• Contractual
• Full time

Immediate supervisor: Vice-president of production

General description

The incumbent is responsible to identify, understand, disseminate, represent and uphold the artistic vision of the client through all the stages of post production projects. He is the customer’s representative. In addition, he is responsible for disseminating the information obtained to all heads of departments taking care to respect the work plan. The person must also ensure the direction and management of team leaders while providing mentoring, Information and the necessary training.

Requirements

• Must have a college or university degree in visual arts or in 3D animation;
• Must have at least three (3) to five (5) years experience in the film industry and visual effects as chief of department.
• Must have a good knowledge of the following software: XSI, Maya, Mental Ray, Nuke, Filemaker and Internet;
• Must have a very good knowledge of English and French, both spoken and written;

• Inspect the entire project;
• Listen and understand client requests;
• Make the list of tasks to be performed for determined project;
• Search and find reference images for the project;
• Assist in the realization of the development plan of the project;
• Represent the client with the internal team;
• Anticipate, analyze and find solutions to the potential technical and actual problems;
• Discuss with the client on the creative development of the project;
• Supervise all activities and milestones, with the computer graphics supervisor;
• Disseminate information to the computer graphics supervisor to ensure the technical realization of the project;
• Ensure that all customer demands are met throughout the project;
• Plan and establish priorities and development goals of the entire project;
• Prepare and disseminate guidelines and instructions to be followed by all services;
• Analyze with the coordination, planning of the allotted time and feasibility;
• Review the schedule submitted by the project manager and make recommendations;
• Know and inform team leaders  of priorities and timelines;
• Follow the production schedule of the project;
• Complete the project on time and within the allocated budget;
• Inform team leaders of the changes and additions requested by the client;
• Inform, check, comment, review and approve the work done daily by the artist through the lead of the department;
• Provide feedback to each artist of his work;
• Act as  a principal resource for the team of artists;
• Guide and redirect, if necessary, the project;
• Exchange and meet with the client to present the images produced by the team;
• Receive the client’s approval on the images presented;
• Help to keep consistency, continuity and quality between scenes;
• Approve the quality of all the sequences in the film;
• Oversee the delivery of the project;
• Carry out a post mortem of the realized project;
• Respond to questions from members of the team;
• Act as primary contact for the exchanges between departments;
• Be available to answer questions;
• Participate, as appropriate, in the bidding process for an upcoming project;
• Perform other related duties as assigned by management.

• Contractual
• Full time

Immediate supervisor: Production Manager

General description

Requirements

• Holds a college degree in computer graphics, 2D and 3D graphics or visual arts;
• Five (5) to seven (7) years of experience in compositing;
• Possesses an excellent knowledge of compositing software is a definite asset (including Photoshop and Nuke);
• Knowledge of the 3D production pipeline is an asset;
• Good knowledge of English or French both spoken and written;
• Demonstrates an excellent ability to manage and organize a team;
• Capable of training and providing key technical  info to team members when required.

Principal responsibilities

• Supervise all activities related to the compositing department;
• Create and manage the entire production schedule in collaboration with the coordinating team;
• Be aware of the nature project before its begin;
• View edits, research references and sequences in preparation to the related project;
• Anticipate, analyze and find solutions to potential and real technical problems;
• Analyze and revise with the coordinating team the time and schedule allocated to the project and assess its feasibility;
• Develop and manage the compositing pipeline (nomenclature, resources, methodologies, tools, timelines, task assignment, etc.);
• Prepare guidelines and instructions to be followed by the compositing team;
• Manage and oversee the production of the compositing team while maintaining quality and deliverables  as  specified by the project;
• Assign, supervise and review the work of the team compositing;
• Inform the team of any changes and news  to the related project;
• Attend and actively participate in client meetings;
• Develop and maintain harmonious relations with colleagues, employees and customers;
• Organize team meetings;
• Train compositing artists;
• Provide feedback to each compositing artist on his performance;
• Check the consistency of his team work ;
• Provide relative information to other departments upon request;
• Write and keep up to date the information document for other department;
• Act as primary contact for the exchange between the department;
• Be available to answer questions of all teams;
• Plan, set priorities and  goals for the department;
• Actively participate in the selection of new employees;
• Facilitate the integration, support and train new employees;
• Perform other related duties as assigned by management;

Montreal Facility Delivers 194 Shots in Eight Weeks

Modus FX completed 194 shots in a remarkable eight weeks for Mirror Mirror, Tarsem Singh’s whimsical adaptation of the popular Snow White folk story. Modern-day behavior and speech are set in a rich fairytale world, creating a light-hearted coming-of- age story for audiences of all ages. While larger-than-life characters, such as the wicked queen, played by Julia Roberts, drive the narrative, the sets and costumes are crucial for establishing the magic and the feel of the film.

