New Avatar HD trailer

[kyrandian]

Another link, 1080p

http://www.themoviebox.net/movies/2009/0-9ABC/Avatar/trailer.php

[STANER]

I just downloaded HD trailer and it was amazing! i Really cant wait to see this movie :)

Link to HD trailer : http://209.73.189.173/a2snfs07r13/013/yahoomovies/15/96012717.mov?StreamID=96012717&pl_auth=aad673c7f8496b0df5c129a8aad91636&ht=120&b=0tsi2id5cfmut4ae9d7df&s=950777340&br=10300&pg=NTYzMTY0MjgxNGFlOWNiNT

[TheANIMAL]

Wow, that was pretty intense and christ it was beautiful.



Unfortunately i pretty much know what is going to happen in the film now but oh well. :drool:

[guitarmunkee]

Holy crap that was awesome..... I can't wait!
The Na'vi animations look incredible.

[Gio Nakpil]

this is THE event movie for me. cameron, sci-fi, amazing fx work by a worldclass
fx company, badass looking villain (stephen lang), new 3d technology for total immersion...what more can a movie geek ask for? complainers be damned!

congrats to all of you guys there at weta. all the hard work shows in every pixel of that trailer.

[robodesign]

how much of it is 3D? is it completely? even the first part or not?

[Spirit2029]

SciFi fans rejoice, finally something to sink our teeth into. The arguments and tare aparts around this movie will continue no doubt, but the work, the scale, and complexity of this movie deserve praise. The topics are not new, but creating something completely new in a world of scifi geeks is very hard, this will have its place and for myself is very welcomed. Im tierd of seeing world ending movies about our planet, and monster zombie movies, this is unique that we are going to another world, and we will experience another world, another culture. Cameron you are the man, I have no doubt you will entertain and amaze us, I am glad he waited and so glad he has pushed everyone on his team. This will be an event to see for sure.

spirit2029

[Laa-Yosh]

how much of it is 3D? is it completely? even the first part or not?

Everything is going to be 3D, even the live action parts.

[Intervain]

complainers be damned!

congrats to all of you guys there at weta. all the hard work shows in every pixel of that trailer.

definitely have to agree here!

[Phrenzy84]

Wow, that was pretty intense and christ it was beautiful.



Unfortunately i pretty much know what is going to happen in the film now but oh well. :drool:

I stopped the trailer after 30 seconds or so once Giovanni said how much "this rock sells for..."

I may be an innovative film, but cant fox be a little innovative in its advertising and publicity strategy.

[INFINITE]

Stunning. Thank you for the link, some amazing VFX shots. James Cameron chose the best in the industry for sure.

A genre defining film. History.

[RobW720]

Looks sooo pretty.

Me likey muuuch muuuuuch

[Gadzooks]

Oh My God!!

[theotheo]

I guess he means 3d as in stereo.....

-theo

[robodesign]

Everything is going to be 3D, even the live action parts.

Are you sure? The beginning didn't feel like 3D at all, especially Michelle Rodriquez :).

[Laa-Yosh]

30/40% of the movie is live action, the rest is CG, and everything is in stereoscopic 3D. Satisfied? :)

[Shletten]

Are you sure? The beginning didn't feel like 3D at all, especially Michelle Rodriquez :).Friend, when talking of real life, we use the term "live-action". When talking of animation, we must say "computer generated". Almost 70% of this movie is made out of computer generated imagery. Nowadays, 3D means stereoscopic vision as in theaters such as IMAX or RealD.

Anyway, I can't see it not winning awards for best visual effects. It's incredible.

Make yourself the pleasure of saving this on your PC. Right clik + save as.

http://playlist.yahoo.com/makeplaylist.dll?embedded=yes&sid=960127 17&a mp;t=mov&br=10300&s=950777340&nodeid=16357487&trk=& ; ;sl=15&pg=NTYzMTY0MjgxNGFlOWNiNT&sdm=web&pt=rd (http://playlist.yahoo.com/makeplaylist.dll?embedded=yes&sid=96012717&a mp;t=mov&br=10300&s=950777340&nodeid=16357487&trk=& ;sl=15&pg=NTYzMTY0MjgxNGFlOWNiNT&sdm=web&pt=rd)

[robodesign]

Friend, when talking of real life, we use the term "live-action". When talking of animation, we must say "computer generated". Almost 70% of this movie is made out of computer generated imagery. Nowadays, 3D means stereoscopic vision as in theaters such as IMAX or RealD.

Anyway, I can't see it not winning awards for best visual effects. It's incredible.


Thanks both to the explanations. :)

Yeah, I mean, computer generated, rendered. I know that movies can now be stereo, IMAX and, of course, every frame is post-processed in a way or another, even if it's just for color corrections. But, it's something different to have all the actors/characters, environments completely done in 3D, and then rendered. I hoped they have crossed the "uncanny valley".

So, as I understand, those shots were not CG.

[shapeshifter]

Like most other people I was sceptical at first but after the IMAX "pre-screening" of the first minutes I can't wait to see this. It looks great! Well done WETA :cool: I know it was hard work.. : )

[WyattHarris]

They previewed this trailer before "This is it", it looks quite stunning on the big screen. The story... eh we'll see.

[Shletten]

I hoped they have crossed the "uncanny valley".Aren't you already able to judge by having seen the new trailer? As for me, I'm truly impressed by the facial animations! These Na'vi feel very alive and I can feel every nuance of their emotions. There are times where it's remarkably photorealistic!

[ice-boy]

is WETA reading this? your work is done. the general public will not know that this is CGI. they will think that those are actors in prosthetic. you will see.

[ha-dou-ken]

...but did they really have to submit the ENTIRE plot of the movie into this trailer?Seriously? No doubt the CG is amazing but i was actually looking forward to discovering the movie like you...usually...do..when you watch it.:argh:

[DavidBaca3D]

Are you sure? The beginning didn't feel like 3D at all, especially Michelle Rodriquez :).

I have a feeling this is going to be happening alot, hahaha

[tonytrout]

I watched with the sound off :) so as not to spoil the plot. Visuals are stunning. I was a doubter but now... absolutely convinced this film is going to be inspirational. Well done Weta, what else did I expect really.

