Sunday, May 06, 2012

A Site You Should Know: Matte Shot

The magic of special effects is what drove the creation of this blog, but it's seldom updated and focuses on only one aspect of the special effects world. Miniatures were one of the original special effects options to filmmakers and they have a long history. Likewise, the art of the matte painting has deep roots in the special effects world as well - and no one catalogs or enshrines a love of the art of matte painting like "NZPete," the anonymous blogger behind the blog Matte Shot.

If you want a definition of "labor of love," just spend some time browsing this site and check out the copious number of screenshots taken from Golden Age films showing the artistry of well-know and unknown artists who allowed Hollywood to bring magic to the screen. I have spent hours on this site and have a much deeper appreciation for the art of the matte than ever.

And even though the mattes are center stage, special effects in general often enter into the scene, including miniatures. A great example of this is this entry on the Lydecker brothers:

Big Boys Toys: Howard and Theodore Lydecker's Miniature Wonderland

This blog is a worthwhile stopover for the film miniature lover and a great addition to the knowledge and appreciation of "old-school" special effects methods and technology.

It's art, it's science, it's wonderful!

Matte Shot: A Tribute to Golden Era Special FX

1 comment:

NZPete said...

Thanks so much for this great 'thumbs up' for my site, Matte Shot - I do appreciate it. I also appreciate the work you're doing here with miniatures - a job well done.
I often include miniature Fx shots in some blog articles, especially my War Movie SFX blog and others such as Earthquake, 30 Seconds Over Tokyo (a must see) etc.

Keep up the good work.

Peter