Former ILM AI experts Sam Head, Thomas Salama, Scott Bourne and Matteo Olivieri Dancey join the AI technology developer as it expands its work in high-profile partnerships and projects.
Today Metaphysic announced the addition of several former Industrial Light & Magic AI professionals with the appointments of hyperreal AI and VFX creator Sam Head (publicly known as Shamook) as Senior AI Model Artist, Thomas Salama as AI & Compositing Supervisor, Scott Bourne as AI Compositing Lead, and Matteo Olivieri Dancey as AI Innovation Lead. The group collectively led de-aging and hyperreal content for ABBA: Voyage concert experience and The Book of Boba Fett. The group will report to Metaphysic’s Chief Innovation Officer, Jo Plaete.
The new hires follow a year of high-profile partnerships and projects in the entertainment industry, including Miramax, which recently tapped the company as its Generative AI partner for the motion picture Here. Metaphysic also entered a strategic partnership with CAA after creating live hyperreal performances of Elvis Presley, bringing generative AI to TV.
“The entertainment industry is rapidly evolving, and Metaphysic has quickly become an in-demand technology provider to help production houses and studios produce real-time, realistic enactments,” commented Metaphysic co-founder and CEO Thomas Graham. “As we enter into new partnerships and projects to shape the future of entertainment, we are thrilled to be joined by the AI and compositing spaces' brightest minds: Sam, Scott, Thomas, and Matteo.”
Head has created hyperrealistic avatars of iconic movie scenes on YouTube, including reimaging Tom Holland in previous portrayals of Spiderman, inserting Mel Gibson in Mad Max Fury Road, and de-aging avatars of Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. His work gained the attention of LucasFilm where he was hired in 2021 as Senior Facial Capture Artist. There he helped lead the company’s technological capabilities to achieve photorealistic de-aging.
“As a visual artist, my goal is to surprise and delight the viewer, recreating or completely reimagining iconic scenes and moments in entertainment,” shared Head. “Metaphysic is the preeminent technology company, setting the bar for the entire industry by developing hyperreal, photorealistic content for TV, film, and beyond, and I am thrilled to join this incredibly talented team.”
Visual effects veteran Thomas Salama joins Metaphysic after spending over a decade leading VFX and animation projects for companies including Industrial Light and Magic and Oscar-winning VFX company DNEG. As Lead Compositor at ILM, Salama worked closely with Bourne and Olivieri-Dancey. The trio’s credits include visual effects and imagery for Oscar-winning feature films, including Interstellar and Blade Runner 2049 and the Star Wars and Jurassic World franchises.
The new development team members, Head, Salama, Bourne, and Olivieri-Dancey, will build on Metaphysic’s software to produce hyperreal AI content and iterate on the company’s models. They will also work closely with Metaphysic’s AI and VFX experts team to continue to create cutting-edge technologies to help shape the future of film and television production.
Source: Metaphysic
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
