Blender Pro's needed for Hollywood Feature!

Jobs Volunteer Work
1

Calling all blender Awesomenaughts!! This could be your chance to get your name on the hollywood screens! Reactor Studios on the Gold Coast, Australia is currently producing the Visual effects for an upcoming hollywood horror/thriller and we’re seeking blender professionals to come onboard our dynamic team. Regrettably the budget was already blown before we came onboard, so we can’t offer much other than an onscreen credit (as well as IMDB.com etc), but a top notch performance now could land you a fully paid position on the sequel being produced next year (expected budget of $5.3 million).

Just check out the trailer!
http://vimeo.com/61256055

We’re currently seeking:

  • Animators
  • Riggers
  • Compositors

If you reckon you fit the bill, or have anything to offer to the production, feel free to drop us your demo reel and/or work samples to us at [email protected] and we’ll get the ball rolling! This is a time critical job so get in quick!

2

Just post here please better option BLENDER NETWORK FOR PRO

3

Hey hey, thanks for the reply. I’m a member of the Blender pro network, but unfortunately the guidelines for posting jobs on the network specifically forbids posting requests for unpaid work. :frowning: so I’ve come to the next best place!

4

You’re asking VFX artists to work for free on a movie that will be making some form of profit? That sounds a little strange.

Visual Effects take time and money. I’m no expert, but I don’t think most hobbyists will have the hardware to render ‘Hollywood’ standard Visuals - nor are they likely to have access to any external render farms if there’s no budget.

5

On the company homepage of Reactor Studios, you are advertising with all the features that you are requesting here.
The facebook profile of the company was created March 2012 and there are a total of about 10 Posts made until now.
The Trailer of “Nowhere Else” gives no hints or informations about Reactor Studios. (in the credits it’s: Special Effects by JMB FX Studio)
To me it seems Reacor Studios is just a 1 Man Company. The Portfolio Sample Images also don’t look that professional.

I think you just realized that you can’t make all by your own and now you try to find some free workers to finish the contract that you got.
You can correct me, if i’m wrong.

Finally i wanna quote a sentence From the Reactor Studios “about us” text:

Whether is full fledged VFX and composition work, 3D Animation or Asset modelling & Rigging, our team will will always aim to impress!

I just wonder why you search for free “professionals”, because it sounds like you have a strong team that can do all of this.
Maybe you can explain the reasons a bit more detailed?

6

Hey hey, thanks for the replies, Looking back its does sound a little skeptical doesn’t it. The post above was only meant to peak your interest and get you in contact to get more info but I’ll drop the deets in now.

The basic story is that the film was half finished when the orginal VFX guys took did a runner with the producers money, so I offered to help them out and finish the film, but I’m working for free since theres obviously no money left. it was originally released in April however the distributors rejected it saying the VFX need more work (obviously).

To me it seems Reacor Studios is just a 1 Man Company.

I will admit the website was made a few years ago (mid 2011 from memory) back when I was a freelancer but in November 2012 I went all out and started a small studio by the same name, with a small team of 7 artists. It was just quickly updated to reflect that we’re now a team, but we’re working on a more professional site for the studio as a whole. So I do indeed have a strong team, but regrettably since I’m not receiving any money for this project, I can’t commit any of my full time artists to it as I would be losing money paying wages with no return. Hence why I’m offering full screen credits and a position in later films, since I know how it looks from your perspective: “why work for free with no return?”

As for the trailer, it was made when the other dudes were still onboard, and JMB FX produced the special effects (in camera/onset effects), not the VFX. The VFX were originally produced by another freelancer as his team… who I wont publicly defame (he’s listed in the trailer though). I can however offer you a link to the movies IMDB page where I’m listed as the VFX Supervisor. check it out here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2193167/?ref_=rvi_tt

Visual Effects take time and money. I’m no expert, but I don’t think most hobbyists will have the hardware to render ‘Hollywood’ standard Visuals - nor are they likely to have access to any external render farms if there’s no budget.

