic quoted him as saying.

"We're always careful with him. I mean, he has chronic problems and he works on it and he has a chiropractor," he added.

MGM Greenlights New Stargate Movies

(comingsoon.net)             Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) announced today the extension of the hit "Stargate SG-1" franchise with two movies based on the popular series. Titled "Stargate: The Ark of Truth" and "Stargate: Continuum", the movies will both be made available to the television universe and home entertainment marketplace by MGM. The announcement was made by Charles Cohen, Senior Executive Vice President, MGM.

Eragon To Release On Blu-Ray

(shurtugal.com)              20th Century Fox Home Entertainment recently announced at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas that Eragon will be available on Blu-ray at the same time that it releases around the world on DVD some time in 2007. A release on Blu-ray means that Eragon will be released in high definition, for those out there with high-definition TVs.

Narnia Movie Execs Scouting Glenorchy

(stuff.co.nz)               A team of top movie executives was understood to be scouting locations for the second Chronicles of Narnia movie near Glenorchy yesterday.

A busload of about 40 people, all understood to be heads of department for the second Chronicles of Narnia movie from throughout the world, were driven around Paradise, the stunning backdrop for some of the most dramatic scenes in The Lord of the Rings rtrilogy.

The Southland Times understands Dart River Safaris vans had to transport the group up some of the narrow roads into the Paradise Valley, unable to be negotiated by the Pacific Travel coach they were believed to be travelling in.

Film industry sources were unable to confirm any location scouting in the Glenorchy area yesterday for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian movie, based on the second of CS Lewis's Narnia books.

However, Department of Conservation communications officer Nick Edwards said movie representatives had approached the department to discuss possible locations in the Wakatipu, particularly Glenorchy.

"We've just been talking to them about potential locations, but I don't think the majority of it has any interest in our (DOC) land," Mr Edwards said.

New Zealand line producer for the Narnia film Tim Coddington could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Some of the first movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, were filmed in the Glenorchy area two years ago.

Digital Domain ReAnimates Orville Redenbacher

(brandweek.com)             ConAgra Foods is breaking a new campaign for Orville Redenbacher's gourmet popcorn from Crispin Porter + Bogusky during Monday's national broadcast of the Golden Globe Awards, according to sources.

The David Fincher-directed commercial digitally recreates the brand's nerdy iconic founder, who died in 1995.

The spot was created using proprietary technology developed by visual effects house Digital Domain in Venice, Calif.

Since late 2005, which marked the 40th anniversary of the product, the company has been periodically running a classic commercial from 1976 that shows the founder's well-known product demo that employed side-by-side poppers. He challenges customers to do their own comparison, promising they will "taste the difference or my name isn't Orville Redenbacher."

The only addition CP+B made to the 30-year-old spot was a final product shot of microwave popcorn and the brand's Web address, per sources.

Fincher's feature credits include Fight Club and Seven, both starring Brad Pitt.

Calls to CP+B and Digital Domain were referred to the client, where executives declined comment.

Next Gen CG Animators Graduating

(abclocal.go.com)               The next generation of animators is graduating. Their art is sure to be on a movie screen near you some time soon. The up and coming animators got top notch help from some big names in the industry, and it was all done online. The graduation ceremony marks the first time many of them have ever met.

Matthew Strangio's love for animation began as a boy with the movie Star Wars. At 31, Strangio just got hired by Industrial Light and Magic - the company owned by George Lucas.

Matthew Strangio, Animator: "When I finally got the call. I knew I was getting my dream job when I was a kid at the company that worked on that it is so special."

Strangio credits animation animationmentor.com of Berkeley for getting him in the door. The man who came up with the concept is Bobby Beck. The name may not sound familiar but the movies he's worked on are. Beck left Pixar to start animationmentor.com.

Bobby Beck, CEO, Animationmentor.com: "One day I was driving home and I was thinking man, if I were to learn animation again how would I want to do that?"

Beck asked his friends in the industry to teach students from around the world the latest on animation, on line. Students are assigned mentors. They get class assignments and get critiqued. The 18 month course costs $14,000 dollars. Since the company began in March 2005, 154 animators from 23 countries have graduated from this program.

