Contents State of the Art: A Cinefex 25th Anniversary Forum: Cinefex marks the occasion of its 100th issue with a probing 'roundtable' discussion of the past, present and future of visual effects by more than 50 of the industry's leading effects practitioners. Filled with insightful observations from those who have been in the trenches, pushing effects technology to new and dazzling heights over the years, the article also offers color reproductions of every Cinefex cover to date. Edited by Jody Duncan. Interviews by Don Shay & Joe Fordham.

The Polar Express: A Dream of Christmas: For his adaption of the award-winning children's book by Chris Van Allsburg, about a young boy who embarks on a journey to the North Pole on a phantom locomotive, director Robert Zemeckis pulls out all the stops in The Polar Express. Entirely computer generated, the film relies on new and innovative techniques in performance capture and rendering to retain the charm and artistic vision of Van Allsburg's classic tale. Spearheading the effort were Oscar-winning visual effects veteran Ken Ralston and supervisor Jerome Chen, working with a team at Sony Pictures Imageworks. Article by Joe Fordham.

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events: A Series of Persnickety Effects: Trouble looms around every corner for the Baudelaire orphans in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, directed by Brad Silberling and based on the first three installments in the immensely popular children's book series. Industrial Light & Magic led the visual effects effort, providing some 500 shots for the production that ranged from digital matte paintings and models of the Baudelaire mansion to a CG version of the youngest Baudelaire, baby Sunny. Makeups for Jim Carrey as the evil Count Olaf, whose schemes to claim the orphans' inheritance entail an elaborate series of disguises, were designed and implemented by Bill Corso. Article by Jody Duncan.

Contents State of the Business: A Cinefex 25th Anniversary Forum: Cinefex continues its visual effects forum, begun in Issue 100 as a 'roundtable discussion' on the state of the art. This time around, some 35 industry luminaries share their experiences and insights into the highly volatile nature of visual effects as a business. Their entertaining and often brutally frank assessments of the challenges they have encountered in the past and envision for the future are accompanied by cartoons from the portfolio of freelance visual effects supervisor John Van Vliet, whose witty observations on life in the visual effects trenches have earned him a devoted following. Article by Jody Duncan.

The Aviator: Angels and Demons: Exploring the untapped early years of famed aviator and industrialist Howard Hughes in The Aviator, director Martin Scorsese called upon Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor Rob Legato to oversee effects that involved the re-creation of historic aircraft and the reenactment of thrilling aerial sequences through a blending of contemporary digital technology with old-school in-camera filmmaking techniques. Heading up the digital work was Sony Pictures Imageworks and a handful of ancillary vendors, while miniatures were the purview of New Deal Studios, and full-scale effects were provided by special effects supervisor R. Bruce Steinheimer. Article by Joe Fordham.

Son of the Mask: Acme Effects: In a zany sequel to The Mask, the 1994 comedy hit that provided fertile ground for the comic contortions of actor Jim Carrey, Son of the Mask introduces an all-new plot and cast of characters, whose encounters with the transformative Mask wreak havoc on their household. Director Lawrence Guterman, in search of Chuck Jones-inspired animation and a classic cartoon aesthetic, turned to visual effects supervisor Jamie Price, and a team that included special effects supervisor Brian Cox, makeup effects and animatronics artists at Captive Audience Productions and animators at Tippett Studio, Industrial Light & Magic and nearly a dozen other digital vendors. Article by Joe Fordham.

Contents Star Wars Episode III Revenge Of The Sith: All the visual effects firepower of Industrial Light & Magic was applied to complete the final installment of the second Star Wars trilogy, in which writer-director George Lucas chronicles Anakin Skywalker's surrender to the dark side of the Force and the fall of the Galactic Republic.

Sin City: Maverick filmmaker Robert Rodriguez shares directing credit with Frank Miller in a cinematic adaptation of Miller's graphic novels about police officials hunting a street fighter on a rampage of violence. Makeup artists at KNB EFX and visual effects artists at Hybride and The Orphanage contributed to the film's future-noir look.

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy: Jim Henson's Creature Shop and the visual effects team at Cinesite apply their talents to the long-awaited big-screen adaptation of Douglas Adam's comic radio show and novel about a bewildered earthling stranded after the destruction of his home planet.

Constantine: Alan Moore's graphic novel, about a world-weary investigator of supernatural mysteries prone to walking a thin line between good and evil, is brought to the screen by director Francis Lawrence. Visual effects supervisor Michael Fink oversaw an assemblage of nine effects companies to bring the effects extravaganza to fruition.

Contents War of the Worlds: Alien Apocalypse: In War of the Worlds, a gritty, contemporary retelling of the 1950s George Pal film, adapted from the novel by H.G. Wells, director Steven Spielberg reunites with longtime collaborators at Industrial Light & Magic and actor/producer Tom Cruise to put a modern spin on the classic alien invasion story, told from a more intimate point of view. Working at breakneck speed to accommodate a compressed shooting and postproduction schedule, ILM crews, under senior visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren and visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman, took advantage of upgraded digital tools and a revamped pipeline to produce the fearsome army of extraterrestrial tripod war machines intent on destroying the world. Article by Joe Fordham

Batman Begins: Starting Over: Following an eight-year hiatus, D.C. Comics' masked crusader returns to the big screen in Batman Begins, directed by Christopher Nolan. For the newest installment, which traces the traumatic events of Wayne's childhood and his early adulthood as a means of exploring the psychological underpinnings of a superhero, Nolan rooted the film in a real-world sensibility that serves as a counterpoint to its comic book origins. Dan Glass and Janek Sirrs headed up the visual effects work, which included elaborate miniatures by Cutting Edge and Steve Begg, and digital effects by Double Negative, The Moving Picture Company and Buf Compagnie. Chris Corbould supervised the film's extensive physical effects, including a radically remodeled Batmobile. Article by Joe Fordham

Stealth: Gamer Cool: Director Rob Cohen once again demonstrates his penchant for visceral displays of speed in Stealth, a cautionary tale of technology run amuck in a not-too-distant-future where computer-controlled drone fighter jets are used in combat. For thrilling aerial scenes involving the drone and a fleet of futuristic stealth bombers, Cohen turned to a Digital Domain crew headed by visual effects supervisor Joel Hynek, tasked with creating digital planes and environments, as well as a host of miniature effects for the film. Physical effects supervisor John Frazier led the practical work, which included construction of an elaborate hydraulic gimbal enabling Cohen to shoot his actors in dynamically moving cockpits. Article by Jody Duncan

OVERVIEWS

Visual effects supervisor Kurt Williams discusses makeup and visual effects employed by a dozen vendors to create the superheroes and villains for director Tim Story's film adaptation of the Marvel Comics favorite, Fantastic Four.

Industrial Light & Magic visual effects supervisor Eric Brevig reteams with director Michael Bay to create futuristic effects for The Island, about two members of a clone community who discover that they have been bred and raised as involuntary organ donors.

Visual effects supervisor Nick Davis delves into the creation of Oompa Loompas and a fanciful candy factory for director Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Visual effects supervisor John Van Vliet goes behind-the-scenes with a discussion of the physical and visual effects needed to manufacture a Volkswagen with a mind of its own in Herbie: Fully Loaded.