VFX Breakdowns

Spider-Man – No Way Home – Behind the Scenes in Georgia

January 3, 2022

Movies

Check out a little behind-the-scenes magic as the “Spider-Man: No Way Home” stars and production team show us how they transformed Georgia into New York, crashed cars, blew stuff up and created the Spider-Man universe on Peach State stages.

Marvel, Movies, No Way Home, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Spider-Man
Robin Robin – Behind the Scenes

January 3, 2022

Animated Movies

Aardman, Animated, Claymation, Movies, Netflix, Robin Robin
Antlers – Creating the Wendigo

January 3, 2022

Movies

In ANTLERS, a small-town Oregon teacher (Keri Russell) and her brother (Jesse Plemons), the local sheriff, discover that a young student (Jeremy T. Thomas) is harboring a dangerous secret with frightening consequences.

Antlers, Movies, Searchlight Pictures
What 16 Movies Looked Like Behind The Scenes in 2021

January 1, 2022

Movies

2021 began with a lot of uncertainty about delayed releases and how we would be able to consume blockbuster movies. Regardless of whether you watched at the theaters or from the comfort of your home, there were many captivating movies that took filmmaking to another level. High-adrenaline flicks like “Shangi-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” “F9” and “No Time to Die” created in-camera stunts that you may have thought were CG. Young audiences got to see 2-D characters come to life like never before in “Clifford the Big Red Dog,” and “Space Jam: A New Legacy.” And real-life landscapes were constructed in both “Old” and “The French Dispatch” to transport viewers to another world. Here’s what 16 movies of 2021 looked like behind the scenes.

A Quiet Place, Army of the Dead, Black Widow, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Cruella, F9, Ghostbusters, In the Heights, Last Night in Soho, No Time to Die, Nobody, Old, Shangi-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Space Jam, The French Dispatch
What The 2020 Oscar Nominees Looked Like Behind The Scenes

January 1, 2022

Movies

A lot of work went on behind the scenes to bring this year’s Oscar-nominated films to life. “The Irishman” de-aged its actors using state-of-the-art CGI, “Bombshell” used prosthetics to transform Charlize Theron into Megyn Kelly, and Disney and Pixar continued to innovate with “Toy Story 4” and “Frozen II.” We also look into the process of making blockbusters like “Avengers: Endgame” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”

1917, Avengers, Bombshell, Endgame, Ford vs Ferrari, Forzen, Knives Out, Missing Link, Movies, Rise of Skywalker, Rocketman, Star Wars, The Irishnan, Toy Story
How “His Dark Materials” Used Puppets And CGI To Create Realistic Animals

January 1, 2022

TV Shows

Award-winning VFX company Framestore produced a number of daemons and polar bears for the HBO/BBC series “His Dark Materials.” The project was overseen by senior effects designer Russell Dodgson.

The team worked alongside studio Painting Practice to cast many of the creatures in the series, which were then brought to life by Puppetry legend William Todd-Jones.

For close-ups, some of the puppets like Lyra’s daemon Pan, were sculpted heads. Other slinky-body styles of puppet were used for quadrupedal or bipedal animals. Some “flappy” puppets were used for daemons that were in flight or had to land on actors’ arms.

When actors needed to demonstrate the weight of daemons, the team made gray furry cushions called bucks. These had weight and shape to make it look like actors were holding daemons or pressing their face to them.

For the polar bears, a series of large rigs were made. There was the “basher bear” to ram into stunt people and push actors to the ground, a riding rig for Dafne Keen (Lyra) to sit on, a backpack rig for her to get on top of someone’s shoulders, and a four-legged fiberglass standing puppet to show a polar bear’s height. The team also used a “couch bear,” which was a gray buck to lean against.

Even though the animals look incredibly real, the only “animal actor” on set belonged to Ariyon Bakare’s Lord Boreal and is played by an actual snake.

We caught up with Russell at Framestore in London to explain the process.

HBO Max, His Dark Materials, Season 1, TV Shows
Jungle Cruise – Weta Digital

January 1, 2022

Movies

Weta Digital’s contribution to Disney’s Jungle Cruise focused primarily on creating environments—including hundreds of kilometres of CG Amazon River, with mist, waterfalls and rapids—as well as the creatures that populate the jungle. We created and hand-animated Frank’s ever-loyal, and fully CG, pet jaguar Proxima, and crafted motion vignettes for the abundance of birds, bugs and monkeys that call the jungle home.

Disney, Jungle Cruise, Movies, Weta Digital
The Lord of the Rings – The Fellowship of the Ring – Weta Digital

January 1, 2022

Movies

Lord of the Rings, Movies, The Fellowship of the Ring, Warner Bros, Weta Digital
How Pixar Makes Animated Clothes Look Real

January 1, 2022

Animated Movies

In Pixar’s “Onward,” two elf brothers turn their late father into a pair of pants. Their dad had the most technically complex costume Pixar’s ever done (per their production notes). The challenge for the costume animation team was to make something that was appealing, funny, physically plausible, & look like a person at first glance — but ultimately behave like an actual lump of cloth. We focus on Dad’s costume, since he’s at the center of the story & his clothing posed a particular challenge to Pixar’s character tailoring artists. It will be interesting to show how much animation/simulation work & creativity goes into a single outfit for a Pixar character.

