Crew members reflect on all things animation, including previs and mocap, and share some very fun stories.
Today on the befores & afters podcast, we have something really fun for you – a Wētā FX animation roundtable. A bunch of Wētā FX folk will be at SIGGRAPH in LA very soon, and they joined me for a small preview of their sessions at the conference.
These were Dan Barrett, senior animation supervisor, Stuart Adcock, head of facial motion, and Dave Clayton, animation supervisor. Dan and Stuart worked on Avatar: Fire and Ash, and will be talking about that project at SIGGRAPH. Dave worked on Stranger Things season 5, and an interesting thing he’ll be discussing at SIGGRAPH is about the role of previs.
As I say, this is a fun chat – the guys were really candid about their views on animation and previs, and how that works at Wētā FX. We also talked about mocap. I loved the stories they shared about jumping into mocap suits themselves for certain projects – and even where you can see them in past films and shows. I asked Dave Clayton specifically a lot about Vecna in that final season of Stranger Things, and I asked Dan and Stuart about crafting Oona Chaplin’s amazing character Varong in Fire and Ash.
Listen in above.