[iatriki]

There's a "This is Sparta" moment at the end of the trailer :)

[azazel]

I watched with the sound off :) so as not to spoil the plot. Visuals are stunning. I was a doubter but now... absolutely convinced this film is going to be inspirational. Well done Weta, what else did I expect really.

You missed quite a lot, the music is quite nice in this one, in the beginning especially.

[BigJay]

After Braveheart every move had big speeches before the battles. So I am not surprised by the this is sparta type yelling. It happens.

It looks incredible.

[Pixarman]

Does anyone know the music used in the middle to last part of the trailer? I recognized the first cue from Steve Jablonsky's wonderful score from the film "The Island".

[KOKE]

Wow, that was insane!. :beer:

Congrats to everyone involved in this. :bowdown:
I bet it gets even better with the stereo 3D experience.

Just one thing though...where do aliens learn to speak english?, they keep doing it in every film, I bet someone is getting really rich teaching it around the universe. ;)

JK.

:D

[dyei]

yeah so cool cg action. i like a lot this one.

by the trailer looks like the avatar of sam w. will be fighting against himself... sounds so cool the idea of himself with the aliens vs. himself and the army.

and the story looks pretty simple, a greedy human civilizacion vs a nature-preserver indians-like creatures. so kids will be able to undertand it clearly

[leigh]

I thought the first trailer was a bit meh, but this one definitely looks cooler.

[Laa-Yosh]

Just one thing though...where do aliens learn to speak english?, they keep doing it in every film, I bet someone is getting really rich teaching it around the universe. ;)

Actually, as far as I've heard about the story, the humans have been on Pandora for a few years at the movie's time, and they did exactly that, went out to teach english to the natives.

[Shletten]

Actually, as far as I've heard about the story, the humans have been on Pandora for a few years at the movie's time, and they did exactly that, went out to teach english to the natives.For 20-25 years... The movie happens in 2154 though. :)

[kelgy]

I watched with the sound off :) so as not to spoil the plot.

**ha!
I did the exact opposite. I listened to the audio so as not to spoil the visuals.

[colkai]

I am so there, looks to be outstanding. :)

[KOKE]

Actually, as far as I've heard about the story, the humans have been on Pandora for a few years at the movie's time, and they did exactly that, went out to teach english to the natives.

Nice to know this time there is an actual real reason for it :).

Maybe its just me but its a little thing that bugs me when I see it in films.
Nothing big but just that kind of thing you keep wondering.

JK.

:D

[Laa-Yosh]

Nice to know this time there is an actual real reason for it :) :D

Dude. It's James Cameron we're talking about.

By the way, nice feature on the movie with lots of more designs etc:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geNv6FUK0HU&fmt=22

[ice-boy]

Nice to know this time there is an actual real reason for it :).

Maybe its just me but its a little thing that bugs me when I see it in films.
Nothing big but just that kind of thing you keep wondering.

JK.

:Dbut not every na'vi will speak english. but they will have their own language. they spend 1 year .
the subtitles for the na'vi language will be in 3D stereoscopic.

[Ivan D Young]

The two quotes in the BTS from Cameron had me sold:
"This is a Movie I would go and see."
"I am an artist and I wanted to find people that Impress me!"

If that had been the trailer people would of been excited by that alone. Dude knows how to deliver. I think most people would still agree on that. Cameron seems to also deliver a sense of realism and believability with his movies as well, alot of thought goes into making it "make sense".

He had so many top notch artists and designers, that there are stories about some of those folks were cherry picked for Hobbitt.

[fgdf]

I guess most of them.

[Venkman]

I thought the first trailer was a bit meh, but this one definitely looks cooler.

Check out the "making of" featurette on youtube. There are a couple of scenes in there that REALLY impress.

[RockinAkin]

This is looking pretty epic...

Hats off to everyone at Weta for pouring their blood sweat and tears into this project - it looks amazing.

[TheANIMAL]

Check out the "making of" featurette on youtube. There are a couple of scenes in there that REALLY impress.

And one or two which, do not.

[Venkman]

And one or two which, do not.

Something tells me you're a "glass is half empty" kind of guy. ;)

[anakinbrego]

This is looking pretty epic...

Hats off to everyone at Weta for pouring their blood sweat and tears into this project - it looks amazing.
Ahemmm...

http://www.cinefex.com/upcomingfilms/upcoming.php?id=19

Weta Digital

VFX SUPERVISOR: Joe Letteri


Weta Workshop

SUPERVISOR: Philip Sharpe


Legacy Effects

SUPERVISOR: John Rosengrant


Giant Studios


Framestore

VFX SUPERVISOR: Jon Thum


Hydraulx


Industrial Light & Magic

VFX SUPERVISOR: John Knoll


Pixel Liberation Front


Blur Studio


Other VFX companies: Buf Compagnie / Hybride / Frantic Films

[TheANIMAL]

Something tells me you're a "glass is half empty" kind of guy. ;)

Well there were doezens of stunning perfect shots, but there were 2 navi crowd shots that looked quite cgi-ish to me.

[Shletten]

Well there were doezens of stunning perfect shots, but there were 2 navi crowd shots that looked quite cgi-ish to me.All the shots that happen in the Na'vi village are either strangely colored or the lighting is too stylized for them to look as photorealistic as the other scenes which happen at daylight.

Although, some scenes such as the "Banshee taming" might be the closest thing to perfection ever. 3:22 for instance :eek: !

Anyway, they included some work in progress shots in this featurette that are clearly better in the theatrical trailer so I am kind of doubting it was edited that recently and is representative of the final product. Still, some shots need no improvement.

[HadleyRille]

While yes, that is true, the vast vast majority of that awesome work is Weta's, and they deserve the credit for it.

Ahemmm...

http://www.cinefex.com/upcomingfilms/upcoming.php?id=19

Weta Digital

VFX SUPERVISOR: Joe Letteri


Weta Workshop

SUPERVISOR: Philip Sharpe


Legacy Effects

SUPERVISOR: John Rosengrant


Giant Studios


Framestore

VFX SUPERVISOR: Jon Thum


Hydraulx


Industrial Light & Magic

VFX SUPERVISOR: John Knoll


Pixel Liberation Front


Blur Studio


Other VFX companies: Buf Compagnie / Hybride / Frantic Films

[HollowCrown]

that trailer looks outstanding in HD.