Shot on a sound stage in Montreal, sets for the winter scenes used artificial snow and trees, and painted backdrops. However, once production had begun it became clear that additional work would be needed in order for these scenes to look authentic on the big screen. Modus FX was called in to deliver CG refinements, a daunting task given the tight production schedule. In total, the team had eight weeks to complete 194 shots. “We needed to enhance and extend the backgrounds in every direction,” said Martin Pelletier, CG supervisor at Modus FX. “The challenge was to produce a large number of shots in a short time, and make sure the results were believable for the audience.”

“We knew that a shot-specific approach would be too time-consuming,” Pelletier explained, “so we broke down the 194 shots into 12 groups, divided according to depth-positioning of the cameras. Then we created new 2D background cards for each set of shots.”

“The solution included photos of birch trees captured in the nearby Laurentian mountains. These were applied to the 2D polygons and seamlessly composited into the 3D environment, creating a “2.5D” effect. Modus then added rocks and other landscape elements, along with falling CG snowflakes to enhance the verisimilitude of the shots. The final results were a combination of live action, 2D backgrounds and 3D elements blending flawlessly to create believable outdoor winter scenes

“It was essential for the story that it looks like the actors were in a real forest,” Pelletier said. “Our team delivered that.”

“We received calls from the other facilities, who were also working on the film, asking for our set up for the falling snow,” said Wayne Brinton, VFX supervisor at Modus. “They had been asked to match our look.”

“The VFX community in Montreal works well together,” added Brinton, “and that allows us to manage large projects, handing off shots and CG elements between studios. The process is as seamless as the results on the screen.”

“It is rewarding to work on a number of shots, plus the limited time we had to do them, and have that turn into something we’re proud of,” Brinton said.

This is the second project for Modus with director Tarsem Singh, having previously created a surreal combat sequence for his film Immortals.

Produced by Relativity Media, Citizen Snow Film Productions and Rat Entertainment, Mirror Mirror stars Julia Roberts as the Queen and Lily Collins, as Snow White. The film was directed by Tarsem Singh and saw theatrical release on March 30, 2012.

• Contractual
• Full time

Immediate supervisor: Production Manager

General description

The incumbent is responsible for planning, managing the entire project including the delivery schedule for production and all aspects for the visual effects project. He oversees all production sequences and respects the budget parameters. The producer acts as a representative of the client and Modus.

Requirements

• Five (5) to seven (7) years of experience in visual effects project management for feature films;
• Good knowledge of visual effects and post-production in the film industry;
• Good knowledge of English and/or French (spoken and written);
• Good knowledge of software from Microsoft Office, Filemaker and the internet;
• Holds a university degree in project management and/ or communication;
• Knowledge of project management software such as MS Project or Omniplan is a definite asset;
• Experience in team and project management

Principal responsibilities

• Be aware of the magnitude of current and future projects (read scripts and other documents);
• Identify and understand customer expectations and all related specifications for any given project;
• Maintain all communication (verbal and written) with the client, in collaboration with the project manager;
• Plan and manage all aspects of the project;
• Manage all activities of the production team;
• Establish priorities related to the production on a daily and weekly basis;
• Supervise, manage and monitor all aspects of the project to ensure agreed upon deliverables while maintaining status updates with the client and ModusFX;
• Maintain quality controls as per the clients expectations and specifications agreed upon;
• Design, plan and manage the schedule of a project and all its related tasks in collaboration with the project manager;
• Communicate with the production team the specific requirements of the project and deadlines to meet;
• Follow and update the progress of the project to customer satisfaction;
• Act as a liaison between the client and Modus;
• Manage customer expectations and respond to his satisfaction;
• Organize and lead meetings with the client as required;
• Conduct daily meetings with the supervision team and project management;
• Manage the budget allocated to the production and authorize expenditures;
• Be the key liaison between the client and ModusFX in all aspects related to production such as technical and organizational excluding those related to artistic.

by Marc Bourbonnais

When we founded Modus FX in 2007, we knew that to succeed as an industry leader, we would have to extend our reach beyond the local market. We believed that, if we could get a piece of the Hollywood and international markets, we could compete with the best.

