HOW IS AFTER EFFECTS DIFFERENT FROM SPECIAL EFFECTS

To put it into simple words, special effects are carried out on-set during production and after effects or also called as visual effects are done in post-production. A lot of people are unaware of this difference and assume that After Effects can fix anything as long as you are skilled or there is any tutorial available for it. But that’s not how it is. Although After Effects and other compositing applications are very powerful and can bring in amazing effects yet there are many things which can only be done in special effects.

The difference in both the effects doesn’t mean that the Visual Effects team isn’t involved in production and the special effects team isn’t involved in post-production, but the creative decision made by each of these teams usually pertains to their respective phases in the process of film-making.

Special effects can be divided into two types – optical and mechanical. Optical effects are done by controlling the camera and lighting which in turn makes your scene look different than what it actually appears to the naked eyes. This can involve working with camera lenses, types of lighting or camera movements that give certain appearance to the shot. The creative decision lies with the special effects supervisor and he or she works directly with the director on set to achieve whatever outcome is expected.

Mechanical effects involve working during a live-action shot and usually pertain to making things look or seem natural which in reality are not. For example, manipulating weather conditions like wind, rain and snow is a huge part of mechanical effects. Working with scale models and explosives are also included in mechanical effects.

After or Visual effects have emerged as a vital part of modern-day film making. You will hardly see any film without visual effects now-a-days. This could be filling in a green screen, 3D rendering, creating computer generated imagery (CGI) or even animation. The visual effects supervisor makes all the creative decisions and works directly with the director off and on set to make sure he/she gets the desired visual image. The visual effects coordinator works for the visual effects supervisor in post-production and the visual effects producer works like a line producer and handles the cost of the visual effects which can get outrageously high many times.

DSK Supinfocom offers a foundation as well as advanced course in animation that covers Visual Effects including a complete study of the filmmaking process. By studying and working on the software you will actually be able to make out the difference between after and special effects.