The hottest Visual Effects Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Science Topics

Dangerous Light

Animation Obsessive • 23859 implied HN points • 13 Feb 26
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual Effects
  1. Classic cel-animation light came from photographic tricks like backlit/bi-pack exposures, holdout mattes and lens effects, not just simple on-screen glows.
  2. The analog look depends on film behavior — aggressive inverse-square falloff, color shifts, halation, bloom and grain — which standard Gaussian glows don’t reproduce.
  3. To recreate that “dangerous” light digitally you must layer custom glows and then push them through film emulation and texture, intentionally reintroducing the imperfections that digital pipelines usually remove.

My Cousin Phil Lord, His Co-Director Chris Miller, & the Entire "Project Hail Mary" Movie Team REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY Want You to Go See Their Movie in a Movie Theater

Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality • 138 implied HN points • 25 Feb 26
🎭️ Culture Visual Effects
  1. The filmmakers and post‑production team spent about $1.5 million per minute and obsessive time on color correction and framing to make sure viewers’ eyes see exactly what they intend.
  2. The first ten minutes are Oscar‑caliber work, and the film is meant to be felt on the big screen where a crowd enhances the experience.
  3. Coming from animation, the directors use an iterative, perfectionist process—trying many takes and tweaks—which helped turn a two‑hour toy commercial idea into genuine art with surprising cultural touches.

Cinema Without Cameras

Cybernetic Forests • 179 implied HN points • 09 Apr 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual Effects
  1. AI technology like Gen-1 from RunwayML is enabling new possibilities in generative video creation by focusing on the structure and content of videos.
  2. The concept of 'No-Camera Cinema' explores storytelling without traditional cameras, embracing AI-sourced images to reshape narratives and challenge storytelling norms.
  3. Older technologies like Magic Lanterns and experimental films provide inspiration for reimagining cinema with AI, showcasing the potential for new storytelling techniques and visual explorations.

How I Spent my October

Fireside Chat Logs • 39 implied HN points • 31 Oct 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual Effects
  1. The creator made a short animated video with heavy metal music for a D&D group that involved using Blender 3D program. Despite challenges, he managed to finish the video in time.
  2. After the initial creation, the creator took the time to improve the video by boosting render settings, animating textures, and enhancing particles, among other upgrades.
  3. The experience of revisiting and improving the video reminded the creator of his art school days, where he didn't always have time to polish his work. This inspired him to redo old school work and focus more on writing and creating content to share with friends and family.
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Computation using Fractions, Shader Based Journeys, and Remembering Lillian Schwartz

Generative Arts Collective • 79 implied HN points • 18 Oct 24
🎨 Art & Illustration Visual Effects
  1. Lillian Schwartz was a key figure in computer-generated art, known for her innovative techniques that combined art and technology. Her work at Bell Labs helped shape the world of digital expression.
  2. Fractran is a unique computation method based on fractions, using prime numbers for calculations. It's a creative way to explore new ideas in both math and art.
  3. Theatre.js is a helpful animation library that allows artists to create detailed animations without needing advanced coding skills. It's great for those who want to add motion to their creative projects.

Well, Here We Are

Aerial Shot • 19 implied HN points • 23 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Visual Effects
  1. The movie Barbie received eight Oscar nominations but still left questions about its overall reception.
  2. Charles Melton did not receive an Oscar nomination for his work in May December, despite early critical praise.
  3. Release dates played a critical role in the Oscar nominations this year, with late releases potentially impacting recognition.

What is a tilter?

Thoughts • 19 implied HN points • 27 Oct 23
đź•ą Technology Visual Effects
  1. A "tilter" alters text similar to how filters alter images on social media.
  2. Tilters can change text phrasing, font, and apply special visual effects.
  3. Examples of tilters include rewriting text in different styles like horror or hip language.

Generative A-Eye

Martin’s Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 12 Sep 24
đź•ą Technology Visual Effects
  1. The newsletter will become daily and focus on exciting new research in human image synthesis. This will help keep subscribers updated on the latest advancements.
  2. The author has gained extensive knowledge about AI-based image synthesis through their work at Metaphysic and wants to share this with readers. They have seen how challenging it is to create human-like images using AI.
  3. The newsletter will include selected research papers and summaries to help researchers and readers understand important developments quickly. It’s a useful resource for anyone interested in AI and image creation.