FMX 2011
16th Conference on Animation, Effects, Games and Interactive Media
May 3-6, 2011. Stuttgart, Germany.

Just one month to go!

FMX 2011 is about to kick off to a great start, with just one month to go! This year we are bringing an exciting selection of conference programming to Stuttgart for four days, focusing on the most exciting issues taking place in the industry. FMX takes a fresh look at Stereo 3D including contributions from Weta Digital on the ride "King Kong 360-3D"; a recent overview of developments in lighting and rendering and the impact of Open Source presented by Dan candela.

We will present on the Transmedia challenge, Global Production hosted by VES, ILM's first animated feature "Rango", "Despicable Me" presented by Director Pierre Coffin, Visual Arts for Games and on the changing nature of Visual Effects including amongst others VES's Jeffery A. Okun and Bill Kroyer; Oscar-winner "The King's Speech" presented by Dayne Cowan. Thomas Zauner on "Hereafter"; directed by Clint Eastwood and Disney's latest 3D Animation, "Tangled". Ahead of the general release in July 2011 we will have an exclusive presentation on "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2".

Furthermore the conference will feature Virtual Humans, selected SIGGRAPH and Eurographic Papers, VFX used in commercials, new Chinese Animation and the most influential companies from France and Animation Media Cluster Region Stuttgart. One of the reasons so many visitors attend FMX is the exceptional networking opportunities during Tech Talks, Workshops and Masterclasses, the Trade Floor, the School Campus and the Recruiting Hub.

Visit our website for the frequently updated program http://www.fmx.de/

World leading Visual Effects company Weta Digital present on "King Kong 360-3D"

Sebastian Sylwan will discuss the unique design challenges that this award-winning attraction presented and the creative solutions that were applied to deliver one of the world's largest stereo experiences. Weta Digital built on some of the technical advancements developed for James Cameron's Avatar to overcome some of the most challenging technical requirements; including the stereo rendering and compositing of enormous scenes, projecting roughly 50 Gpixels at 60fps and providing a good stereoscopic experience to all the viewers along opposing 54 meter screens. Creating a memorable and engaging 3D experience required tight collaboration with director Peter Jackson and posed interesting creative challenges that went beyond those of a standard 3D cinema screen.

Harry Potter Tribute

FMX will host a special Harry Potter Tribute in honour of the completion of the series, curated by Barbara Robertson. The series of presentations and panels hosted by Chris deFaria - Executive Vice President, Digital Production, Animation and Visual Effects, for Warner Bros. - will focus on the franchise's impact on global VFX production as well as highlight the evolvement of look, tools and technology over the years. The presentations will include past sequences from the Harry Potter series as well as new sequences from "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" ahead of the release in July 2011.

"Rango" - The down and Dirty on ILM's first animated feature

Visual effects Supervisor Tim Alexander and CG Supervisor Patrick Cohen will have an in depth discussion focusing on the production of Industrial Light & Magic's first animated feature "Rango". ILM's unique approach to the genre brings a new dimension to the animated feature giving Rango the visceral quality that the company is best known for in its visual effects work.

"Rango" centres on a pet chameleon who finds himself appointed sheriff when he stumbles into Dirt, a small town in the Wild Wild West. Tim Alexander and Patrick Cohen will showcase how the ILM crews in San Francisco and Singapore brought these surreal yet photographic Southwestern setting and richly detailed characters to life by applying live-action techniques to the dialogue recording, lighting, costuming and animation pipeline.

Pixomondo will present their latest films, "Sucker Punch" & "Fast Five"

International Visual Effect's Studio Pixomondo will present their Visual Effects expertise featured in two feature films. "Sucker Punch" directed by Zack Synyder and "Fast Five" directed by Justin Lin. This will be presented by Rainer Gombos, Visual Effect Supervisor for Pixomondo. Rainer has supervised movies such as "The Red Baron" and Roland Emmerich's "2012".

ScanlineVFX: Hereafter

ScanlineVFX present on "Hereafter", directed by Clint Eastwood and nominated for an Academy Award for Visual Effects. For this production they created extensive water sequences to create a realistic Tsunami effect. Thomas Zauner, co-founder of ScanlineVFX will discuss how full CG water extensions were applied to water plates. The use of digital doubles, CG set extensions, digital make up and how a full CG environment with extensive destruction was developed. This effect has later been dubbed the "hereafter effect" as it appears throughout the film.

"Industrial Light & Magic: Creating The Impossible" - A Documentary Directed and Produced by Leslie Iwerks

Industrial Light & Magic has created some of the most iconic imagery that cinema going audiences have ever seen. For over 35 years, their pioneering and breathtaking visual effects have transformed the way we see movies.

