Five Questions with… director Steven Wagner, Astropolitan

We are finishing up some VFX tests for an original TV pilot pitch package.
"proof of concept" type of stuff. It is a youth-driven, action adventure
sci-fi piece, and the visuals and story are very interwoven.

2. What have you found is the best tool or innovation that has come out
in the last year?

Although it is still in "stealth mode," and only being used by a handful of
studios (including us), I'd have to say Shotgun software. It is a web-based
information system that is especially useful to animation or VFX-heavy
productions. It allows a crew to access and share all vital project data –
it goes far beyond asset management and is quite revolutionary. I believe
they are planning to release late this year.

Other than that, the V3HD from MOTU – that thing is cool.

3. The project (film, television, commercial or music video) that most
impressed you in the last year? Why?

Well overall the music video world has gotten a bit boring to me, however I
loved the Modest Mouse "Dashboard" clip by Motion Theory. I am attracted to
pieces that use sophisticated digital tools and techniques to create a
hybrid look. Also, just caught that Chemical Brothers "The Salmon Dance"
video; CFC's work is just amazing. Their mastery of CG shaders and lighting
is always a treat.

Certainly, for someone who has done so much "virtual set" production, "300"
was noteworthy. I understand why the nerds liked it, but I was especially
impressed by the audiences' adoption of such a stylized piece. Vividly
illustrates that a generation raised on music videos, are fine with
segmented, montage-driven storytelling. I also liked the French animation
production "Renaissance". I think this did a better job than Rodriguez at
bringing to life the Frank Miller "Sin City" look.

As far as commercials – anything with that damn Nasonex ® bee. It gives me
nightmares every time I see it.

Wait, sorry, that wasn't one thing – pick one.

4. The best or favorite project that you worked on in the past year? And
why?

Well, we have been in a creative gestation period for about 9 months
developing our own material. One of the projects is an animated kids CGI
production meant exclusively for Hi-Def DVD. It is not a traditional
feature with story or characters, instead it creates an immersive
environment. It has been very rewarding working on conceptual art with Kirk
Henderson (former ILM VFX Concept Artist) and bringing some cool critters to
life. It's the best time for a director because it's all about
possibilities and not restrictions.

5. Name the top 4 artists on your iPod?

Skinny Puppy
Interpol
Metric
John Carpenter: The Fog soundtrack

(too dark for a guy trying to make children's programming? Nah…)

Production company
Astropolitan Pictures, Inc. celebrates its ten-year anniversary this
month by releasing its groundbreaking music video So To Speak for the
first time in full high definition on website Vuze. Winner of a
Visual Effects Society award for best visual effects in a music video
in 2002, the clip was the first music video to be shot and finished
in 24p high definition. The video is featured on Vuse at the
following link:

www.vuze.com/details/V5KXNFXOGTQ5U7C6HNHRS5BPO4TW2D5L.html

"This video was always meant to be experienced in hi-def," says
director Steven L. Wagner. "It is laden with detail, and is meant to
be an immersive experience. Thanks to the Vuze website, and their
powerful Azureus peer-to-peer (P2P) sharing application, viewers can
finally have access to the video the way it was meant to be seen, in
full HD resolution."

Produced independently by Wagner and his partner, VFX supervisor
Andrew Honacker, the video was an underdog, up against elite music
videos by Linkin Park and Will Smith for the VES award. "The
elegance of this piece set it apart from the competition," Honacker
recalls. "It really is an excellent example of digital tools
creating a unique look, rather than the standard sci-fi eye candy."
The small team (which included CG Supervisor Talon Nightshade,
Texture Artist Daniel Bigelow, and Animator/Designer Sean Capone)
combined motion capture with on-set bluescreen plate photography,
years before larger studios were applying the technique to
blockbuster features. A number of the environments began as
miniatures that were photographed and then rebuilt in 3D with the aid
of RealViz ImageModeler. The production relied on a combination of
Autodesk's 3ds Max and Maya, Adobe After Effects, and Final Cut Pro
for the 24p edit.

"It is astounding how far the Hi-Def format, and the technology
surrounding it, has come in five years," Wagner relays. "Using
Apple's Compressor 3 and the H.264 codec, we can finally output an
excellent HD compressed version of the video, that still retains
detail. We took a huge risk creatively and financially producing the
project at this resolution, however it's great to know that so many
years later it still remains current because of that choice."

Shortly after So To Speak hit the airwaves on MTV2, legendary ILM VFX
wizard Steve "Spaz" Williams (T2, Jurassic Park) and Producer Clint
Goldman nabbed the Astropolitan duo to help set up a preproduction
lab for their Walt Disney CGI animated feature The Wild. Honacker
assembled and supervised a 15-person previz animation team, while
Wagner designed an innovative 5-station Apple FCP-based editorial
department. This made it the first fully CGI animated feature to be
edited with the software. Honacker describes, "Disney had never done
things that way before. We entered the picture as mavericks using
techniques that we had perfected as a small boutique studio. They
opened their eyes once we started producing results."

Over the last year, Astropolitan has turned its attention to the
original content field. "We're looking for strategic partners, and
open to working with other creative teams that want to realize their
own material," says Wagner. The duo are currently in talks to develop
a sci-fi TV pilot, a series of children's hi-def DVDs, and a CG
animated adaptation of a classic arcade game.