We worked through the first 24 or so VFX shots in a relatively serial fashion, June through August, making certain the groundwork was laid for the desired quality. The final 50% have been given to our VFX team Square Pixel in at one time, allowing them to focus entirely on Monitor Gray until it is complete.
Joel rendered and uploaded all remaining shots in the past two days. He is now labouring to provide updated notes in the form of audio narratives over low-res versions of the shots themselves. All narratives are associated with a screen grab which sometimes includes hand-drawn sketches on top
I provided a sketch for a key scene in which a helicopter lands on a pad cut into the side of the massive Pyramid. Of course, neither the Pyramid nor the landing pad exist, but the final scene must be flawless, believable such that the audience does not think twice.
Yesterday I downloaded over 50 stock photos, two dozen of which will be used for a relatively short scene in which the recruits to Sorin Biotech are given a virtual tour of their new home inside the Pyramid.
Joel and I are tenacious with detail. Even now, a year and a half into this project, we remain dedicated to the storyline, making certain that every second is true to the backstory and script. Again, I am fortunate to have Joel to guide this level of detail, for he simply never gives up (even when I would likely say, “It’s close enough!”).
I will this week return to the effort of sound design. I love working with audio–fine tuning, moving fragments just one frame to the left or one frame to the right to achieve the perfect timing. Some of our audio was clean and immediately usable, some of it has a high-pitch whine, an apparent electrical issue which requires cleaning. There is no such thing as a perfect shoot, I keep reminding myself.
I am eager to apply the many layers required to provide the full depth to each of the environments, from ambient hums to the on-screen action. A lot to learn and many, many hours to burn.
More to come …