Digital Portfolio
4 JunThe Key objective for the compositing pathway of the VFX unit was to individually or within a group, plan and devise a creative moving image production that would be presented in a VFX showreel. This would involve combining skills and techniques gained through lessons and research to create a flawless composite of a high professional standard.
The first task to complete in any production is to analyse other people’s work for inspiration and then plan your own. The VFX sequence had to be of high quality but achievable, this made it vital to research a range of VFX methods used within the film industry. While the research and planning stages were started lessons on the subject were being taught, this showed us a range of 2D and 3D methods used within the industry. The lessons gave knowledge on the topic and the practical work developed key skills that came of use, this continued for 8 weeks.
For this module the personal goal was to achieve a VFX showreel that would be technically and aesthetically pleasing to an audience and show the skills and abilities devised. Furthermore, producing a short image sequence combining individual compositing work with another student. This will merge the two compositions together to create a small video production, where the VFX showreel will show the work individually. The originally plan was to produce all the work individually however a fellow student’s work fell through, he was able to join the production half way through completion. This made his choice of work minimal but the work will still hit the criteria if the effort and determination is there.
The planner for the showreel piece states the methods required for the unit, the work will have to include examples of, 2D Tracking, Digital Environments; Chroma Keying; Rotoscoping; Luminance Matte creation; Plate Matching; Light Wrap and Edge Treatments. This said, the work completed in lectures will be evaluated in the practical workshops. To accomplish the methods mentioned, the lectures and research are key to develop skills and help achieve the brief for this module.
Producing a VFX piece is a hard task, it has to be technically good to look realistic and blend within the scene but it also has to be creative. Studying other showreels and researching practitioners will provide inspiration from their techniques used within the sequence and it will also help to plan for an individual creative piece.
To create a unique showreel the first step of research would be to study other practitioners work. The first showreel that caught my eye and stood out was a showreel that first shows the footage of the film and then breaks down the sequence, starting from everything, ending with original footage/empty sequence. This is a brilliant way to show the effects and how they were applied to the footage, it’s an insight for the audience.
(Stalingrad, 2013)
This showreel is technically and aseptically pleasing, it has everything a VFX showreel should include. This showreel breaks down all the visual FX used while playing the original and final footage, this all being supported with music, sound effects and annotations. The breakdown has been edited in a very unique way by slotting images of various effects and layering them together. I feel inspired by the way in which it was edited, I feel that this editing process is the best way to show my individual work professionally. This method will show the final VFX sequence and the VFX process, it also shows effort and professionalism.
The VFX piece above is not the only showreel that features the unique editing style, a breakdown of the popular game of thrones series has also got a showreel from the talented team at Bluebolt. This video again shows the breakdown of effects from start to finish, accompanied by annotations and music. Maybe I’m biased but this video was very inspirational and has gave me ideas towards the showreel and the final video.
(Game Of Thrones VFX breakdown, 2012)
The two showreels mentioned have gave me an insight into how to edit the VFX showreel however the task is to complete a VFX image sequence and a showreel. In terms of planning, the short video will need to be completed before the showreel, therefore the first aspect of this production is to concentrate and initiate the VFX short film.
Through watching the tv series Spartacus, I have been inspired to create a fight scene that will feature a fight to the death. (Spartacus: Gods of the area, 2011) features gladiators fighting for survival and honour. I love the narrative and genre of the series and how it’s shot and edited, the effects and stylised in a artistic bloodthirsty way. I have decide to apply the idea of compositing blood and various effects over choreographed fight scenes.
(Spartacus:Gods of the area, 2011)
I have taken influence from this series by replicating similar shots and producing blood effects. The slow motion effects are also similar although my projection is slow all the way through representing a dream sequence. Furthermore, a light fog will accompany the shots throughout the fight. It is essential that the live-action footage for each shot is filmed correctly for the VFX. To keep track a shot list and story boards were present. The narrative and VFX needs to interlink and be clear to get the best results.
In regards to the location, I scouted around various locations but the one that suited the genre the most of Scalford Hall located in Scalford just outside of Melton Mowbray. The location was easily accessible due to having transport there. We were very fortunate to have permission to film there, it’s a beautiful location that fits the genre and looks stunning on camera. The location was studied to make sure we had enough space to film, lighting, access, etc.
Scalford Hall.
Once the filming has been completed it is essential that a plan of the VFX workflow is established and checklists are put into place, this will keep track of the targets and will result in the workflow being tidy. Once the filming stage is complete the next step is to produce the edit so the VFX scenes can be edited. Once the edit is complete the VFX shots will be exported out as Targa sequences. This file format enables us to quickly transfer files to other programs(Davinci, After effects, Blender) and the format is of a high quality, it doesn’t destroy any data. The data is sRGB, shot on a BlackMagic using 32bits, this will give us the best results in colour information and the overall quality of the footage.
