Working Hollywood: Making mice for 'Dinner for Schmucks'

Steve Carell's character builds mice dioramas in the new comedy that the Chiodo brothers were tasked with creating.

The Chiodo brothers — Stephen, Edward and Charles — recently crafted more than 100 model mice for the new Steve Carell-starring comedy "Dinner for Schmucks," but it was a great ape that initially set them on a path to filmmaking: The New York natives as children made 8-millimeter stop-motion animated movies in their parents' basement, inspired by the work of special effects legends Ray Harryhausen and Willis O'Brien.

"When we went to one of our first trips to New York City after seeing 1933's 'King Kong,' we were at the Empire State Building looking for the cracks in the sidewalk where he might have fallen," said Charles.

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Legend3D, the leading innovator in 2D-to-3D motion picture conversion technology, today announced the addition of Toni Pace Carstensen to the Legend3D team as Senior Visual Effects (VFX) Producer. In this role, Pace will be responsible for creating synergistic relationships between Legend3D and its clients. According to Pace, “The goal is to collaborate with our clients to create seamless and immersive entertainment experiences for consumers across all platforms.”

“Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program”

“Toni has significant experience producing visual effects for feature films, television and commercials and we’re excited to have a veteran of her caliber join our growing team,” said Dr. Barry Sandrew, founder, president and COO of Legend3D. “With the addition of Toni, Legend3D continues to leverage its proprietary technologies to produce the highest quality conversion work available. We will continue to work in close collaboration with filmmakers throughout the storytelling process to ensure that every 3D product deepens audiences’ connections.”

Prior to joining Legend3D, Pace worked on numerous high-profile projects, most recently James Cameron’s Avatar, during which she managed the turnover of production shots to WETA Digital for final animation and developed procedures for show management. Additionally, she has worked on 3D stereo projects such as Star Trek Voyager: Borg Encounter, and Panasonic’s Blue Man Group TV promo. Other recent high-profile projects include Mission: SPACE at Disney World’s EPCOT and re-mastering of the visual effects for the original Star Trek series.

Throughout her career, Pace has been highly involved in industry associations including the Producers Guild of America, and is a founding and current member of the Visual Effects Society Board of Directors. Pace has received numerous accolades including a 2008 Visual Effects Society Award nomination in the “Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program” category for her work on Pushing Daisies.

For more information about Legend3D, please visit www.Legend3D.com. For press inquiries, contact Erica McCarthy at 619-234-0345.

About Legend3D

Legend3D is a division of Legend Films, Inc., a dynamic digital media and visual effects company. Legend3D utilizes patented 2D-to-3D image conversion technologies to enhance filmmakers’ storytelling by creating the highest quality dimensional conversions possible. Legend3D’s conversion artists are helping filmmakers connect with audiences worldwide and are rapidly setting the industry standard for 2D-to-3D conversion. Legend3D has completed 3D conversions for Warner Brothers, Sony, Hewlett Packard, M&M Mars, New Balance, the Michael Jackson Tour, MTV, and Disney. Founded in 2001 by Dr. Barry Sandrew, Legend Films is headquartered in San Diego and operates facilities in San Diego, Los Angeles and Panta, India. For more information, visit www.Legend3D.com.