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Digital
visual effects techniques are an integaral part of the way
Loonatik & Drinks works. After an initial animatic rough
cut, projects continue to a CGI design stage and construction
of virtual locations and objects.On
set we make a movie with post production VFX in mind. We
use HD technology to maximise image quality and take plenty
of hi-resolution digital stills.
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The
opening shot of The Hand required
a crane shot which explored the exterior of a flat in an urban
Japanese street before revealing our actress at the window.
Early on I realized that a physical, real world solution to
this shot was impractical, so I used a traditional matte painting,
with the video sections composited into key areas. This matte
was given 3 dimensionality in Adobe After Effects which was
refilm using a new, moving virtual camera. |
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Exterior
matte for The Hand
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When
David decided that the limited size of the main set in The Hand
was less than ideal, I used this same basic technique to extend
the room with virtual set pieces, into which video plates were
again composited. This '2.5' dimensional approach is effective
but relatively quick to achieve for shots with limited camera
movement. |
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In
addition to 2.5D, I've also found the need to incorporate
truly 3D imagery, built using Alias Maya. The second Lucy
Spook movie requires shots of both inside and outside a period
ghost train. As relatively few of these survive anywhere in
the world, I used photo references to construct 3D models
of both the ride and the car in which Lucy rides.
The animatic called for many different angles, so I knew true
3D was called for.
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| Design
for Ghost Train from second Lucy Spook short |
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Some
of our projects have been purely bluescreen work with no physical
set at all; this situation presents different challenges and
different possibilities. A huge percentage of one of our current
projects, The Horror
of the Heights is bluescreened, I've had to use all of our
established VFX tricks, and develop a few new ones, but ultimately
this is the direction we'd like to go in.
Using
a few PCs built with parts off the shelf of the local computer
shop, and shooting on an entry level HD camera we've managed
to realise Arthur Conan Doyle's bizarre and visually rich
tale of early aeronautics. Ultimately, drawing heavily on
VFX frees us from the need for funding which would otherwise
be required. No funding means no funder's expectations, we
can make movies in our own way to our own schedules and that's
always been our prime motivation.
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Stephen
Gray
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