Writeup about Proof, inc. in the Los Angeles Times this week/release dates for 2014

The Los Angeles Times has a nice writeup today of Proof, inc, the previsualization company where I am currently working on the upcoming film, Night of the Museum 3.:

Los Angeles Times: Previsualization firm Proof helps filmmakers plan for complex scenes

Be sure to look out for Night of the Museum 3 in theaters when it releases on December 19, 2014.

If you are interested to know where else you can see some of the fun projects I've worked on recently, here is a rundown for the release dates in 2014 (bold = available to see now):

300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE   In movie theaters NOW. Released March 9, 2014. (uncredited)

DIVERGENT   In movie theaters NOW. Released March 21, 2014.

DESPICABLE ME: MINION MAYHEM   theme park ride, in 3D. Open NOW at the Universal Studios theme parks in Los Angeles and Orlando, Florida.

GODZILLA   opens in theaters May 16, 2014.

X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST   opens in theaters May 23, 2014.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES   opens in theaters August 8, 2014.

THE MAZE RUNNER   opens in theaters September 19, 2014.

NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 3: SECRET OF THE TOMB   opens in theaters December 19, 2014

It's good to be busy. Be sure to check back to this blog for updates with details on what I worked on within each project. Keep in mind that, due to confidentiality agreements, I am not able to write about anything that is not already public knowledge. That said, please come back often and please leave comments when you do!

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem coming to Los Angeles Spring 2014

New billboards are up in LA.

After winning an Annie Award, a VES award, and having a successful opening at the Universal Studios theme park in Orlando, the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem ride I helped previs is now coming to my city. After seeing the Hollywood Universal Studios last summer, I am definitely looking forward to returning to finally check out this 3D ride the way it was meant to be experienced. I hope you do too.

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem to Open at Universal Studios, Hollywood in 2014

Well this is nice to hear. The Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem ride I worked on--which is running now at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL--apparently is planned to open right here in Hollywood for next year. This means I'll be able to see my work as it was intended! Here's the news article, and here are other times I've written about the VES award-winning ride.

Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem wins a VES Award

The theme park ride I worked on two years ago, Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem, won a Visual Effects Society Award last night for 'Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project.' Congratulations to the 'Despicable Me' team at The Third Floor, inc. and to the team at Illumination Entertainment, including award recipients Heather Drummons, Joel Friesch, Troy Griffin, and Chris Hummel. One of these days I'd love to see the ride in person...

Click here for earlier Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem posts.

2013 Annie Awards

The Annie Awards were held here in town tonight at UCLA. Wreck-It Ralph received Best Animated Feature, and two projects I worked on at The Third Floor also won: The Avengers, for Visual Effects in a Live Action Production (awarded to ILM); and the Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem theme park ride won for Animated Special Production (awarded to Illumination). Congratulations to the people at those companies who saw those projects through to a successful end! It was a lot of fun to be involved with each of them.

Now I've got to start seeing all those great films! Deadline has the full list of Annie winners here.

Despicable Me "Minion Mayhem" ride opens at Universal Studios in Orlando, FL

"Minion Mayhem," the Despicable Me 3D ride at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, is the latest project I worked on through The Third Floor, and it opened earlier this month. Unlike the movies I have been a part of, where I helped previsualize an assortment of individual shots, this theme park ride was essentially one continuous shot, animated by several Third Floor animators. It was a unique challenge, and my first chance at animating some really cartoony characters. Having worked with motion capture and keyframed almost exclusively realistic human motion for over a decade, it is hard to overstate how much of a breath of fresh air it was to work with this type of material.

NBC's Today Show recently visited the theme park to see the ride in person, and here is the video segment they made about it (you can catch glimpses of the parts I helped animate at 0:46, 1:16, and 1:21). The final animation did a great job of matching the very particular timing and blocking we established, and including dynamic background elements and detailed sets. The main chunk I worked on was the ending, but of course that part was not in the video. If it's anything like how the rest of the ride ended up, it will be bright, colorful, and lots of fun. For the readers of this blog who are able to see the ride, I hope you enjoy it.