Houdini now simulating at RISE

We have added SideFX's Houdini 3D animation and simulation package to our feature film fx pipeline. Thanks to Houdini we are now capable of offering the highest standard of simulation work for natural phenomenons, particle simulations, smoke, fire, water and destruction of all kinds. Currently our 3D department is working heavily on integrating it into our pipeline and optimizing interoperability with all other software packages used at RISE.

If you are a talented Houdini TD and if you are interested in working with us - please check the jobs page for openings starting January 2012.

3000 shots in 180 days... That's 16.667 Shots a day!!!

When Rayk Schroeder signed on to supervise the VFX work for the second season of Ijon Tichy he was already aware that it wouldn't end up being a standard 100-600 shot project. But he didn't expect 3000 shots either. In the end Rayk and his small team managed to finish the 3000 shots within roughly 6 months by automating various tasks, beta testing our own high-speed shot management database and preparing as good as possible for when the storm would hit. The combination of scale models, CG elements that were supposed to look like scale models, puppets and actors shot on greenscreen ended up being more than 80 percent of the entire running length of the series. Great work, guys. And a HUGE "THANK YOU" for hanging in there. A refreshingly abstract yet very, very creative approach to visual effects. Starting this Friday on ZDF:

The Laconia is sinking... Tomorrow...

RISE proudly created about 75 percent of all visual effects shots, among them the sinking of the CG Laconia, CG submarines and CG B24 bombers. Especially for the sinking of the ship a combination of computer simulated ocean and water, fuel puddles on the ocean, fire, smoke and the CG ship itself proved to be quite a challenge for crew and hardware. The goal was to stay away from Titanic's style as far as possible. So instead of going for a romantically moonlit atmosphere RISE designed the torpedo hit fire to illuminate the scene, bouncing of the ocean surface to create a nice interaction with the ship's hull. One of the references used over the course of the design process were the burning oil drills in Kuwait in the early 90s as well as last years oil drilling rig disaster, the Deepwater Horizon.

Watch Laconia on ARD, 2nd November, 8:15pm
Read everything about the History of the Laconia and about the film HERE!

Pointcloud9 online!

Starting today our subsidiary Pointcloud9 offers Lidar scanning services for the visual effects, film and game industries. We figured it was about time for someone in Germany to make everyone's life in 3D computer graphics a lot easier. Check out the new Pointcloud9 website for details, give us a call if you need advice or a quote!

The Captain is back!

Just days before the release of the "Captain America: The First Avenger" DVD and Blue-ray in the US Marvel Studios posted a special treat on Youtube: One of the scenes we've been working on and that didn't quite make it into the final movie. Enjoy it in it's full resolution 1080p glory!

Lust, violence and intrigues at RISE!

In August RISE finished over 230 VFX shots for Europe's most expensive TV series of all times: "BORGIA". The story of one of the cruelest chapters of the Vatican will be aired in Germany on ZDF between 17th and 27th of October. RISE brought Rome of 1492 to life and created digital environments for a family that was ruled by nothing but lust, violence and intrigues. Over 40 years ago the stories and legends about the Borgia were already the inspiration for "The Godfather". RISE developed a 3D topography of the old Rome with detailed virtual main locations like the Colosseum. These 3D renderings were the foundation for historically accurate matte paintings and set extensions. For several shots with thousands of digital characters a proprietary crowd tool was developed that was tailored to precisely meet the series' demands for a fast turnaround. "Borgia" is a co-production between Atlantique, Etic Films and ZDF.

RISE more than ever before...

RISE just got a lot bigger. Our flagship office had to expand last year for "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", adding the "Secret Lab" in November 2010. Now in August 2011 new additional office space connects the "Secret Lab" and the flagship office. The entire factory building with its three floors is now one visual effects complex - meaning it lets us do more complex work with more people. The new stylish main entrance hall will be opening soon - after wiring has been finished and RFID access control is set up.
Oh - and there is a brand new pool billiard table in case you want to challenge us for a match.

Captain America: The First Avenger

BLAST! That's just what we did. For Joe Johnston's "Captain America: The First Avenger" we shredded evil soldiers to pieces. So this time it wasn't about painting environments and city- or landscapes. It was about matching and animating digital doubles and then turning them into lightning and plasma, burning pieces of torn cloth, ash and debris as they vaporize in one super complex simulation. Super complex was also the simulation for the Blue Bolt rays causing them to vaporize. Imagine fantastrillions of particles. And then multiply that with a humongillion of rigid bodies and cloth pieces. That's the number of objects we simulated. Seriously. "Captain America: The First Avenger" is out today in the US and later this year on 18th August 2011 in Germany.

Thank you to Joe, Chris, Mark, Victoria, Lisa and everyone else at Marvel! It was a BLAST!
AND THANK YOU SUPER AWESOME RISE SUPER VISUAL EFFECTS SUPERHERO TEAM!

X-Men: First Class

Mutant design powers enabled our "gifted youngsters" to create stunning full cg shots, virtual environments and digital matte paintings for Matthew Vaughn's X-Men Prequel. We built digital houses, set up fences, planted trees, polished helmets and took the X-Jet to new heights and to the beach. X-Men: First Class hits US theatres today on 3rd June 2011, German moviegoers will have to wait until 9th June.

Thank you Matthew, John, Denise, Stef, Alexa, Michael, Serge and everyone at 20th Century Fox!
WE LOVE YOU, RISE MUTANT VISUAL EFFECTS ARTISTS! YOU ROCK!