VFX Session

Definition of visual effects: 


'In filmmaking, visual effects (abbreviated VFX) are the processes by which imagery is created and/or manipulated outside the context of a live action shot. Visual effects involve the integration of live-action footage and generated imagery to create environments which look realistic, but would be dangerous, expensive, impractical, or impossible to capture on film. 
Visual effects using computer generated imagery have recently become accessible to the independent filmmaker with the introduction of affordable and easy-to-use animation and compositing software.' 

- Wikipedia


To gain inspiration, I asked one of Leyton's media technicians if he could show me what sort of visual effects software I would have at my disposal for my own project. We started off with an introduction to Motion Graphics, a digital technique that combines pictures, words, sound and video.

Motion Graphics




This animation from Motionographer is an example of motion graphics. The leading software to create motion graphics is probably Adobe After Effects which I have available on the college computers, so there will be no barrier of access if I decide to integrate animation into my music video. The way I would include motion graphics into my own music video is by designing my images on PC software and then animating them using After Effects.



Tracking





Tracking is a digital technique which mixes motion graphics/CGI with live action. This technique was used heavily in my third case study (Nicola Conte - Do You Feel What I Feel) and now that I have learnt what the technique is actually called, I can look into possibly integrating it into my own video.

The two videos above are examples of very well-done tracking techniques. I find them really effective because the animation emphasises what's going on in the video in an eye-catching manner.

Rotoscoping


Rotoscoping is an animation technique in which animators trace over footage, frame by frame, for use in live-action and animated movies. Complications with this technique include time - I have to be considerate towards the time I have for this project and tracing over footage, frame by frame may take more time than I have.

 

However, the term is slightly different in the visual effects industry. It refers to the technique of manually creating a matte (combining two or more image elements into one single image) for an element on a live-action plate so it may be composited over another background.

I feel this technique may be very useful towards my project because I may be able to give an illusion of a much greater location than I actually have. Furthermore, this particular example was made using After Effects, a still image of the city and Boujou 5.0, a motion tracking software.



Green Screen




Using a green screen is filming technique whereby moving subjects are filmed in front of a green screen and a separately filmed background gets added to the final image.

Similarly to VFX rotoscoping, this technique would be able to help me create illusions to give much more interesting locations for my music video, such as a stage in a big theatre or something similar.




Film Noir




Film noir is a style or genre of cinematographic film marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, and menace. It includes harsh-key lighting with lots of shadows. It was used for the duration of my first case study (Iyeoka - Simply Falling) and now that I know that the style of the video wasn't just simply black and white, it actually was a technique called film noir, I can look at applying this to my own music video. 


Jazz was huge around the 1920s, so having a black and white/film noir style would be highly appropriate if I wanted to represent typical features of the genre.






Film Burns


Film burns occur when a film roll begins or ends. Back when the usage of film rolls were popular, the roll would get exposed to light when first loaded, and then exposed to light again when it finished and would 'flash'. Adding in this technique to my music video would create a retro effect, like in my first case study Simply Falling by Iyeoka.