Each project is very different in in the amount of creative involvement we have. In all of our shows we give our expert opinions on how the VFX should be filmed and created. In the case of Stargirl we also had the unique opportunity to design a lot of the virtual sets and characters in collaboration with the production teams. For example we did a bunch of animation tests of how SG would use her staff and shared them with the stunt coordinator early in our shoot prep. He was able to take some of our ideas and add the his choreography. That was really fun to be a part of. We had a lot of creative input on SG and it was very rewarding for me and the whole team.
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I was really inspired by the original Star Wars movies. In fact I clearly remember sitting with Mom in San Francisco 1977 watching the opening crawl for A New Hope. Pretty much since that day I have been obsessed with āhow they did thatā. At the time there wasnāt much out there to find out about how VFX were done. No Internet, DVD special features or anything like that and also I was only 7 years old. I devoured magazines like Fangoria and Cinefantastique and found out everything I could. In 1983 my family got an Apple IIe personal computer and spent all my time trying to figure out how to make images and cool effects on it. Iāve been learning more and more ever since!
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Every show has there own challenges but It is particularly difficult to do what we call āinvisible effectsā those are the shots or shows where itās absolutely important that the audience not know that there is an effect at all. Like making a CG building look like itās actually a set peace or a vehicle that just has to look like the real thing. Those can be very tricky and take a lot of time to pull off.
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Itās mind blowing knowing how far VFX has come to know that you can do so much, I mean sets entire sets thatās crazy. And it really makes you wonder how much of what your actually watching is really there 
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Yeah its really interesting times right now. I think we will see even more VFX containing virtual sets and actors in the coming year or so due to the restrictions put on filming to to COVID-19. Shooting on greenscreen or against a wall of LED screens will become much more common.
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Love this question Applejack. Yes we work very closely with Costumes and Make-Up effects (MUFX). The company that did the superhero costumes for Stargirl is call Supersuits. They are very good at what they do and we have closely with them on lots of occasions. They use some very specific and cool types of fabric and we took a lot of care to replicate those in CG in highly realistic way. We send every swatch of cloth to get a high resolution scan and applied the costume patterns we received from Supersuits to replicate the costumes. Similarly, we work closely with MUFX on shows like The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina to help add more motion to the make up appliances. Working on a TV show is very collaborative and working closely with multiple departments is part of the job for sure.
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Yeah I can definitely see that happening
Hey Mr. Orloff
If you have time Iād like to just ask one more question, earlier you mentioned how when you got into VFX it was when you were young so my question is if someone wanted to start a career in this what would be your advice or route you think he should go???
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That is so cool!!! Laura Jean Shannon joined us here in the community early on, and being able to join both of your experiences from a fan perspective is very special 
Thank you for answering my question!
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I love Batman of course. Iām a huge fan of the Watchman universe though, Dr. Manhattan and Rorschach are amazing. So hard to choose as Iām also a big fan of Sandman (Golden Age and Modern) and Swamp Thing. I think all of these characters have a lot going on in their inner struggles which keeps them interesting. They make real choices that have real consequences. Character was a huge consideration for Geoff creating Stargirl the show does a great job of showing her inner struggles and that connects you with the characters more.
If you havenāt checked it out yet Geoff Johnās work on Doomsday Clock has been amazing!!
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LJ is the best! Love working with her.
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Thatās a great question. I think the main thing to remember is that the main tool you use for selling yourself as a VFX artist is your demo reel. That is way more important than when you went to school. So make sure you focus on quality work that shows the specialty you are looking for a job in. For example animation demos donāt have to have great models or lighting but need to show a good sense of character and weight. Also shorter and sweeter is better. Longer reels with low quality are passed over by shorter pieces where every clip is great all the time.
Also, I think the use of realt-time rendering tech will be a growing part of the VFX pipeline in the coming years. People with experience in real-time engines in all disciplines will be in high demand and software like UnrealEngine 4 and beyond become commonplace in VFX.
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Thanks so much for the support! After Stargirl wrapped, my son and I went on our dream trip to Tokyo. Such an amazing experience!!
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Iāve always wanted to see Japan. Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. Keep up the amazing work!
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Wow, such good advice- thank you for the insight!
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Doing VFX for TV has been a passion for me my entire career. My partners and I started ZOIC Studios in 2002 to continue our work on Buffy, Angel and Firefly. We knew that VFX could be done on TV timescales and budgets. The industry has grown around us and there are so many shows with VFX now (nearly every one). We have spent years developing techniques to do what features do for TV shows, or as close to it as we can. I would say as supervisor I always tell the folks Iām working with that making 1 shot that is very cool is way better than 10 that are just ok. Also I always keep an eye out for artists who want to contribute to the project and are passionate about the shows they work on. I donāt like the people on my team to feel like a cog in a machine. Dedicated creative people go a long way to making our company work!
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From what Iāve heard about season 2 so far, you are going to very happy. Trust me. 
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If you have time for another question, how far in advance did it take to plan everything for the Crisis On Infinite Earths crossover?
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Just wanted to say thank you passing some of your knowledge. Man I freaking love this appā
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I would say that I would love to get my hands on The Green Lantern. So many cool things to make and do with the power ring. Would be a great storytelling device for sure.
Iāve also always wanted to do effects for TV based on Neil Gaimanās Sandman. The mood of the comic is so creepy and great VFX would really bring it to life.
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A lot of planning went into that one especially since some of the shows are shared between VFX facilities. We started R&D on signature effects like the Time Wave and Anti-Monitor a couple of months before shooting. There was a lot of work for those shows and production team and studios give us the time that needed to get it all done.
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