MATTE UNIVERSE

I had fun this morning looking at an overview of the great matte artists who worked on the original Star Wars films. Man, there was a lot of talent there! It's amazing how they were able to create such believable environments. I haven't quite fully embraced the vibe of the CGI era when it comes to establishing settings and characters. There has been a lot of good work, to be sure, but I often feel too aware of the technology to suspend disbelief. But the organic feel of hand-painted scenes is another thing entirely. I've been teaching photography and film now for almost 30 years and I've seen images go through so many changes, especially in surface quality. Although the technology has improved over the years, the digital age still can't quite capture the lush, sensual vibe of something hand-made. If you've ever A/B compared recordings between analog and digital, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. There's an intangible magic of the human element or performance that is often lost (this occurs, in fact, even between 1st and later pressings of the same LP). Just like the old advertisement used to ask, is it live or is it Memorex? Looking back at these matte paintings reminds me of this phenomenon. Check out the whole article here to see more images and to hear about the process from some of the artists. Thanks to my pal, Jack, for putting this on my radar! By the way, one of my favorite examples of matte work is the film, Danger Diabolik. Mario Bava's adaptation of the Italian comic is a 1960s masterpiece, but I was both disappointed and amazed to learn that Diabolik's secret lair was mostly paint on glass. That's movie magic. If you're a Diabolik fan, check out my related posts on Spy Vibe: Find out how Danger Diabolik did in our Top-10 of Best Set Designs here, Danger Diabolik Soundtrack, Verner Panton Design, Diabolikal Villain Image Archive, Set For Adventure. Enjoy!