At Illumin, engineering forms the foundation of our publishing efforts. While it may not always be readily noticeable in our daily lives, like cars on the road or satellites in the sky- engineering can be found in a variety of forms. Our latest issue, 23.1, delves into the engineering marvels present within the artistic world of film and cinema. This issue also examines the impact algorithms have on shaping fashion trends and image processing.
In awe of the surreal images so close to our fingertips, it’s often hard to appreciate the cinematic complexity in films. From the hyper-realistic effects in sci-fis to the enchanting environments of fantasy films, they all seem to come to life in today’s cinema. In light of this, Seeing is Not Believing: How Your Eyes are Tricked by CGI addresses the various CGI techniques being used in the industry and how their seamless integration goes undetected. How to Build a Dragon takes a deeper look at the delicate steps that must be taken to make such integration possible and how complicated it is to get it right. And a perfect example of the complexity that goes into the work of visual effects, From Astronauts to Actors: Simulating Zero-Gravity for Film explains the feats necessary to recreate zero-gravity right here on earth, and the pros and cons that come with it. In the second half of our issue, we highlight the omnipresence of algorithms in all parts of daily life. From the clothes we wear to the trends fashion brands convince us to follow, AI modeling plays a hand as Applications of Technology in Fashion Trend Forecasting explains. And perhaps after finding your own unique style you might be tempted to snap a picture and upload it. But JPEG: The Timeless Insights that Makes Us Still Use a Format from 1992 reveals that the very nature of such an image, in JPEG format, is dictated by algorithms, sometimes dating back to the 20th century! So, in the current 21st century, as these algorithms and models become more advanced and less controlled, it is unsurprising that there lie risks we must avoid.We hope that you can gain more insight about the engineering that’s used to create cinematic worlds in film and learn more about how algorithms are now dominating our everyday lives. So spend some time and read more about the magic of engineering in our lives.
We hope you enjoy!
Associate Editors Antonina Mintcheva and Ralph Jeanty
