InCamera Teaches Practical F/X

The Internet is a playground - full of lots of fun stuff, some clearly dangerous parts that should’ve been tended to long ago, and even the occasion for learning information outside the classroom. InCamera is a dope YouTube channel that explains/demonstrates/teaches viewers about the production aspects of creating movies (or videos or whatever term you wish to apply here). The group is composed of Bristol filmmakers, started by brothers Pete and Tom Martin, and their friends JP, Noomi, and Ryan.

One of their best recurring segments is Practical Effects Tutorials, in which they explore how to recreate either common or famous elements found in films without resorting to CG or plug-ins. There is a whole playlist that covers topics like miniatures, composite shots, fire elements, bullet hits (please don’t use the CGI bullet plug-in…it’s crap, y’all), and more.

This is a great channel even for people who don’t make anything on film/video, because one can see how much effort was put in to these elements back in the day and can help people appreciate how to accomplish them in movies today.

Here’s one of their Practical Effects Tutorial videos on how to recreate the title sequence from 1982’s JOHN CARPENTER’S THE THING without using CG. Practical titles create a tactile aspect that will immediately inform the audience about the type of film that’s about to play and the type of filmmaker who made it. If you dig this, I strongly recommend supporting InCamera’s Patreon.