Special effects or SFX are techniques used in the majority of films that enhance the audiences watching experience dramatically by allowing more realistic on screen illusions that are not possible to capture during the real filming. There are a wide range of special effects techniques ranging from the simplest ones like video transitions all the way to sophisticated CGI and more. SFX is important in the film production world as it usually helps to create the more interesting scenes in movies which ultimately attract and engage an audience. The more simple special effects like audio and visual transitions are crucial as they help to piece together a film, prior to editing the footage taken whilst filming looks unfinished and choppy therefore things such as transitions, filters, time lapse etc fill in gaps and ensure the footage flows. More complicated special effects not only consist of digital techniques but thing such as makeup are considered just as important in order to achieve the most realistic result they can. Special effects have been responsible for some of the most widely recognised film scenes such as the T rex from 'Jurassic Park' which was created using animatronics and CGI to achieve the frightening result we all recognize, furthermore the bullet dodging scene in The Matrix created the "bullet time" visual effects which creates the illusion of freezing time whilst the camera continues to move around the subject, forever changing how action sequences were filmed. Special effects are crucial in enhancing audio visual content and the evidence is clear in products. for example practical effects such as miniatures and models which are used to create eye catching things like landscapes, cities and spaceships, 'The Blade Runner' used extremely detailed miniature sets in order to depict a dystopian future Los Angeles. Puppetry and animatronics involve the controlled use of puppets or robotic devices in order to bring creatures and characters to life, therefore enhancing the experience for an audience as the result is indistinguishable from real life. Makeup and prosthetics consist of professionally trained makeup artists doing things such as making people appear significantly more aged or even at the extreme end turning someone into an extra-terrestrial being etc. Finally digital effects are just as important amongst the filming world, examples of techniques are things such as motion capture which captures the movement of actors and translates them into digital characters, Andy Serkis used this technique in the film "The Lord Of The Rings" whilst creating the character Gollum. Green screen and chroma key allow you to replace the backdrop of a scene with digital imagery, Star Wars is a key example of green screen and chroma key use as they managed to create many galactic scenes, Avatar is also a good example as they used is a lot to create jungle and ocean backdrops. Without the use of many of the stated techniques filmmakers would struggle severely to achieve the results which have gained them there success within the industry, although for many viewers the use of special effects never crosses their mind despite it ultimately being the backbone to producing a good film and enhancing all the other aspects of the movies story and appearance.
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