Force Awakens Prop Falcon at SWCA...FM?

Agreed, it was probably rushed due to time constraints. It's a great look behind the scenes.

It's just such such a stark contrast to seeing the amazing builds of the same model built by forum members here. There are tons of missing parts, rough paintjob etc.

Vos mentioned there were 10 other quick sketch models- I'd love to see more of those. And hear more tidbits like that...
 
I would say almost certainly not. I am a visual effects artist for a living, and miniature spaceships are simply not done anymore, and really haven't been done in over a decade except for the recent Interstellar. Almost every spacecraft you have seen in the past decade is a CG render. Models are built for conceptualizing, but very rarely for actual VFX shot work, again, Interstellar being the only notable exception I can think of.

Not to derail the conversation, but... As far as spaceship models go, unfortunately you might be right, spaceship models aren't used much anymore. But, as far as other miniatures, for actual on screen VFX work, miniatures are still used.
 
:) Absolutely not. They were just quick sketch models built for art department discussions/proof of concept. VFX have great digital assets of the Falcon.

Lots of Falcon models in various set ups were quickly built for meetings... sometimes with half a day notice and some went in the bin. The quickest option was to utilise the FM kit.

The X-Wing was also a very quick build... done as the drawings were still in flux, hence the lack of detail in places. This is one of two made. It looks like the armature might be shagged on this one though. Shame.

We really wish that we could have gone to town on the models and created assets like Lorne and his guys did back in the good old days, but those times are gone. :-(

Cool,....that must have been a dream come true,...for me life couldn't get better than that!!!

......so.....in all honesty.....do you think the FM Falcon seen at the celebration was used on screen?

Would there be any use for the VFX guys to film such a tiny model?

J
 
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Very cool, Vos and Astro! I'm just saddened to hear that it's really the end of miniature ships for filming (actually I thought those props from John Carter made it on-screen). I was hoping for a combination of real models to complement the CGI because that's what Kathleen Kennedy promised as I read somewhere -- that they were bringing in real modelers. CGI makes the ships achieve movements not easily possible with real models but physical models make them look real. Plus they draw crowds to the exhibits -- just as the real 5-footer model does to this day. I wonder -- had the Hero Hasbro come out earlier -- would they have considered dressing one up. It would have been light enough to mount and film and cheap enough to bang up in crashes, etc.
 
I love models, but I am ok with them not being used in VFX anymore. A CGI Millennium Falcon CAN be made to look 100% real, if you have the time and budget. Shoddy CG happens when a shop has to do 1000 shots in 6 months. No one appreciates the time and care you must put into a CGI shot to make it really convincing. If ILM is given ample time and resources on their CG Falcon shots, there should be no reason why it won't look as good as a miniature. Rendering software today can perfectly mimic the way real light and materials work. It used to be about a lot of cheats and cutting corners, but that is not so much true today. Brute force light tracing will yield an extremely realistic image.
 
yep

I have no idea about the dish :( i am guessing 3d printed

Great to have you here Astro

& the utmost respect to you & Vos

.....Vos was saying that several Falcons were made, were you in a team making them? ......That must have been some sight ,....a tower of those huge boxes

J
 
To be honest this model took a fair amount of time to build and was rushed out for meetings etc. sadly things like landing gear get missed :(

Definitely a privilege to have you here Astro!!
It's only if you were going to look up really close that you would be able to see the bits missing.....and even then, only Falcon obsessives like us would ever know hehehe

PS how's about getting me in on the production action eh eh eh?? ;)
 
Great to have you here Astro

& the utmost respect to you & Vos

.....Vos was saying that several Falcons were made, were you in a team making them? ......That must have been some sight ,....a tower of those huge boxes

J

I was :) It was a great thing to work on and a childhood dream of mine, plus working with Vos was a great.

I would love to tell you more but i guess i will have to wait till Dec, Hopefully a lot more of are work will feature in the art book.
 
Definitely a privilege to have you here Astro!!
It's only if you were going to look up really close that you would be able to see the bits missing.....and even then, only Falcon obsessives like us would ever know hehehe

PS how's about getting me in on the production action eh eh eh?? ;)

Ha ha ha you never know

The falcon is a pretty cool ship but for me its all about the snow speeder! I watched ESB so many times as a kid, mostly because the battle was at the start :) still my fav till this day
 
I was :) It was a great thing to work on and a childhood dream of mine, plus working with Vos was a great.

I would love to tell you more but i guess i will have to wait till Dec, Hopefully a lot more of are work will feature in the art book.

No problem Astro,....I wouldn't have quizzed you anyway......well......until the film is released:D

I'm sure it was a dream,....I'd say many of us here wouldn't be building models if it weren't for the likes of yourself & Vos,....Star Wars kicked it off big time for me

J
 
Thank you Astro and Vos for the great background insights. This explains a lot about little details I noticed on the models. nice to have you two around. :D:cool
 
Yeah, I realize that now, DanielB. There have been great strides in technology and the skills of the CG modelers, no doubt - the ships look pretty impressive in the trailers so their efforts are very much appreciated. It's really great to have you in our midst, Vos and Astro -- but hope you don't get frustrated with the Falcon-nitpicking -- die-hards abound here and models are examined to the atom, heheh. I do want to build a model of the EpVII Falcon with the rectangular dish someday --- and it looks like the Bandai release is just around the corner.
 
Yeah, I realize that now, DanielB. There have been great strides in technology and the skills of the CG modelers, no doubt - the ships look pretty impressive in the trailers so their efforts are very much appreciated. It's really great to have you in our midst, Vos and Astro -- but hope you don't get frustrated with the Falcon-nitpicking -- die-hards abound here and models are examined to the atom, heheh. I do want to build a model of the EpVII Falcon with the rectangular dish someday --- and it looks like the Bandai release is just around the corner.

......I know I'm a nitpicker:D

....cant help myself,.....sorry


(on my headstone it'll probably say..."was that the 5 footer or the 32 inch")

J
 
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