Cinefex Weekly Update | Issue 47

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Article by Alain Bielik

Three years after his hugely successful Amélie, Jean-Pierre Jeunet is back with his most ambitious project to date, A Very Long Engagement, the epic tale of a woman (Audrey Tautou) who searches for her fiancé in the midst of the First World War turmoil. The production entailed the re-creation of various areas of Paris in the early 20th century, in addition to digital enhancement of action sequences. As he has for all of his previous projects, Jeunet turned to Paris effects house Duboi (Alien: Resurrection) to produce the visual effects. "We created about 300 effects shots," said visual effects supervisor Alain Carsoux, "including 100 shots that required extensive work."

In the most challenging effects sequence of the movie, a blimp explodes in a hangar after a bomb hits the building. "Jean-Pierre thought he needed to build a full-size blimp to get the shots he wanted," recalled Carsoux. "On our side, we felt that a CG blimp would be more cost effective; but he was not keen on the idea. Like many French directors, he doesn't trust CGI. As a compromise, we suggested we use CG for establishing shots and a miniature for the explosion itself." Jeunet agreed to the approach and asked Duboi to previsualize the sequence. "Working in Maya, we built a CG replica of the real hangar, including the characters, the vehicles and every single prop. Jean-Pierre blocked out camera moves, angles, lenses, and even determined eye lines! Once on location, he matched the previz shot by shot, using a video switch to line up the framing. The previz also helped us figure out how much of the blimp needed to be built in miniature."

Special effects coordinators Yves Domenjoud, Jean-Baptiste Bonetto and Olivier Gleyze of Les Versaillais supervised three miniature setups for the sequence. The tight shot of the bomb crashing through the ceiling was realized with a 1/3-scale section of the blimp photographed under a partial ceiling. For the explosion itself, Les Versaillais fabricated a 1/10-scale rough replica of the interior of the hangar that was painted black. In this miniature, they assembled a group of 20-inch black balloons in a shape that reproduced the outline of the blimp. Filled up with propane gas, the balloons were detonated sequentially from the back to the front and shot at 150 frames per second.

"Since the explosion was shot on black from the same angle as the background plate," said Carsoux, "we were able to use it as a fire element that we composited over our CG blimp. Les Versaillais shot different types of pyro events in order to give us a variety of textures and shapes to work from. The various layers were assembled in our in-house compositing software, Dutruc. We also simulated a shockwave by replacing real props with CG replicas that were animated in Maya. The sequence concludes with an exterior shot of the hangar as a huge fireball engulfs the windows, an effect realized with a 1/10-scale miniature."

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The battle scenes kept Duboi busy with even more pyro effects. In a dramatic shot, a character is thrown in the air by a direct shell hit. "The actor was on a wire rig developed by stunt coordinator Patrick Cauderlier," Carsoux explained. "The explosives were detonated when he was five feet up; but since the camera was looking straight down at him, it seemed as if he was right in the blast. Les Versaillais designed a pyro effect that generated a mainly horizontal shockwave. After the wires had been painted out, we perfected the dynamics of the actor's movement by removing specific frames and adding morphs. We also animated CG dirt and dust to enhance the scale of the blast." For bullet impacts that couldn't be realized live, Duboi shot a series of pyro elements -- impacts on clothes, on blood bags, even on raw meat -- that were integrated into the live-action plates. The studio also animated hundreds of CG tracers to augment the realism of the battle scenes.

Duboi also tackled the re-creation of the French capital as it appeared 100 years ago. "We had several major establishing shots," said Carsoux, "including one featuring the Opera house. For this shot, we started by filming the building in the early morning with a carefully previsualized camera move. We then painted out the traffic, the pedestrians, and any anachronistic element, until we had a background plate that was the exact reproduction of the location in the early 1900s. After that, we reproduced the outline of the location on a parking lot, using tapes to mark out the sidewalks and bluescreens to represent the facades. Extras were shot with a static camera in four passes, at different distances. Although the background plate featured a camera move, we were able to digitally replicate it on these elements, thanks to the previz on which all the parameters had been worked out. The end result is a multi-layer moving effects shot that was realized without motion control."

