Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1489831
o c t o b e r • n o v e m b e r • d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 2 c g w 2 3 line efficiently, achieving stunning renders in a practical timeframe, a crucial advantage when you have 220 shots to deliver across eight episodes of television. CHAPTER VINE From slithering vines to flying bat creatures, everything living in the Upside Down is part of a villainous hive mind. For Chapter Nine, Scanline added CG vines inside the creepy Creel House that come alive, animating their interaction with the actors and adding FX spores, dust, and atmos to emphasize the eerie atmosphere. "The vines are in many shots that are part of the Upside Down," says Mitchell. "Most of them are created and dressed by the art de- partment, but in this sequence, they needed to really move." V-Ray's speed meant that Scanline could iterate with different levels of sub- surface on the CG vines, deciding, in the end, to scale back and bal- ance a slimy, organic feel with the look of the physical vines on set. Scanline used a digital replica of the Creel House to animate the vines and matchmoved the actors' on set performances for the ter- rifying moment that the vines grab hold and pin them to the wall. On-set elements helped to integrate the CG vines in the scene and V-Ray ensured realistic shadows and reflections, perfectly integrat- ing with the practical effects. The Upside Down is characterized by its unearthly atmosphere, and the sequence was made all the more difficult by the kids' flash- light beams intersecting with various atmospherics. Scanline under- took painstaking work to layer elements in front of and behind the volumetric light emanating from the flashlights, something V-Ray's light and atmospheric tools make it uniquely qualified for. With several shots across the season needing as many as a hundred render passes, V-Ray's denoiser was crucial to delivering high-quality renders within a practical time frame, without devouring resources. While it's far from the most exciting feature, it's a reminder of the importance of reliability on projects like Stranger Things Sea- son 4. "V-Ray has a lot of great advanced features," says Mitchell, "but what you really want is a renderer that's robust, fast, and just works. That's definitely the case for V-Ray." Digital fireballs, sparks, dust, rotor wash, and debris were added to augment the explosion. CG spores and dust emphasized the eerie atmosphere.