If only us film guess could get our hands on their software!

So... Back when I worked at the MPS the police department would come by every so often with some tape or image of a suspect and ask if we could "Enhance" it for them. It was always some really bad over recorded vhs tape or something of the sort. I thought they had departments with tech nerds writing real time algorithms for that kind of stuff... Because I mean, come on, if we movie guys had that kind of stuff... lets just say movies would be so much cooler. Seriously, if a pixel in an image could miraculously contain another mega pixel of information that some nerd just needs to type a bit on the key board to unlock then my job just got so much easier... I just need to get a little bit nerdier (vfx guess are the rock stars of the nerd world, I need to go a little deeper).

That all said, it has to be my all time favorite thing to laugh at in tv and movie plots. I wait for it to come and you can always see it coming and it just destroys any suspension of disbelief I may have had. Sadly this is one plot device that will forever be with us.

He is getting so big!

It has been a long time since I posted anything to my blog. So here is a photo of Benjamin now. He (as are my other children) is my pride joy. He is so happy and wonderful. He never fails to brings a smile to my face. My kids are my world and I couldn't ask for better children. And to make to complete my gratitude list is my wonderful wife who puts up with my terrible work schedule. Without her I would be lost.

Welcome Benjamin Joseph Au

He is finally here!


Benjamin Joseph Au was born 8:30pm September 30. He was born at 8 lbs 3 oz, 20.5 inches. He has a bit of dark hair and is a bright eyed wonderful little boy. He as deep blue eyes and the most excellent chubby cheeks! He was scheduled for this Friday but he was just not willing to wait. He and mommy are very tired but well and healthy. We are so happy to have him in our lives.


Here is our first photo of mommy, daddy and Benjamin. More pictures and video are coming. Isn't he wonderful!?!

Golden Compass wins an Oscar.

Honestly I really don't care for the Oscars... They try to honor the individual when it is all the cohesive parts that make everyone look good. That is why a core group of films get all the awards each year. Very few awards are not swayed (in my opinion) by the contributions of other participants than the one receiving the award on the film. Example: Best Actor. How much of that performance is enhanced by great music, camera work, vfx, sound design, screen writing, all these things are cohesive and hard to separate for separate merit.

That being said. "Golden Compass" won the Academy Award for "Best Visual Fx". And I must say it is exciting to have been a part of the VFX team that created those effects. My hat goes off to all my co workers at R&H and those at the other studios that contributed. It is so incredible the number of man hours that are put into making films... It is an almost impossible task and yet there is the final product.

I want to play!

This is awesome! I want some of this Anti-helium! Very fun.

At this kids age I was still eating dirt. I'm not all that impressed by people solving the rubik's cube... but a three year old?! Man do I feel like I was an underdeveloped child!

Do you ever lose your cool in public?!

This is how I feel some days, ON THE INSIDE! Wow!!!!! I think I have been to this very hotel. I think it is the Radison on Centinella in Culver City. Watch the whole thing! Trust me it is worth it. It is obviously fake... his sound is always perfect when every one else is hard to hear, he is wearing a mic, but it is still funny. However, if you ever find yourself in this situation, get help!

and watch out for balloons!



I think that balloons get out of control too!

Celebrity Treatment!

Paris Hilton is free! Sort of. Her sentence was changed to house arrest due to medical reasons. I want to know what others feel about this. Apparently according to the women in the cells on either side of her they had to talk to her much of the night because her crying was keeping them up. She will now serve out here 45 day sentence at home.

Why do celebrities get such different treatment? If it had been a someone of lesser upbringing they would have thrown the book at him. A man that worked for my dad for several years was put in San Quentin, a California maximum security federal penitentiary, for hitting a parked car on his bike while drunk. Granted he had previous offenses, but he was on a bike. For his crime he was in prison for over a year. Paris was driving a several ton weapon!

Why does Paris deserve to sit at home and, according to the radio, have a message therapist flown in from Hawaii, a superstar facial from some famous somebody I've never heard of, tanning machines brought in for a "Hollywood mystique tan", and other luxuries. A woman on the radio said she would rather the heiress to serve her sentence at home and not use tax payers dollars for her sentence. I see that point, however be it a weak argument.

