Questions
- How long does a shot take to complete?
- How much do you charge? What is your rate?
- How come you are located in Washington State when most of the film industry is in Los Angeles?
- I’m working on a class project and have some questions I would like to ask you. Can you answer them and email them back to me?
- What platform do you use? What applications do you use?
- How do I get a job at BlackPool Studios?
- Can I get an internship at BPS?
- How do I get a job in the visual effects field?
- How do I put together a good reel if I don’t have any experience?
- What if I can’t go to one of these colleges?
- Do I need to have a degree in art to become a digital matte artist?
- What books on matte painting do you recommend I read?
How long does a shot take to complete?
Shots can take varying amounts of time to complete depending on the
complexity of the imagery. The average amount of time a shot takes
to complete is usually a couple of days. But, some can be done in a
day others can take more than a month.
How much do you charge? What is your rate?
We usually charge on a per shot basis. The more complex the shot, the
more it costs to do. Our rate is negotiated when we bid on the work.
How come you are located in Washington State when most of the
film industry is in Los Angeles?
Since postproduction moved into the digital age, it no longer became
necessary for visual effects houses to be located in Los Angeles. Since
1993, Eric Chauvin has worked for productions in Los Angeles while living
and working elsewhere. First in the San Francisco bay area then in his
current location in Washington at BlackPool Studios (BPS). Since 1995,
BPS has worked on productions from England and Australia to Canada. As
well as shows produced here in the States.
I’m working on a class project and have some questions I would
like to ask you. Can you answer them and email them back to me?
In the past we have tried to take the time to respond to email inquiries
regarding class projects. Due to the increasing number of requests we
have been receiving, we can no longer spend the time to answer these
questions on an individual basis. Hopefully, some of the questions
posted here will help. We are delighted that so many people have an
interest in the work we do but unfortunately we don't have the resources
to devote to these inquiries.
What platform do you use? What applications do you use?
We are a Macintosh based facility. The applications we use are principally;
Photoshop for painting, Modo for modeling, ElectricImage for 3D rendering
and animation, After Effects for compositing and 2D animation and Boujou
for 3D motion tracking.
How do I get a job at BlackPool Studios?
BPS is a boutique facility. We are very small and currently have enough
effects artists for the amount of work we do. You are welcome to send us
a reel of your work, which we will keep on hand just in case we might
need more artists in the future.
Can I get an internship at BPS?
Because of our size and geographic location, BPS is probably not going to
provide the kind of emersive experience one would want to gain from an
internship at an effects facility. Our recommendation is to pursue an
internship at the larger effects facilities who have established
internship programs (some of this information may be out of date).
- Industrial Light & Magic
- Sony Imageworks
- Digital Domain
- Pacific Data Images
- Rhythm and Hues
- Cinesite
- Matte World Digital
How do I get a job in the visual effects field?
Most effects houses are looking for only two things; experience and a
great demo reel. Your reel is made up of shots that you have either done
on your own or contributed to in some meaningful way. It is what you need
to show a prospective employer to showcase your skills and areas of
expertise. With the more experience you get in the industry, the more
shots you obviously have to show on your reel. If you are not responsible
for all the work on particular shots on your reel, then you also should
provide an annotated description of your contribution to the shots you
collaborated on.
How do I put together a good reel if I don't have any experience?
To be honest, experience in a particular area is very important but it
is possible to get that first job without some prior experience. In that
case, you want to go to a college that offers courses in the area of
visual effects you are pursuing. The best case is to attend a college
that has an affiliation with a major effects house. Here are a list of
colleges that provide courses in computer and traditional animation and
computer graphics: (some of this information may be out of date)
Traditional and Computer Animation
- Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology
- Art Center College of Design
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Art Institute of Dallas
- California Institute of the Arts
- Cogswell Polytechnical College
- Mississippi State University (Masters Program)
- New York University
- Ohio State University (Advanced Computing Center for Arts and Design)
- Pratt Institute
- Rhode Island School of Design
- Ringling School of Art and Design
- Rochester Institute of Technology (Computer Animation program)
- San Francisco Academy of Art
- San Jose State University
- School of Communication Arts
- School of Visual Arts
- Sheridan College
- Texas A&M University
- University of Southern California
Computer Graphics
- Brown University
- California State University, Hayward
- California State University, Irvine
- California State University, Monterey
- Cornell University (Program of Computer Graphics)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- New York Institute of Technology
- Savannah College of Art and Design
- Stanford University (Computer Graphics Laboratory)
- University of California, Berkeley (Computer Science Division)
- University of California, Davis (Computer Graphics Group)
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (Dept. of Computer Science)
- University of Pennsylvania
- University of Washington (Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering)
- University of Utah
What if I can’t go to one of these colleges?
It isn’t mandatory that you go to one of these colleges or any college
for that matter. What’s important is that you are eager, dedicated and
of course have a talent for this kind of work. If you are motivated,
then you can create shots on your own to put on your demo reel. They can
simply be reworking an idea you got from watching a movie with a really
great effect in it or developing a concept you thought up on your own.
Remember, you don’t have to spend a ton of money to produce a great reel.
In fact, if you can produce shots that looked expensive but in fact
weren’t, that would really work in your favor.
Do I need to have a degree in art to become a digital matte artist?
You don’t need to have a degree in art, but having a good fundamental
background in art is pretty important. Especially a background in
representational art and more importantly landscape painting. Even though
most matte painting is being done on computers these days, the ability to
create believable images for film or television still relies on having
a keen eye for reality, which gets developed with this kind of training.
Remember, it’s always easier to teach an artist to use a computer than a
computer savvy person to be an artist.
What books on matte painting do you recommend I read?
Unfortunately, there isn’t a definitive book on digital matte painting.
However, there are a number of books in print that cover the basic
principals and methods of visual effects.
The Technique of Special Effects Cinematography
Raymond Fielding
ISBN 0240512340
Special Effects - Wire, Tape and Rubber Band Style
L B Abbott
ISBN 0935578064
(This book may be out of print. But if you can find a used copy somewhere
it is worth the effort)
Industrial Light & Magic - The Art of Special Effects
Thomas G Smith
ISBN 0345322630
Industrial Light & Magic - Into the Digital Realm
Mark Cotta Vaz and Patricia Rose Duignan
ISBN 0345381521
Special Effects - The History and Technique
Richard Rickitt
ISBN 0823077330
The Invisible Art
Mark Cotta Vaz and Craig Barron
ISBN 0-8118-3136-1
The Art and Science of Digital Compositing
Ron Brinkmann
ISBN 0121339602