Movie Magic HD episode 11 - Miniature Making

How miniature models are used in effects scenes with an emphasis on the television series, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Documentary series dealing with every aspect of special effects in movies, from low-budget make-up to multi-million-dollar computer-generated graphics. The clear presentation includes descriptions of the creation and technical problems of the effects, and interviews with effects technicians, directors, stars and other crew. Each episode deals with one topic, effect or technician (eg theme park rides, CGI, Stan Winston), concentrating on one or more current or recent films.

[kevinpogue]

I started working at Greg Jein's shop about a year or two after this episode aired!

[AvArIeNmArKu]

God i was looking for this show for years

[matsnilson]

Creating miniatures for movies is probably my dream job. It'll be quite difficult to earn a living doing that today, but it looks incredibly fun and satisfying. Massive respect to these guys for all their awesome work!

[oxmeatpete]

I just love and miss these shows. Thank you so much for posting these so I can enjoy them again now I’m so much older. I sure miss the effort put into these practical effects. Thanks friend.

[captainchaos]

I LOVED this show! I still remember seeing behind the scenes of the Aliens attacking area 51 during Independence Day about 4 months before the movie came out. I knew right away that movie was going to be EPIC! And, it was.

[jmalmsten]

I don't know how many times I watched these as a kid on local movie satellite channels. They were usually used as filler content between movies to make the start times of the main presentations be on half hours. So I would always catch them in semi random order. Usually the same episodes over and over.

Finally I get to watch them all. Making sure I don't miss an episode. :D

Also. The random japanese segment on Cliffhanger was an odd diversion :p

[guyncognit]

Wow I had this episode recorded on VHS when I was a little kid. Still remember hearing the theme song come on and running over to hit play and record at the same time and letting out a little "Yes!". Back then recording a show from the beginning felt like a small victory since who knows when a rerun would happen. Used to watch this episode over and over for years. Great stuff thank you!

[nekodesigner]

Thanks for this video. It made me feel like a kid again

[sylkates]

They used to show this on I believe Discovery channel. Or TLC. I used to watch it at least once a week! It started my interest in special effects!

[CheapCheerful]

Loving this stuff. I remember watching as a kid. Wanted to work in SFX. That never happened, living in Australia, but still inspires everything I do today :)

[spectrastar]

For those who don't know, the USS Saratoga was destroyed at the Battle of Wolf 359 as one of the 39 ships to be destroyed by the borg cube.

[localbod]

I have always felt that models always look better than CGI because they are, in fact, real things. I think people intuitively know the difference.
That's just my opinion.

[richarddeese]

Thanks. I hope we'll keep using all the techniques we have. A good blend of whatever's needed for the shot always makes the best film.
tavi.

[ctmyrvc]

These guys were replaced by CGI artists, and the CGI artists are now about to be replaced by AI.

[imaginationworkshopstudio]

At IWS we are keeping the art and craft of modelmaking, kitbashing, and miniature effects alive.

[trevorbrown]

Give me old school miniatures over CG any day.

[ordinalkirk]

Not in all cases, but sometimes the miniatures appear more realistic on film than CGI.

[garycolton]

We see only the finished product in the cinema thinking that it’s an easy job. People in the industry both in front of the camera and behind it work damned hard and earn every penny they worked for.

[joshuarnal]

The 😂 narrator at the end is hilarious

[brian_belmont]

Real models will always be better than CGI because they have this presence to them