"Do I Make You Proud?"

Taylor Hicks - Do I Make You Proud


Here's a shining example of what today's home software along with some "homemade ingenuity" can come up with!

A wonderful slideshow video showcasing our Armed Forces- worthy of the person who editted it- Kudos to you kind sir!

Russ

ILM Sells its Famed Physical Production Unit

Definitely the end of an era as far as I'm concerned...

The unit responsible in the largest part for the epic look and feel of films like Raiders, Star Wars, and even the Die Hard trilogy is to be sold off as a relic of the Lucasfilm/Industrial Light & Magic empire.

Though "officially" the sale is not yet complete, Variety News posted the following information regarding the long standing production house's inevitable sale and shuffle from ILM...

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117945240?categoryid=13&cs=1

Though it will be helmed by Mark Anderson, a model maker for ILM for some 15+ years, the actual physical 'production house' had actually never made the relocation to the Letterman Digital Arts Center move to San Fran's Presidio like much of the ILM base...

Instead, it continued to reside at its current [some say original!] stomping grounds on Kerner Avenue in San Rafael. ILM long ago was not recieving the quantity of requests-for-work that it had back in the 70s and 80s so thusly, the PP facility is being sold to what will hopefully be remonikered as Kerner Optical.

"Kerner Optical" will continue the legacy of ILM-esque quality work- but will no longer be bourne of the ILM name. They will also have "first right" to any work requiring physical production, but they will be wholy responcible for finding their own work to survive.

Truly the end of an era, both in the world of filmmaking as well as the Lucas Legacy as we once knew it.

"Who's Homer and..."

... What did he do to get himself "fixed"?

I've not seen questions concerning the little tilde' banner on teh right hand side of the page, but I'll head that question off at the pass!

So- firstly, the answer is "no"- FXHome has nothing to do with "the dog catcher" and it definitely has nothing to do with, ummmm... Well...

Okay- let's just say it has nothing to do with certain unpleasantries associated with "curbing one's mongrel tendancies..."

FXHome is the site of an English [Go UK! Could this be the next entertaining "British Invasion?"] group of people who have taken the film making/Special Effects scene in an effort to create software for the general purpose film afficianado and make it affordable so that special effects can be had by one and all!

Those in the know realize that when special effects are called for in a storyboard conference or a script notation, the abbreviation "FX" is used- well, it's no different here!

FXHome is a software suite of different programs [one of which is an "all encompassing" package] designed for use on the modest home or low budget professional's computer system.

Believe me when I say that some of what I've seen from students and hobbiests alike would rival many "professional" films that Hollywood has offered up!

In further installments, I hope to offer conversational prose here from the esteemed makers and caretakers of the FXHome group who continue to strive to keep their product usable, current and cutting edge throughout what in Hollywood would be considered a relatively short lifetime!

Stay tuned, True Believers! I guarrantee a 'first' concerning this amazing software and it's group of dilligent code warriors!

If you can't wait- feel free to run your mouse over the FXHomer Banner...

Find out for yourself what I and many like minded film makers and Special Effects wizards have already learned concerning this next step in the evolution of multimedia and film production!