I'm still not a fan of the powersuits or most of the metalic surfaces in general, but the Na'Vi, Pandora itself, and the creatures all look terrific.

[puch]

Enjoy :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LQkTQ1foSU


and official website:

http://www.avatarmovie.com/

It's pretty awesome!

[workbench]

This stuff looks like a fantasy flick with sci-fi elements, blue cat people with bows and arrows? Not what I want to see in a sci-fi movie. Technically it's too early to judge.

[ediris]

Congrats to the parties involved .
The only thing i am concerned is about the story line which Pixar takes care of a lot in their movies IMOP.

[mushroomgod]

This stuff looks like a fantasy flick with sci-fi elements, blue cat people with bows and arrows? Not what I want to see in a sci-fi movie. Technically it's too early to judge.

Im not to sure you know the difference between fantasy and Sci fi.

[iadagraca]

i still find the human-ish aliens weird from a logical perspective, it also feels too... 'safe'

[DutchDimension]

When you spend $300.000.000+ on a film, you want to make sure you don't scare off a large majority of your audience by coming up with "accurate", but potentially unappealing lead characters.

'High revenue film making 101' that is. ;)


i still find the human-ish aliens weird from a logical perspective, it also feels too... 'safe'

[zman]

Finnaly, something to look forward to in the cinema !
Last time I felt this eager to see a movie was the LOTR series...

I find that the trailer itself was very well made. Although perhaps a little too revealing, it really is well done imho.
Did anyone else notice that the music at the beginning was in fact taken from Michael Bay's Island soundtrack ? I didn't know this was a common thing to do in movie trailers ...

[fgdf]

It would be quite common. What's the name of this track btw?

[Laa-Yosh]

Did anyone else notice that the music at the beginning was in fact taken from Michael Bay's Island soundtrack ? I didn't know this was a common thing to do in movie trailers ...

There are companies that do nothing but write and record music to be used for movie trailers only, like Immediate Music or Two Steps From Hell. The later has created that memorable music for the last Star Trek trailer:
http://www.twostepsfromhell.com/star_trek_3.php
Or there's the music from "Requiem for a dream", that had to be used in dozens of trailers, including LOTR - TTT.

Usually a movie has to be advertised well ahead of the completion of its soundtrack, and trailers work a lot better if they're cut to some good music. So it makes sense to take something finished and use that.

[kelgy]

There was a tv show I used to watch that began a segment by saying: "ever notice that music from one movie is used in the background of another movie's trailer? Ever wonder why that is?"

Unfortunately I missed the segment. Seems like music from one movie studio film will show up in another movie studio's trailer--so yes, i do wonder why the studios agreed to do that and not just use music from movies in their film library.

[Spin99]

Looks like an all out CG fest. Next blockbuster?
For some reason the cat creatures make me think of Aaron Sims work.
Aliens director? Awesomeness.

P.S. The visuals look plain incredible btw
Dunno about the cat peoples super elongated bodies though.
Only thing that put me off a little. But wow is the word..

[gjpetch]

When you spend $300.000.000+ on a film, you want to make sure you don't scare off a large majority of your audience by coming up with "accurate", but potentially unappealing lead characters.

'High revenue film making 101' that is. ;)

I don't buy this idea that people can only accept characters that look human and have big eyes; people love r2d2 for example, and he doesn't even have a face. Perhaps the human-like design is necessary for the romantic element of the story to work, but the general idea of inter-species romantic love is a bit, err... gross isn't it?

[ice-boy]

Perhaps the human-like design is necessary for the romantic element of the story to work, but the general idea of inter-species romantic love is a bit, err... gross isn't it?Cameron confirmed this . they are humanoid because of the love story. they tryed designes where they looked more different and it didnt work. he always asked hes artists ''would you want to f.... her''. of course as a joke but the public needs to find Neytiri sexy.

[zman]

It would be quite common. What's the name of this track btw?

The Island Soundtrack - Steve Jablonsky (My Name Is Lincoln)

[chalbers]

THR1

I'm sure that means something ...

[Laa-Yosh]

Perhaps the human-like design is necessary for the romantic element of the story to work, but the general idea of inter-species romantic love is a bit, err... gross isn't it?

It would be with something like a prawn, but not with these designs.

Also keep in mind that it's not gonna be between a human and an alien, but between an avatar and an alien... who look almost completely the same.

[fgdf]

The Island Soundtrack - Steve Jablonsky (My Name Is Lincoln)

Thank's I really thought they would use some original score.
Anyway good job on stealing right one for the job JC.

[Laa-Yosh]

They're not stealing, they're paying a license fee for it... pff.

[fgdf]

I know that (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irony);]

[MasterZap]

that trailer looks outstanding in HD.

I'm still not a fan of the powersuits or most of the metalic surfaces in general, but the Na'Vi, Pandora itself, and the creatures all look terrific.

That's so wierd coz I think the exact opposite. While I'm not really a fan of the *design* of the powersuit, I think they, and most other hard-surface stuff looks great, whereas the Na'Vi (in certain shots) and the creatures in (pretty much all shots) look very "CG".

It also bugs me to high heaven that pretty much every "CG" shot is over-beautified with a compressed unnatural dynamic range, which makes it stand out against the live-action stuff which has a much more natural dynamic range.

Still, I think this is gonna be pretty darned epic, and such details will be forgotten when you learn to know the characters. I mean, the aliens from "The Abyss" look pretty crummy by todays standards (sorry Trey ;) ) but it is still one of my all time favourite movies.


/Z

[Laa-Yosh]

MasterZap, have you seen these?

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8eYRynDI/AAAAAAAADoc/-BBjjK9E9Eg/s400/2A.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8WxmrCAI/AAAAAAAADoU/bMWmiv2j7NA/s400/2B.jpg

They are still working on a lot of the shots and as I recall, the above one has been taken into the direction that you've suggested after the teaser...

Edit: and we all know how gamma in Quictime movies usually ends up FUBAR...

[BrettSinclair]

Been downloading the trailer for 3 hours now. DAAAMNNN the 3rd world! But it will be worth it :D

[ice-boy]

Thank's I really thought they would use some original score.
Anyway good job on stealing right one for the job JC.you are aware that the music in the trailer will not be in the movie? the first one is from The Island and the second and third one are custom songs made for trailers.