In another scene, Duboi's tracking and match-moving abilities were put to the test with an aerial shot of a lighthouse overlooking the ocean. The original plate was shot from a crane on a parking lot with a partial lighthouse set surrounded by bluescreen. "After that, we shot a plate of the real ocean," Carsoux explained, "trying to match the original camera move from a helicopter. The two plates were then combined with a CG tower that connected the lighthouse set and the ground. The final step was to remove the reflection of the city that actually surrounded the parking lot from the windows of the lighthouse -- an enormous clean-up job that had to be repeated on almost every single shot of the sequence!"

For Carsoux, the most remarkable aspect of the project was Jeunet's distinctive photographic style. "Jean-Pierre didn't want to re-create the real ambiance of Paris in the early 1900s. He wanted a postcard look, which meant that a lot of our shots had to be stylized. It made the whole process more difficult for us, but the result is quite unique."

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Compiled by Joe Fordham

AMPAS Bakeoff: Variety reports the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' shortlist of films that are officially described as containing visual effects -- contenders for the 2004 visual effects Oscar 'bakeoff' -- will be announced December 17. The final three nominees will then be announced, after the bakeoff selection process, January 25. The trade posted a number of articles discussing this year's crop, one here reviewing effects in less-obvious effects films, another here discussing the need for a reevaluation of effects categories, and five other short articles reviewing work on display in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Spider-Man 2, The Day After Tomorrow, I, Robot and The Polar Express -- a selection that scrapes the top of this year's iceberg.
G-Force: Visual effects supervisor Hoyt Yeatman is making his directorial debut with this live-action/CGI family feature, which Variety now reports will be produced by Jerry Bruckheimer for Walt Disney Pictures. The story revolves around a group of intelligent animal government agents who try to prevent an evil billionaire from taking over the world. Yeatman developed the project at his production company Whamaphram Productions.
Hatch Productions: Hatch -- the Santa Monica, California visual effects studio founded by digital matte artist Deak Ferrand and visual effects producer Cheryl Bainum -- reports that it has opened a satellite facility in Geneva, Switzerland. The new base of operations will allow Hatch to participate in overseas 'sale and leaseback' contracts, fueled by European Free Trade Agreement tax incentives, and will allow Ferrand to work out of his native Switzerland. Hatch's recent assignments include Constantine, Van Helsing, Hellboy and The Chronicles of Riddick. Ferrand also created the memorable heavenly cityscapes for What Dreams May Come, viewable with other samples here.
Kim Libreri: Industrial Light & Magic reports visual effects supervisor Kim Libreri has joined the team at Lucasfilm Limited's 28-year-old effects studio based in San Rafael, California. Libreri's arrival coincides with a reorganization at ILM described as 'a major shift in the way the facility structures productions and support ranks on its film projects.' Libreri's recent credits include Catwoman, The Matrix Revolutions and The Matrix Reloaded. He began his career as a senior software engineer at the Computer Film Company in London, was head of technology at Cinesite Europe, and led technology development teams at Manex Visual Effects for The Matrix and What Dreams May Come.
Mantron Corporation: Adam Martinez, who was lead CG supervisor in the upcoming Constantine and for the Zion siege in The Matrix Revolutions, has joined forces with digital effects artists Matthew Wallin, Demetrius Leal and Kevin Romond as Mantron Corporation in Alameda, California. Martinez and Wallin founded the company in 2001 to provide digital effects for sculptor/performance-artist/filmmaker Matthew Barney's high-definition feature Cremaster 3; Mantron is now working on Barney's latest project, Drawing Restraint 9. Click here for more information about Mantron, and here for a creepy and disturbing Cremaster trailer.
Digital Video Expo West: This technology exposition in Los Angeles, December 7-10, includes exhibits from Apple, Avid, Panasonic, Canon and Adobe, conferences on audio, video, high-definition imagery, motion graphics and visual effects and a keynote address by film editor and sound designer Walter Murch -- whose credits include THX 1138, Apocalyse Now, The English Patient and Cold Mountain -- on Thursday, December 9. Click here for more details.