And yet, when we let "Hollywood Royalty" serve PUNISHMENT in a elegant resort style setting... where is the punishment? Isn't jail supposed to not be desirable for a reason? I was under the assumption the penalty needs to be an equal opposite to the crime to dissuade people from committing it?! I mean, think what would happen if everyone got the opportunity to serve out their sentence hanging out at home... or at a resort! Crime rates would go through the roof.

The double standard in our system of justice is sickening and seems to be ever worsening. What's next Phil Specter will get sentenced to fifty years in the Bahamas in his murder trial!?

What say you?

My Super Villain

Your results:
You are Apocalypse

Apocalypse 92% Dr. Doom 85% Juggernaut 79% Magneto 76% Lex Luthor 62% Dark Phoenix 60% Venom 60% The Joker 59% Mystique 59% Green Goblin 59% Kingpin 57% Mr. Freeze 55% Two-Face 51% Poison Ivy 44% Catwoman 40% Riddler 33%

You believe in survival of the fittest and you believe that you are the fittest.

Click here to take the "Which Super Villain are you?" quiz...


So Chris found the counterpart to the superhero quiz! Bummer. Apocalypse is a mean dude. The question is... How could I be that much Superman and that much Apocalypse? They are kind of the antithesis of each other. Hmmmmm.... I guess I have a really clean cut side and a really evil power hungry side.

Hi, I'm a Marvel...and I'm a DC. (Mac PC Parody) #1

I thought these were funny and yet lame!!! They are making assumptions that the Spidey and X-men films were great just because they did well in the box office. (like that is a reason to brag! HA) Called me old school but DC will bounce back. And yet they couldn't touch Batman because he more popular than spidey (be that my opinion). They make fun of the Justice League movie notion... but I say to all you Justice League nay sayers...

When they do (and they will) make a Justice League movie, it will be the ULTIMATE comic movie ever! Don't believe me... watch Justice League Unlimited (the cartoon) and see the potential!!!!

GO DC COMICS! LONG LIVE SUPERMAN!!! GREATEST SUPERHERO EVER!!!!!

Check out the other "Hi, I'm a Marvel... and I'm a DC. (Mac PC Parody)" #2, 3, and 4. Lower than low budget but still comical. What?... I know what I just said!... If you can't laugh at yourself then who can you laugh at! I still think DC is cool.

Which Superhero are you!

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman 95% Green Lantern 75% Hulk 70% Robin 62% Iron Man 60% Batman 60% Spider-Man 55% Supergirl 50% The Flash 45% Wonder Woman 40% Catwoman 25%

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test



I have been watching a lot of Warner Bro/DC Comics cartoons and am on this weird superhero fix. I guess part of it is my excitement as it is looking more and more like I will get to work on the next "Hulk" film. I have always loved comics... especially DC characters. Superman will always be my hero but the cool thing about comics and superheros is there is a little of each hero (and probably a pinch of a few villains) in me!

What's you're Daemon?!

So being that I am on Golden Compass and lighting all these "daemon" characters I thought it would be fun to see what daemon I am. This is what I got. The tiger but you have seven days from today to give your opinion and possibly change my daemon! Have fun!

Discovering the taste of sand

So this photo was taken at my family's favorite beach in Hermosa Beach California. I love to carry around my dad's old 1970's Canon FTB SLR. It's a wonderful machine that takes great pictures. I love to think of myself as a photographer... but reality is I am a hobbiest with an expensive (old but still expensive) toy. I love to shoot nature and my kids. I try to shoot other human subjects but the huge 200 milimeter lens weirds people out. My Dogs would be fun subjects except they jump all over me when I am around so aside from an extreme close up they don't do so well.
On this day we were at the beach (mostly because I was in the mood to shoot on the beach, but the luckily who doesn't like the beach!) I finished my first role and decided to throw in some Kodak 400 bw. This was the first role of black and white that I had shot in a long time. It was a blast to see how it all turned out. Now to the point... this picture. I happened to turn just at the right moment. Well really a few moments before, my completely manual camera isn't as simple as point and shoot. I saw Lauren considering the sand in a strange way and realized what was coming. I was so happy this photo turned out. I was able to catch on film my daughter discovering the taste of sand! (I try not to think of what was in the sand... Just a cute photo) I guess that makes me a true photographer, shoot first, worry for the person later!

For more of my photos go to http://2bitfx.com/photography/