Visual effects is a tough business. Audience expectations grow every time a new film sets the bar higher, but the movie studio’s budgets don’t change much. In 1999, a classic VFX film like The Matrix had just over 400 CG shots. Today, a film like Tron has almost four times as many. We are constantly challenged to find efficient ways to produce more and better effects.

We currently employ between 80 and 100 skilled artists and technicians, depending on our workload. We have created CGI for such Hollywood movies as Source Code, The Immortals, Jane Eyre, Barney’s Version, Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 and many others. Every year we move a little bit closer to our goal of becoming one of the top ten visual effect studios in the world. The secret to our success so far has been careful business planning based on five key factors.

1. Think global

While we have certainly taken on big projects here at home, such as Canada`s first 3D animated film, Sarila, most of our work has been on films from France, Great Britain, Asia, and, of course, Hollywood. We now run a full office in Los Angeles and recently won a spot on ICM, a major talent agency – the first Canadian visual effects company to be represented by them.

2. Choose your niche

The high-end studios we work with appreciate our full visual effects capabilities, including concept development, on-set support, 3D modeling, animation, and compositing. But for most VFX facilities it is wise to specialize. At Modus FX, for example, we have developed expertise in surfaces, such as the trains in Source Code and the water plane in Barney’s Version, as well as CG environments and invisible effects, such as when we changed the season from winter to summer for several scenes in Jane Eyre.

3. Find and keep talent

Visual effects artists are highly skilled and dedicated professionals. They are hard to come by. It is crucial to create an environment where they feel engaged and where their contributions are valued. To keep doing great work, we need to make sure we continue to attract, and develop, great artists.

We are now at an optimum size for a facility that serves the feature film industry. We have a stable core team of about 50 permanent staff. We typically have another 40 or 50 on a contract basis, usually hired for a specific project, and often rehired for the next one. Of course there are only so many artists to draw from in Montreal, so we also need to recruit from abroad.

Finding artists is an ongoing task. We are also becoming more involved in training new talent at home. Quebec has great training programs, such as the Centre NAD, and here at Modus we plan to extend that with in-house training for emerging artists.

4. Use tax incentives

Tax credits have been a stable part of the Canadian film production landscape for twenty years, offering local companies an advantage over their American competitors. Tax incentive programs in some states are far from stable and encourage producers to turn to dependable environments like Quebec and Canada.

In Montreal the tax credits for digital effects services can reach 35-40%. These credits are great for everyone: they support an industry that provides long-term high-tech jobs, and they infuse around $1.50 into the local economy for each dollar awarded as a tax credit.

5. Become an attractive investment

Although our business is not without risks, our size makes us attractive to local investors who want to get involved with large projects.

Expenditures on equipment and staff in this industry are high and it can be hard to get long-term advance agreements on projects. Cash flow is a challenge for almost everyone in this industry, but we benefit from having regular clients and a lot of repeat business. Our track record means our credit margin is good. Our bank has confidence in our stability and that’s crucial to weathering the ups and downs. That stability works all the way down the line: from the film companies who keep coming back with new work, to the freelance and permanent staff who like to work here, to our investors and creditors who know that we’re in business for the long run.

People say that the movies are a recession-proof industry. Even with the increase in the value of the Canadian dollar and the financial turmoil in the US, people want to be entertained. Digital effects are used in all films these days and increasingly for TV. This is a growing market.

Marc Bourbonnais is president and co-founder of Modus FX, a visual effects facility in Ste. Therese. He represents Modus FX at the Quebec Film and Television Commission and is an active conference speaker. Bourbonnais was recognized with the NAD Centre’s Tribute Award in 2010.

• n/a

• Concept
• Integration of 2D designs in a live environment
• Matte Painting
• Compositing effects and integration

• n/a

Montreal, Que: Nov. 17, 2011... Montreal-based visual effects studio Modus FX delivered a surreal dream sequence for Immortals, the stereo 3D feature film released in theaters on Nov. 11. The 16-second scene produced by Modus depicts a surreal combat sequence between Theseus (Henry Cavill) and King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) on a small boat, set on a sea of shields. Other than a live action shot of the actors in the middle of the sequence, the entire scene was created and rendered in CG.

