Since Georges Méliès’ Voyage en la Lune, special effects in the cinema have evolved enormously. From the green background to the latest digital techniques, take a look at visual effects in the cinema!
The age of great inventions: rigging and hacking
Over the past thirty years, the development of techniques has totally changed the approach we can take to a process of creating special effects. This evolution has gone from simple addition of synthetic effects in real images to a real creation articulated around a whole range of synthetic writing tools. “Special effects”, we could also say “visual effects” or “special effects” because at the beginning, it was more of a DIY than anything else. Special effects are what cannot be filmed in real life, moment of filming. At the very beginning, we used trompe-l’oeil cinema, camera stops by changing position before re-filming, or overprints. The filmmakers of the 1900s who used these techniques are Georges Méliès, Segundo de Chomon or Charley Bowers. With the primewire unblocked you can check the best films there.
Lunemelies
In 1933 comes the film “King Kong” by Cooper and Schoedsack using the techniques of animatronics and stop motion , this film is a real visual revolution. Later, the inlay will later be inspired by James Whale’s film “The Invisible Man”. The famous “green background,” a classic special effects, will appear in 1940. In the 1920s and 1930s, many special effects methods were created and still used today, such as using cables (which will delete numerically later).
Mechanics, there’s that real
Special effects first began to be mechanical before being digital. In 2001, the Space Odyssey, Kubrick uses models and revolutionizes the history of cinema by showing realistic images of the conquest of space but how to miss the Star Wars in 1977, a jewel of science fiction that is illustrated by the quality of its special effects. We see puppets (Yoda) controlled manually. That’s how George Lucas founded ILM (Industrial Light and Magic) his own studio. Makeup and costume design are also part of the world of special effects.
Realism pushed: the beginnings of digital
The production of digital images is due to the rise of computers. The synthesis images are calculated mathematically. “Tron” is a good example even if in 1982 he did not make a box office box. 15 minutes of fully synthetic images: a technical feat for the time! Let’s go back to the “Return of the Jedi” which uses the first 3D effect embedded in a movie. 3D animation and “morphing” are seen in movies like Willow or Delicatessen. Soon, digital conquers the entire planet cinema and there is a surge of special effects studios. “Abyss” and “Jurassic Park”, the late ’80s early’ 90s, are adventure or sci-fi feature films that also marked a turning point in the history of digital special effects. Let’s not forget the “Terminators” that terrified an entire generation.
The big leagues: blockbusters
“Who wants the skin of Roger Rabbit” is a fine example of compositing: a film that combines real images and cartoon, it had to be realized.