The Sub-Mariner: The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed earlier reports that filmmaker Chris Columbus will direct and produce this Marvel Comics property for Universal Pictures. Avi Arad will produce for Marvel, Kevin Misher for Misher Films, Columbus and his 1492 Productions. The testy aquatic superhero, Prince Namor, a half-man/half-amphibian creature from the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, first appeared in 1939, when Marvel was known as Timely Comics, then reappeared in Fantastic Four adventures in the 1960s. Screenwriter David Self has adapted the comic for what is described as 'an epic film that will highlight various cultures, species and worlds beneath Earth's oceans.' Columbus will begin production on Sub-Mariner once he has completed filming an adaptation of the Broadway musical Rent.
War of the Worlds: Click here for the first official teaser poster image from Paramount Pictures for Steven Spielberg's and Tom Cruise's upcoming Martian invasion picture. Amateur poster art and oodles of images of behind-the-scenes mayhem and destruction can be found at the following fan site, proving that it is hard to keep things secret when you are laying waste to large swaths of New Jersey.
The Ring of the Nibelungs: German television station Sat1 reports this two-part miniseries, based on the Nordic legend Die Nibelungen, was viewed by an estimated 8 million viewers on its opening night, November 29, making it one of the most successful events in German television history. The series stars Kristanna Loken, Benno Fürmann and Max von Sydow, was directed by Uli Edel and co-produced by Tandem Communications, VIP Mediafolds and Uncharted Territories -- the production company and visual effects facility founded by Volker Engel and Marc Weigert. Engel and Weigert supervised production of 671 visual effects shots for the series at Uncharted Territories in Los Angeles. No air date has been set yet for the United States, although Columbia Tristar has acquired the rights for worldwide video and DVD distribution. For more about the series at Sat1's German language website, including glimpses of the dragon, klicken sie hier.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe: Click here for a ComingSoon.net report from the Auckland, New Zealand, set of this upcoming C.S. Lewis adaptation, highlighting the locations and sets built by production designer Roger Ford.
The Da Vinci Code: Columbia Pictures confirmed reports that director Ron Howard has cast Tom Hanks as the lead in this adaptation of Dan Brown's 2003 best-selling thriller about a man who discovers and decodes clues to a 2,000-year-old ecclesiastical conspiracy hidden in Leonardo Da Vinci's art. Akiva Goldsman is preparing the screenplay, with production scheduled to begin next year in the United States and Europe, aimed at a worldwide release May 19, 2006. Brian Grazer and John Calley will produce for Imagine Entertainment and Sony Pictures Entertainment. This will be Hanks' third collaboration with Howard and Grazer, after Splash and Apollo 13.
The First Vampire: The Hollywood Reporter states Relativity Management and Asgaard Entertainment will finance this horror feature set in 4th century Scandinavia and scheduled to start filming in the first quarter of 2005. Jason Todd Ipson will direct his own screenplay and will co-produce the project with Julio Bove. Relativity Management is described as a 'talent, production and finance entity,' and Asgaard Entertainment is a Beverly Hills motion picture production and finance company.
Iron Man: The Hollywood Reporter states Nick Cassavetes is in negotiations to direct this Marvel Comics adaptation for New Line Cinema, produced by Marvel Enterprises and Don Murphy's Angry Films. The screenplay by David Hayter, Alfred Gough and Miles Millar will focus on the character of industrialist Tony Stark, who develops a crimson and gold armored flying suit that shoots 'repulsor rays.' The comic, created by Stan Lee in 1963, depicted Stark as a weapons manufacturer, wounded in action in Vietnam, who returns to America to fight the global expansion of Communism, while combating his own alcoholism. The adaptation will reportedly incorporate 'modern technological, political and societal trends.'
Perfume: The Hollywood Reporter states Tom Tykwer will direct an adaptation of this novel by Patrick Süskind about a sociopath in 18th-century France with a peculiarly sensitive olfactory sense. We last reported on Tykwer's involvement back in January, when Orlando Bloom was slated to star, but Ben Whishaw is now set to portray Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, the perfume manufacturer who resorts to murder to capture the ultimate fragrance, and Dustin Hoffman and Alan Rickman will co-star. The film, with a budget reportedly set at $66 million, is being produced by Constantin Film in Germany. Tykwer co-wrote the screenplay with Constantin founder Bernd Eichinger.
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events: Click here for an AOL Moviefone presentation of a clip from Paramount Pictures upcoming adaptation of Daniel Handler's Lemony Snicket children's fantasy novels, and a featurette containing interviews with star Jim Carrey, costume designer Colleen Atwood and special makeup effects artist Bill Corso, discussing the creation of the title character's bizarre persona in the film.

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