[ice-boy]

MasterZap, have you seen these?

They are still working on a lot of the shots and as I recall, the above one has been taken into the direction that you've suggested after the teaser...

Edit: and we all know how gamma in Quictime movies usually ends up FUBAR...
i am all for doing changes for the better. but there was no reason to change the guy in the robot suit.

[Spin99]

Cameron confirmed this . they are humanoid because of the love story. they tryed designes where they looked more different and it didnt work. he always asked hes artists ''would you want to f.... her''. of course as a joke but the public needs to find Neytiri sexy.Yeh I'd.. too except they're blue? Dunno about that.
But Neytiri is sexy. Not?

[fgdf]

you are aware that the music in the trailer will not be in the movie? the first one is from The Island and the second and third one are custom songs made for trailers.
Yep but I hoped that spending over 300mln $ would allow them to write some original music earlier than month before final assembly and premiere. I gues I was wrong and I'm sorry 'cos music in this trailer fits perfectly. Hard task to top it in the actual movie.

[dyei]

Yeh I'd.. too except they're blue? Dunno about that.
But Neytiri is sexy. Not?


no not really, she freaks me out... if i see a chick like that in real life, i will crap my pants... i find these blue creatures a bit scary, in terms of design they are weird.

maybe your cat will find her atractive but not me.

[dyei]

MasterZap, have you seen these?

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8eYRynDI/AAAAAAAADoc/-BBjjK9E9Eg/s400/2A.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8WxmrCAI/AAAAAAAADoU/bMWmiv2j7NA/s400/2B.jpg

They are still working on a lot of the shots and as I recall, the above one has been taken into the direction that you've suggested after the teaser...

Edit: and we all know how gamma in Quictime movies usually ends up FUBAR...


i think that those images arent enough realistic yet, the inside of the ship should not be visible, neither the face of the person in the suit.

[ice-boy]

Yeh I'd.. too except they're blue? Dunno about that.
But Neytiri is sexy. Not?Cameron always liked the color blue. its hes favorite color. i noticed that he also used blue lighting in a lot of shots in avatar. even for the actors.

[ice-boy]

no not really, she freaks me out... if i see a chick like that in real life, i will crap my pants... i find these blue creatures a bit scary, in terms of design they are weird.

maybe your cat will find her atractive but not me.if i would see ET in real life i would be scared. because lets face it in our real world he would be one scary alien. but in the context of the movie he was a cute young alien that was lost.

i look at Neytiri as a movie character and i dont find her scary.

[Shletten]

Neytiri is quite beautiful I think.

[MasterZap]

MasterZap, have you seen these?

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8eYRynDI/AAAAAAAADoc/-BBjjK9E9Eg/s400/2A.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_1qPLMlz01yQ/Sur8WxmrCAI/AAAAAAAADoU/bMWmiv2j7NA/s400/2B.jpg

They are still working on a lot of the shots and as I recall, the above one has been taken into the direction that you've suggested after the teaser...

Holy Crap. Jim Cameron reads my posts :) (Hi Jim. I Luv U) *grin*

Edit: and we all know how gamma in Quictime movies usually ends up FUBAR...

I don't get why Apply just fixes it? It's been broken for more years than I can count. :(

Probably coz the bug only appears on PC's and they want to sell their fisher-price machines instead?

/Z

[Shletten]

I must say I like your avatar MasterZap, it's flashy and colorful plus I like going into clubs.

[dyei]

Neytiri is quite beautiful I think.

in the design aspect, not in my tastes, i would say... the designers made their nose so wide, they could be more aestetical with a thin nose.

i have to admit that those big eyes are pretty well designed, and she is pretty thin.

in tecnical aspect is good to see how they even recreated the liquid line beetween eye and lower eyelid.


http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g300/autobot314/Neytiri.jpg



so cat like...

http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p420/mastropieros/filmstill081b.jpg

[JabreyJames]

The third image you posted is design reference - hence the painterly look ...

[BrettSinclair]

More comparisons. This is old. Lock thread.

[TJFrame]

...and you noticed how mate painted and fake planets look?



That's because you are looking at concept art.

[Laa-Yosh]

Let's repeat it all together:

James Cameron has imagined most aspects of this movie back in 1995.

But of course he can also see into the future and know how Nightcrawler looks like, in order to get inspired by his design.

[BigJay]

ooooh Cameron stole the glowing skin and city from the aliens in Abyss. James should sue Cameron for doing that.
:)

Hell we can play this game forever. there are hundreds of comics, toons, anime, novels that have aliens/people with some form of glowing lines on them. Hell I worked on a game that had glowing lines and tattoos on one of the aliens, and that is from a design I made back in the 90s, honestly I think its a culteral phase everyone hits. Look at Outlander. glowing is the new slime. every alien has to glow, even if just a little bit.

its probably all TRON's fault. those glowing jump suits stick in the head

[hypercube]

Let's repeat it all together:

James Cameron has imagined most aspects of this movie back in 1995.

But of course he can also see into the future and know how Nightcrawler looks like, in order to get inspired by his design.

To be fair, Nightcrawler has been around since 1975, but either way I don't think any of the various plagiarist criers have much merit on that line of thought at all.

Picking on Avatar's Na'vi designs or whatever other aspects of the movie they feel are "unoriginal" is more en vogue right now than all of those hip people who were hanging around all day waiting to point out how much Wall-E looked like Johnny 5 from Short Circuit.

Thundercats, Furries, Smurfs, Elves, Jar-Jar, Dances with Wolves, Ferngully, Pocahontas, Video Game, yada yada yada.

But then, complaining about the complaining isn't new either. Just the nature of all of this. Any given movie thread and/or movie trailer thread rapidly approaches convergence with all the other previous discussions, just with a little more info each time. Here's looking forward to even more of this after Dec. 18th in the "The Reviews are Linking in" thread. :)

[kkem]

To be fair, Nightcrawler has been around since 1975, but either way I don't think any of the various plagiarist criers have much merit on that line of thought at all.

