Press Release #5

Fine Animation, Superhero Misfits
and a Make-up Effects Live-Session

Press Release #5 | For immediate publication

Stuttgart/Germany, February 14, 2025.

The great revelation draws near: The FMX Program will go public in early March. Meanwhile, the conference has some thrilling news to announce.

Longtime FMX curator Ian Failes (Sydney) has come up with some exceptional treats. Shelley Page, Head of Talent at Locksmith Animation (London), will bring her finely curated program of the latest animated shorts to the conference - there are no better sweets than "Shelley's Eye Candy"! Both are members of the FMX Program Board.

FMX is now open for interview requests. If you'd like to get some answers from our speakers about the latest in media creation art and technology, please get in touch with FMX Interview Coordinator Nicola Steller: nicola.steller@fmx.de.

We're very happy to announce, that the AMCRS, the thriving VFX and animation community in and around Stuttgart, will be a partner of FMX again.

THEN & NOW: VFX deep dive with true experts

Ian Failes, editor-in-chief of "befores & afters" magazine, has planned four very special sessions. They touch on completely different aspects of VFX art, both historical and contemporary.

Find more information on Ian here.

Jake Morrison and a scene from "Thunderbolts*" starring Florence Pugh and David Harbour. © Marvel/Disney

VFX supervisor Jake Morrison shares VFX secrets of "Thunderbolts*"

Marvel Studios' "Thunderbolts*", from director Jake Schreier, tells the story of depressed assassin Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) alongside the MCU’s latest band of misfits.

To share how the old-school and new-school visual effects for the film were achieved, production visual effects supervisor Jake Morrison will sit down with Ian Failes for this in-depth discussion.

They will dissect the approach to the VFX, including for specific scenes, revealing behind the scenes of the planning, shoot, and execution of the film’s biggest moments. You will also get a chance to ask Morrison about how he shepherded visual effects teams from around the world to make "Thunderbolts*".

Begoña Fernández Martín and two of her models © Begoña Fernández Martín

Make-up effects artist Begoña Martín to conduct a demo live on stage

In this special THEN & NOW session, special make-up effects artist Begoña Martín will transform a volunteer live on stage at FMX using make-up effects and prosthetics. You’ll be able to get up close and personal with this practical make-up effects work, and ask Begoña about her process as she works.

Ian Failes will also be on hand to chat to Begoña about her career. Plus, as a special bonus during the week, Begoña will be doing live make-up effects demonstrations on the FMX floor at her booth.

VFX Supervisor Stefen Fangmeier and a glimpse into the production of "The Perfect Storm". © Stefen Fangmeier/ILM

Celebrating 25 years of "The Perfect Storm"

The visual effects task on Wolfgang Petersen’s ‘The Perfect Storm’ (released in 2000) was monumental — placing real men on a fishing trawler against the fiercest of storms, and even one 100 foot wave.

It would require the latest fluid simulation R&D and artistry from Industrial Light & Magic, overseen by visual effects supervisor Stefen Fangmeier.

In this retro session, Fangmeier will be joined on stage by Ian Failes to break down the big breakthroughs at the time, share stories from the set, and answer your questions about what had to be solved all the way back then.

Innovation Manager Jonathan Egstad will talk about the legendary tool Nuke. © Jonathan Egstadt/Digital Domain/Foundry

Nuke: from its beginnings to today

Jonathan Egstad worked at Digital Domain as an artist and supervisor at the incredible time that the compositing tool Nuke was born. There, he had a keen hand in how it would be designed.

After working at other facilities including ImageMovers Digital and DreamWorks Animation, Egstad is now Senior Product Innovation Manager at Foundry, again working on Nuke.

With Ian Failes, Egstad will share untold stories from Nuke’s beginnings, and answer your questions about the history of the compositing tool. You'll even get to see some old-school Nuke interfaces!

FMX proudly presents: Shelley's Eye Candy

Shelley Page (Locksmith Animation) returns to FMX with another selection of great new animated shorts and the best graduation films she has discovered on her travels in the past year! The 'Eye Candy Show' is a collection of visually stunning, emotionally moving, beautifully animated and - above all - character-driven stories from around the world.

Find more information on Shelley here.

Gold Partner: AMCRS

Baden-Wuerttemberg is Germany's top location for Visual Effects and Animation. The Network ANIMATION MEDIA CREATORS REGION STUTTGART (AMCRS), initiated by media and film producers, consists of more than 35 VFX providers, animation studios, games developers and interactive media companies as well as 6 colleges.

AMCRS is promoting the development of IP (Intellectual Property) and the establishment of technical and organizational structures to be able to offer the region's bundled capacity to international film production companies.

Find more information here.