

We R&D'd illumination caching in Arnold in order to push the sets through without having to recalculate for every frame.

That said, the set was partitioned into quadrants and rendered through our in-house Maya-to-Arnold interpreter.
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Everything above the first level and outside the huge bridge windows is entirely generated by us. Since their art department had put so much detail into every aspect of it, we knew we'd need to build out very dense geometry with a multitude of texture resolutions in order to make it seamlessly transition into CG. They built an incredible set, a single story, surrounded by blue screen. We mocked up various designs for the upper floors, the catwalk, and the ceiling of the bridge and began presenting them to Janek. None of it had been approved by Joss or Marvel at that point, leaving it wide open for us to get in there and pitch our own takes on the extension. We received some concept art early on from Janek Sirrs, from which we drew inspiration. What was the most technically challenging part of the job and why?Ĭirelli: The interior of the Helicarrier was probably one of the more exciting and challenging CG environments we did for this show. Luma’s work on "The Avengers" includes the creation and extension of the Helicarrier ship bridge during pivotal scenes, tornado effects and donning of Thor’s mystical armor, and multiple exterior environments. We find them very easy to work with and we appreciate their incredible attention to story and character. Their VFX crew truly understand visual effects from top to bottom and that shows in the end product. They maintain structure, clarity, and quality instead of taking the risk of rebuilding new teams on every show. How was your collaboration with Marvel pictures on "The Avengers"?Ĭirelli: Marvel has a similar mentality to ours in that they hire very smart people, retain them, and employ them on every project. I lead this crazy bunch creatively and technically, in addition to overseeing our producing staff. I can't say enough about this special crew of people we've collected over the years. We question everything, assume nothing, and have a great culture and a wonderful staff who genuinely care about one another as well as everything they lay their hands to. Luma is anti-corporate, it's a company that's anti-this-is-the-way-things-need-to-work-because-that's-how-everyone-else-does-it. After that came Luma Pictures, where instantly I knew I'd found a home and would never want to leave. It was inspiring to walk through that sprawling space, filled with a vast array of FX gems like animatronic dinosaurs, life-size Terminators, and a myriad of creatures. My first film industry job was working for Stan Winston in the digital department at his model shop in Van Nuys, California. I climbed the ranks and ultimately left that world as a creative director to explore film. During that time, I developed a generalist's mindset, exploring every aspect of CG and then executing what I had learned in subsequent projects.
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I started my professional career in the marketing/agency sector, creating media concepts and animation for major brands.

I find that throwing yourself into a project with a deadline (emphasis on "deadline") will push you to learn faster than what you'd get spoon-fed to you in a class. I'm self-taught and I strongly believe in learning by doing. Even more so, I was entranced by the intersection of the two. Vince Cirelli, VFX Supervisor at Luma Pictures: From an early age, I was always addicted to technology and art. Here we go!Ĭan you tell CGRecord readers a little about your background? And today our Co-Founder: Maryam Nademi talks with Vince Cirelli, VFX Supervisor at Luma Pictures about their missions on "The Avengers" and about the Studio. Additionally, Luma has worked with the Coen Brothers on four films, including True Grit, and No Country for Old Men, the Oscar winner for Best Picture of 2007. They include such blockbusters as Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Green Hornet, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and all four films in the Underworld series. Founded in 2002, Luma Pictures - leading provider of visual effects services to Hollywood located in Santa Monica, California, has contributed to more than 60 films.
