Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

us, has been working in movies
for over 20 years now, as direc-
0 _ tor, ohn actor Pasternak, and special so the effects blurb tells guy
(although I couldn't find any reference to
him in the Internet movie database).
He's presenting a series of video
tutorials that make a nice complement
to our video special
last month as they all deal
with creating impressivelooking
special effects
using items that are freely
available in any town. The
first in the series is called
Android and deals with a
single scene reminiscent of
a certain James Cameron
film where the baddie has to
repair his arm and eye after
being in a set of scrapes.
First of all you are shown the
scene in its entirety, followed by a
detailed description of how each effect was
achieved. This starts with the retractable
XActo knife with realistic spurting blood
and goes on to opening the arm up for
mechanical surgery. Each step is covered in
very good detail, listing all the materials
you will need to get to achieve the effects,
and where you are most likely to get them
from.
MAJOR REPAIRS
I found it very interesting to see the complete
process involved in creating a latex
mask which was used as the basis for an
effect where the android pulls its eyeball
out to repair it (this scene on the video
was rather spoilt by the fact that you can
see three hands in shot, unless of course,
the android was better equipped than I
thought). The process is a lot more
involved than I had previously fresumed. It
starts with your actor's face getting fitted
for a piece of cardboard, which is then
placed to fit the lace snugly. The actor is
then given a breathing tube and dentists'
impression gunk is spread all over. Plaster
of Paris is spread over the gunk to give it
added strength and once this is dry the
whole shebang is removed.
That's just the first step though. Next the
mould of the face is filled with plaster of
paris again and left to dry for a few days in
a warm place. It is then turfed out of the
mould and placed on a board. Next it is
trimmed of any remaining flash and waxed.
Once this has been done, there are a few
intermediate steps to tackle, but the next
big job is to get those protective gloves on
and start messing with glass fibre. The end
result is a mould you can pour a latex
HAT'S THE
rubber mix into, which, once set, will be
your mask. This can then be painted using
acrylic paint to make it look a bit more lifelike.
Sure, it isn't any animatronic masterpiece,
but it is something you can do at
home without having to spend a fortune.
This is the whole basis for the tutorials on
these tapes and it is one that works well.
You won't be making Terminator 3, but
you will be able to create effects of some
sophistication with relatively little effort.
Finally, in addition to the main exercise of
producing the scene, there are a number
of general tips such as how to get rid of
the overly clean and harsh look of video.
One point about the video that was
quite tiresome though. It may say that the
"Each step is covered in
very good detail, listing all
the materials you will
need to get to achieve the
effects, and where you are
most likely to get them
from"
CONNECTION?
Well you might ask. The gimmick with this set of videos is the fact that you'll also be able to
buy them on CD. No, it won't just be an Mpeg conversion of the video data, it will be a mixture
of CDXL animation combined with CD quality sound and still pictures to present the
same information, but in an Amiga-friendly way. The CD is planned to cost twice as much
as the video, but then again, you hopefully won't have to put up with the long gaps where
nothing happens.
NIA FT ROW
MOVIE MAKER
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MOVIE MAKER
SPECIAL EFFECTS
VOL.
AMIGA COMPUTING
MA
A special effects video?"
What's the connection with
the Amiga? Read on as Frank Nord finds out
I
O
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e
tutorial is over an hour long on the box,
but in actual fact quite a large proportion
of that hour is taken up with timewasting
shots which are unnecessary. It's unfortunate
that you cannot even fast forward
through these as it means that you might
miss some of the voiceover. L '
7
PINION
As a whole, this video is a great idea
especially for you budding film makers
roused by our feature last month. it pro
vides a very easy-to-follow, step-by-step
guide to creating special effects on a very
tight budget However, the editing of the
tape really needs to be tightened as there
are large gaps between the narrative
which don't advance your understanding
of the subject and are not aesthetically
pleasing. Finally, this tape isn't suitable for
children owing to the nature of both the
type of special effects and the material]
used to create them.
Bottom
line
PRODUCT DETAILS
Product
Supplier
Price
Tel
Movie Maker
Volume 1 — Android
Epic Software
Price: Video E14.99
CD-ROM E29.99
01793 5141E18
SCORES
75
0
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