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Episode 407 – ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT’s VFX Supervisor Frank Petzold
Frank Petzold is an internationally acclaimed Director and VFX Supervisor, and he’s been working in film for over 25 years. Whether working in film or television, Frank creates cutting edge visuals.
Before stepping into the world of directing, this award-winning VFX Supervisor enjoyed a successful career in Germany as a Director of Photography, specializing in shoots with visual effects components. In the early 90s, Frank joined the Tippett Studio in California to supervise and direct VFX work for major Hollywood films. Starting with the cult classic STARSHIP TROOPERS, he quickly moved from one blockbuster to the next, including ARMAGEDDON, THE MATRIX, HOLLOW MAN, THE RING, GOLDEN COMPASS and many others.
Working closely with Directors such as Steven Spielberg, Paul Verhoven, Frank Oz, Gore Verbinsky, Ivan Reitman, Frank learned how to bring story to life. With that extensive experience, he began directing complex commercials for the international market.
When ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT Director Edward Berger called Franks, with whom he worked on the AMC Series THE TERROR, the idea of working on such an iconic literary IP made Frank intimidated and inspired at the same time. Based on Erich Maria Remarque’s best-selling 1929 novel of the same name, the film follows an idealistic young German soldier in WWI who soon learns the harrowing reality of war. Because of the intimate perspective and to capture the verisimilitude of life in the trenches, Petzold’s goal was to ground the visual effects in photorealistic reference points. In other words, in this case, less is more. In 2023, the film won 4 Academy Awards.
Frank has been a member of VES since 1999.
In this Podcast, Allan McKay talks to the VFX Supervisor and Director Frank Petzold about his start in VFX at the legendary Tippett Studio; his work on STARSHIP TROOPERS, HOLLOW MAN, ARMAGEDDON, as well as the 2023 Academy Award Winning film ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT.
Frank Petzold’s Website: http://www.doubleplusgood.info/vita.html
Frank Petzold on IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004182/
Frank Petzold Interview: https://www.goldderby.com/feature/frank-petzold-all-quiet-on-the-western-front-vfx-interview-1205228466/
Behind the VFX: ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXSAMAwR8wE
EPISODE 407- From the Trenches to the Screen: Inside the Mind of ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT’s VFX Supervisor Frank Petzold
Hi, everyone!
This is Allan McKay. Welcome to Episode 407! I’m sitting down with Director and VFX Supervisor Frank Petzold and talking to him about his work at the legendary Tippett Studio; his work on STARSHIP TROOPERS, HOLLOW MAN, ARMAGEDDON, as well as the 2023 Academy Award Winning film ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT.
I’m really excited for this Episode. There is a lot that we get into here. We talk about money, clients and vendors, as well as the mindset of a VFX Supervisor.
Let’s dive in!
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FROM ALLAN McKAY:
[01:16] Have you ever sent in your reel and wondered why you didn’t get the callback or what the reason was you didn’t get the job? Over the past 20 years of working for studios like ILM, Blur Studio, Ubisoft, I’ve built hundreds of teams and hired hundreds of artists — and reviewed thousands of reels! That’s why I decided to write The Ultimate Demo Reel Guide from the perspective of someone who actually does the hiring. You can get this book for free right now at www.allanmckay.com/myreel!
[45:39] One of the biggest problems we face as artists is figuring out how much we’re worth. I’ve put together a website. Check it out: www.VFXRates.com! This is a chance for you to put in your level of experience, your discipline, your location — and it will give you an accurate idea what you and everyone else in your discipline should be charging. Check it out: www.VFXRates.com!
Okay, what did you think? I want to thank Frank for coming on the Podcast.
Please take a moment to share this Episode with others.
Next week, I’m interviewing VFX Supervisor Marc Smith and VFX Comp Supervisor Tanner Bartlett discuss their work on Mark Mylod’s THE MENU, the way their studio Crafty Apes approaches a new project, as well as give advice to artists on why it’s important to admit your shortcomings and the skills that make you most hireable.
Until then –
Rock on!
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