Another good point, I’m utilising my studios resources and render farm, a cost I have already offset with smaller projects. All I’m missing is manpower, which is the third ingredient; Time Money and Manpower! I’m no stranger to the VFX World, been my full time job for the last 8 years :smiley:

We were also planning on using this project as a scouting opportunity to seek out new talent we can bring onboard full time (and fully paid) for the sequel, which Reactor Studios has already been awarded the contract, as well as… well any other project we’re involved in… fortunately I don’t only take on unpaid projects :slight_smile: but the sequel will require a team of about 20-30 artists so I’m on the lookout for talented artists to bring onboard next year. So I guess whats in it for you guys is the possibility of a fully paid 24 month contract, and of course any other ongoing work

I guess in summary I understand if you’re skeptical, its very uncommon for a hollywood feature to require unpaid artists, but since the movie is mostly funded solely by the producer, who is pretty much broke at this point, theres not alot of options left. And being a professional myself, its very uncommon that I would even look at unpaid work but this one just caught my eye.

whoa that turned into quite the novel didn’t it… apologies for the wall of text… :eek::eek:

7

According to the IMDB pages for “Nowhere Else”, the film was actually released in April this year.
Here’s the link. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2193167/releaseinfo

8

I have question.

If the director is broke, how can the next film have a budget of $5.3 million? Where is that money coming from?

To be honest if the $5.3 million wasn’t mentioned, I would accept this plight as perfectly plausible and not have any scepticism. But dropping a figure in like that makes me feel a bit dubious.

9

According to the IMDB pages for “Nowhere Else”, the film was actually released in April this year.

… i said that… second paragraph :smiley:

Anyway, i don’t want this to turn into an argument about whether or not its a legit project. Had you have simply emailed us, we could have put you contact with the director, producers etc.

Ultimately I can’t make a profit out of this project, as I said even I’m not being paid. I’m fully capable of completing the project alone however I wanted to open it up to the community so that at least you guys could make some sort of profit out of it. I’ve been a massive supporter of Blender since 2005 (I believe I started with 2.37, I remember pablo’s carrot on a plate on the splash screen) and even built my studio around it; So I wanted to offer anyone keen to maybe try out the VFX Industry, anyone looking for a challenge, or anyone looking to get a foot in the door of the film industry an opportunity to do so, especially since for this project at least, theres not hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake - except maybe for the producer of course…

Actually, about the only profit in it for me is to connect with passionate and talented blender artists and build up a network of like-minded people, and as I said above, scout out new talent for full time, fully paid positions on future films.

10

I have question.

If the director is broke, how can the next film have a budget of $5.3 million? Where is that money coming from?

To be honest if the $5.3 million wasn’t mentioned, I would accept this plight as perfectly plausible and not have any scepticism. But dropping a figure in like that makes me feel a bit dubious.

As i mentioned above, the contract for the sequel is already secured. The producer simply needs to deliver a completed film to the distributors, to their specifications to get the go ahead to begin production of the sequel. It is the distribution studio that then funds the production of the sequel… thus the contract that was signed and secured was for a budget of $5.3 million on the condition the original film is delivered in distributable condition to their specifications, which as I said, is with better VFX. annnnd thus leading us back to the beginning of this infinite loop of death… :stuck_out_tongue:

11

[QUOTE]According to the IMDB pages for “Nowhere Else”, the film was actually released in April this year
. … i said that… second paragraph :D[/QUOTE]Just as clarification, Jaames actually asked the question before your post with that info was visible. As a new user your posts need to be approved by a moderator (FAQ at top of forum) so when I approved it Jaames had already posted.

Hey hey, thanks for the replies, Looking back its does sound a little skeptical doesn’t it. The post above was only meant to peak your interest and get you in contact to get more info but I’ll drop the deets in now.
Usually best to do this right from the start

I’m fully capable of completing the project alone however I wanted to open it up to the community so that at least you guys could make some sort of profit out of it.
Make a profit by working for free and a promise ?

