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Wednesday 15 November 2017

Rising Sun Pictures, hammers out, VFX for ‘ Thor : Ragnarok ’

Rising Sun Pictures ( RSP ) , one of Australia’s premiere , visual effects studio , has produced more than 170 , final visual effects shots , for the movie , Thor : Ragnarok ¸ which is a new film , from Marvel Studios stable . The work is going on , under the supervision of  Director Taika Waititi , production Visual Effects Supervisor , Jake Morrison and production Visual Effects Producer , Cyndi Ochs .  RSP’s team , has spent more than 18 months , in this endeavour to , highlight some of the film’s most memorable , creative and technically challenging , shots and scenes .

 RSP’s contributions , could be highlighted in a dubbed sequence ,  “ Val’s Flashback ” , which is about  a raging battle , between the film’s villain , Hela (Cate Blanchett ), and Valkyrie’s army . The team , has also played a pivotal role in , “ The Palace Battle , ” which is an epic confrontation , between Hela and Thor ( Chris Hemsworth ) , and in the flash back sequence in , “ The Bifröst Bridge”  the magical rainbow , that connects , realms of the Norse cosmos . This project is specially outstanding ,  for the unique  work of RSP’s character expansion in the animation department , wherein , the  task was of creating photo real horses , Valkyrie and skeleton soldiers, as well as other digital characters .

“ We were honoured , to be selected by Marvel Studios ,  as a vendor on this film and  we are proud of the work , that we have delivered ” ,  says Tony Clark , the Managing Director. “ We have been systematically , growing our human and technical resources , especially in character animation , to tackle complex , large scale projects , while maintaining the artistry , craftsmanship and attention to the details , that are hallmarks of RSP . The results are evident in Thor : Ragnarok . ”  Almost , 200 artists , were involved in this RSP project .

“ Val’s Flashback ” , which is shown in an artfully , slow motion , under glittering lights , is a description of  a fatal encounter  ,between Valkyrie warriors and Hela , the Asgardian Goddess of Death . The female warriors , who are riding on winged steeds , appear from various parts of the sky, who are then ,  struck down , without mercy , by Hela , who uses all her magical powers .

The team , led by Senior Visual Effects , Supervisor , Tom Wood , started its work , on the scene , at the beginning of early 2016 ,  during its pre production phase itself . The artists , had prepared , 3D pre visualisation , which delves , into each sequential element , which serves as a guide , for all subsequent productions and posts .

The production work took place , on a soundstage , in Queensland . Slow motion effects , was an achievement , because it was done , by capturing , actor performances , via , a Phantom camera , which operates , at 900 fps . The image , which was further given an enhancement for the surreal cast  , through the usage of a rotating lighting system , the scenes are bathed , in undulating patterns of light and shadow .

RSP , On Set Visual Effects  Concept and Pre Vis Supervisor , Adam Paschke , was the head of a set team , which he himself had gathered , apart from all the practical data needed and provided the much required  technical advice too ,while shooting  . The Production process  , was then followed by the usage of Character Animation , Visual Effects , 3D , Matte Painting and Compositing at RSP’s Adelaide studio , which had taken months , to get the desired , completed  scenes .

The obvious choice , for all the flashback scene was RSP , because of its considerable experience , in slow motion visual effects . For films like :  X-Men :  Days of Future Past and X-Men : Apocalypse , the studio had come up with magical visual effects , for several scenes , which were demonstrated , using hyper speed abilities , of mutant Quicksilver . Thor : Ragnarok . However , it starts from a slow motion mode and gradually moves into a new and technically challenged , direction .

“ Taika and Jake conceived a fantastic scene ,” notes Wood . “ The concept was pre visualized and they attended the shoot and as soon as the editing was over, they went straight ahead into production . The pre visualization sequence was broken into multiple layers , each of which , was shot separately and then reassembled , part by part , in post.”

“ The flashback sequences were created by the involvement of high level creature animation and digital characters, as well as minute , detailed compositing , because of unusual lighting effects ,” adds , Visual Effects Executive Producer , Gill Howe. “ It was also a huge challenge , as it was a standalone piece and the most significant scene , in the movie . It had to be unique, different and something , which no one had ever done before.”

