Title of Event: Bill Westenhofer talk
Date & Time: February 22, 2019. 5-6:30pm
Location: ELC Forum
Type: lecture
1) Provide a brief, detailed description or summary of the event you attended.
In this lecture, Bill Westenhofer, who is a Bucknell CSCI alum, talked about his journey from engineering to visual effects supervisor. He discussed what motivated his career decisions, as well as how his engineering background supported him in a visual arts world.
2) Use the section below to write a well-structured paragraph focusing on your personal critical insight/response to the event. How did you interpret or react to what was presented to you?
I really enjoyed the talk because he gave a behind-the-scences look into how many movie’s visual effects are created, which I don’t normally think about. He talked about some of the engineering techniques he used to create the visual effects, including physics, fluid dynamics, calculus, and motion capture. I was really interested in his use of motion capture because I have used motion capture systems at Bucknell for research and I always found them fascinating.
3) What information, ideas, images, etc. most impressed you and why?
He displayed various video clips of movies that he has worked on, with dramatic music and sound effects as well. The clips he chose from each movie were emotionally compelling and definitely captivated the entire audience.
4) Overall how would you rate this event? (1-10)
9
5) Justify your rating in the question above.
I didn’t go into the lecture with many expectations, but he kept my attention the entire time. The topics he discussed were intriguing, but I wish he talked a little more about how he created some of the images/videos.