This is the entertaining and illuminating story of the visual effects house that revolutionized Hollywood. From their earliest days creating the special effects for "Star Wars", up to today, director Leslie Iwerks takes audiences on a journey inside the walls and through the years of Industrial Light & Magic, where creating the impossible remains a daily operation. Through the eyes of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, Jon Favreau, Robin Williams, JJ Abrams and ILM's top visual effects supervisors and artists, among many others, we see how ILM continues to bring cinema's impossible ideas to fruition.

History of 3D through eyes of Variety

FMX is delighted to welcome Variety Magazine to FMX who will present on the History of 3D presented by David Cohen. The myth of 3D says it was introduced to cinema in the 1950s in response to television, only to fail. But in reality, stereoscopic cinema was a dream of filmmakers from the dawn of movies, along with sound and colour, and studios and tinkerers alike have pursued that dream for more than 100 years. The Variety archives, recently digitized and made searchable for the first time, reveal the struggle of the movies to master 3D, and how today's 3D issues echo those of the past.

ICC

The Interactive Content Creation (ICC) Track will discuss how Transmedia reflects the convergence of film, TV, computers, consoles and mobile devices. Speakers will discuss the convergence amongst these platforms, how one commodity can become franchised across additional platforms. The 360° track includes presentations on the complex process of Transmedia production, including contributions from Film Bilder and GEElab. The flashconference focuses on the latest developments in flash and innovations in the 2D sector and offers a glimpse into business applications and games. Contributors include Steven Peeters, Alexander Gellner and David An. ICC will include SIGGRAPH papers selected by Paul Debevec; the best of Eurographics, selected by Oliver Deussen, and Stuttgart Media University Juniors papers.

Global Production: VES Forum

The Visual Effects Society will host a special track on Global Production focusing on how Global Production is affecting the industry by allowing continuous work-flow and co-financing. Convergence is getting faster and the complexity of production is rapidly growing.

Eric Roth will host this track focusing on key people across all media - games, film, television and social platforms - to discuss how these changes will influence the industry; how to deal with new ways of distribution and the rapidly growing industries in Asia. Speakers include Jean-Julien Baronnet (Ubisoft Motion Pictures), Lee Berger (Rhythm & Hues), Jacques Bled (Mac Guff), Michael Coldewey (Trixter), Chris DeFaria (Warner Bros.), Dan Glass (Method Studios), Philippe Gluckman (DreamWorks Dedicated Unit, Technicolor India), Scott Ross, William Sargent (Framestore), Sebastian Sylwan (Weta Digital), Xavier Nicolas (Lucasfilm Animation), Thilo Kuther (Pixomondo) and Christian Roberton (MPC).

Open Source Software

Dan Candela, director of Technology for Walt Disney Animation Studios, will be joined by industry veterans from other studios, top software vendors, and leaders of independent open source projects, for a timely and informative track that will illuminate the current status and promising future of open source software.

With many of Hollywood's top studios continuing to make significant contributions to open source projects, there is a world of opportunities and possibilities for sharing and advancing technology for the benefit of the entire industry.

This track will explore a wide range of topics related to open source software and discover what lessons have been learned to date from successes and failures. Questions being asked include: What business environment contributes to adoption of and contribution to open source in this industry? How do vendors view the increase in open source projects?  Where will the state of open source be in five years? Valuable perspectives will come from a panel of distinguished experts, including Rob Bredow (Sony Pictures Imageworks), Dan Candela (Walt Disney Animation), Larry Gritz (Sony Pictures Imageworks), Philipe Leprince (Double Negative), Phil Parsonage (The Foundry), Marc Petit (Autodesk), Bill Polson (Pixar) and Sebastian Sylwan (Weta Digital).

Focus on: France and Chinese Animation

Each year FMX recognises the unique successes and achievements that have taken place in particular regions. The Focus on France is curated by Yann Marchet and Olivier-René Veillon from ParisFX - one of our associated festivals taking place annually in Paris; their selection of production companies will highlight the developments and achievements of the French market.

Kevin Geiger, President & CEO of Magic Dumpling Entertainment and FMX Program board member will host the Focus on Chinese Animation.

Animation Media Cluster Region Stuttgart

Stuttgart is now one of the most prominent regions in Germany for animation and visual effects production. MFG Baden-Wuerttemberg will present their cluster of studios and special effects houses, the Animation Media Cluster Region Stuttgart. Contributions include Pixomondo's latest TV endeavour, "Hindenburg" produced by RTL and directed by Philipp Kadelbach.