Subject: Re: Compositing errors (WAS Re: JUMANJI)
From: [email-masked] (Mike Harlock)
To: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 6 Mar 1996 18:23:19 -0800

> >>Am I the only person who can spot ILM's CGI composites just by seeing
> >>them?

> >Have you ever noticed them on video? They can pass on film, but when
> >transferred to video they really stand out. This is a problem with all CGI,
> >not ILM.
>
> When the Star Wars movies came out on video, I was shocked by the glaringly
> obvious masking effect one can see around most of the spaceships, especially
> in the first two films. This was caused by blocking off a square area around
> each model during the bluescreen process. It's really amazing how these
> light, hazy areas stand out around each ship, and I wondered how ILM could
> let such a thing sneak past them.

 My guess is that the conversion to video,
> and the greatly reduced range it has compared to film, brought this
> phenomenon out.

Exactly.  There ain't no brightness knob on film projectors...give it more
light, you get more contrast, but the relative black levels stay more or less
the same.  No one saw it as a problem at the time.

Film works good at a low brightness level, but because of the reduction of
contrast, TV looks better with a little more brightness to bring out details
in low light areas, and in this case, unwanted details.

You can especially the matts on laserdiscs by turning the brightness up.  Star
Trek II, beginning of side 2 there's the space station thing, really good
example.

> Also in the third film, anyone notice that "floaty" in closeup shots of the
> Emperor? They shone pinpoint lights on his eyes to make them glow with evil
> (also used to make women look pretty),

(otherwise known as eye lights)

Bl00p.

--MIke

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