Curious to know regarding what is World VFX Day? What should you do on this iconic day to celebrate it?
As the name suggests, it is a celebration of Visual Effects. 2023 is the first year of this exclusive annual AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comic) event.
Check out this comprehensive guide and blog article regarding the same. But, before going ahead, lets dwell into the history of it. Knowing this will provide you a holistic information about this first of its kind VFX event.
What is VFX?
VFX stands for Visual Effects.
At its core, VFX is the art of manipulating and enhancing the live action shooting plates. It is coined for all the awesome and breathtaking visual effects. It’s a magic that brings imagination to life on screen, creating awe-inspiring worlds, characters, and experiences that would otherwise be impossible to capture.
Today, VFX has become an integral part of modern filmmaking and various formats of video production. They are used in almost every genre, from science fiction and fantasy to superhero films and dramas. It can be used to create everything from realistic action sequences to fantastical creatures and environments. It have also made a significant economic contribution to the entertainment industry, creating jobs and generating revenue.
It is a collaborative art which encompasses pre production, production and post production artists. Each artist and technician contributes his/her specific skills to execute one shot. From concept designers and 3D modelers to compositors and colorists, every individual plays a crucial role in bringing the visual magic to life.
What is World VFX Day?
It is a global initiative that recognizes the artistry and innovation of Visual Effects in the Media & Entertainment industry. It is a day to acknowledge the talented people who create these amazing effects, and to inspire others to pursue careers in the said field.
Hayley Miller is the founder of the World VFX Day event. He has been supported by various Animation and Visual Effects studios and veteran industry artists. The goal of this event is to create awareness of how VFX artists works to create gigantic and blockbuster movies, web series, ads and many other broadcasting formats. The online event will showcase unseen behind the scenes and making of. There are also knowledge based contents including tutorials, interviews, giveaways and more.
From novice artist to a professional artist, this event has something for everyone.
Left to Right: Alwyn Hunt (The Rookies); Simon Deveraux (Access: VFX, Framestore); Hayley Miller (Event Founder); Ian Failes (VFX Journalist); Saint Walker (Escape Studios)
So, in a nutshell, we devote this date to celebrate the incredible art form of Visual Effects.
What is the celebration date of World VFX Day?
VFX have a long and rich history, dating back to the early days of filmmaking. In the 1890s, Georges Méliès, a French filmmaker, pioneered the use of special effects to create fantastical worlds and illusions. His films, such as “A Trip to the Moon” and “The Great Train Robbery,” were groundbreaking and helped to establish VFX as an essential tool for storytelling.
The celebration date of World VFX Day is 8th December, Friday 2023.
Why this specific date? Because it is the birthday of Georges Méliès.
Itinerary of the World VFX Day – free virtual event (in form of webinars)
As name suggests, it is a free online event which will get live on YouTube. It will be streamed from 9 am to 7 pm (CEST – Central European Summer Time). Please convert it to timezone of your country.
This is the YouTube link of live streaming of World VFX Day. It is hosted on Hugo’s Desk from Hugo Guerra (Director and VFX Supervisor). He is also the co-host of this event.
The detailed list of presentations are as follows.
| Sr. No. | Time (GMT) | Presenters |
| 01 | 08.00 | WELCOME: By Hayley Miller (World VFX Day) and Hugo Guerra (Hugo’s Desk). |
| 02 | 08.05 | NO CGI IS JUST INVISIBLE CGI: A talk with Ian Failes – Editor, Befores & Afters and Jonas Ussing – VFX Supervisor, Space Office VFX. |
| 03 | 08.30 | FINDING YOUR PLACE IN VFX: Join The Rookies Co-Founder, Alwyn Hunt, to explore opportunities in VFX. This talk is tailored towards students and non-professionals. |
| 04 | 09.00 | THE POWER OF MENTORING: Join Simon Devereux – Founder of ACCESS: VFX, and special guests, for a talk on how you can become and mentor or mentee, and learn about the benefits. |
| 05 | 09.30 | KEY MOMENTS IN VFX HISTORY: A talk with Ian Failes – Editor, Befores & Afters and Paul Franklin – VFX Supervisor, DNEG. |