Christopher Mullins was also hired by Industrial Light and Magic.

Chirstopher Mullins, Animator: "It's very hard, very competitive and in order to do animantion you have to focus on it 100 percent."

For example, it took Strangio six months to come up with this minute and a half animation.

Matthew Strangio: "Just seeing someone get it, to see them struggle and get it, and go out into the world and get jobs in the industry -- it's the most amazing feeling I've ever had in my life."

Tomorrow many of these students will participate in a graduation ceremony. From here on they'll be introduced as the as the next generation of entertainers.

Gatchaman Gets TMNT Director

(uk.movies.ign.com)               US, January 10, 2007 - Kevin Munroe, director of the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated feature, told IGN that he is working on a big-screen adaptation of the anime series Gatchaman next.

"We're in the middle of the script right now, and we're doing pre-production -- some early [story] boards," Munroe said.

Producer Tom Gray added that the forthcoming film will be more adult than TMNT: "It's going to be PG-13, in CGI. This is the one where we're going to let him do what he wanted to do on Turtles, Gatchaman, because I think it lends itself more to that than the Turtles. [But] we haven't made a deal yet."

ILM / Weta Alumnus' Opens RODEO FX In Montreal

(forums.cgsociety.org)               RODEO FX was founded in 2006 by Sebastien Moreau and Mathieu Raynault. Sebastien and Mathieu have more than 25 years of combined experience at the world's most renowned VFX facilities, and have come home to Montreal to participate in Quebec's growing visual effects industry and resource pool.

Sebastiens' recent credits: 

-Eragon (2006) (sabre supervisor: ILM)
-Lady in the Water (2006) (sabre compositor: ILM)
-Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) (sabre compositor: ILM)
-Mission: Impossible III (2006) (inferno compositor: ILM)
-Munich (2005) (inferno artist: ILM)
-Jarhead (2005) (inferno artist: ILM)
-War of the Worlds (2005) (inferno compositor: ILM)
-Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) (inferno compositor: ILM)

Mathieu' recent credits:

- The Fountain (2006) (cgi art director: Mokko Studio) (digital matte painter: Mokko Studio)
-Silent Hill (2006) (concept artist / matte painter: MOKKO Studio)
-King Kong (2005) (senior matte painter)
-The Day After Tomorrow (2004) (matte artist)
-The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) (senior matte painter: Weta Digital)
-The Matrix Revolutions (2003) (senior matte artist)
-The Matrix Reloaded (2003) (matte artist)
-Gangs of New York (2002) (digital matte artist: ILM)
-The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) (matte painter: Weta Digital)

Fire-Breathing Dragons In Central London

(news.etnow.com)             The latest in a long line of high-profile film premiere events to use PSL video technology is Eragon. The epic fantasy-adventure movie staged its world premiere at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square, an event designed and produced by Lucy Smail of West Design & Production, who also created the spectacular after-show party that followed.

   PSL was commissioned by West Design to provide a 4-metre wide screen on the front of the cinema to show extracts from the movie, as well as an unusual triangular structure featuring three 5-metre screens in the Square itself. These showed content specially created by Digital Insanity, in collaboration with Fox and Industrial Light & Magic (ILM).

   The unique collaboration between PSL and the team from ILM was also in evidence at the lavish after-show for Eragon, where 1,500 guests watched fire-breathing dragons flying around the Royal Courts of Justice. PSL provided five SLM R12+ Barco projectors, all flown, to project Digital Insanity's graphics and FX onto whitescreens. An additional R12+, fitted with a Catalyst mirror head, was used to run exceptional graphic footage of a dragon, seen to fly all the way round the venue.

   PSL crews worked at both Leicester Square and the Royal Courts locations. Production manager Andy Cheesman led the Odeon team, which included Tom Mudd, Sean Starick and Simon Hudson. At the Royal Courts, the production manager was Mary Jefferson, working with Fergus Noble, Grant Orchard, Leif Wilson and Ian Haywood.

