For me the best movie so far this year has to be Christopher Nolan's Inception. it will be interesting come Oscar time to see if the Academy and the world at large agree. It is a fantastic combination of amazing direction and cinematography, a gripping script and amazing VFX. The best VFX are the ones you don't see and only afterwards do you think "How did they do that?".
California Dreams
As part of our ongoing commitment to the US, we have recently been on a whistle stop tour of California visiting all of the leading lights in the VFX and animation industry. Lee and I were lucky enough to visit the likes of ILM, Pixar, Dreamworks, Sony Imageworks and Tippett Studio. It was like walking into a living museum of the best VFX and animation has to offer, from the original costumes and matte paintings from the Star Wars series to the giant Luxo Jr outside Pixar's HQ. We were completely in geeky film heaven. Lee's excitement at seeing models and maquettes from some of his favourite movies was very obvious. For those of us who know him, well there is no volume control!
Christian Roberton joins our Advisory Board
Everyone who studies with us knows how much emphasis we place on our close ties with the industry. The members of our advisory board include some of the biggest names in CG, and they advise on everything from course content to placing escapees in work after they graduate. We are therefore very pleased to announce that Christian Roberton, MD of Film at MPC, has joined the team.
US VFX industry in strife?
I don’t know how many of you caught this, but there was an interesting article on the Time Magazine's website last week looking at the state of the VFX industry in the US.
Games industry salaries on the up
Good news for all those in the games industry. A new survey out this week showed that salaries are on the rise, going up 2%-3% over the last year, with those of you working on the technical development and programming side of things earning the most.
Playing the Game
I came across a report from NESTA at the weekend which suggested strategies to help the UK remain at the top of global video games development. It makes for interesting reading in light of last week’s announcement on tax relief for the industry.
We’re in the money
As you probably saw, the Chancellor has awarded the games industry its much deserved tax break. Following Wednesday’s budget, game developers that create profitable games will be able to use the relief to pay less tax on profits, while unsuccessful games will be awarded a cash tax credit to reduce losses – which must be a nice surprise for all you developers out there.
Another new recruit – Graham Harris
Following last week’s announcement around the hiring of Tim Flett, we’ve got another new recruit that we’re all very excited about. We are pleased to announce that Graham Harris as joined our team as our new Finance Director.
Survey - Graduates find a long term home in CG industry
You might have read that we recently surveyed people working in the industry for their thoughts about their jobs and the world they work in. We’ve now taken this one step further by asking graduates about their expectations of a career in this field.
Escapee wins BAFTA for Flock! game
Our very own Escapee, Chris Bradwell, has won a BAFTA for his fantastic work on the game Flock! just five years after graduating.
Survey - State of the CG industry
You might have read a couple of weeks ago about the winners of a prize draw we held for those who completed our survey. We wanted to see what people in and around the CG industry thought about their jobs and the world in which they work. We had a fantastic response, with over 2,800 professionals, hobbyists and students answering questions for us, and the results make for interesting reading.
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Give us a break
I’ve been reading a lot about tax breaks in the past couple of months. First there was the anticipation and ultimate disappointment of Digital Britain, when we hoped that the games industry might get the tax breaks it needed. A missed opportunity, many said.
The value of vocational training
An article appeared in last weekend’s Sunday Times discussing the fact that two of Britain’s former polytechnics have outperformed Oxford and Cambridge by getting more of their graduates into work than any other university. For years vocational courses, typically taught at newer institutes, have been stigmatised for their lack of academic prowess. However, employers in some industries, such as the computer graphics industry, prefer to hire candidates with vocational qualifications, so could this mean opinions are about to change? Universities are starting to understand that certain courses, which can be tailored to specific careers, will produce graduates with more relevant skills than those covering a broad range of theoretical topics, leaving students in a better position to find work after they graduate.
