CGI vs VFX vs SFX What s the Difference and Why It Matters #vfx #cgi #sfx

Many films today use a combination of visual effects, CGI, and special effects to create dazzling imagery. But what is the difference between these three fields? This is CGI versus special effects versus visual effects. Before we get uploaded to the mainframe, subscribe to StudioBinder and enable notifications to watch more of our videos. Today, we are joined by editor-in-chief at VFX magazine, befores and afters, Ian Fales. Cue the effects. Since the beginning, movies have made the impossible seem possible, with a variety of camera tricks and optical illusions. Today, these illusions are typically achieved through VFX, CGI, and special effects. But it's become increasingly difficult to tell which is which. Take this shot. Can you tell which elements were captured on set and which were added in post-production? The answer may surprise you. Though the terms are often used interchangeably, special effects, VFX, and CGI are all distinct elements. Ian Fales explains. You'll hear an interview with a director, a filmmaker, an actor, when they say, oh, I love the special effects. And what they really mean is they love the visual effects, or vice versa. CGI has sort of become a term that seems to cover all that as well. Today, the term CGI specifically has become controversial, with filmmakers emphasizing they use CGI sparingly or not at all. And everything you see in this film, obviously, it's for real. This may be because CGI is misunderstood. Using CGI again is that catch-all term. When people say something like something feels overly CGI, and they have an affinity, or they really want things to go back to being practical. Knowing these differences allows us to become more literate about the medium, and appreciate the various artists who joined forces to give us unforgettable experiences. Let's begin with special effects. Special effects are elements that are physically created on set. Special effects really relates to things that you still can't really just go out and shoot easily, but that require some sort of practical effects, but often done on set. Today, SFX largely refers to mechanical effects. Mechanical effects are elements created in front of the camera, also called practical effects. This can be as simple as fake rain, or fog from a fog machine, referred to as atmospheric effects. But they can also refer to pyrotechnics, explosions and roaring fires created in a controlled manner. Other forms of mechanical effects include animatronics, and prosthetic makeup. This is all overseen by a special effects supervisor. Because these effects are to a certain extent real, the supervisor's primary task is to make sure they are done responsibly and safely. Like with CGI and VFX, special effects often have to be outsourced to companies that specialize in specific SFX elements. Special effects have existed since the birth of cinema, and continue to be used to this day. Let's look at what came not long after, visual effects. Visual effects, or VFX for short, are effects added to imagery captured during production. VFX can include CGI, but also refers to a plethora of other techniques. Visual effects have been used since early cinema. George Mellier used them in 1902 by employing multiple exposures in his film, One Man Band. VFX then advanced to optical effects like forced perspective, and optical printers. Today, most visual effects are done digitally. VFX can take many forms. There is compositing, combining two or more images into one shot. In Robocop for example, the ED-209 is a stop motion object composited onto shots of the boardroom. This was done using an optical printer. Because it involves two shots of non-digital entities, the final image is a visual effect, but not CGI. A common form of compositing today is the green or blue screen, which allows visual effects artists to more easily remove elements of live action footage using chroma keying. The backgrounds can be replaced with anything, like a live action plate, or a CGI landscape. Today, VFX can include virtual production techniques as seen here, where an LED screen provides a background that moves in relation to the camera. All of these tools have been coming into the fore lately, partly from real-time rendering and game engines, and partly from using tools to visualize what will be the final visual effect shot. This requires VFX work before shooting, where artists will create the interactive background. It may also require VFX after shooting as well. VFX can be used to remove objects from a frame, also called a paintout. Motion capture and rotoscoping are also visual effects. Before CGI, rotoscoping was done by animators, who would use reference footage to draw realistic movements. Today, a computer will map digital imagery onto live action footage. I have coded notes here, which may be of some interest to you. My own cryptology is very difficult to... The visual effects supervisor oversees the entire VFX pipeline. This includes being involved in pre-production and on set to ensure the footage being captured will be usable for the VFX artists. You know, in Oppenheimer, basically, Andrew Jackson, the visual effects supervisor, was one of