FX!

The proliferation of relatively cheap, industry-standard special effects software available at a consumer level has led to the blossoming of low budget epics. The days of needing a $100 million+ budget to adequately render your surreal dreamworld or far-off, imaginary wonderland are gone. In their stead is a swarm of films produced for relatively low budgets due to the ease of access to incredibly powerful effects software.

This has been a godsend for filmmakers with large-scale creative visions but without the name recognition and industry clout to get studio executives to sign a check for a nine digit budget. Films like District 9, Predators,  and Gareth Edwards' upcoming thriller, Monsters are all making waves in Hollywood because of the comparatively low cost-to-output ratios.

Each of the aforementioned could pass for enormously budgeted Hollywood cash-cows, but none had a budget over $50 million; Predators being made for $40 million, and District 9 made for $30 million. Predators was written and produced by Robert Rodriguez, long a champion of home-brewed filmmaking; a fact attested to by his inclusion of "10-minute Film School" DVD extras.

Edwards' film, which concerns two people's journey through an alien-infested Mexico (that's space aliens, if the jackass senator from Arizona had questions) was made for under $20,000, a sum utterly unheard of in modern Hollywood's world of science fiction epics. But considering that Edwards' made a historical epic about Atilla the Hun, doing all the effects work by himself in Adobe After Effects, he's probably the one pull a film like Monsters off.

Check out the unbelievable special effects work that Edwards did for Atilla in After Effects.



The scope of Atilla is stunning. The fact that it's effects work could have been produced in somebody's bedroom is unreal. The idea that the software that made it is in the hands of hundreds of brilliantly imaginative filmmakers is perhaps one of the most exciting things happening in film today.

Short films are perhaps the best showcase for this new wave of talented effects artists and directors with shorts like The Raven and the incredible Half-Life 2 "fan film" (does that term even have any meaning anymore?) Escape from City 17, both of which are embedded below.

The Raven:


Escape from City 17:



This low-cost, high-scale revolution has paved the way for cool films like The Warrior's Way that, in years past, would have (at best) suffered greatly from low budgets or (more likely) simply would never be made.


The Warrior's Way is a great example because, as you can see in the trailer, it's far from flawless; you can pick out the effects shots instantly, as there is a weird artificiality about them. But that slightly processed look does not get in the way of the world the effects are trying to create. If anything, it magnifies the surrealism that the film is trying to impart, or at the very least gives it a lovable B-movie aesthetic.

Also helping the B-movie aesthetic? Geoffrey Rush exasperatedly exclaiming, "Ninjas!"

One thing effects software has not figured out how to improve is bad writing. But they're working on it.

So does this new wave of low-budget filmmaking signal the end of massively budgeted epics like The Lord of the Rings trilogy or Avatar? Hell no. Stupid question. I seem to remember Avatar doing pretty well on the whole "return on investment" thing.

The Walking Dead Title Sequence (Or so it should be.)

THE WALKING DEAD "Opening Titles" from Daniel Kanemoto on Vimeo.

This absolutely fantastic title sequence for the upcoming AMC adaptation of Robert Kirkman's brilliant zombie apocalypse comic series "The Walking Dead" is not what will actually precede the show. This is a fan-made title sequence, and I'll be damned if AMC can top this.

Besides making me want to cut off my fingers because of their inability to manipulate After Effects this well, this sequence perfectly captures the essence of the comics, from the use of Charlie Adlard and Tony Moore's artwork, to the straight-from-True Blood music, Eel's "Fresh Blood."(it's actually from True Blood! - I had said that as a joke)

Anyway. Watch, enjoy, lament. Maybe AMC will snag Daniel Kanemoto up for some title work. They certainly should, because if they don't, someone else will.

MOOOOOOOOOOOOON

I finally got around to watching Duncan Jones' Moon today, and I've got to say that I was supremely disappointed. Well, maybe not supremely, but still. Marginally disappointed at the very least.

c/o typophile

Jones, in his first feature directorial role, also developed the story; the premise of which is intriguing enough, and it only gets more so as the story progresses. But the twists and turns of the plot itself never quite live up to the promise inherent to it.

Sam Bell (a fantastic Sam Rockwell) is nearing the end of a three year shift as the sole (or is he?) overseer of a solar energy harvesting facility on the moon. Intelligent readers may have now discerned the origins of the film's title. Naturally, things do not quite go according to plan, even with a pseudo-sentient A.I. managing the station, and Bell's hopes of completing his contract and returning to earth are put in jeopardy.

It's not a theory if it's true!

Earlier today, io9 had, as it frequently does, an interesting story involving sciency things. More specifically, it concerned mysterious chemtrails that appeared in a circular formation over Houston on September 9th and 11th, 2010.

Chemtrails have long been the subject of conspiracy theories, as they really would be an easy way to disseminate dangerous biological agents over a populated area. They look very similar to contrails left by your standard airplane, only significantly more billowy. And ominous.

So apparently, some particularly devious chemtrails covered the skies above Houston on the anniversary of the greatest source of conspiracy theories in decades. So guess what? It's shit-flippin' time.

So, naturally, people started flipping their shit about these mysterious symbols in the sky, and for good reason. That shit be evil-looking.

But NASA has stepped up, and stated that the circular patterns were due to their conducting high-altitude research in the Houston area, sampling the air gathering data on hurricane intensification.

But doesn't that sound exactly like a line you would expect a government agency to feed the public to cover up something villainous?

It's like when a squadron of attack helicopters flew over Portland, and they were all, "Um... training exercises!"

Ef you government. We know you've got Godzilla on retainer.

The Answer?

Apparently, ol' Allen Iverson may be on his way to China, seeing as no NBA teams want anything to do with him. For some reason.

The all-knowing ESPN has the story, of which my favorite part is when Gary Moore, Iverson's personal manager says, "What has Allen Iverson done to not warrant interest in him?"

Gary, I am so glad you asked!