| 06 | 10.00 | USING OCEAN TOOLS: Join Tommy Hinks – Lead Research at Important Looking Pirates for a talk on the tools they use for ocean modelling on many projects. |
| 07 | 10.30 | VFX IN JAPAN: A talk about visual effects in Asia, with Jeffrey Dilinger and Christopher Rodo, Megalis. |
| 08 | 11.00 | VFX IN SOUTH EAST ASIA: Join Bad Clay CEO for on visual effects in South East Asia. |
| 09 | 11.30 | MEGA TRAINING SHOWCASE: Find out what some of the world’s top VFX training schools have to say about their courses and resources. A presentation with Saint Walker. |
| 10 | 12.00 | LOKI S2 VFX SHOWCASE: Join Christopher Smallfield and Gero Grimm (Trixter) on ‘The Loom of Time & Disintegrating Space Suits’ on Loki Season 2. |
| 11 | 12.30 | SUSTAINABILITY, EQUITY, DIVERSITY & REPRESENTATION: Join Neha Hooda – EP at PixStone Images for a talk on how a creators’ journey extends beyond the creative, in an era of storytelling that transcends borders. |
| 12 | 13.00 | MIND MAPPING:CONCEPTUALISM OF LIGHT: Join Victor Perez – Director & VFX Supervisor for a talk on the creative process behind his study of light. |
| 13 | 13.30 | UNREAL EXPECTIONS: Filmmaking with game engine technology: Tim Webber – CCO, Framestore, uses short film, FLITE, to explain how they made the VFX process less linear and how this can be used at scale to create high-quality, cinematic visuals. |
| 14 | 14.00 | A CREATIVE JOURNEY IN VIRTUAL PRODUCTION: Join Freddy Chavez Olmos – DGC Director & Creative Director for Al at Boxel Studio to find out about their short film using Al, machine-learning and realtime engines in filmmaking. |
| 15 | 14.30 | VIRTUAL PRODUCTION: SCRIPT TO SCREEN: Join Fausto Tejeda – VFX Supervisor and Mujia Liao – Head of Virtual Art Department, Pixomondo, for their talk on the process in using VP from pre-production to final edit. |
| 16 | 15.00 | GIVE BACK AND GET MORE: Dédy Bilamba – Co-Founder, AfroVFX, hosts a talk with Mélanie Pango – 3D Animator, ex-MPC, Abdou Sako – FX Artist, Framestore, and Heldden Byumvuhore – HR & DEI Specialist (ex Digital Domain), on training students in Africa. |
| 17 | 15.30 | VFX INTERVIEW PREP: Q&A: PXL Talent consultants, Ros Webb and Marcus Wells, use their expertise and insider knowledge from the VFX industry to answer your job interview questions. |
| 18 | 16.00 | WHAT’S WITH ALL THE CGI HATE?: Hugo Guerra from Hugo’s Desk talks about the source of the recent media CGI backlash, why it’s a significant problem plaguing the VFX industry and his suggested solutions. |
| 19 | 16.30 | TAPPING INTO TURTLEMANIA: Join Animation Supervisor Eric Cheung as he delves into the intricate process of bringing the epic teen adventure to life, from the early stages of animation to the final polished film. |
| 20 | 17.00 | WHAT’S NEXT FOR VFX?: Ghost VFX and Ingenuity Studios President David Lebensfeld discusses the post-strike landscape, and what’s next. Interviewed by Dan Sarto – Co-Founder, AWN.com. |
| 21 | 17.30 | MINES OF MANDALORE: Join Mark Dubeau, Chris Morley, Phil Tippett, Corey Rosen (Tippett Studio) and Cameron Nielsen (ILM) for a talk on how they used physical/miniature sets and props to design and build the Mandalore underground. |
| 22 | 18.00 | SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE: Alan Hawkins – Head of Character Animation, Sony Pictures Imageworks will present animation breakdowns on two key characters from this well-loved movie. |
| 23 | 18.30 | RETURN TO NORMAL: Join Charles Jeyakumar – Select VFX, Clare Cheetham – Coffee & TV, David Lebensfeld – Ghost/Ingenuity, Laurens Ehrmann – The Yard, Solene Collon – UFX Studios and Sophie Maydon, PXL Talent to discuss what’s next for VFX. |
Itinerary of the World VFX Day – physical event
On 8th December, Friday 2023 the WVD will be hosted at the HFF Munich.
- If you are near by Munich, you can visit HFF (Bernd-Eichinger-Platz 1, 80333 Munich, Germany).
- If not, you can join the live streaming on YouTube.
During the day time, the live online event will be streamed in the cinema of HFF.
From 19.00 GMT, AFTER PARTY will start. Participants are Belo FX, BeyondFX, CASO, CGEV, Dare Planet, Digital Domain, Entropy Studio, Glassworks, Goodbye Kansas, 11W Studio, Lola Post, Mavericks VFX, MINIMO, Mojo FX, Televisor, Tronatic Studio, UnionFX, VFX Workshop, X Reality and more.
How to participate?
Be a part of this CGI revolution. Do use #worldvfxday hashtag and tag @worldvfxday on various social media platforms to show your support for VFX. You can showcase your work / demoreel.
For more details, please visit the official website.