Anyway, i don’t want this to turn into an argument about whether or not its a legit project. Had you have simply emailed us, we could have put you contact with the director, producers etc.
If you post on a forum then don’t be surprised if it turns into an arguement

12

I’m no stranger to the VFX World, been my full time job for the last 8 years

Wow. It’s 8 years your fulltime job? I work with blender since 3-4 years, an all i got is a handfull paid contracts, which are not enough to live from (so it’s more a part time job to gain a bit of additional money).
Well i think it would be good idea to post one or some of your VFX (short movie, reel) to demonstrate which level of quality you are aiming for, because your Homepage seems to be WIP in some areas and i dont saw any videos. It would also help to convince the sceptical persons, like me :-p.

The reasons why i am sceptical:
in my experience, volunteer jobs lead to nothing (in most cases).
without any contract you get nothing. (people can promise alot, but you dont have any guarantees)

I guess you have a diffrent point of view as a Professional VFX Artist (Supervisor?!). You must have been lucky to find paying clients, the last 8 years.
I am really looking forward to your answer, because i am excited to see what you already achieved.

13

Again I shall clarify, however personally attacking my background is something I generally avoid responding to.

I never said I work exclusively as a VFX Artist in blender. I worked as a freelance VFX Artist, travelling between studios working on various films & television projects. I work with all manner of applications, including Maya, Houdini, Cinema 4D, ZBrush, Nuke (compositing) etc. I don’t use 3DS Max cos… well Maya is the shit in the VFX World;). As I mentioned above, I have recently put everything I have into building a post production studio, so I can settle down with the missus and not have to travel all over the country chasing contracts. If you remain skeptical, I refer you to my LinkedIn profile where you will see I am quite well connected with the major Australian VFX Houses, Including Animal Logic, Rising Sun, Weta Digital (New Zealand) and ILM Singapore. You can find it here: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/daral-chapman/41/329/500

As for your concept of “professional VFX Artist” I think you are under the impression I am a hobbyist. Regrettably I am not, I hold a Diploma of Film & Television production, as well as a Diploma of Visual Effects, and a degree in 3D Animation, and I’m currently working towards my Masters of Screen Media. so by Professional VFX Artist I mean I have studied the field at university, and derive the majority of my income from working in this field.

As for your experience with volunteer jobs. This is not a community project looking for volunteers, this is a fully fledged feature film that I’ve opened up to the community. This means there is contracts that protect both parties, both myself and the artists, and obligations and conditions that can be stipulated, and honoured by both parties, including confidentiality, which is why I’ve been so vague. I cannot reveal specific details about the project, or I will be in breach of my contract with the distributors.

the idea of the original post was to get people in contact with my studio co-ordinator who would explain the project in a non-public forum where more detail can be disclosed, then ask you to sign a confidentiality agreement if you’re still interested, from there you can have access to the studio portal where you can read the script, watch the film so far, talk to the director and producers, even chat with my team in studio, download the project files for the film, whatever you need. However I figured it would be more skeptical to open with “Seeking Blender Pro’s: Please sign this contract”

So again, this isn’t an open project, its a closed feature film I’m opening to serious artists to get their foot in the door of a real studio, with real industry contacts, working on real feature films.

Also Richard you are correct so apologies to james, I thought the posts were in chronological order of visibility. I didn’t realise he asked before my post was up. So again sorry james :smiley:

14

It is okay. I guessed that had happened anyway.

I was just looking through the portfolio page on your website, though.
You can call me blunt, but what I see there doesn’t match my expectations of someone who’s been in the industry for eight years.

The first image looks a lot like you’ve followed the grass tutorial from Andrew Price’s “Nature Academy”, then just dumped a mech/robot on top. Compare it with this one from Blenderjourney.com that I found from a simple Google search. It has the same cloud background texture, in fact.
Similarly, the second picture reminds me of the “Realistic Earth” tutorial from Blender Guru.
My point being, surely an industry expert wouldn’t follow a tutorial then show the result in his portfolio. He’d put a still from the Warner Brothers movie he’d worked on in there.

