2023’s VFX hot list – monster movies and a gamer’s horror-show

What is visual effects promising us in 2023?

If Christmas was nothing but a load of (glitter) balls to you, then we’re proud to say that we feel the same way about the new year.

We’re talking crystal, of course. Because it’s that time again when mustard FX takes a look at what 2023 is promising us in the way of serotonin-inducing special effects across the movies.

With Avatar 2: The Way Of Water now very much out of the way, next on “the most hotly anticipated” list is Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Arriving next month, it promises to be even more fantastical than the previous two movies. This instalment takes us deep into the Quantum Realm, with BAFTA-winning Jesse James Chisholm burning a bright flame as Production VFX Supervisor to bring this otherworldly dimension successfully to life.

If you like a bit of trivia, Chisholm started his Marvel career as an on-set environment capture technologist for Iron Man 3, before becoming a visual effects supervisor of additional photography for Ant-Man and the Wasp and Captain Marvel. He’s one of the best in the biz and Quantumania looks like it could be his biggest triumph yet.

Just a few months after Ant-Man comes Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3, another of Marvel Studios’ more effects-laden franchises. With Stephane Ceretti on Visual Effects Supervisor duties, there’s a LOT to look forward to for this monster movie!

But it’s not just Marvel dominating the superhero movie landscape in ‘23 – DC have the Shazam! follow-up Fury of the Gods in the offing. With Russell Bowen flying the flag for VFX, and the involvement of a fistful of name-droppable effects houses, including Weta, Scanline VFX, Pixomondo and DNEG, it promises to be truly wowsome.

We’re sticking around in Movieville for just a moment longer to take a quick look at the next Indiana Jones movie. While the last Indy film didn’t rely too much on CGI, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny wipes 40 years off Harrison Ford – and from the results we glimpsed in the trailer, this is next level stuff.

Executive producer Kathleen Kennedy was very excited about it when she talked to Empire magazine. “My hope is that, although it will be talked about in terms of technology, you just watch it and go, ‘Oh my God, they just found footage. This was a thing they shot 40 years ago’.”

It’s ILM (of course it is!) who are responsible for this latest Indiana offering, and even Harrison Ford is impressed: “This is the first time I’ve seen it where I believe it,” the 80-year-old enthused to Empire. We’ll have some of that too, thanks.

Okay, that’s a wrap for movies. But we’re not departing quite yet. For our last stop we’re taking a flying visit into gaming territory, or we wouldn’t be worthy of our mustard FX moniker. Are you ready? Form an orderly queue, people, as something extremely exciting is happening this very month.

“Welcome Aboard the USG Ishimura. Something has gone horribly wrong on this vast mining ship.”

Oh no!

Oh yes! The original horror masterpiece Deadspace, generally considered as one of the best video games of all time, has gotten itself a reboot. Gamer’s rejoice!

The horror-show extravaganza is due to be released on 27 January, the core message coming out of EA seems to be “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” In other words, the 2023 version will retain its older brother’s on-the-edge-of-your-seat suspense, laser-sharp atmosphere, and of course a lava-hot storyline to urge the player forwards.

So, what’s new? Senior Game Director Eric Baptizat explains that “in terms of visuals, audio, lighting—everything is more dynamic. By having more depth here, we’re able to have more control over the player’s feelings of stress and excitement.”

Have a sneak peek at the trailer here. It’s a humdinger, isn’t it. Yep, we’ve got it on pre-order.

If you have the skills it takes to match the creative ability on show here, then we’d like to talk to you about some exciting possibilities. The mustard FX team are ready to pick up the line, so get your dialing finger at the ready!