The celluloid magicians
Next month will see the arrival of the 3-D version of one of the biggest blockbusters in movie history. And even though it has been 15 years since Titanic debuted in cinemas worldwide, its updated technological innovations and impressive visual effects will likely guarantee it is a smash hit this time around as well. And an exhibition in Shanghai called Swiss Design in Hollywood which runs until April 5, shows movie lovers the impact of Swiss-born designers and creators on many similar big-screen successes.
After its Beijing leg at Tsinghua University, the exhibition recently arrived at the Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts located in Songjiang district.
The exhibition is jointly organized by Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Arts Council, and Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts.
It showcases more than 35 exhibition panels and some videos from 11 influential Swiss designers, animators and conceptual artists. These men and women - either as artists or commercial designers, or often both - have played an important role in the Hollywood movie-making industry since the 1980s, according to organizers. And seeing their visual designs laid out will help visitors better understand these designers' techniques, ideas and inspiration - everything from original concept designs and animation to the completed and filmed special-effect scenes.
Two of the featured designers, Christian Lorenz Scheurer and Nicolas Imhof, visited Shanghai as part of the exhibition and shared their personal experiences of working in Hollywood. Scheurer, who is a conceptual designer, matte painter and art director, delivered a lecture entitled "Anthropology of the Imaginary: Conceptual Art for the Entertainment Industry."
Scheurer is known for his work on Hollywood classics such as The Fifth Element (1997), Titanic (1997), The Matrix (1999), Dark City (1998) and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001), and he has also been active in the video game industry, for example, on The Lords of the Rings: The Return of the King.
Before Scheurer started working in the US film industry, he created graphic novels and worked on some movies and award-winning commercials in Brussels. Suffering a serious injury after being hit by lightning caused the ambitious Swiss designer to reconsider his priorities and to pursue his dream of working in Hollywood. He later applied to and was employed by Digital Domain, a visual effects and animation company known for creating state-of-the-art digital imagery for feature films, television commercials, and the video game industry and which was co-founded by film director James Cameron.
Scheurer then started working on his first Hollywood movie, The Fifth Element.
Designs created by Scheurer. Photo: Courtesy of Pro Helvetia
Scheurer also shared his initial portfolio which allowed him to get a foot inside the Hollywood dream factory, and he exhibited a few of these conceptual designs at the lecture. And one of the exhibition's highlighted works is the storyboard for the simulation of the sinking of the Titanic.
Christian Lorenz Scheurer. Photo: Courtesy of Pro Helvetia
"Some of my works may have been for huge Hollywood blockbusters, but that doesn't necessarily mean it will stand the test of time. Whereas other projects were part of massive financial failures upon release, but turned out to become invaluable training resources for future film makers," he said.
Movies in the pipeline that the designer is currently working on include the new Superman, Thor 2, 300: The Battle of Artemisia and the Chinese historical epic The Great Wall.
Having worked for a number of Hollywood special effects studios for seven years from 1996, Imhof gained a reputation as a modeler, animator, and special effects supervisor. He is well known for creating fantasy worlds in films such as the Harry Potter series, Star Trek Nemesis (2002) and Cats and Dogs (2001).
After he returned to Switzerland in 2003, the digital artist has contributed to some independent American movies and Swiss-made films. Today, he works as a freelance illustrator mainly on personal exhibitions of oversized digital paintings.
"I'm a big fan of ancient sites which have interesting histories," Imhof told the Global Times. "In my works, I like to present contrasts - shadow and light, future and past, new and old - and mix them all together. I love creating dreamlike worlds filled with puzzling realism."