the first persons who read the script from Chris Nolan. Visual effects cover a wide realm of manipulation, including CGI. CGI stands for computer-generated imagery. In other words, any visual element in a film that has been solely created, digitally. This includes cities, vehicles, or even entire characters. I know you can't understand me, but put down the stapler, or I will electrocute you. With computer-generated imagery, you can create anything, or recreate anything, just about. There's almost no end to what you can do with CGI. Some shots are completely done with CGI, like this moment from WALL-E. But did you know that this shot also is 100% computer-generated? In many cases, CGI can be blended with live-action footage. For example, in this shot from Paddington 2, Paddington is CGI, but the entire frame is not. So, when a filmmaker claims there is no CGI in their film, there may still be a plethora of digital VFX, it just isn't computer-generated imagery. CGI is a relatively recent addition to the filmmaker's toolkit, and is rapidly evolving. It was first used in Westworld in 1973, though the graphics were only 2D. 3D CGI and features came nearly a decade later, with films like Tron and The Young Sherlock Holmes. Today, computer-generated imagery can be nearly indistinguishable from live-action footage. It's not that long ago, really, that convincing CGI was able to be used in feature films, at least. There was this magic period of late 80s, early 90s, when people realized the impact that CGI would have on moviemaking. Making shots with CGI believable requires a lot of work. It typically involves the art department, which outlines what certain digital elements should look like. The pre-vis artists may sketch low-resolution graphics to plan out scenes, allowing the director and other crew members to get a sense of what the final product would look like. The creation of the effects themselves requires multiple departments. FX simulation artists will specialize in mimicking the physics of real-world objects like water, air, fire. Lighting artists will work to create lighting that is appropriate for the scene. If an object is being placed into a live-action sequence, they will match the pre-existing lighting. Then there's the asset department, which builds models, textures, and shaders to be utilized in the imagery. Meanwhile, the research and development team is constantly developing and improving the software that the artists will be using. CGI can be used for epic spectacles, or more subtle touches to a live-action shot. While VFX, CGI, and special effects all have distinct meanings, they are typically used in combination. Let's look at one such example in Pick a man. Bring your kit. Yes, Sarge. Sam Mendes' 1917 is a testament to the power of CGI, VFX, and special effects being used in tandem. The film feels grounded and real, but utilizes a combination of effects throughout the film to create visuals that wouldn't have been possible otherwise. The plane crash sequence epitomizes this approach. The scene was pulled off through an intricate collaboration between VFX supervisor Guillaume Rocheron and special effects supervisor Dominic Tuohy. The unique challenge presented to them was making the complex sequence appear to be one shot. They relied on stitching, a visual effect that joins two takes to appear as one continuous shot. Rocheron explains the basic approach to the scene. Obviously, we didn't crash a real plane. To me, that was a great combination of CGI planes in the sky, and when it crashes, we created a blend, a stitch, and transition to a practical plane that we built and put on a ramp and launched from 20 feet in the air into the ground. We blend the two shots together. This stitch was not possible with the actors in frame, so a separate shot with the actors was composited onto the footage. When the characters approached the crash, the team used a new shot where the practical plane was on location and the actors could interact with it. The CGI artists needed to create a digital plane and barn that exactly matched the burning plane and barn on set. Rocheron explains, it requires incredibly sophisticated rendering and animation and blending to go from take to take. One scene could be shot in Shepperton Studios, and the next scene in Glasgow, and you have somehow to blend that completely seamlessly. Thus, 1917's plane crash sequence showcases CGI with the plane and barn, additional VFX with extensive stitching and compositing, and special effects with the pyrotechnics and mechanical effects of the practical plane. CGI, VFX, and special effects are all extremely powerful tools. Used carefully, they can immerse an audience in worlds they've never seen. Seeing through effects of any kind requires a lot of preparation. Break down your script for any visual or special effects you need, storyboard the sequence, share it with your effects supervisors, and more with StudioBinder, and check out Ian's publication, Befores and Afters. Subscribe and click the bell to see more videos on all things filmmaking, and go over to the StudioBinder Academy channel for in-depth filmmaker interviews and step-by-step tutorials. Until next time, good luck with your next spectacle.