In the “Creature Design” image, I recognized an older version of the “Millennium SubDragon” model that comes bundled with DAZ Studio.
Here’s a picture of it. If so, the girl could probably be from Daz Studio also. Her pose certainly looks familiar (although, I won’t confess to be an expert; I used Daz about twice when it was free). The girl’s hand is actually inside the neck of the dragon which makes me wonder.

The only other sign of another program being used is the skull, which I can tell is from Sculptris. There’s no evidence of you using Maya, Houdini, Cinema 4D or Z Brush. Just free programs like Blender, Daz Studio 3D and Sculptris. Hm.

I’m going to leave it that.

15

Well, I just wanna clarify, I didnt mean to imply that this whole thing was a dodgy scam. I just thought there might be a chance that things like “$5.3 million” and “Hollywood feature” may have be exaggerations thrown in to entice the more naive. I appreciate it must be difficult recruiting/pitching an idea whilst trying to follow an NDA, but for that reason I think it’s only natural that people are sceptic in some way too. Nothing personal, It’s just the times we live in force us to be.

16

Very observant James, it is indeed the grass tutorial from the Nature academy, As I said, the site is a mishmash of old crap from when I was freelancing and experimenting, and of course a bit of new crap… admittedly quite neglected infact, but again as mentioned, we’re working on a new one. I’ll admit I left blender for Maya for a while, using blender on and off for various things, and then got back into blender after seeing its power through the Nature Academy. so its a bit of a remnant from ye olde days of blender rediscovery. Anywho, the Planet is actually a 2D Photoshop composite. Also would have been happy to send you any newer work samples if you requested.

17

ok, so since I’ve been met with alot of negativity and skepticism… and a few attacks thrown in there as well i think, and a relentless endeavour to disprove me for whatever reason… I reckon its best to withdraw my offer and we all call it day… If anything, I now know I SERIOUSLY need to update that website…

As I mentioned I’m happy to go it alone so thanks for your time guys, was looking forward to bringing hollywood level VFX into the blender mainstream community but alas, I fear I’m too early on that one. Feel free to contact me with any request etc or anything else u think i could help with, I’m always happy to help out wherever I can.

cheers :smiley:

18

Too bad you dont gave me any link of your VFX work, i really thought you will show me something amazing now,…
Well sorry for being a bit offensive. i guess i also asked some critical questions.
When you are honest to yourself, your Opening Post raises increadible huge expectations, but the presentation is a bit weak.

If you want some advice:

  • If it is only a Volunteer Job, don’t mention any Money (the information of the budget for the sequel is really unnecessary and only causes confusion/trouble). I know you mentioned it to give the volunteers some motivation to actually join, but that’s the wrong way.
  • Before you make your first post, ask yourself which questions stay unanswered. And/Or ask some of your friends/employees if you should change the text or add something.
  • Watch your language, stay professional. Sure it’s sometimes good to place a joke inbetween the lines, but even for me the opening sentence sounds a bit too silly.
  • Stay honest with everything you write/post. Some of your sentences are in contradiction to each other and there is always a smart guy who will find them.
  • Never use work of others for your Portfolio. Even if it is only CC0 (zero) or just a background texture or whatever. Sure you can use a render result of a tutorial, which you followed, but that’s not very professional.
  • i think for your finished Portfolio Section, it would be nice if you split it into subsection of your employees. Like Guy A - particle simulation expert, Guy B - Animation specialist, Guy C - Compositing, and so on.
  • i really think for a VFX/Animation presentation it’s a must have: A video of actual footage that you built.

I think you also learned something here. Nowadays it’s not enough to post some lines into a forum to access some Volunteers.
As already mentioned (and you also see it by yourself), the Portfolio of you (your company) is not good enough. You need some creative and unique stuff. Something that makes you diffrent, compared to the mainstream.

I wish you and your company good luck for the future.

19

That’s a lame excuse for failure after a lame presentation for a lame spec work opportunity in a lame production.

This is bad business and probably a doomed project. Maybe you should re-think your involvement with it.

-LP