Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1513434
not gratuitous. I think many other lmmakers would probably say, 'Well, we spent time making this giant monolithic structure. Let's do a complete y-through of the camera and show it o.' He didn't work that way, which was really refreshing." Edwards was eager to integrate new technology and techniques into the lm's VFX production process. "We gave him the chance to do a virtual cam session, where he's able to essentially take an iP- ad-like device and use it like a camera, and frame up and composite what he wants of the framing of the shots," Chan explains. "There are directors who give us briefs, and it's a fully-CG shot, where you have no idea where anything is. And he's just like, 'This is exactly how I want it. Take it, roll with it.'" Edwards communicated his visual ideas via a variety of methods. "Sometimes he went lo- and sent a photo to Ian of a Lego guy at- tached to a water bottle to represent our main character, Joshua, against the missile," Chan recalls. "He is a very visual guy who's able to give you what he exactly needs. And that's something that I ab- solutely admire about him, because we denitely don't get that all the time." ILM worked closely with production designer James Clyne, who guided the lm's worldbuilding and design language development from start to nish. "He was so familiar with what Gareth wanted, what his vision was," Chan recalls. "It was a great partnership that was also such a great resource for us, because having that actual visual, physical thing that is concept art and draw-overs helps us get our assets and our environments that much easier and closer to that nal product," Chan adds. The team at ILM believed in the project and went above and be- yond to bring Edwards' ideas to the screen. "Any artist who came onto the project immediately saw the richness of this world, the beautiful photography, and they were hooked and wanted to con- tribute," Comley shares. "There really was a fantastic team dynamic, all the way through the artists, the leads, the supes." "It was a huge collaborative eort from everyone at ILM," Chan adds. "There's no way we would have been able to succeed without this passion that everyone had for this project," he continues, noting that the guerilla-style lmmaking was a refreshing departure from other large-scale productions that the team has worked on. "Every- one was just very hands-on and wanting to be part of it." Comley and Chan worked closely with fellow ILM VFX supervisor Jay Cooper and on-set VFX supervisor Andrew Roberts. During pro- duction, Roberts ensured that ample reference data was captured with HDRI chrome balls and LiDAR scans whenever possible. Edwards kept performances grounded and did not utilize green screens. The ILM team worked closely with production designer James Clyne. "You're left with the residual impression that you could point a camera anywhere," Comley shares. "This world has depth and this sort of visual language and beauty..."