“It’s a very artistic piece which aims to capture the iconic imagery of Greek mythology,” explained Martin Pelletier, CG supervisor at Modus. “Developing the sequence was a collaboration between our artists and director Tarsem Singh. For us it was an in-depth process of visualizing and clarifying the director’s imagination.”

The Sequence

The scene begins when the film’s hero Theseus touches Phaedra – a psychic oracle played by Freida Pinto. In that instant, the camera swoops into Phaedra’s mind for the vision sequence.

Red CG petals fall from the sky and we see King Hyperion and Theseus spinning around in combat on the boat. The scene cuts to a wider shot and various fighting poses are discernable in the whirling mass. The audience sees that the boat is sitting on a mass of warriors’ shields, like a Greek phalanx, with the water in the background.

La scène coupe ensuite vers un plan plus large montrant une multitude de poses de combat perceptibles dans la masse tourbillonnante. Les spectateurs découvrent alors que le bateau repose sur un monticule de boucliers de guerriers, comme une Phalanx grecque, avec la mer comme toile de fond.

For a moment, Hyperion and Theseus freeze and the camera pans down to show a mummy lying on the ground with the petals falling onto it: beauty, transience and death in a single image. As they begin to fight and spin again, the view pulls back to a wider shot. In the background the sea, created by Scanline VFX, swells up into a giant tsunami approaching the shore.

Capturing the Imagination as Moving Imagery

The imagery is ambitious. At the start of the project in September 2010, Modus FX had several meetings with director Tarsem Singh to map out the shots and the look of the scene. Singh wanted what he referred to as a “clay effect,” with the figures becoming malleable organic forms, blending together as they spin in combat.

After the initial meetings, the team at Modus spent four months developing the ideas in a process of exploration and refinement, gradually shaping the final look of the scene. Test shots were sent back to the director for review on a weekly basis.

Early on the team had decided the scene would be done in three shots: close up, wide and very wide. Then they began working on the spinning figures – how fast they should rotate and how many poses should appear. Testing was done with Softimage XSI combining textures, including skin, glossy black helmets, a gold mask, blue cloth and brown leather. The textures were tried at different speeds with different motion blurs and shutter speeds.

“It took a lot of experimentation, but as we progressed, we started to develop some really interesting ideas,” said Pelletier. “We liked the clay effect, but it still needed something more to look believable.”

He explained that the team at Modus then developed a “force field” effect to augment the scene, which had to fit in seamlessly with the overall aesthetic and the other surreal effects of the film. “It worked very well,” said Pelletier. “It shows how important it can be to keep the creative process going right to the end. The effort paid off.”

The Sea and the Sky

“We wanted the lighting to look magical or even supernatural,” said Pelletier. “We played around with sky colors until we had the right tones and then redid the lighting on the live plates to match the CG lighting. This was an interesting challenge because usually we do the opposite – match the CG to the lighting in the live shots.”

Remarkably, the sea was realized much more quickly. “We hit bull’s-eye on the first try with the CG ocean,” recalled Pelletier.

A Company That Solves Problems

“Relativity Media saw us as a company that solves problems,” said Yanick Wilisky, visual effects supervisor and co-founder of Modus FX. “It was a very complex sequence, artistically and technically, but we found the way. We solved it for them.”

Immortals is a 3D fantasy adventure film directed by Tarsem Singh and starring Henry Cavill, Freida Pinto and Mickey Rourke. It was released in 2D and 3D on Nov. 11 by Universal Pictures and Relativity Media.

About Modus FX

Since launching in 2007, Modus FX has become an industry leader in high-end feature film visual effects and animation, boasting an international clientele and a talented team of hand-picked artists from around the globe. Led by co-founders Marc Bourbonnais and Yanick Wilisky, Modus has developed a unique approach to creating digital content, combining a cutting-edge production pipeline with personalized on-going project coordination. The studio collaborates with each director through the artistic process, from editorial script and on-set supervision to final delivery. Based just outside Montreal, Modus offers a full scope of services in its modern 12,000-square-foot studio. For more information, visit www.modusfx.com.