Not sure if you guys have heard of these news, but Rhythm & Hues, the studio most responsible for the CGI in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, making Aslan and most of the other CG creatures like the Gryphons, Fauns, Satyrs, etc. sadly had to file for bankruptcy, despite their success and awards, having been nominated for an academy award for LWW and winning it for their work on The Golden Compass and most recently, Life of Pi.
There is also a bit of controversy that came up, because just as they were going to talk about their financial difficulty in their academy awards acceptance speech for Life of Pi, their microphones were just cut off, causing an uproar amongst VFX professionals.
Honestly it's a bit sad to see to see a great studio which has done so amazing and successful work fail like this, despite winning an award at the same time they had to file for bankruptcy and being subsequently censored.
That's a shame. Money sucks. : / I didn't see Life of Pi, but I saw the previews, and visually, it looked incredible. Thanks, Rhythm & Hues, for bringing Aslan to life for me in the most realistic way I've ever seen.
With an academy award for Life of Pi still fresh I bet it won't take too much effort for these talented folks to get picked up by other studios. That said, it is truly a shame
Short Story Sculptor Blog:
Bedtime Stories and Fairytales
With an academy award for Life of Pi still fresh I bet it won't take too much effort for these talented folks to get picked up by other studios.
The industry as a whole is in trouble, that's the problem. Rhythm & Hues is the tip of the iceberg. In a nutshell, the market is oversaturated and it's difficult for VFX houses in the United States to balance finding jobs in movies and getting paid enough since in most cases it's cheaper to outsource the work.
Rythm & Hues was auctioned off recently:
Well, at least it's in the hands of somebody right now. I remember thinking that Aslan and the Centaurs in LWW were the most amazing things ever when I was eight. They seemed so real to me.
I haven't see Life of Pi, but it looks spectacular.