Picking on Avatar's Na'vi designs or whatever other aspects of the movie they feel are "unoriginal" is more en vogue right now than all of those hip people who were hanging around all day waiting to point out how much Wall-E looked like Johnny 5 from Short Circuit.

Thundercats, Furries, Smurfs, Elves, Jar-Jar, Dances with Wolves, Ferngully, Pocahontas, Video Game, yada yada yada.

But then, complaining about the complaining isn't new either. Just the nature of all of this. Any given movie thread and/or movie trailer thread rapidly approaches convergence with all the other previous discussions, just with a little more info each time. Here's looking forward to even more of this after Dec. 18th in the "The Reviews are Linking in" thread. :)

great post

[Shletten]

Wow the matte painting reference was so dumb! IT'S A CONCEPT ART... Ouch. As for the environments, they're easily the best CG environments I have ever seen.

[MasterZap]

Dunno if it is the quicktime gamma issue or whatever it is, but the featurette, on Youtube (of all things!) looks better than the actual trailer to me!

And yeah, the environments are insanely fantastic....!

/Z

[dyei]

That's because you are looking at concept art.



no not really, the planets in the movie itself looks fake to me:

http://dyei.sabotage.ws/ss.png


of course the planet is fake but, i mean, they doesnt look like other planets we have seen in other atmopheres.

just looks like a plain circle with no spheric, and rim aura detail

backgrounds looks "mate-painted-obvious" to me. but thats just my point of view.

btw, it doesnt mean that i dont like the whole movie, im desesperatelly waiting the release date to run to the nearest cinema theater to see it :)

[Shletten]

Frankly, you really have choosen the worst. It's the only shot that looks odd to me.

[Venkman]

I can't get over some of the small muscular/skeletal details of the navi (did I spell that right?)

What kind of beast computers are these people running to get that detail? What software are they running? A heavily modified version of Maya/Max/XSI/Houdini? In some of those shots, you can see tiny ligaments and bones moving beneath the surface of the skin. I take it they have to work with some proxy geometry or something to keep it manageable for an animator working on a single PC.

Anyone know how the facial animation works? Is it performance capture enhanced by hand animation?


I think at the very least, this movie has the potential to inspire a new generation of artists. I can only dream of executing detail like that on my own! (I guess it would help to have an army of world class artists working along side me.) :-b

[Shletten]

Wow Venkman! I thought I was alone to have noticed such little things! In the theatrical trailer, when Neytiri and Jake exchange "You knew this would happen?" and "Everything's changed", you can see Neytiri's artery and Jake's nerves... Not to mention that this might be one of the first movie to show close-ups of animated feet and hands! :surprised

One thing is sure, they've got the best looking CG hair I have ever seen and the physics seem to be spot-on.

Anyone know how the facial animation works? Is it performance capture enhanced by hand animation?

Their system is so great that they decided to rename it for performance capture. It's image based in the likes of Image Metrics. The actors have a little camera rig mounted of their head that films their performance. The data is then applied to the rig. The goal was to make the process as automatic as possible. I don't even think there's manual keyframe cleaning after that...

The next shot was much more evolved. Neytiri’s skin was tactile and radiant; her eyes were huge and green and flecked with light, like five-dollar marbles from Conran. “This is ninety or ninety-five per cent done,” Cameron said. “By the way, we didn’t have the equipment when we started this. It took nine months to build the computer model and to get it right. It’s incredibly computationally complex, but now we’re able to replicate the interaction of muscle under skin.” He stopped the footage on a closeup of Neytiri’s face. “She exists only as a big string of ones and zeroes,” he said, as if he could not quite believe it himself. “Computing a single frame of this takes thirty hours.” He paused. “Everybody in this building has had more college than I have.”

[ice-boy]

this is a stunt double. all actors had the same.
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/3581/20090823simoneavatar01.jpg (http://img215.imageshack.us/i/20090823simoneavatar01.jpg/)

i think Cameron wanted the ears on so that the actors would easier imagine.Cameron also said that with this new technology they could get 100% . i dont belive it. 100% is way to much.


Spielberg and Jackson are using the same technology at WETA for TinTin.
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/7473/tintinbehindthescenes.jpg (http://img81.imageshack.us/i/tintinbehindthescenes.jpg/)

[Laa-Yosh]

Their system is so great that they decided to rename it for performance capture. It's image based in the likes of Image Metrics. The actors have a little camera rig mounted of their head that films their performance. The data is then applied to the rig. The goal was to make the process as automatic as possible. I don't even think there's manual keyframe cleaning after that...


I really don't think that they could get away with captured motion only. There's been a presentation somewhere on the net by the character supervisor of Benjamin Button and he talked about a lot of interesting stuff... They did not use direct deformations because of the differences between Pitt and Ben; did not use muscle systems because of their high complexity and unintuitive control. They decided for a blendshape rig because of the feedback speed, as they needed to manually animate a lot. Some shots required months of work! Of course in all cases they used video of Pitt's performance as a reference, even if all facial animation had to be keyframed.
The blendshapes themselves were captured from Pitt using Mova's Contour system (the one with phosphorescent make-up). They manually reworked the shapes for the elder versions of Pitt's face. They also had to add the deformations for the inside of the mouth manually (can't capture that) and the eye area wasn't captured either.
Performance capture itself used Image Metrics's system with 4 HD cameras and the data was used to drive the blendshape rig. It's mostly good for timing.

Edit: here are the videos
http://www.cgw.com/Video-Center/Siggraph/SV-Speaker-4-Part2.aspx

All in all it sounds pretty logical, especially if you've done some facial rigging and animation work yourself. Based an all this I tend to believe that Weta also used blendshapes and a lot of keyframe animation. The 95% stuff is mainly used to convince the press that it's 'real' and not 'animated'... Most people would not understand the process and believe that the actor's work has been replaced somehow if it's not the untouched capture. Seriously, what could such a small, single camera capture if 4 HD differently placed cameras aren't always enough?

Obviously we'll know more once the movie's been released, but I really think it's quite similar to what Benjamin Button did... only the blendshapes were probably sculpted instead of captured.

[Laa-Yosh]

of course the planet is fake but, i mean, they doesnt look like other planets we have seen in other atmopheres.

