Jennifer McKnew is a versatile 2D / 3D generalist with a career spanning decades in feature film
and television. Throughout her career, she has taken on various roles, earning over 40 official
screen credits for her contributions. Leveraging decades of visual effects and animation
experience, she has also worked in the tech sector (autonomous vehicles). Aside from bringing
pixels to life in tech using cinematic magic across product, design, brand, marketing, and
engineering teams, she is also a named inventor on several granted US Patents and pending
Patent applications. Most recently, Jennifer has immersed herself in the world of storytelling
and filmmaking, winning several international film festival awards for her short film “Sydney and
Socket.”

Gorka started his journey in game development at the age of 8, learning to code and exploring various game engines! Now, he's a top Indie-Game Developer with a successful Unreal Engine 5 Tutorials channel on YouTube (98K+ subs) and a popular UE5 Patreon page!

Roberto Carlos Meré, professionally known as Chuck Meré, is a renowned as a filmmaker, actor, and popular YouTuber, Chuck is best recognized for his hosting role in the widely acclaimed YouTube series Zombie Go Boom. With nearly 2 million subscribers and over 300 million views, the series has earned him YouTube silver and gold play buttons. Beyond his YouTube success, Chuck has received two Mid-America Regional Emmy Awards and numerous Regional Emmy nominations for his commercial and promotional work.

In this episode, guest Casey Pike joins to chat about visualization for the film industry. Casey discusses the transition from viewing previsualization as a lesser form to appreciating its storytelling potential. He also talks about the technological advancements in real-time rendering engines, emphasizes the importance of decision-making in visualization, and the balance between previz and post viz.

Time Stamps:

00:01:03 Casey chats about his early passion for movies and transition to visualization.

00:08:29 Adoption and evolution of real-time rendering engines, particularly Unreal Engine, for previsualization.

00:13:38 Discussion on the balance between speed and visual quality in previsualization, based on director's preferences and project requirements.

00:16:38 Different types of visualization work, including tech viz, pitch viz, and post viz, and their respective deliverables.

00:20:00 Explanation of post viz and its role in the filmmaking process, including its use in editing and VFX planning.

00:22:03 Temporary VFX shots for early screenings, editing decisions, and reducing the need for imagination.

00:23:14 Temporary VFX shots in test screenings, including previz shots and the purpose of postviz.

00:26:16 Use of Maya, Unreal, and After Effects for postviz, and the shift to remote work during COVID-19.

00:28:41 Postviz work location, virtual art department, and the impact of AI tools on the industry.

00:35:27 Exploration of AI tools, their impact on efficiency, and the potential for job replacement.

00:42:32 Relevance of Maya, Unreal, After Effects, and Substance Painter for aspiring visualization professionals.

00:46:30 Discussion on the essential skills for visualization, including camera attachment, helicopter speed, and car safety on film sets.

00:48:22 Observation of the increasing use of Blender in visualization and its accessibility for artists. 00:52:17 The importance of being a generalist in the visualization field and the diverse skills required for visualization tasks.

00:54:49 Exploration of the blurred line between visualization and VFX, their shared tools, and distinct purposes in film production.

00:59:57 Excitement about the adoption of real-time options in visualization and the consideration of their impact on project workflow.

Connecting with the Guest:

Website: www.halon.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/casey-pyke-1697222b/

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4270845/

Connecting with CG Pro:

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/becomecgpro/

Website: https://www.becomecgpro.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BecomeCGPro