Outline for Third Term Paper

1. Introduction
   a. Evolution of VFX through the decades, from blue screen to matte painting and CGI
   b. Introduce specific effect, snow. Practical effects replaced by VFX in current film, tv and gaming. 
   c. For this paper I will discuss two pieces of media and the snow effects in them:
      1.Film, Monsters Inc
      2.Videogame, Journey

2. Body
   1. Monsters Inc
     a. Set up film, context: Mike and Sully are exiled into the Alps in the middle of a snowstorm.
     b. Snow effect created in programs such as AfterEffects, Maya, and 3DS Max with a particle system or particle tracking technique. Discuss animated particle systems.
     c. Effectiveness very good, combination of wind and sleeting effect with movement of Sully's fur drives point home, takes on very realistic quality.

          2. Journey

            a. Set up video game, context: The Protagonist is scaling the Mountain through the snow.

            b. Snow effects created in programs like AfterEffects, Maya, 3DS Max with particle system or particle tracking. Discuss static particle systems.

            c. Effectiveness so so, creates feeling of snow but with less realism than Monsters Inc, meant mostly just lend to atmosphere to remind player its snowy, snow sometimes looks less individual and looks more like clouds. Snow is at its most basic and atmospheric.  

     III. Conclusion

           a. Recap evolution of VFX, practical effects all but dead.

           b. Snow and other weather effects all done in CG.