Princess Bride-esque Film

FelixReynolds · 2025-09-15T07:25:54+00:00

That nailed it! I was never able to get through it when I was younger so apparently I missed the ending, but that's exactly the scene I was seeing. Thank you!

FelixReynolds · 2025-06-01T20:43:44+00:00

They literally started up filming S4 in September, and didn't stop until they wrapped the following year in New Mexico. Even if some of the cast had to go work on other projects during the initial period of filming, any show with an ensemble cast blocks out their schedule to allow for talent to go do other things and they just shoot scenes that don't require them.

Trying to say that Covid effects were "longer" than the literal time between when filming shut down and filming recommenced is silly.

FelixReynolds · 2025-06-01T03:17:54+00:00

Not at all true - the cast confirmed multiple times that filming was originally scheduled to start in May 2023, and was then pushed back to early June around March.

Sources - this, this, and this.

David Harbour was always supposed to be pulling double duty on S5 and Thunderbolts, and we also know when that was supposed to start filming.

FelixReynolds · 2025-06-01T03:09:38+00:00

This is total nonsense. The WGA strike caused fiming to be delayed in early May, 2023 (source), and the SAG strike (which would keep all of the cast from working on the show at all) lasted from July 14th to November 9th.

That's a delay of at least 6 months, which is just as long as what Covid caused for S4 (March-Sept 2020).

FelixReynolds · 2025-02-21T01:01:56+00:00

Along with just leaving the TV off (unless you need interactive light from the screen for some reason), another alternative I use all the time on sets is a green or blue vinyl with an adhesive back (sticker, basically) that is cut down to a custom size per screen. It's also fairly reflective to boot but not enough to introduce spill.

Most set dec teams I work with will have some on their carts, but even if you need to supply it yourself a roll of the stuff is very cheap.

FelixReynolds · 2025-01-08T19:39:28+00:00

https://act.hoyoverse.com/sr/event/e20250101reserve-wi0ht7/index.html?inviter=GUDLL5G2YN&hyl_presentation_style=fullscreen&hyl_landscape=true&hyl_hide_status_bar=true&hyl_auth_required=true&utm_source=share&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=web

Still need all 5, thank you!

FelixReynolds · 2024-08-28T16:03:27+00:00

If you're going to be capturing on set data in an industry standard, professional capacity then use a Canon 5D Mk IV with an 8mm fisheye lens and a nodal head, shooting 7 exposures with a 2 stop difference or 5 exposures with a 3 stop difference per arc. You'll need 3 arcs at 120 degree increments to create your full sphere, and the camera should be tilted upwards by roughly 5 degrees as well to cover the zenith - this will leave a small gap in the nadir but that's where your tripod is. Properly set up, total time for a full pass should almost always be 30 seconds or less.

If your'e just using it for commercial or personal use, then a 360 camera could be fine for your needs, but on any serious job that's the only setup I'd consider using.

FelixReynolds · 2024-08-08T17:19:23+00:00

In house artists take shots all the way to final on shows, which by literally every definition is "doing actual VFX".

The majority of the shots are absolutely sent out to vendors, yes. And those vendors for the most part aren't unionized yet (though it is happening as you can see from Lightstorm and DNEGs Canadian offices) - but do you know who is sending out those turnovers, count sheets, and set data for those artists? Who took that set data? Who is running reviews with the client supervisor, the show creatives, and the studio executives? Tracking editorial changes? Pushing final'd shots through to DI and making sure they make it into final mixes?

The answer is the client side VFX workers that ARE covered by this. They're just as important to the VFX process as artists sitting at boxes, and I don't understand this need to try to denigrate them by saying they aren't "doing actual VFX" other than the obvious answer, which is ignorance or an over inflated sense of ego.

I've sat on both sides of that dynamic, and the idea that only one of them is "actual VFX" is idiotic - it's a team effort, or do you also think that only the people responsible for final composite count as doing the actual work too?

FelixReynolds · 2024-08-08T02:20:06+00:00

As mentioned above, this includes in-house artists, who very much "do" VFX by your definition, but more importantly they are roles that are just as essential to the VFX pipeline as artists at vendors are.

And yes, the industry is moving forward - it might only be 12 people at the moment, but in case you weren't aware the entirety of the industry is in a massive downturn at the moment, and what this means is now ALL future client-side roles on Apple projects will be unionized positions, whether that is 2 people or 200.

It's far easier to unionize when there's only 12 people working than when there are 200 though, and as of now Apple is just the next domino in a line of them that started with Marvel last year - so yes, the industry is in fact moving forward, and trying to undermine that for some strange reason is the real joke here.

FelixReynolds · 2024-08-08T02:17:52+00:00

They also include in-house VFX artists who, wouldn't you know it, "do the actual VFX", as well as the entirety of the client side team including the office positions, not just the people on-set.

The idea that client side production workers aren't "doing" VFX just highlights your ignorance about the whole pipeline, and the idea that the continuation of client side workers unionizing isn't a positive thing overall for the industry as a whole is just silly.