Clothing, Disney, Movies, Onward, Pixar, The Incredibles
Spider-Man 2 – Sony Pictures Imageworks

January 1, 2022

Movies

Marvel, Movies, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Spider-Man
How Netflix’s ‘Klaus’ Made 2D Animation Look 3D

January 1, 2022

Animated Movies

“Klaus,” Netflix’s first animated film, is an origin story of Santa Claus. Because the Oscar-nominated movie appeals to nostalgia, director Sergio Pablos and his team at The SPA Studios in Madrid decided to make the film in 2D. But they also wanted to advance the look, so they developed new technology that adds details like lighting and texture to the characters that make them appear 3D. We spoke with Pablos to find out how they made the innovative film, which earned an Academy Award nomination for best Animated Feature and seven Annie Awards. “Klaus” stars Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simmons, Rashida Jones, Will Sasso, Norm MacDonald, and Joan Cusack.

Animated, Klaus, Movies, Netflix
The Witcher – Season 2

December 28, 2021

TV Shows

Netflix, Season 2, The Witcher
Last Night in Soho – DNEG

December 27, 2021

Movies

Go behind-the-scenes Edgar Wright’s latest kaleidoscopic thriller, ‘Last Night in Soho’ with our #VFX breakdown reel!

DNEG, Last Night in Soho, Movies
Black Swan – LOOK Effects

December 24, 2021

Movies

Black Swan, LOOK Effects, Movies
Wendy

December 24, 2021

Movies

Movies, Peter Pan, Wendy
War of the Worlds – Season 2 – Vine FX

December 24, 2021

TV Shows

We’re thrilled to have worked alongside Urban Myth Films as the sole vendor once again.

War of the Worlds Season 2 was the first high-end scripted TV drama to embark on production under Covid-restricted conditions in 2020. Over an eight-month period, Vine FX delivered over 500 shots, with nearly 200 involving 3D elements. Key tasks included the full creation of a CG alien planet environment, adding spaceships across the streets of London as well as building the ship’s interior. All artists and the production team operated remotely throughout the project.

Season 2, Vine FX, War of the Worlds
Foundation – Season 1 – Outpost VFX

December 23, 2021

TV Shows

We’re pleased to present our work on the acclaimed Apple TV+ sci-fi series Foundation.

Outpost’s teams in Montreal, Los Angeles and the UK delivered roughly 300 complex #VFX shots for the first season, featuring full-CG environments, FX, de-ageing and more.

Apple TV+, Foundation, Outpost VFX, Season 1
Colin in Black and White – FuseFX

December 23, 2021

TV Shows

It was a pleasure teaming with @ava again for the must-watch and important ‘Colin in Black and White.’ #FuseFX provided #VFX to help capture the headspace, the complexities, the pain, and the joy that @Kaepernick7 faced on his journey pursuing his dream. #ColinInBlackAndWhite

Colin in Black and White, FuseFX, Netflix, Season 1, Trailers
Black Widow – ILM

December 23, 2021

Movies

Check out this thrilling behind-the-scenes look at Industrial Light & Magic’s work on Marvel Studios’ “Black Widow”. One of only ten films featured on the shortlist for the category of “Visual Effects” at the 94th Academy Awards®.

“We are thrilled to have contributed to the work on ‘Black Widow’, and to have it listed among the ten films that were selected at the VFX bakeoff for the Academy Awards this year,” said Craig Hammack, Visual Effects Supervisor at ILM. “Congratulations to our amazing and talented team of artists, and all the support that surrounds them!”

Black Widow, Disney, Marvel, Movies
The Mandalorian – Season 1 – Creating the Razor Crest – ILM

December 20, 2021

TV Shows

Join us as we journey behind the scenes of the Emmy™ Award-winning visual effects behind the first season of The Mandalorian. We’ll pull back the curtain on one of our favorite bounty hunter’s ship, the infamous Razor Crest and look at the distinctive former military ship from its initial concept design in Doug Chiang’s Lucasfilm art department through to ILM artists building the ship in the digital realm and as a practical miniature for filming. We’ll also look at the parallel development of the custom motion control camera system created by ILM Visual Effects Supervisor, John Knoll to allow for the first motion control shots to film at ILM in 15 years. We hope you enjoy this look ‘Inside ILM’.

Disney, ILM, Season 1, Star Wars, The Mandalorian
Lost in Space -Season 3 – Mackevision

December 20, 2021

TV Shows

https://vimeo.com/656662423

Lost in Space, Netflix, Season 3
North Sea – Rebel Unit

December 18, 2021

Movies

Movies, North Sea, Rebel Unit
Cowboy Bebop – Season 1 – Ingenuity Studios

December 18, 2021

TV Shows

Cowboy Bebop, Ingenuity Studios, Netflix, Season 1
A Boy Called Christmas – Framestore

December 18, 2021

Movies

A Boy Called Christmas, Framestore, Movies
Behind the Magic – The Visual Effects of Marvel Studios’ Eternals

December 16, 2021

Movies

Don’t miss this exciting behind-the-scenes look at Industrial Light & Magic’s work on Marvel Studios’ Eternals, playing in theaters now and arriving to @Disney Plus on January 12.

Marvel Studios’ “Eternals” welcomes an exciting new team of Super Heroes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The epic story, spanning thousands of years, features a group of immortal heroes forced out of the shadows to reunite against mankind’s oldest enemy, The Deviants. The outstanding ensemble cast includes Richard Madden as the all-powerful Ikaris, Gemma Chan as humankind-loving Sersi, Kumail Nanjiani as cosmic-powered Kingo, Lauren Ridloff as the super-fast Makkari, Brian Tyree Henry as the intelligent inventor Phastos, Salma Hayek as the wise and spiritual leader Ajak, Lia McHugh as the eternally young, old-soul Sprite, Don Lee as the powerful Gilgamesh, Barry Keoghan as aloof loner Druig, and Angelina Jolie as the fierce warrior Thena. Kit Harington plays Dane Whitman.

Disney, Eternals, ILM, Marvel, Movies