Info about Matrix 2 & 3

[nose]

This is cool. I'm really looking forward to the release. But I'm afraid here in Europe we have to wait a bit longer than you guys.

[tamate]

looks great, well you guys in europe and the US are lucker than me down here in New Zealand but the tides will turn next year when the Lord of the Rings 3 will have the premire here in wellington but i think the matrix 3 will be coming out at the same time so who know what will be more popular??but the CGI company that is making the matrix has shut down, and beleve me i want to see matrix 1 & 2 as much as anyone but i wonder if that will affect the movie in any way??
It should be fine:)

[beaker]

>>but the CGI company that is making the matrix has shut down

CFX's work for the matrix was moved to Sony. Anyways, they were doing pickup work along with cinesite. ESC is doing most of the work(like 75% of it).

[tamate]

oh thats great, is it effecting the relese date?

[beaker]

I doubt it.

[The Magic Pen]

OMG if I could only see one which would I pick to see ..the Matrix Sequals or Return of the King ... :eek:

Lucky I don't have to make that choice and I can see all of them .. gonna be a great year for movies !! :buttrock:

[Gentle Fury]

Originally posted by beaker
>>but the CGI company that is making the matrix has shut down

CFX's work for the matrix was moved to Sony. Anyways, they were doing pickup work along with cinesite. ESC is doing most of the work(like 75% of it).

what happened to maxex??? everyone is so sad about CFX but i thought manex was the main head honcho on the vfx.

[Mike RB]

manex closed and most of thier people went to ESC.

[Gentle Fury]

Originally posted by Mike RB
manex closed and most of thier people went to ESC.

wow, thats crazy.....with the popularity they had i figured they were still around......prolly why i havent heard ANYTHING about them recently.

[beaker]

Manex is still around, but they are a shell of themselves. There were some new articles back in the summer about them moving to New Jersey. WTF is in NJ that has anything to do with visualfx?

Here is a post from a couple years ago when Manex lost the effects to ESC:

"Here's the real inside scoop from someone inside on the whole VFX fiasco that occurred. Manex Entertainment has been managed by [Person A], who was indicted on fraud charges in 1997 for an SEC violation for bilking investors out of millions of dollars. You can search the web under [Person A] for the story. Well, Warner Brothers DID NOT like to deal with this person for his unscrupulous negotiation tactics on the first Matrix production and were wary of similiar occurrences happening on the sequels.

"Manex then hired [Person B] to run the show and the now recently hired [Person C] to be the face of Manex in the negotiations. However, it turns out that [Person A] was still in control of the company. There was also a gross miscalculation in Manex's ability to leverage their initial work on the first film and their relationship with The Wachowski Bros and Joel Silver to bring the work in.

"Manex had bid the work for $18 million while WB felt that a $14 million price tag was more accurate. While neither side budged on the numbers, WB took this opportunity to justify taking the work away from Manex (which they wanted to do in the first place but couldn't for political reasons). ESC Entertainment was formed out of frustration with management and their negotiating tactics with WB. ESC consists of the 'brain-trust' (i.e. R&D team) that created the visuals for the first film. Without them, Manex is essentially a hollow shell.

"In the meantime, [Person A] was pushed out of the company in order to salvage what they could from the relationship with WB. It's a shame because the artists at Manex were extremely talented. A lack of tact and honesty in the negotiations from the Manex side led to their ultimate demise. How could a vfx house who won back to back Academy Awards for best visual effects come to this end? It's a sad story..."

[Gentle Fury]

man, thats harsh.....they were one of my favs too.......oh well, so is business

[Gregwid]

Thanks for the link.:beer:
Those flicks sure will be sweeeet.:thumbsup:

[krisr]

Originally posted by beaker
Manex is still around, but they are a shell of themselves. There were some new articles back in the summer about them moving to New Jersey. WTF is in NJ that has anything to do with visualfx?

WTF isn't in the Jersey area that would keep Manex from prospering?! The buzz in Hollywood is that NJ just might be the new hot spot for the film industry. There are many big production studios.....and big game developers looking at property in Jersey...why.....because land is cheaper than the ludicrous prices in California. This is a fact and not just a rumor....it is happening. New Jersey is hot because its the center of so many major east coast cities; New York, Philadelphia, D.C., Baltimore, Boston, etc. I find it sad what happened to Manex but I also find it interesting that they are still alive and kicking. They just signed a huge deal in NJ in the past few weeks and are opening a massive studio in central Jersey at an old industrial complex. They're smart because the state is giving them a HUGE tax break because it will bring so many jobs to the area. It will be interesting to see what happens. It could be the last nail in their coffin but I would like to think that they are ushering in a new era in film-making....bringing the film industry back to its true birthplace....the east coast :thumbsup:

[beaker]

>> WTF isn't in the Jersey area that would keep Manex from prospering?! The buzz in Hollywood is that NJ just might be the new hot spot for the film industry.

Many companies have tried that and in the end they moved to the west coast. The east coast makes it very hard for companies to compete even though it is cheaper there. Maybe it has something to do with the producers and other things, I don't know, but time and time again it has been proven that it just doesn't work very well.

Manex was originally on the east coast in Massachussets back when they did Judge Dread and Stargate. They were called Mass Illusion back then (Changed their name like 3-4 times, Mass Illusion, Manex, MVFX). They had to move to the west coast to get the jobs. Another example, KWCC(Kleiser Walkzak Construction Company), a great visualfx house(Xmen, Stargate, The One) also had to move their film operations to the west coast. They still have their main office in MA for doing ride films and commercials, but they had to close down their NYC office, and most of their film work is done in LA now. Even Blue Sky has a hard time getting film work at times, thats why fox originally combined them with VIFX. They split them up when Blue Sky moved to work on Ice Age and sold off VIFX to R&H.

[zerodefect0]

How big of a company is ESC?
Its quite new so was wondering.
Wonder where its based.

Sounds cool working there?
They blow stuff up for fun.
And they get to work on the matrix which is pretty sweet. :buttrock:

[zerodefect0]

Oh and another thing, anyone know when the films are due for release in the UK?

I want to see those movies so badly! :drool:

[Dan Dixon]

Esc is doing a fare amount of the show

zerodefect0 theres some where about 350 on staff right now and were not far from the old Manex location. I'ts great place to work with lots of talented people there.

[zerodefect0]

Hey Dan Dixon,
You work at Esc?

I bet the company will grow quite a bit after the matrix!
How hard is it to get employed there?
I am a student at the moment at uni, in the UK, doing Physics with astrophysics.
But really love 3D and movie making, really want to get into it.
I am teaching myself maya at the moment, will post some stuff when I actually get something cool done!

It would be a dream come true to work with films such as the Matrix!

PS: Checked out ur website, got some really cool stuff!! I love that trooper in progress, looks great!

[krisr]

I do know of the somewhat plagued attempts of visual effects houses setting up shop on the east coast but I do have to say that any attempt to establish a large studio in New Jersey has never happened. Back in the day, some people thought it was silly to move the film industry to Hollywood from its birthplace in New York. Ya never know, it could be a total flop but NJ could be the "X" on the map. New York is much too expensive for a large house...I know because I work there. Its much better suited to the commercial realm where most of the big commercial agencies are located. Up-state NY where Blue-Sky is; is close but in my opinion....too far from the center of the big east coast cities. They do well because.....they're Blue-Sky....nough said. I would love to see effects houses and game developers look more in NJ because it bring more work to the area....however, home prices I'm sure would rise and they are already too expensive :hmm:

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