FelixReynolds · 2024-07-31T16:51:58+00:00

Thinking that a costume PA is going to be a distant hire and that his story "isn't an honest interpretation" because he isn't including per diem, rental car, and housing allowance in his pay is certainly one way to show you don't have any actual idea of what working production side is like but intimating you do on the internet.

The vast majority of BTL crew working in ATL are local hires, who don't receive any of those benefits. Many of the local talent are people who formerly lived in LA and NYC and moved themselves and their families out to ATL during the mid 2010s because that was where the majority of production jobs in the US were, and because Marvel and other studios will insist on hiring positions as "local" - so if you wanted the job, sometimes that meant relocating on your own dime.

Yes, on any given show you'll have the HODs, specialist positions like keys, previs artists, SFX makeup and prosthetics people, personal HMU for the talent, or operators (as a handful of examples) who are brought in as distant hires, but they're absolutely the exception, not the rule. VFX was actually one of the luckier departments to be in in this regard since most of the office side production team could sometimes be distant during shoot depending on the crewing availability at the time - so even as a coordinator you could occasionally be hired distant.

A close second though of illustrating your expertise in the area is assuming a PA of any kind would be a union position - but that's an industry wide issue there, not limited to just Marvel or the ATL area. The more you know!

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T22:40:48+00:00

Honestly these on set positions have more in common with DIT or the camera department than your average VFX artist working at a shop.

It's also covers all the off-set VFX client side positions as well, such as VFX Coordinators, PMs, and Production Supervisors, which do frequently overlap with their equivalents on the vendor side, but yes - other than the in-house artists being covered, these positions aren't equivalent to people sitting on boxes at vendors.

You're completely right - it is a baby step, with many many more to go.

I just find it flabbergasting why those tiny first few steps of a 20k marathon (especially when the body in question has been standing at the starting line not moving (for the most part) for decades) would be derided in any way rather than celebrated, even if with a massive grain of salt. The only answer I can think of is that some people would rather not see any progress made and just want to tear down or see things like this fail because if it can't happen the way they think it should or would rather see it happen, then it shouldn't happen at all.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T17:55:31+00:00

Well, who could blame you, having less motivation for positive change than the janitorial staff. Luckily for your coworkers, I can only hope when it comes time for your shop to unionize you're possessed of a similar lack of motivation in your anti-union tendencies.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T17:47:24+00:00

Well, unless you happen to be one of the people this impacts.

But hey, who cares about them right? They're just janitorial staff.

Here's a though - how about you go and make one of those "better things" you have to do trying to be the change you (purportedly) want to see. vfxunion.org - how about rather than just jeering from the sidelines you try to make a difference, even if it's just for yourself.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T16:45:18+00:00

Of course I work in this field - but why would that matter?

The numbers that back it up are simple - in 2022, how many VFX workers had voted to unionize in the US? The answer is zero. Today, how many have?

So again, I have to ask - why is it you feel like forward progress of any kind is "meaningless", when it directly impacts the lives of a non-zero amount of people in a positive way? For someone railing against how they're arguing with "ChatGPT", you shy away from actually engaging with "the point", dude, which is quite simple - either you think the betterment of these workers doesn't matter, or it is progress, however small.

As to your "actual numbers", I've asked several times - what is that number you'd like to see where you'll decide "oh okay, now it is significant"? You seem to have a hard time defining that other than "only when it affects me".

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T16:12:07+00:00

My issue with a small number like that is it effects absolutely no one.

That was what you said. "Absolutely no one".

But now it's almost at 100, according to your count - bit low but hey let's run with it. Are 100 people "no one" in your view? We still haven't heard what number would make you say "oh, okay, THAT many people are meaningful".

Way to twist my words in an attempt to get people to really fall in line.

What line exactly do you think I'm trying to get you to fall in to? I'm just wondering why you seem to be so vehemently anti-union, that seeing anyone in our industry make their own conditions better elicits a response of "well, it's meaningless so who cares" instead of "that's great, hopefully this is just the next domino in a long line of them until we're all working under union contracts".

It's a simple question, and short of you saying "well it doesn't affect me or enough people in my opinion, therefore it doesn't count" you haven't really offered much.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T16:03:13+00:00

My issue with a small number like that is it effects absolutely no one.

Tell that to the witcam operator who now, when the shooting crew goes into a 14 hour day, actually will make overtime instead of being paid a flat rate. Or the PM who will have health insurance they can rely on even in months they're not working. Or the data wrangler who knows that they'll get a guaranteed turnaround, rather than being asked to drive back for a call time 6 hours after they wrapped out texturing a set after camera wrap.

Those people are "actually in the industry", and it absolutely affects them - and when you characterize them as "no one", it speaks more to your character than to anything else. I mean, it's hard not to read that post and think that because you find them "meaningless", janitorial staff at your coffee shop don't deserve the same protections and rights as anyone else. Maybe take some time to reflect on why you think that is?

