Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/511209
www.postmagazine.com 18 POST MAY 2015 t wasn't that long ago that Marvel decided to launch to its own mov- ie studio and turbo-boost the Avengers comic book heroes by first releasing the hugely-successful Iron Man film (starring Robert Downey Jr.) in 2008. Grossing more than $318M, it was the birth of a franchise that then lead to the release of The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and several sequels, before all culminating in Marvel's The Avengers in 2012, which grossed more than $623M. With numbers like that, and ground- breaking special effects work from some of the industry's leading studios, why wouldn't Marvel give the Avengers an- other go 'round? In its latest offering, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel and director Joss Whedon captivate audiences once again, leaning heavily on visual effects by studios that include ILM and Trixter, among others, as well as previs and postvis work from The Third Floor. Here, Post speaks with the visual effects and previs/postvis super- visors who lead the teams that created Ultron, The Hulk, Iron Man, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. And then there are the digital environments that play an equally-important role in the story. ILM ILM's facilities in San Francisco, Vancou- ver, London and Singapore contributed to more than 800 shots featured in I BY MARC LOFTUS AND LINDA ROMANELLO AVENGERS ILM, Trixter and The Third Floor help Marvel take audiences on its latest VFX- driven superhero adventure ASSEMBLED