Oscar Picks: Visual Effects

if you haven't figured out yet, i like movies. i love movies. and even though the Oscars are kind of big load of shit, it's kind of fun to watch and guess what a bunch of stuffed shirts think should be awarded for artisitc merit in film for a given year. this year we're lucky, because the "blockbusters" blew, and a lot of independent features are getting recognition. so i'm going to give my predictions in the days leading up to the Oscars on March 3.

so there are three movies nominated for Achievement in Visual Effects:

• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe
• King Kong
• War of the Worlds
  

My prediction is King Kong. the simple fact of the matter is that like LucasFilm in the late 70s, 80s and 90s, the WETA Workshop presents the cutting edge in digital effects right now. Peter Jackson and his cohorts have such an eye for detail that even their fantastic creations in the Lord of the Rings seemed real and life-like. one of the things they have figured out is how to render CGI characters as very realistic by having a real person act out the part of the CGI character in the film. As with Gollum in LotR, Andy Serkis once again helped WETA by playing the part of Kong himself. no one else has managed to make such realistic CGI characters yet. so to me, the award is WETA's (and Kong's) to lose.

Tomorrow: Achievements in Sound Mixing and Sound Editing