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Pixar
By Nicole Dickson
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IN 1986, MR.STEVEN P. JOBS, most widely known as the co-founder and chairman of apple computers, purchased
the computer division of Lucasfilm Ltd. This investment soon developed into what
became an Academy Award winning computer animation studio known as Pixar.
Pixar is accountable for the computer graphics craze that is rapidly spewing out
into the film industry. Since 1986, Pixar has conspired to improve the graphics technologies
and achieve recognition for their efforts in producing exclusive software systems.
The RenderMan software system being of one of the most prominent examples. Prior
to this, cartoons were time consuming and labour intensive processes of two-dimensional
hand drawn cell animation.
In 1991, Pixar entered into a contract with Walt Disney Pictures for the production
of up to three full-length feature films. This combines Pixar's complex, three-dimensional
computer animation technology and Disney's creative storyboard and animation talents. The objective of Pixar is to develop
animated feature films unlike any that have been seen before.
The world's first completely computer generated movie was released by Pixar in 1995.
It was called Toy Story, and its release date was November 22, 1995. The film received
tremendous critical acclaim and has become an enormous box office smash. Toy Story
generated over $184 million in revenues, placing it as the third most successful
animated film, exceeded only by Disney's The Lion King and Aladdin.
The entire film was produced with RenderMan because it is the only renderer currently
available that is powerful enough to make a feature film. The elaborate, and authentic
112,000 frames in Toy Story contained more than 400 models, more than 1500 RenderMan
shaders and over 2000 texture maps. A model file for a typical frame in this movie
was 15MB, which is far more complex than can be handled by most commercially available
rendering systems.
The next addition to Pixar's feature film portfolio is yet another example of the
three- dimensional animation sensation that is on the rise. On November 25, 1998,
A Bug's Life premiered and reviewers couldn't get enough of the second blockbuster
Pixar movie. It soared throughout the box office and set a record at $45.7 million
for the five-day week- end, breaking the previous record held by Disney's 101 Dalmatians
(live action version) in 1996.
The key to these accomplishments is RenderMan. RenderMan is software operated by
cinematic and TV studios to forge realistic visual effects. RenderMan images are
free from the typical computer defects of unrealistic visual simplicity. Instead,
RenderMan images display valuable visual traits such as materials and textures, the
influence of various types of lights and shadows from multiple sources, normally
not effectively described by other animation tools.
Across the globe, there are over and above 120,000 users of RenderMan products.
Prominent specialists in computer graphics use Pixar's RenderMan
because it offers a quick and easy way for designers to deal with difficult surfaces
and textures of the images. In order to simulate images that have been traditionally
filmed, RenderMan has a franchised anti-alias motion blur that allows designers to
believably mimic real camera mannerisms. More and more movies are relying on RenderMan
software not only for animation, but also for intense special effects. Examples of
mediums that have applied Pixar's RenderMan range from Terminator 2, and Jurassic
Park to Aerosmith videos and the CBS Winter Olympics. In fact, many of the films
that have used RenderMan have won Academy Awards for their special effects.
In conclusion;
"An artist is only as good as his tools and RenderMan is an amazing tool.
RenderMan extends our creative options by giving us the ability to create an object
that doesnít exist so believably that it becomes a reality for the audience."
John Lasseter
VP Creative Development
Pixar Animation Studio
Nicole Dickson The Author of this piece is Nicole Dickson.
She is a first year Multimedia student at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology,
and wishes to pursue career as a graphic artist. Nicole has previousy obtained her
diploma in Business Administration
Source list
www.pixar.com
www.disney.go.com
www.abugslife.com
www.cinemagraphics.com
www.disney.com
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