Updates Galore
A crazy amount of stuff has been going on the last couple of days. I've been slammed at work, working on this giant robot movie. Suffice to say, it's going to kick ass. I don't know much about the story, but it'll definitely be a popcorn fest. And that's what I expect. Over the weekend I picked up a PS3, simply for the BluRay. Yes, I bought a drive for my PC, but I need something for the significant other to enjoy. Sure, I can play games on it too, maybe the exclusives, like MGS4 or Resident Evil 5, but I will probably stick with my X360, since most of my gaming buddies are on there. And Microsoft did a wicked thing with having Achievements. Achievements are the new high scores of yore.
We watched Baraka on BluRay in 1080p over the weekend on the PS3, and it is amazing. Regular HDTV programming doesn't even come close. The cable compression makes everything crappy. Baraka was filmed on 70mm, and the picture quality is amazing. The next purchase on BluRay, BBC's Planet Earth. And then the classics. Robocop, Predator, and Terminator 2. As long as the quality is worth it, I'll pick those up. Here are some more screen captures from Baraka.
I've been tweeting (twitting?) quite frequently on Twitter, simply because it's a quick and convenient way to share what's on my mind at any given moment. Both this blog and Twitter have their places, for sure. I've been looking at new ways to disseminate information on this blog, and very shortly I may update the look once again! Here's what the Wayback machine has on DigitalGypsy. Right now, the Gallery and Images section of this site haven't been updated. I'm hoping that the next iteration will change that.
This weekend I'll be at OTIS to meet my new VES mentoring student! This year it'll be a junior who's studying compositing. This will be my third year doing it, and I've enjoyed it every time. It'll also be my third year in Los Angeles, and my three year anniversary of being at Digital Domain is this week! Wow. How time flies. I've never spent more than three years at companies, so if I stick around here, it'll be a record! For those keeping track, three years at GVFX, one year freelancing, three years at Tippett Studio, and three years here at Digital Domain. I don't foresee any plans to leave DD at this time. They've been good to me, and I've had a chance to work on great projects. I can't believe I've been doing this for 10 years.
Industry Wages Incorporated released its first press release yesterday, here's the Reuters link. If that expires, you can always search on Google News. I've also included the full text in the extended entry below. We are currently monitoring bugs and errors which may appear as we get more users, troubleshooting as we go and working on the next step in functionality. It will most likely include significant job listing improvements, which should make everyones life easier in searching for jobs.
SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 30 /PRNewswire/ -- For all those job-hunters in creative fields who need a strategic edge in the salary negotiation process -- or who simply could benefit from the motivation salary knowledge can provide, Industry Wages Inc. has delivered a powerful new tool. The company has launched the website VFXWages.com (http://www.vfxwages.com) as a free way for these professionals and students to determine the latest information on salaries and hourly wages in their market. Currently VFXWages.com provides pay information for individuals in the visual effects industry, particularly film and television visual effects, gaming, motion graphics, and animation."We've created a necessary tool for the pursuit of salary equality in this ever-changing job environment," says Aruna Inversin, president of Industry Wages Incorporated and founder of VFXWages.com. "In creating VFXWages.com, we strive to give the community a streamlined way to identify an appropriate wage to expect or ask for in salary negotiations."
VFXWages.com is a global tool that will help job-seekers see how they rate among other artists with similar skills and experiences in a particular location. Using the special Wages system, users can graphically compare wages and salaries around the world by typing in a city, state or zip code. Registrants can also obtain information about employment based on job title, company, start date and length of time the position will last.
"We use the anonymity of the web with the power of a community to give you the information you need," says Inversin. "This tool allows you to compare yourself to others in your field around the world."
The database of wages is normalized to a 260-day year or 40-hour workweek, based on the pay options available for that job. VFXWages.com uses this method because it is the most common way to aggregate wage information among the different methods that film and television studios use to pay their artists.
There are three different types of accounts for users. Professional and freelancer accounts feature jobs with salary or hourly paid wages for those particular individuals. Student accounts are perfect for those currently
attending any post-secondary schools, or have recently graduated and are looking for work. Company accounts are for recruiters and managers or company owners that wish to take advantage of VFXWages.com's special services to search for and recruit talent.VFXWages.com is cross-browser and cross-platform compatible. Industry Wages Inc. strives to maintain and deliver a high-quality product; the company spent several months privately testing the VFXWages.com site in beta to make sure the website would guarantee customer satisfaction. Clients can find out about
recent upgrades and the latest happenings on the "Latest News" section of the website.
About Industry Wages Incorporated and VFXWages.comVFXWages.com was created by visual effects professionals based in Los Angeles who were disappointed with how secretive wages and salaries were in the creative arts industry.
Industry Wages is looking to expand its services to other vital industries around the world. For more information about this company or the new website, visit http://www.vfxwages.com.
I know this is a small quip but Baraka was photographed on 65mm and then 'blown up' to 70mm. 70mm is only a release format.
It's a nit pick of mine but it's good for people to understand the difference.
Congrats on the PS3 (Rock Band anytime soon!?!)
Flowers
April 2, 2009 10:01 AM
From its IMDB page:
Baraka was the first film in over twenty years to be photographed in the 70mm Todd-AO format.
Is the 70mm Todd-AO format really 65 mm? I'm not familiar with Todd-AO. Ah, and a quick search on wiki points it out!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd-AO
Aruna
April 2, 2009 10:09 AM
Hey Aruna how does that VES mentoring thing work? ...there isn't a whole lot of information on the VES website regarding application etc. but it sounds very interesting!
Sandro
April 3, 2009 8:45 AM
Awesome - another "Baraka" fan!
Films Every Visual Effects Artist Should Watch: "Baraka"
http://fxrant.blogspot.com/2008/12/films-every-visual-effects-artist.html
-todd
Todd Vaziri
April 6, 2009 2:40 PM
Have you watched the Qatsi series as well? The photography and the score is out of the world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koyaanisqatsi
Sachin Shrestha
April 16, 2009 11:00 AM