In this episode of Let's fix it in Pod Christoph & Bela browse the FMX Programme and talk about their favorite picks. They are then joined by FMX project manager Mario Müller for a deep dive into what goes into planning an fmx and bringing it to life.

00:00:00 Intro

00:03:52 Mufasa: The Lion King

00:04:53 Nuke: From it's beginnings to today

00:06:14 Watch your language!

00:07:17 Fear and loathing in the age of A.I.

00:08:29 Next-gen procedural city design

00:09:00 Anamorphic Lenses in Witcher 4

00:10:15 Acting for Animators

00:11:22 Paul Debevec

00:12:30 Building a state-of-the-art VR stage

00:13:17 General recommendations

00:20:31 Introduction Mario Müller

00:22:39 The tasks of a project manager

00:24:41 How FMX changed over the years

00:29:59 Building a programme

00:33:38 How to deal with the hype train

00:42:24 The pros and cons of a hybrid FMX

00:46:56 Mario's recommendations

00:47:48 The role of Paul Debevec

00:50:50 The metrics of FMX

00:52:26 The connection to the Filmakademie

00:56:09 The Rhythm of change

01:00:09 The only constant is change

Links:

FMX Programme: https://fmx.de/en/program/program-2025/schedule

Schlesinger: http://www.schlesinger-int.de/

In this episode, Bela and Christoph glint and glow a little bit brighter than usual... Thanks to plugins. They talk about the history of plugins, their place among other software extensions like Gizmos and Shaders and ask themselves if OpenFX is really the API to rule them all. They are joined by Brian Fox, Chief Marketing Officer at BorisFX. Brian takes behind the scenes on a deep dive into what actually goes into making a plugin come to life. In the news section the guys discuss Datacolor, Nuke 16 and Syntheyes 2025. And in a special tooltip Blea explains the ins and outs of google Alerts and RSS Feeds.

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:41 A good Artist doesn't need plugins

00:02:37 There's a dongle for that

00:03:35 Plugins on the masher

00:05:02 Every Flame needs a spark

00:07:52 The current state of plugins

00:13:43 Matchbox for Flame

00:17:13 Support from host applications

00:21:14 Nukepedia and the Gizmo community

00:24:28 Plugins in the 3D world

00:26:06 How to choose the right plugin

00:28:40 OpenFX and the Uber-plugins

00:34:12 Introduction Brian Fox

00:39:36 How to decide on a plugin

00:48:39 The difference between Sapphire and Continuum

00:56:06 Plugin vs. standalone 

01:03:22 OFX - One API to rule them all?

01:11:08 How to depecrate a plugin

01:17:11 Training ML Tools

01:23:47 News Datacolor

01:25:03 News Nuke 16

01:26:08 News Syntheyes 2025

01:27:10 Tooltip: Google Alerts and RSS Feeds

01:37:38 Outro

Links mentioned in the Show

Once upon a time there was a Henry:

https://digitalproduction.com/2024/10/01/once-upon-a-time-there-was-a-henry/

Nuke Survial Toolkit:

https://github.com/CreativeLyons/NukeSurvivalToolkit_publicRelease

Boris FX Discord:

https://discord.gg/RF2WxJwUC9

News Datacolor:

https://digitalproduction.com/2025/02/25/datacolor-lightcolor-meter-precision-in-light-and-color/

News Nuke 16:

https://digitalproduction.com/2025/02/28/nuke-16-compositing-without-the-copy-paste-circus/

News Syntheyes 2025:

https://digitalproduction.com/2025/02/27/syntheyes-2025-ml-powered-masks-batch-processing-and-more/

Digital Production RSS Feed:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/41p4v64epzrrh8r/Letsfixitinpod-feeds.xml?dl=0 

In this episode of Letsfixitinpod we take a deep look into our crystal ball and share our predictions on what surely look like an interesting year 2025. In the Interview section, Bela turns from host to guest as he shares some big news in regards to digital production magazine. The news section brings us the latest from ARRI, Autodesk Flame, Re:Vision Twixtor and of course the latest from the AI hype train.

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:44 How politics influence our industry

00:05:36 Changing tax incentives

00:11:01 The fallout of the streaming wars

00:23:09 Rough times for software developers

00:29:22 The peak of the AI hype train

00:35:43 How studios need to reinvent themselves

00:40:01 Not everything will be in the cloud

00:45:19 Synergies between departments

00:48:04 Interview Bela Beier

01:03:59 The New Arri Alexa 35 Base and Premium

01:12:16 Flame 2025.2

01:19:06 DeepSeek and the NVidia shakeup

01:22:39 Twixtor stand-alone version

01:24:16 FMX tickets now on sale

01:25:32 Tooltip: Eizo monitor testing website

01:28:46 Outro

Links mentioned in the show:

digitalproduction.com

https://www.arri.com/en/company/press/press-releases-2025/arri-announces-new-alexa-35-entry-model-with-flexible-license-options-and-lower-cost-media

https://help.autodesk.com/view/FLAME/2025/ENU/?guid=whatsnew-2025

https://revisionfx.com/products/twixtor_ml/

https://www.eizo.de/monitortest/

In this episode, Bela Beier (Editor-in-Chief, Digital Production Magazine) and Christoph Zapletal (Compositing Artist & Instructor) discuss means of staying connected - from informal groups and meetups to the Societies and Associations that define our industry. They are joined by three guests representing their distinct associations. First off, Agon Ushaku (Chairman of the Board, German Section) talks about the VES - Visual Effects Society. After that, Stefan Albertz (Professor of 3D Animation and Visual Effects at Hamm-Lippstatd University of Applied Sciences) represents the SMPTE (Society of Motion Pocture and Television Engineers). Completing the trio is Sonja Langhans, who is on the Board of the FKTG (Fernseh- und Kinotechnische Gesellschaft. In the News Segment they discuss Vray for Blender, Nuke 16 and Mocha 2025. You can reach us at [email protected]

