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I just finished work on a matte painting and gearing up to shoot some plates for a video game cinematic later this month and thought this would be a good time to share what the heck I've been up during my free time on Sundays for the last year or so.
About two blocks north of Red Studios Hollywood is The Gnomon School of Visual Effects. I have been involved with the school for a while and workshops are not a foreign concept to me, but for the last several semesters I've been instructing on Sundays for students enrolled in the program as well as "outsiders" who take individual classes to enhance their abilities. The most exciting concept behind Gnomon is that every instructor at the school is a working professional. Beyond that incredible access the students enrolled get to visit many of the local studios in and around Los Angeles. The school also has events and a gallery space to showcase presentations and production artwork from major features and games. Recently we've had events for The Avengers and Prometheus. Currently there's some concept art up from The Avengers up at the gallery.
The class I put on is "Digital Photography for Live Action Visual Effects and Games". How's that for a mouth full? Over the course of a 10 week semester we cover the absolute basics of photography all the way up through advanced VFX cinematography. It's a pretty emmersive class and I do my best to bridge concepts from Pre-Production through Post Production together. We tackle subjects like Cross Polarized Texture Photography and High Dynamic Spherical Capture for Image Based Lighting. I focus on the fundamentals of color theory and composition throughout the term. We also do a day focused on general color work in post on stills and motion. I showcase a few color suites to color correct by number, by eye, and grading to enhance the tone and mood of the work. I do a brief demo and discussion in RedCine-X Pro around that time as well.
One of the best moments during the semester is when we come to practical on set photography and I actually bring in my Scarlet or an Epic. All the students get very excited to get their hands on the cameras, light a scene, and actually shoot some material. I do a bit of a torture test and even turn the cameras on them at one point so they can get that unique perspective from the performers point of view. One semester I was booked on a movie which happened to be a large blue screen shoot and I worked out with production for the students to visit the set while we were capturing our actors in aerial harnesses.
It's this unique access to working professionals, studios, potential employers, and tools that make me want to be a part of this school. It's something I would have loved to have back when I was starting out in this industry. These students usually are hired straight out of school to become animators, lighters, effects artists, modelers, texture painters, etc. They come from all over the world and cover all ages. From those fresh out of high school to those making a career change after some time in another field. Two semesters ago we even had a couple of working directors take the course to expand their knowledge of the camera. It's such an interesting challenge and something I never thought I'd end up doing. But I enjoy it a whole bunch and I love seeing my students get placed at studios. It's truly a great feeling guiding people towards a career in moving pictures.
I have the next couple weekends off before the new semester starts and I've been looking back at students progress over all this time. It's just a great feeling.
If you'd like to swing by the gallery or learn more about The Gnomon School of Visual Effects hit me up or visit their site:
http://www.gnomonschool.com
About two blocks north of Red Studios Hollywood is The Gnomon School of Visual Effects. I have been involved with the school for a while and workshops are not a foreign concept to me, but for the last several semesters I've been instructing on Sundays for students enrolled in the program as well as "outsiders" who take individual classes to enhance their abilities. The most exciting concept behind Gnomon is that every instructor at the school is a working professional. Beyond that incredible access the students enrolled get to visit many of the local studios in and around Los Angeles. The school also has events and a gallery space to showcase presentations and production artwork from major features and games. Recently we've had events for The Avengers and Prometheus. Currently there's some concept art up from The Avengers up at the gallery.
The class I put on is "Digital Photography for Live Action Visual Effects and Games". How's that for a mouth full? Over the course of a 10 week semester we cover the absolute basics of photography all the way up through advanced VFX cinematography. It's a pretty emmersive class and I do my best to bridge concepts from Pre-Production through Post Production together. We tackle subjects like Cross Polarized Texture Photography and High Dynamic Spherical Capture for Image Based Lighting. I focus on the fundamentals of color theory and composition throughout the term. We also do a day focused on general color work in post on stills and motion. I showcase a few color suites to color correct by number, by eye, and grading to enhance the tone and mood of the work. I do a brief demo and discussion in RedCine-X Pro around that time as well.
One of the best moments during the semester is when we come to practical on set photography and I actually bring in my Scarlet or an Epic. All the students get very excited to get their hands on the cameras, light a scene, and actually shoot some material. I do a bit of a torture test and even turn the cameras on them at one point so they can get that unique perspective from the performers point of view. One semester I was booked on a movie which happened to be a large blue screen shoot and I worked out with production for the students to visit the set while we were capturing our actors in aerial harnesses.
It's this unique access to working professionals, studios, potential employers, and tools that make me want to be a part of this school. It's something I would have loved to have back when I was starting out in this industry. These students usually are hired straight out of school to become animators, lighters, effects artists, modelers, texture painters, etc. They come from all over the world and cover all ages. From those fresh out of high school to those making a career change after some time in another field. Two semesters ago we even had a couple of working directors take the course to expand their knowledge of the camera. It's such an interesting challenge and something I never thought I'd end up doing. But I enjoy it a whole bunch and I love seeing my students get placed at studios. It's truly a great feeling guiding people towards a career in moving pictures.
I have the next couple weekends off before the new semester starts and I've been looking back at students progress over all this time. It's just a great feeling.
If you'd like to swing by the gallery or learn more about The Gnomon School of Visual Effects hit me up or visit their site:
http://www.gnomonschool.com