You know anyone who's actually seen something like that?
The only place it could be seen would be if some NASA craft had landed on one of Jupiter's moons and took pictures but I'm not aware of anything like that.
So everything is still fictional at this point.

just looks like a plain circle with no spheric, and rim aura detail

Yeah, easy to see in that heavily compressed video... I'd say wait for a clear image.

backgrounds looks "mate-painted-obvious" to me. but thats just my point of view.

Actually the stereo stuff kinda ruins most matte paintings, you can spot that it's a cheat instantly. Although the planet might be far enough to still allow it work... but most of the movie has to be actual 3D geometry, there's no room to cheat. Which makes the technological merits all the more impressive.

[ice-boy]

i want to know something. this small camera can only show in X and Y space right? it can not show how a muscle moves in Z space.

[Laa-Yosh]

Well, theoretically, if you use software to identify individual FACS shapes in the captured data, then you don't really need Z. You just activate the already sculpted blendshape on the rig. Like, if markers f, g and h are in the 60% position of 'smile', then activate 'smile' shape on the face rig at 0.6 strength.

Obviously it'd require some pretty complex software though... particularly sorting out all the components when a lot of individual FACS action units are active.

[Venkman]

Well, theoretically, if you use software to identify individual FACS shapes in the captured data, then you don't really need Z. You just activate the already sculpted blendshape on the rig. Like, if markers f, g and h are in the 60% position of 'smile', then activate 'smile' shape on the face rig at 0.6 strength.

Obviously it'd require some pretty complex software though... particularly sorting out all the components when a lot of individual FACS action units are active.

And how long 'till I can get this functionality in a $500 program to run on my laptop? ;)

Truly awe inspiring what these people are doing.

[fgdf]

C'mon Weta guys spread some knowladge here :wise:

[Shletten]

C'mon Weta guys spread some knowladge here :wise:This is gonna take some time I fear... :blush:

[DutchDimension]

Would love to, but alas for Non Disclosure Agreements.
I'll say this though, you will find many names of hard working Animators and Matte Painters on the credit scroller when Avatar hits the theatres. Despite what studios would have you believe. :)

C'mon Weta guys spread some knowladge here :wise:

[Spin99]

Must remember to do something in blue then sometime.
Well I wanted to note that this must be one of the biggest best Cg movies ever.
Personally the flying islands are not convincing me yet. But sure are pretty spectacular.

Another note Imagemetrics is revolutionising the industry? It looks that way from here.
As for automation taking over I wouldn't be surprised to tell you the truth. It could happen sooner or later. I bet the actors will love it?

So moral of the story is rather do non-realistic animation?
But looking at some people's work I can't say that either.
Blown away by the creature details in this. True suspension of disbelief.

But then if you look at her wrist angle in the screenshot on this thread.. BUST?
I also think cat lovers will go crazy about the blue people.
A cat you could even take out on a date? Coool..

[Shletten]

Blown away by the creature details in this. True suspension of disbelief.
I agree, these stills are truly immersive to me, barely looks CG:
http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg)

[luispages]

C'mon Weta guys spread some knowladge here :wise:

Soon enough you'll be able to read all about it Cinefex, etc. We are not allowed to say much....

[ice-boy]

I agree, these stills are truly immersive to me, barely looks CG:
http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg)WETA how the hell are you able to finish this movie for a december realese. feathers and complex hair with full GI. and everythign simulated? Neytiri has feathers everywhere. on the hair and on arms.

[Laa-Yosh]

I'll say this though, you will find many names of hard working Animators and Matte Painters on the credit scroller when Avatar hits the theatres.

Yeah, the cool thing about matte painting is that they can be in 3D as well :)

[MasterZap]

I agree, these stills are truly immersive to me, barely looks CG:
http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/7zn7y3i6y472rawey.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/i3is5pmpbdnd5jbotnik.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/uez7xclhz905lkqs4ute.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/oqv3ubqm8reurstftysa.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/1shxt645f4jdqt0k1at.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/2czcjxkkst38lq4ly344.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/ckt3jdlheukpfwdzsd1y.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/3scugs9v28ysehanogav.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/qq010odcnzad5ajw5buu.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/hp22jfa4y40mhzu3mop4.jpg)
http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg (http://imagenic.net/images/b49p0seq2cibmgmnbt2g.jpg)

Wow, these things looks all the best so far, and they have that contrast I've been requesting.

I'm still not 10000% sold on the "group" shot, something about the skin working perfectly in closeup, but not as perfectly at a distance....

...and the only other minor nitpick is that the guy comped inside the gunship is "too visible". I guess this is done for "dramatic purpouses", but IMHO he would be way darker.

But holy crap those closeups of Neytiri (sp?) are friggin' amazing.

Great work Weta!

/Z

[Spin99]

I go back on my crits lol
OK I think the shot of the couple on the tree trunk is one of the few the give it away.
I notice the little Cg things going frame per frame and that's about it.
Shot aside, liking the Na'vi or not, what a show.

Love the spaceships the technology the CREATURES are amazing.
The alien element is totally awesome and a stunning world.
The close-ups as someone mentioned are mind boggling.

Beautiful beautiful. Worthy of Alien. What a movie I wanna watch.

PS-- I think I saw the first trailer when the floating islands didn't have
the clouds (particles?) Really not much to pick on now :/

PPS-- I'm guessing Renderman was used in this?
What an incredible rendering job almost looks hand painted at times.

[dyei]

after seeing the final trailer and the last shoots, i really cant wait to see the movie, i want to see it right now :p

and while it looks great, i have some doubts about robot hard surfaces, is that shader enough realistic? and i would like a more mecanical complex design of the robots, more like matrix revolutions.

http://www.nra.co.za/content/apu73.jpg

[BigPixolin]

James Cameron in a con artist!! He stole millions of dollars in fx funds by using a woman in prostetics and makeup in those close up shots.
Is that dirt stuck to her face in some shots? Holy crap that is amazing.

[theotheo]

nevermind...

[BigJay]

if they are still working on the FX how can anyone really Crit the work? From trailer to trailer more layers are being added and the results look better and better. Can't wait to see the final result.

[trthing]

I'm disappointed with myself for not liking Avatar's aesthethics: what is wrong with me?

Going to watch it anyways...

[dyei]

I'm disappointed with myself for not liking Avatar's aesthethics: what is wrong with me?