Segments:

00:00:00 Intro

00:01:56 The local VFX community

00:06:16 Staying connected outside of VFX Hubs

00:09:58 Using industry enets to stay connected

00:16:22 Communities around a specific software

00:22:00 Socialising at big industry events

00:25:33 Societies and organisations in the VFX industry

00:31:58 Interview Agon Ushaku

00:53:28 Interview Stefan Albertz

01:15:58 Interview Sonja Langhans

01:25:29 News

01:34:26 ILM looking for a face swap artist

01:36:40 Tooltip: Movieprint

01:38:36 Outro

Links mentioned in the show:

https://www.vesglobal.org/

https://www.smpte.org/

https://www.fktg.org/

https://www.movieprint.org/

In this episode, Bela Beier (Editor-in-Chief, Digital Production Magazine) and Christoph Zapletal (Compositing Artist & Instructor) discuss the benefits of Open Industry Standards, but also the hurdles and processes in establishing these. They are joined by Software Developer Jonas Kluger and Compositing Artist Arne Palluck. They also discuss the E.O.L of Modo, the World VFX Day, FMX 2025 as well as the latest releases of Resolve, Final Cut and Blender. You can reach us at [email protected]

Segments:

00:00:00 Introduction

00:00:40 The End of Modo

00:08:16 Why Software should support Open Standards

00:15:43 Standards of the Past 00:22:17

Why Artists are reluctant to adopt Open Standards 

00:27:51 Who is actually establishing and maintaining Open Standards

00:40:35 Why implementing Open Standards takes time

00:44:53 Interview Jonas Kluger

01:01:57 Interview Arne Palluck

01:09:14 World VFX Day and FMX 2025

01:10:46 Resolve 19.1 and Final Cut Pro 11

01:15:53 Blender 4.3

01:17:16 Outro

Links mentioned in the show:

Modo End of Life License: https://campaigns.foundry.com/modo-eo...

Academy Software Foundation: https://www.aswf.io/

Das Element: https://das-element.com/

Garlic VFX: https://www.garlicvfx.com/

World VFX Day: https://worldvfxday.com/

FMX 2025: https://fmx.de/en/home

In this episode, Bela Beier (Editor-in-Chief, Digital Production Magazine) and Christoph Zapletal (Compositing Artist & Instructor) tackle the possibilities and challenges that Machine Learning and A.I. are offering to the vfx industry. They are joined by Benjamin Wild, Creative Director at Raumkontakt, to discuss how A.I. affects the work of our clients. In the current affairs segment the discuss Inkscape 1.4, the latest A.I. tools from Adobe MAX, the MX Creative Console from Logitech and the Chris Mayne Job List

You can reach us at [email protected]

Segments:

00:00:00 Introduction

00:02:12 Machine Learning vs. generative A.I.

00:09:56 Why generative A.I. isn't there yet

00:15:00 How is generative A.I. impacting our jobs?

00:19:16 The quality divide

00:24:07 Breaking into the industry in the age of A.I.

00:29:47 Is the current model of A.I. sustainable?

00:37:09 Interview Benjamin Wild

00:45:55 Is A.I. changing our viewing habits?

00:52:18 Use of A.I. outside of a visual medium

00:58:41 News Recap and Updates from Adobe MAX

01:05:23 The MX Creative Console

01:12:24 The Chris Mayne Job List

01:16:24 Outro

Links mentioned in the show:

The Chris Mayne Job List:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1eR2oAXOuflr8CZeGoz3JTrsgNj3KuefbdXJOmNtjEVM/htmlview#gid=0

The MX Creative Console:

https://www.logitech.com/en-us/products/keyboards/buy-mx-creative-console.html

Comfy UI GitHub:

https://github.com/comfyanonymous/ComfyUI

In their very first episode, Bela Beier (Editor-in-Chief, Digital Production Magazine) and Christoph Zapletal (Compositing Artist & Instructor) talk about control surfaces for an artist's workstation. They are joined by Angry Face founder Mazze Aderhold for an in-depth discussion of new and refurbished grading panels and the upgrades you can apply to a panel. They finish the show by discussing the latest news from IBC 2024.

You can reach us at [email protected]

Segments:

00:00:00 Introduction

00:01:06 Why Control Surfaces Matter

00:04:55 Choosing the correct Mouse

00:09:09 The Space Mouse Wireless

00:11:02 The Contour Shuttle Express

00:13:36 The Loupedeck Story

00:19:37 Gotchas with Control Surfaces and their Software

00:22:21 The Pros and Cons of small Grading Panels

00:25:04 The Democratization of Grading

00:32:00 Introduction Mazze Aderhold

00:33:01 Recommendations for Generalists

00:34:58 Keyboard Mapping Software

00:37:28 Grading Panel Costs

00:38:26 Control Surfaces on the second Hand Market

00:39:48 Panels for Cross-Software Use

00:44:39 Substituting a Grading Panel

00:48:25 Pimping your Grading Panel

00:53:47 Customizing the Rings

00:56:08 Used Panel vs. 5 Star Rodent Hotel

00:57:48 News from IBC

00:58:49 Blackmagics 17K Camera

01:06:13 Electric Sheep ML Powered Roto

01:11:09 ZBrush for iPad

01:15:54 Outro

Links mentioned in the show:

https://www.angry-face.com/

https://3dconnexion.com/

https://contourdesign.com

https://loupedeck.com/

https://www.tangentwave.co.uk/

https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vantablack

https://electricsheep.tv/

https://www.maxon.net/en/zbrush-for-ipad