Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/360038
www.postmagazine.com 42 POST JULY 2014 The rope tornado was crafted in Hou- dini. "It started as character animation providing the path and base of move- ment, then on top of that we did a lot of procedural and simulation dynamics to create the cloud system, debris and mist," says Barton. He notes that debris "helps defi ne the force and size of the tornado — you realize the tornado is not just clouds of mist but swirling 2x4s and sheet rock." A real water truck served as the basis for Digital Domain's CG model of the fuel tanker; key-frame animation picked up, fl ung and tumbled the truck in the tornado's winds. When it landed on the fuel pumps, audiences got a double whammy of explosions. "They did some on-set pyro, but it wasn't nearly as large as they needed," Barton recalls. "We re- placed all of it with Houdini. We've done environmental eff ects for many years, so we have a very robust additional toolset that got the fi re and clouds to interact and feel like they were subject to the same forces and in the same lighting environment." A digital double was created to replace a stunt performer when a cameraman, who's desperate to document the de- structive beauty of the fi re tornado, gets caught up in the explosion and vortex. The rope tornado sucks up the burning fuel, which climbs high into the clouds. Digital matte painting was required for almost every shot, if only to change the location lighting since tarps didn't always block key talent from sunshine. Maya was used for modeling and animation, Mari for paint and texturing, proprietary software for tracking, V-Ray for rendering and Nuke (developed by Digital Domain) for compositing. THE THIRD FLOOR Previs by The Third Floor (www.theth irdfl oorinc.com) in Los Angeles played an important role in several key VFX sequences for the new, live-action Teen- age Mutant Ninja Turtles, which fi nds the brave quartet fi ghting to save their city from an evil kingpin. The Third Floor worked closely with director Jonathan Liebesman and 2nd unit director Dan Bradley in LA on the action-packed, ice-chase sequence, where the turtles slide down the face of a mountain. It was done early in the pro- duction to meet the needs of shooting in a snowy location in New York. Later, Nick Markel, one of the founders of The Third Floor and previs supervisor, moved on-set in New York, where the fi nal battle sequence between the turtles and Shred- der was shot. Pablo Helman was VFX supervisor for Industrial Light & Magic. For the ice chase, "the camera was very dynamic, the stunt schedule was complex and there were a lot of all-dig- ital shots," says Markel. "They rigged a huge semi truck with its trailer swinging back and forth, and Donatello slingshots Raphael into a Humvee for a slow-mo moment. The previs was a creative blue- print so they could break down the scene technically and fi gure out what could and couldn't be captured in-camera." For the fi nal battle in Times Square, Markel was on-location to scout roof- top locations and interface with the art department to ensure that the previs was accurate to the shoot. "I walked up the narrow scaff olding and catwalk where the ball drops on New Year's Eve to snap pictures to get the right per- spective of the action below," he says. He also worked with the stunt team on the turtles' martial arts moves; some that would be achieved via digital stunts were hand keyed in the previs. Maya and After Eff ects were the primary previs tools. Markel used Skype and other remote connections to keep the LA offi ce up to speed. "By having me on-location and the rest of our team in LA, I was able to adapt to the production's needs and have access to my entire team without the cost of having the entire Third Floor crew in New York," he says. The Third Floor created previs for a number of summer blockbusters, includ- ing Edge of Tomorrow, Hercules, and Guardians of the Galaxy. Markel notes that previs is "an integral planning tool" for VFX now, as is postvis for editorial. He'd like to see even greater collabora- tion with the art and stunt departments — which happened on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — as well as spe- cial eff ects and the cam- era depart- ment. "Previs should be everyone's tool." CONTINUED FROM PG 26 VFX IN FEATURE FILMS Digital Domain created rope tornadoes for Into the Storm. The Third Floor's Nick Markel. C M Y CM MY CY CMY K