Production Volume Rendering (SIGGRAPH 2011)

Production Volume Rendering 1 – Fundamentals

Course description

Computer generated volumetric elements such as clouds, fire, and whitewater, are becoming commonplace in movie production. The goal of this course is to familiarize attendees with the technology behind these effects. The presenters in this course have experience with and have authored proprietary volumetrics tools. The course consists of an introduction to the subject, followed by an in-depth explanation of the steps involved in the creation of volume data (volume modeling). The last part focuses on turning volumetric data into photorealistic images (volume rendering).

Presenters

Magnus Wrenninge – Sony Pictures Imageworks
Nafees Bin Zafar – DreamWorks Animation

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Production Volume Rendering 2 – Systems

Course description

Computer generated volumetric elements such as clouds, fire, and whitewater, are becoming commonplace visual effects. This course discusses the technology behind such effects. The course presenters have innovated the use of volumetric methods in industry, and created some of the most impressive on-screen effects. The goal of this course is to provide a behind the scenes look at the techniques used, and how they are implemented. The presenters discuss how specific artistic needs lead to the innovations, success and evolution of their methods. The course serves as an opportunity to show many tools and workflows which are not typically covered in production talks, but are integral to the successful completion of many effects. The authors also cover many software engineering issues encountered, and their solutions.

Presenters

Magnus Wrenninge – Sony Pictures Imageworks
Nafees Bin Zafar – DreamWorks Animation
Ollie Harding – Double Negative
Gavin Graham – Double Negative
Jerry Tessendorf – Rhythm & Hues / Clemson University
Victor Grant – Rhythm & Hues
Andrew Clinton – Side Effects Software
Antoine Bouthors – Weta Digital

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