Going to watch it anyways...

lol, i understand you, im in the same situation with shaders, i feel somewhat guilty for not liking me some things.

i dont like some aspects either, like shaders of the hard surfaces, they look so plain, pale and monotone, so "lambertian" for my taste, maybe because i like to see grunge damaged and more dirty hard surfaces.

and the skin shaders their are using, looks so hard, not like subsurface scatering that you can see a bit throught the skin, their skin is more like an orange surface. but the hair is amazing.

other than that, the whole movie as an artistical piece is so amazing... what makes this movie so great... clearly it has the james cameron touch. a great work, and im waiting desesperatelly every second to see it.

i will hibernate, wake me up the 17th december :P

[mecos]

this movie reminds me of Terra for some reason.

[TheANIMAL]

and the skin shaders their are using, looks so hard, not like subsurface scatering that you can see a bit throught the skin, their skin is more like an orange surface. but the hair is amazing. er :P

I couldn't agree less, i think SSS is over used in most cgi organics and SSS is only noticable in real life on rare occasions.

[arctor]

I couldn't agree less, i think SSS is over used in most cgi organics and SSS is only noticable in real life on rare occasions.

100% agree.

[Shletten]

Again some new footage, the japanese trailer and the Coke Zero advert.

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=60625&offset=20#commentLstTop
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=163617367013

[FreDre]

I find the Japanese trailer much better edited than the international one.

[dyei]

I couldn't agree less, i think SSS is over used in most cgi organics and SSS is only noticable in real life on rare occasions.


im not saying that you can see literaly "through" the creature or skin as if it were transparent, im talking about NATURAL SKIN.

that blue skin looks hard, the specular is strange, the real specular of the skin is more subltle, the real skin itself is more soft.

but since we are talking about an alien skin it could be whatever they like, because its not human, hasnt to be like human skin, their skin could be like anything they want, cause all is fictional, they are "creating" looks, not replicating looks.

but anyway i expected a more transucent, or more like subsurface scatering shader skin, sss makes a more natural look than that blue shader.

edit: and sss is noticeable in real life in ALL ocasions you can't confuse sss with another type of surface, sss is the whole skin aspect, not just what you can notice about it when you think about it.

[Shletten]

There's quite enough of SSS in the Na'vi ears. If you're not satisfied with it, you'll get plenty more of SSS in the birds' wings.

Anyway I suggest you check out the Japanese trailer to see some more footage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMwtK1qguFw

The new shots are very cool. The editing as a whole could even be argued as being better than the international trailer. However, the mood is different because of the music that is not quite as captivating. Anyway, I really love how detailed those Na'vi are, you can the nerves moving in their neck and the muscles dilate themselves when Jake wiggles his toes.

[hypercube]

They've added another TV spot with mostly just action and AmpSuits, a few more new shots:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXPoQenVQxI


I hope in the saturation bombing of marketing that they don't keep giving away too much more, but I know it's inevitable. 6 more weeks!

[dyei]

They've added another TV spot with mostly just action and AmpSuits, a few more new shots:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXPoQenVQxI


I hope in the saturation bombing of marketing that they don't keep giving away too much more, but I know it's inevitable. 6 more weeks!


i dont wanna see anything else about this movie before the release, as huge fanatic of the vfx i feel than anything more that i see is spoiler and it will ruin my experiencie...

i want to enjoy it, i want to be surprised by the vfx in the same day i see the movie.

[harshdesign]

as corny or fanboy it may sound...i just bought a new 46" Sony Bravia HDTV (http://www.sony.com.au/product/KDL-46Z5500) and the main influence for buying it was when i saw the new Avatar HD Trailer. And after opening the box first thing i did was played the HD trailer. Next thing was my gf picking up my eyeballs off the carpet!
Can't stop the adreleanine rising up while watching it. Lovely complementart colors, composition, compositing, and offcourse i've mentioned before Character work, specially Lighting and what not. This is how they pick up the best herbs from all around the world and make best hashish! :p
Freakin Great efforts by you guys @ weta. Now lets just hope James kept up to his kickass story ideas jut like before. Can't wait!

[Venkman]

as corny or fanboy it may sound...i just bought a new 46" Sony Bravia HDTV (http://www.sony.com.au/product/KDL-46Z5500) and the main influence for buying it was when i saw the new Avatar HD Trailer. And after opening the box first thing i did was played the HD trailer. Next thing was my gf picking up my eyeballs off the carpet!
Can't stop the adreleanine rising up while watching it. Lovely complementart colors, composition, compositing, and offcourse i've mentioned before Character work, specially Lighting and what not. This is how they pick up the best herbs from all around the world and make best hashish! :p
Freakin Great efforts by you guys @ weta. Now lets just hope James kept up to his kickass story ideas jut like before. Can't wait!

That's the first thing I did when I got my 40 Bravia inch TV!

The second thing I did was take it back for a smaller 32" screen. In my small apartment, sitting that close to a large screen made me a little dizzy!

You're gonna love that TV. Download an ultra clean 1080p quicktime of the Avatar trailer from Apple, and you'll be in heaven if you set it to "full pixel" mode.

[harshdesign]

That's the first thing I did when I got my 40 Bravia inch TV!

The second thing I did was take it back for a smaller 32" screen. In my small apartment, sitting that close to a large screen made me a little dizzy!

You're gonna love that TV. Download an ultra clean 1080p quicktime of the Avatar trailer from Apple, and you'll be in heaven if you set it to "full pixel" mode.

How do you turn that on? Shouldn't it be ON by default as its a full HD TV? by full pixel you mean 1920 x 1080?
BTW mine is a Z series model.

[Capel]

Okay, the new footage in that coke zero ad is just plain ridiculous. I have to exercise some self control here and stop spoiling the movie, because after seeing that spot I'm convinced that we haven't seen anything yet.

Counting the days....

[ice-boy]

positive ridiculous? :)

you mean action ?

[FistOfGod]

This movie is going to be so awesome. On another note, I'm happy that they fixed the gun that was clipping through the armored suit in the first trailer. At least, I think it was clipping but I could be wrong. Might be a slightly different shot. Regardless the fx looks amazing. Will probably see this 34343 times in the theater.

