Writers & Special Effects

Description

Special Effects... just the mention of that phrase brings a tidal wave of images to most people's minds. From the very earliest Films that first explored the process of creating moving images for the silent screen... to the cutting edge of today's effects-filled extravaganzas... the basis of all Cinematic wizardry must first be conceived and germinate within the deepest regions of the Writer's imagination.

This Group is an Open Forum for all Members. Anyone interested in FX (from days of old to Digital FX) is welcome to join and participate in the discussions. Feel free to contribute any questions or thoughts, memories, ideas or opinions.
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A technological revolution has taken place and is currently underway in the Film Industry. Computers and Digital Effects have changed the way Films are made; and as Writers, we can reap the benefit... because now, our imaginations can be unleashed! Anything that one can dream up can now be put on film!

We've come a long way since French magician George Melies first delighted audiences with his wonderful experiments in films such as "A Trip to the Moon." Time lapse, film reversal, stopping the camera to rearrange props and Actors to have them magically appear & disappear; even hand painting his films to achieve Color... he was among the greatest Pioneers in creating some truly innovative "special effects."

FX took another giant leap forward when stop-motion animation Maestro Willis O'Brian brought his incredible miniature dinosaurs to life for the silent film "Lost World" (1925). Shortly thereafter, audiences were even further astounded by the mind-boggling realism of his work in bringing those dinosaurs (and a miniature ape) to the screen in King Kong.

Using miniature sets; hand-made stop-motion creatures; cell animation; a multi-plane camera; glass matte paintings and an optical printer, O'Brian created a masterpiece of illusion that served as a milestone of Inspiration for future Writers and Filmmakers alike (Ray Bradbury & Ray Harryhausen among them).

Today computer-generated (digital) effects offer a million colors and an unlimited capacity for warping time and space to create truly amazing images & visuals that are only limited by the Writer's fertile imagination.

And the best news is that with the trickling down of recent Digital Technology, what had cost millions of dollars just a few years ago is no longer cost prohibitive and is now readily available to the small independent Film Studio.

So for Writers, the time has come... to let your imagination go!

David Halver
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0357141/

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