The Different Types of Visuals Effects in Movies

Over the last few years, visual effects technology has advanced. Sometimes, it is unfathomable to think that in 1975, Steven Spielberg had to use a mechanical malfunctioning shark in his film Jaws. Oh, how the times have changed since then. Now, you see mind-blowing visual effects in films.

Directors have all the tools available to them to create magnificent visual effects to provide the audience with a visually pleasing movie. With the help from 3D design companies, they are able to create photo realistic characters and settings.

The audience has gotten so used to seeing visual effects, grander then the next one that their expectation from movies and the visual effects department has increased. Even though movies try to push the boundaries from time to time, seeing a movie actually do that is quite rare.

For now, movies stick to using three renowned visual effects techniques, CGI or digital animation, matte paintings, live action effects, and motion capture effects.

The Four Different Types of Visual Effect Techniques Employed by Movies

Normally, you will see visual effects added to the movie during the post-production stage. There are some visual effects such as a car explosion, which are created while the actors and director are on set.

Whether visual effects are created during production or pre-production stage, the director at both times needs to carefully plan and execute each visual effect.  Here is a list of the four most commonly used visual effects in movies:

1.      CGI or Digital Animation

Digital animation includes particle effects, modeling (creating a 3D structure using a visual effect program), ray tracing, and CGI or computer generated imagery. These types of visual effects can be placed either in the shot or by itself. The titles you see when the movie begins or ends are created using digital animation.

2.      Matte Paintings

Matte paintings go through 3D rendering to create the visual effect. This is a very old technique, which also goes by the name of in-camera visual effects. Today, directors hire 3D rendering companies to create the background of the scene. If directors did not use this technique, it would cost them a lot of money. Can you imagine the director building an entire roman empire? To avoid going over budget, they use this technique to build cities and structures that would otherwise be impossible, not to mention expensive to make.

3.      Live Action Visual Effects

Live action visual effects use a blue or green chroma key screen to film scenes. The 3D artist during the pre-production stage adds the background and other elements to the scene.

4.      Visual Effects Software

Another common and inexpensive way to add effects to the movie is through visual effects software.

5.      Motion Capture 

Motion capture or Mo-cap is a visual effects process, which was used in Avatar. It records the movement and facial expressions of the actors in the movie. Tiny dots are placed on the actor’s face, which then capture all the motion. It can also capture the movement of the props in the film.

Which visual effects impressed you the most? Visual effects have always been the reason most people anticipate going to the theater to watch a film.