CGI
From Fan Film Wiki
CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) deals with the art of creating video by digital methods. This can range from entire computer-generated scenes (most commonly seen as space shots) to backgrounds, overlays and title graphics.
Fields of Interest
Most people will know a studio's CGI department from animation sequences like produced by Pixar. These can be feature-length theatrical films (probably the most well-known of these are Shrek by Dreamworks and Finding Nemo from Pixar) or shorter animation sequences which are integrated into live-action series and films. Science fiction and fantasy are natural genres to incorporate CGI, because they contain imagery which cannot be recreated easily with real photographic methods like using miniature models.
Today, most CGI work is a two-tier process. An animated scene is mostly composed of digital models, which are subsequently animated into a complete sequence. When the animator is satisfied with the flow of the sequence, the sequence is rendered into a video. The editing department will handle the final video further.
A CGI artist can focus himself on different fields of interest. Most artists starting out will start by experimenting with the modeling and animation software, and creating simple images and animations. He or she will then specialise further, and can choose to focus on modeling, animation, or even dedicated compositing tasks. 2D artists will also want to look into background animations for sets and creating title sequences for series and trailers.
Notable CGI production Houses
CGI has a long history starting with the onset of microcomputers in the late 1970's and 1980, when the technique replaced the common miniature building art which had been common in those days. During those days, there were a number of well-known special effects houses, which eventually turned towards CGI production.
Industrial Light & Magic is probably the most well-known special effects house ever. Started by George Lucas for the Star Wars feature film, ILM graphics are often the benchmark for amateur CGI producers. They have also done work for Star Trek: The Next Generation, including the familiar Enterprise-D warp sequence.
Jim Henson's Creature Shop is also an estabilished player on the special effects market. The most common example of Jim Henson's work is of course The Muppet Show. They are responsible for producing the science-fiction show Farscape.
Pixar focuses primarily on full-length, full-frame animation films. Notable productions include the Academy Award-winning features Finding Nemo and The Incredibles, Cars and the upcoming theatrical Wall-E.
Zoic Studios is a rising star in the industry, and produces material for Vancouver-based shows like Stargate: Atlantis and the new Battlestar Galactica. All of the CGI sequences in the sci-fi western show Firefly (and its consequent feature film Serenity) are from Zoic Studios. Gabriel Koerner is a fan film maker who is currently employed by Zoic as a modeler.