Waylon

[dyei]

I have to exercise some self control here and stop spoiling the movie, because after seeing that spot I'm convinced that we haven't seen anything yet.

Counting the days....

thats exactly what i think. 1000% agree

[Capel]

positive ridiculous? :)

you mean action ?

Very positive ridiculous. That shot of the leopard thingy running through the jungle is orgasmic.

[BrettSinclair]

I'm not watching anymore. I'm hooked. Antsy in my pantsy for this movie :D

[jasonio]

Looks amazing.

1. This is why George Lucas should have WAITED to make episodes 1-3. (So at least he could have done some decent scripts!)

2. Every CGI epic (including SW1-3 and LOTR) will look totally dated after this comes out.

[Shletten]

Very positive ridiculous. That shot of the leopard thingy running through the jungle is orgasmic. I'm also in love with this shot but it's the first one that I see with some unreal camera movements. Most of the film is made of CGI yes, but the cinematography is as if there was a real cameraman down there (handycam, shakycam, realistic travellings).

[Capel]

Yeah that's true. Although in the Avatar Day footage, when Jake is running from the leopard creature there's some pretty crazy camera work that would be pretty hard to get in real life, just because they're in the middle of a jungle.

But it was nice to see an over the top actiony shot like that with the effects quality being so high. (the jungle in the background still holds up even with the crazy camera motion)

I'm sure Cameron will balance it out nicely.

[Shletten]

This so doesn't feel like CGI: http://i36.tinypic.com/16a9rtv.gif

Is the final battle scene one some the latest work? I'm wondering because all the scenes where the Na'vi have war paints look really really good.

Nice new TV spot! Beware it's very childish and the sound is not synchro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBUJiXErE6E

[dstripinis]

Weta isn't the only people working on this people. Not only are ILM, Blur, Framestore, Hybride, BUF and others involved, there were close to 100 extraordinarily talented and dedicated artists at Lightstorm itself who made this extraordinary film. Before you break your backs bowing down to weta, realize they are just one of many groups who contributed to the film.

[ice-boy]

Weta isn't the only people working on this people. Not only are ILM, Blur, Framestore, Hybride, BUF and others involved, there were close to 100 extraordinarily talented and dedicated artists at Lightstorm itself who made this extraordinary film. Before you break your backs bowing down to weta, realize they are just one of many groups who contributed to the film.i think all of the na'vi and avatars are from weta.

[fgdf]

OT a little bit.
Wasn't that ILM and other companies ware called in more of an emergency?
I read it someware that ILM was the first company asked but they denied do to impossible schedules and financing, later got in on a 911 conditions to help Weta.

[tonytrout]

Weta isn't the only people working on this people. Not only are ILM, Blur, Framestore, Hybride, BUF and others involved, there were close to 100 extraordinarily talented and dedicated artists at Lightstorm itself who made this extraordinary film. Before you break your backs bowing down to weta, realize they are just one of many groups who contributed to the film.

Yeah but they are kiwis, shouldn't you bow anyway.

[PascalR]

Weta isn't the only people working on this people. Not only are ILM, Blur, Framestore, Hybride, BUF and others involved, there were close to 100 extraordinarily talented and dedicated artists at Lightstorm itself who made this extraordinary film. Before you break your backs bowing down to weta, realize they are just one of many groups who contributed to the film.

No one should ever break his back bowing down to anyone anyways ;) True, so many talented people worked on that amazing movie, and I honnestly can't wait to watch the full film!

Cheers,


P.

[Nemoid]

Looks amazing.

1. This is why George Lucas should have WAITED to make episodes 1-3. (So at least he could have done some decent scripts!)

2. Every CGI epic (including SW1-3 and LOTR) will look totally dated after this comes out.

1) that is probably true. The problem however is that Lucas should have hired some good writer, and in that way surely scripts would have been better, for example: script of empire strikes back was Lawrence Kasdan. direction , Irvin Kershner. Its the best of old trilogy!

2) IMO, true.
technology advances, and so the look of older movies will have a dated feel, even more because of the 3D technology too. LOTR was very cool from a creatures design and CG POV, btw. SW 1-3 was so and so: something good and something bad, like jar jar and other stupid things. BTW, i'm not blaming ILM or creature designers here. It's quite more Lucas fault. :scream:

[MasterZap]

im not saying that you can see literaly "through" the creature or skin as if it were transparent, im talking about NATURAL SKIN.

that blue skin looks hard, the specular is strange, the real specular of the skin is more subltle, the real skin itself is more soft.


Exactly. People misunderstand subsurface scattering as being merely about "translucence".

I go over this in the intro to my SSS tutorial (http://www.mentalimages.com/fileadmin/user_upload/PDF/skin.pdf) - the "see through" aspect of SSS is almost totally unimportant, coz you only see this in places like "ears" and "wings". The diffusion of light inside the surface itself is what is important, diffusing bumps and creating a subdermal "sheen".

It's ironic, but like so many other things in computer graphics, our eyes are evolved to "see" them so much that we don't "see" them, until someone really points it out. We don't really "see" how much we "see" scattering in normal skin, coz we are so used to it.

/Z

[Laa-Yosh]

Gollum's eyelids and nostrils were some of the best examples of SSS done right to me.
Jonas has nailed it pretty well on his alien head here, too:
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=132&t=817038

As for Avatar, it's all right IMHO. It's just that most scenes take place within a jungle so lighting is very diffused + low contrast, and the scattering is just not that obvious this way. But it's most definitely there.

[BrettSinclair]

I'm not sure on the skin for the avatar critters. Maybe a slightly bit sorfter would have been good. But It can be argued to the point of we don't really know how hard the skin is. Blah blah.

As for gollum, Yea weta did a great job.
Some shots looked like the sample compositing button was left turned on for indirect light.
(I say that because I have no idea what method they used. Its how it looks to me).
So you got this wierd look to the skin. Very diffused and no detail. Sort of premultiplied.
But like i say it was an amazing breakthrough and i have a lot of respect for the team behind it.

I also thought Dobby was really well done.

Just my humble thoughts ;)

[CGTalk Moderation]

This thread has been automatically closed as it remained inactive for 12 months. If you wish to continue the discussion, please create a new thread in the appropriate forum.