Concise, yet complete; this book offers a clear, easy-to-follow introduction to the use of computer graphics in film. Discussions focus on material of critical importance to directors, producers, studio executives and students. Topics include: the titles and duties of the various crew members, the organizational structure of the team, the basics of the technologies behind the work, the differences between live-action visual effects production and fully-animated projects, the components of the production pipeline and the tradeoffs associated with key design decisions. "Mayur Patel is one of the great technical minds in CG production. If you've ever wanted to know the arcane processes a studio goes through to make great animation or visual effects, here is a unique book that sheds light on these mysteries." Chris Landreth, Academy award winning director, Ryan

Mayur has more than thirteen years of experience in visual effects and animation, as an artist, supervisor and technologist. He has worked on more than eighteen films, including Disney's Tarzan (1999), Perfect Storm (2000), AI (2001) and Hulk (2003). In 2006, he supervised the visual effects for George Miller's Academy award winning animated feature, Happy Feet. Mayur holds degrees in engineering from Cornell and UCLA.