Achieve Nerdvana with Science of the Movies

From motion capture to computerized camera moves to the construction of a real live “fake” crime scene – science and technology play a huge part in all of our favorite TV shows and movies. Want in on how it all works? The Science Channel has just the show for you. It’s called Science of the Movies and it premieres this Tuesday, May 26th.

The series is hosted by Nar Williams, the Geek-in-Chief at AchieveNerdvana.com. He’s going to take you behind the scenes and give you a close up look at all how individual scenes were actually made. You’ll get to see the latest visual effects equipment and listen in on interviews with artists, stuntmen and directors on everything from Star Wars to Dexter.

In the first episode, Williams interviews Academy Award-winning special effects pioneer John Dykstra who invented the Dykstraflex – a motion control rig used to blow up the Death Star in “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.” Williams then gets up close, and maybe a little too personal, with the most used modern motion control system in the business today: Milo. Milo captures precise shots so that two or more scenes can be composited together to create one fluid moment, and is most famous for creating the “spidysense” scene in the first “Spider-Man” film.

Next, Williams moves on to Hydraulx, the company that created visual effects on movies such as “Terminator 3,” “X-Men 3” and “Aliens vs. Predator 2: Requiem,” for a crash course in how the latest visual effects and CGI are created. Finally, Williams stops at Doggicam Systems where Academy Award®-winner Gary Thieltges demonstrates an amazing inventory of camera mounts that have been used in movies such as “The Dark Knight.” There Williams slips on a body-mounted camera to experience firsthand a simulated chase.

Future episode topics include: a sneak peek into creating the miniatures used in “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian;” demonstrating the camera crane technology that is used in “The Fast and the Furious” franchise; and even a lesson in crime scene reality simulation from Showtime’s popular TV series, “Dexter.”

Learn more by visiting the official series website where you’ll also find a list of the Top 10 FX Scenes ever created.

Science of the Movies premieres on Tuesday, May 26 on The Science Channel which is part of the Discovery Channel family of networks.

Photo courtesy of The Science Channel