Whilst the crew and I were filming it was very important that we noted down all the cameras settings for each shot, this is so in post-production the settings to the clips would stay the same and match. Due to research and test pieces we chose to shoot at 25fps 1080p, this was tested and gave the best result with other cameras. We stuck with the standard shutter angle for the BMCC as we liked a small amount of motion blur, it looked natural and would help blend some VFX shots. The only technical thing that didn’t help in post was the fact it was all shot handheld on a shoulder mount, no tripod. The downside to this was that we needed to track more or less every single shot. The motion blur made it hard to find a practical tracking point and the movement didn’t help with the tedious process. The reason we planned for handheld was to give a more natural feel to the fight scene, we didn’t want it static we wanted the edit to flow.
Furthermore, the camera was kept at ASA 800. This setting could have been altered but due to the good quality camera and lenses we had enough light which made the footage grain and noise free. We had the option to add noise or grain in once in the post-production stage if that filmic effect was desired. Zeiss lenses were used as they are the best quality available, on set the 50mm was used. The 50mm zeiss was wide enough to prevent some drastic moves during handheld and it was the best choice for framing for the shots.
The tracking and rotoscoping were a problem because it was all handheld and at times blurred, this could have been avoided by creating tracking markers and shooting static. Luckily the process was still accomplished due to determination and very tedious hard work. It wasn’t too difficult to roto the sword, in the scene it doesn’t move a drastic amount. Using keyframes for every frame was a slow process that could have been avoided however the end result was perfectly fine, it looked professional and worked with all the footage. The masking was also another tedious method, masks were used to hide or show effects within the shots. It was a major role in post as it blended in effects and could be used to manipulate or soften effects.
2D Tracking within the image sequence.
Rotoscoping and masking the blood on the sword.
Masking around effects so they blend with the footage and subtract what shouldn’t be seen.
The smoke effects were developed in after effects using clouds and blending the image to erase the unwanted elements, this was layered onto the image. The smoke was made at least three times the sequence size, this was so it didn’t look glued to the camera, it was on it’s own layer floating in the background. Again this was a long process because every shot was key frame to give the look of the smokey fog moving and each shot had a different depth, size and angle. The fog was duplicated into numerous layers to give the effect depth.
Another problem that occurred which was purely a filming mistake was the green-screened footage of mud was blurry. At the time we were so concentrated on getting the green-screen correctly lit we were totally unaware of the shutter angle until playing the footage back. Fortunately the blackmagic still picked up the mud at certain stages, and the mud inserted into the shot was small and not noticeable. Even though parts of the subject were blurry I was still able to create a decent key because the green-screen was lit correctly. In addition, colour matching the mud also blended the effect well. An important lesson was learned for future projects, don’t discard any element of filming, all of the components have their own importance.
Green-screen footage of mud.
Keyed out footage using key light.
Overall I’m pleased to say the final moving image production was a success. The narrative made sense and technically it was made to a professional standard, it links to my influences and research, also it sticks to the brief. I had achieved my initial aims. Aesthetically, some shots could of been improved as they don’t work well and some don’t cut well within the edit. One particalar shot is when it jump cuts from someone being punched in the nose. – See images below.
The only thing I like about this shot is the fog, it blends in the two images and does help cut between the clips. I believe if it was shot differently or if I added blood during the hit this would have greatly improved the shot.
The shot I am most happy with is the wide shot with everything going on, blood on sword, blood bursts, fog, smoke. I’m pleased with the amount of detail that went into this shot, for me this is the ‘Money Shot’. I had to be careful editing this shot because typically if you have a lot going on in the shot it doesn’t work, it can look blurred together and a mess. This is avoided by doing and keeping the effects separate. It’s easy to cut corners in post especially working on multiple effects so it’s best to work in separate compositions to avoid this outcome and keep your work tidy.
(Wrath Of Two Sons, 2014)
I conclude that I have reached my intended aims and objectives by completing a showreel and moving image production that is of a high professional quality. Some shots were not of a high level but this didn’t drastically change the edit. My piece of work definitely shows and relates towards my influences and inspirations such as Spartacus:Gods of the arena, of course they do not look identical due to budget, cast, ect, but the style and genre have a similarity.
(Spartacus:Gods of the arena, 2011)
(Wrath Of Two Sons, 2014)
I have learnt so much from this module and I’m pleased to say I can successfully use the VFX methods; Compositing, 2D tracking, Rotoscoping, masking, keying/Chroma keying, colour matching. I loved the units structure from the research,planning and filming stages to the editing and VFX stages. The experience that is most beneficial is working within a professional workflow and conducting good practice.
jabaines 