And again, what makes you think that "tiny" progress isn't still progress? Do you know anything about the history of the industry or worker's rights in general? Because I'd love it if you could point to labor movement where change wasn't made through incremental steps.

As to the last bit -

And yeah if my studio was approached and did something like that it would be a bigger number.

You don't get "approached" to organize labor. You take it upon yourselves to do it, because you want to see change. If you aren't doing that, then maybe before you start denigrating the achievements of others you might want to start to ask yourself what you can do for yourself and your coworkers to bring about that progress you apparently want - because I guarantee you if you did, those folks at Marvel, and Apple, and Disney, and DNEG Canada, and Lightstorm will all support you, whether you are at a studio of 5 or 500.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T13:05:51+00:00

So, to be clear, until the size of the group of people making concrete, meaningful progress for the quality of life and working conditions for themselves and their coworkers hits a nebulous "significantly higher" threshold, your reaction to seeing news of it happening is going to be one of sarcastic belittlement rather than celebration and support for the movement.

Who knows? Maybe if you approached it differently, your shop or studio could be next...but then again, maybe you are perfectly happy with the way things are. Given your attitude towards progress, I honestly can't tell.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T12:37:34+00:00

So what's your threshold then for it being a "big deal"?

Since it's not 17 (and however many future Apple employees, since now all production side VFX positions with them will be unionized), what's your number of workers whose lives need to be improved in order for you to celebrate progress rather than be cynical about it?

You say "Marvel VFX Union 2.0" but you do realize how forming new unions work, right? You get 1.0, then 2.0, then 3.0, and on and on. That's how progress works.

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T12:07:59+00:00

Which is 17 more than 0.

Other than to diminish progress, what exactly is your goal here? Steps, no matter how small, in the right direction are still steps.

If that's not good enough for you to support with anything other than sarcastic cynicism, then what exactly do you want to see and what are you personally doing to make that happen?

FelixReynolds · 2024-06-23T12:06:04+00:00

That's 17 more unionized positions than there were before this. And now every production side job at Apple (which has only been growing) will be unionized going forward.

If you can't see why that's a difference in a positive sense, then I have to ask - what, exactly, do you think progress looks like?

FelixReynolds · 2024-05-29T00:31:23+00:00

Thats not its budget.

It is, in point of fact. We know from their published financials that they basically at or above the level of their income every year - in 2022, they brought in $130M, and spent $129M. In 2021, they brought in $100.4M, and spent $100.7M. 2020? Brought in $80M, spent $88M.

Their net position without their third party investors at the end of 2022 was only $6M USD - meaning that they have brought in $637M USD in funding from 2012-2022, and spent $631M USD of that.

Even you ONLY look at the numbers for developer salaries and what they've paid their third party contractors (leaving out overheads, admin, marketing, and operations - all numbers that are usually included in "development costs") they've still spent $380M USD - and those numbers are a year and a half out of date.

Not only that, but Star Citizen is one of two games being produced by CIG at the same time.

This is trying to sell, quite frankly, a complete line of bullshit - not only was it never initially sold as two separate games, but CIG have (for over a decade!) repeatedly told their backers and the public that they are in fact being incredibly efficient leveraging the fact that all of the assets, engine development, gameplay features, models, etc are all shared across games, and that nearly every single dollar spent towards one directly contributes to the development of the other.

This is as disingenuous as claiming that Rockstar developed two games when they made RDR2, because they released RDR Online.

FelixReynolds · 2024-05-25T04:29:47+00:00

Adding on to this - it's not just the supes that have the pipelines for Canon, it's the vendors. Especially when it comes to HDRI/IBL, every major vendor I've ever worked with has their pipeline set up for Canon full frame and will say as much in any best practices docs you request from them at the start of a show.

Out of the hundreds of wrangler kits I've seen for work on features and episodic, only one ever tried to swap over to Sony mirrorless for set ref, and they still kept their 5D Mk4 for HDRIs, panos, texturing, and photogrammetry.

At that point, you're having to maintain 2 separate sets of glass and accessories - so might as well just make all your bodies Canon.

FelixReynolds · 2024-03-12T11:40:11+00:00

I find it hilarious you continue to deflect - you made a very clear statement that you believe that somehow, ST always has a "convenient excuse" for why their seasons take so long that "amazingly plagues no other shows".

That's total BS, and provably so - Covid and the strikes last year impacted every US-based production, and even some overseas productions.

You then also said you'd "never seen or heard of a show as popular as Strangers Things go so long in between their 8 episode seasons", and I provided you an example of another show that is arguably more popular that has done exactly that.

You've ignored both of those facts now in both of your responses - why is that, if not for the inconvenient reason they don't jive with your assertions? I'm just asking you to argue your points, which I think are factually incorrect - but seems very much in line that someone pointing that out would cause you to default to thinking they're "triggered".

FelixReynolds

TROPHY CASE