Source:    http://news.etnow.com/etnews.nsf/0/005cbb3a698f13b28025726400507919?OpenDocument

Cameron Needs "Coffey" For Avatar

(latinoreview.com - IMDB)             Word from Gentle Giant Studios - the v/sfx firm - is that Michael Biehn is about to join the production of Jim Cameron's "Avatar".  Biehn has appeared in several Cameron projects to date, including The Terminator, Aliens and The Abyss where he played deranged Lt. Hiram Coffey.

And though the film is due 2009, it mightn't be done till 2010 - or so the team thinks.

Script is terrific though - I swear you will get goose bumps when they arrive on the planet - so it'll be a worthwhile wait.

Source:  http://latinoreview.com/news.php?id=1330

UK Prod Climbs 48%:  Tax Credit Lures Tentpoles

(accountancyage.com)                   International film producers flocked to the UK last year ahead of the government's new tax credit system for the film industry.

Spending on movie production in the UK climbed 48% to £840m in 2006, as films such as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and the Bourne Ultimatum chose to shoot in the UK.

The FT reports that UK film production peaked at £1.16bn in 2003, but fell 30% in 2004 after the tax regime for films was criticised for opening an avoidance loophole for wealthy investors.

The new scheme has improved sentiment in the UK system, and producers are starting to favour the UK as a production venue once again.

Under the new rules a film does not have to be shot entirely in the UK to qualify for the relief. Instead, it will be judged using a points system that will evaluate whether the leading characters are British, whether the setting is in Britain and whether it promotes British culture.

MICHAEL BAY TO DIRECT THE HOBBIT

(datelinehollywood.com)                  Just days after saying Peter Jackson will “never” work for his studio again, New Line Cinema chairman Bob Shaye announced that Michael Bay will direct “Lord of the Rings” prequel “The Hobbit.” “Michael is one of the most successful and acclaimed filmmakers working today and I’m confident he can retain the spirit of the ‘Rings’ trilogy while adding much needed sexual and action elements,” Shaye told Dateline Hollywood.

Bay, who first came to attention for directing “Bad Boys” and “The Rock,” will start pre-production on “The Hobbit” this summer after finishing work on his current film, “Transformers.” In its announcement, New Line noted that he has been the recipient of numerous awards for his earlier work, including a a DGA award for outstanding achievement in commercials and two Razzie award nominations for his directing work on “Armageddon” and “Pearl Harbor.”

“Lord of the Rings” is one of the most successful movie franchises of all time and New Line carefully considered some of the biggest names in the industry for the job of directing “The Hobbit.” According to sources, Sam Raimi, Ridley Scott, Curtis Hanson, and Alfonso Cuaron were all “extremely interested,” but the studio vetoed them.

“I’m sure the hard-core fans would have wanted someone really artsy who cares about the mythology and characters and has already read the book before being hired, but that’s not what makes for a successful movie,” Shaye explained. “Audiences want to see steamy romance and pulse-pounding action like ‘Pear Harbor’ and that’s exactly what Michael Bay will bring to ‘The Hobbit.’”

Shaye added that he was “satisfied” with Peter Jackson’s work on the “Rings” trilogy, but said he thought the movies could have been more successful if the director had followed studio notes. Amongst the suggestions made by New Line that Jackson ignored were to make protagonist Frodo Baggins (played by Elijah Wood) more attractive and have him sleep with Arwen (played by Liv Tyler), as well as to change the Ents (talking trees) into a gang of attractive young men, potentially played by actors like Usher and Matthew McConaughey, who defend the forest in the Middle-Earth equivalent of hot rod cars. The studio says Jackson left too much of the movies on the cutting room floor, ignoring New Line’s request to make the films longer.

Bay was busy in post-production on “Transformers” and couldn’t be reached for comment, but said in a statement that he was “honored to adapt one of the greatest works of fantasy the world has known to the big screen. I promise to bring the personal attention for detail, story and character I have put into all my other films to ‘The Hobbit.’”

Reached for comment at his home in New Zealand, Jackson replied, “Are you f*cking kidding me? What, was Joel Schumacher not available?”

Source:  http://datelinehollywood.com/archives/2007/01/15/michael-bay-to-direct-the-hobbit/