A lot of considerable attention has gone into the making of Valkyrie and the horses creation . Its often shown in close ups ,  so that the animated characters , look photo-real. “ We spent a lot of time , looking at the development process and make sure  , for example , the fur and feathers were right and the muscle system moved like a real horse ,” explains , Head of Creatures , Tim Mackintosh .  “ If they had been monsters  , we would have had more leeway , because monsters aren’t real , but everyone is familiar with horses . Although , these were mythical , winged horses , audience members , will have an idea as to how they should look and move . ”

RSP , has also , taken great care , in getting Hela’s accoutrements , which includes her cape , the cowl she wears on her head and her menacing antlers . Artists , at first , had concepts developed for Hela’s costume , for the trailer itself , which was screened ,  at Comic-Con in 2016 , but went on to modify , the look , after , later stages of production . “ It was quite tricky ,” recalls the Head of Lighting / Looks Development ,  Shane Aherne . “ We needed to be consistent with the assets , practical counterparts and with their representations , in the original Marvel comics . But we also needed to accommodate , Cate Blanchett’s performance and the action scenes . ”

RSP , has used digital characters , to do actions , which are supposed to be impossible , for humans or to facilitate that into the scenes . This was highly essential ,  for characters which had to exhibit magical powers or show super human strength . In most cases , the character’s motion , originated from motion capture data , from the actors themselves . “ Motion capture , will provide 90 percent there , but the remaining has to be obtained ,through CG characterization , ” notes Mackintosh .       “ It’s a labourious process , the one which needs , artists to use a lot of different skill sets . ”

“ The Palace Fight ” , is a depiction of a face off , between Hela and Thor , which is rolled out over  60 shots . Even though , live action scenes , were shot on a practical set , the production team had to eventually , select , the whole background , which was then replaced , using 3D environment , created by RSP . “ We produced a palace , which was huge , with a higher ceiling , than was possible , to  erect , on any stage . ” , explains Wood . “ It was more spread out and more opulent . ”

In the completed scene , Thor is the sole , non digital element . “ Replacing , the background entirely, created its own challenges , ”  observes , 2D Lead , Jess Burnheim . “ It meant , that if we had to extract , Chris Hemsworth , from the plate , with no blue screen .  We literally rotoscoped everything including his hair. It was a painstaking effort . ”

The Bifröst Bridge , makes another appearance , in a pitched battle field , wherein , Hela is pitted against Thor and Loki . “ The Bifröst scene was previously seen in Marvel productions , but in Thor : Ragnarok , it was given a unique look , because we’re inside it ,” Burnheim explains . “ We had old references to work from , but we had to develop the effect further and create something that would work with the plate photography . ”

“ One thing that happens , in the scene , is that , Thor is pushed into the side of the bridge and it shatters ,” he adds . “ That raised the question , what is it made of ? Is it light ? Is it physica l? It took many iterations , to get the feel right . ”

RSP , has also been a part of a scene , featuring Hela’s troop , consisting of skeleton soldiers , which yet again was the involvement of digital characters usage . As well as , the artists created , a 3D version , of Thor’s famed hammer , for a particular scene , where Hela crushes it .

Inspite of  the project’s toughness , lengthy schedule and an ever growing shot list , the work was carried on smoothly . Mackintosh , gives credit , to the unique structure  ,of RSP’s production pipeline .  Its amalgamation of animation , character development and compositing facilitates , were collaborated between the departments , which allowed the studios , to get rid of many things and get the work done fast .

“ Animation and creatures , aren’t the same entities ,  at quite a few studios , but the departments , have to be joined , in a single , smooth pipeline ,” Mackintosh says . “ When we are working towards delivering shots , there has always been , a lot of back and forth movements , between the teams , and we feel , it’s essential , to keep them working together . ”

Howe , however , notes , that the cohesiveness , of the RSP team ( all the senior artists , have been associated , with the studio for ages )  , also boosts , efficient work and delivers , cost cutting .

“ As , this was our first Marvel Studios show , we wanted to give it , our best effort and ensure that everything we delivered  , was spectacular and exceeded all expectations ,” says Howe . “ The results are a testament , to the dedication and creativity of our artists and the strength of our pipeline , in managing photo real creature animation ; complex , interactive lighting and looks development . It’s a big step , forward for RSP . ”

Rising Sun Pictures , heads of the departments , comprised of  : Senior VFX Supervisor , Tom Wood : Executive Producer , Gill Howe :  DFX Supervisor , Noah Vice : 2D Lead , Noah Burnheim : VFX Supervisor , Dennis Jones : Head of Creatures  , Tim Mackintosh : Head of Layout , Damian Doenning : On-Set VFX / Concept / Pre vis ,  Adam Paschke  finally , Head of Lighting / Looks Development , Shane Aherne .

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