Handling The Visual Effects

[dark_b]

Im pretty sure it was motion tracked. They show they doing this in the Making of...Anyway, CG only works when it's something fast. NEVER for close-ups.

i think they motion tracked for shots where they kneew that it is going to be CGI.
or did they motion track for every shot of superman?

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

They're getting closer and closer.

[YT]Pyhf3JmODHE[/YT]

That looks amazing.

 

[terry78]

Now when we can get video game models that look that good.

 

[Figs]

They're getting closer and closer.

Wow!!

The eyes are probably the best CGI eyes I've ever seen.

The eyes in most films always give it away with that weird glossy look. That looks pretty damn close to the real thing.

 

[SuperZer0]

Industrial Light & Magic or WETA Digital should handle the VFX.

 

[8wid]

They're getting closer and closer.

That's absolutely incredible.

 

[LaraLane]

How do you want to see Superman's powers represented by Nolan and his team?Heat vision. Do you want to see a classic Reeve red laser? Or something like SR did where it was more clear and wavy? Flight/Speed. Do you want to see a blur like the old films and tv series have done? I did not see SR showing a fast blur.Freeze. Do you want to see particles of ice, or just a cold liquid nitrogren smoke?

 

[elgaz]

In terms of 'realism', the wavy heat beam is more acceptable than red lasers. And I think it looks better.

For superspeed, I'd like to see a blur. A lot of films/TV express superspeed by actually slowing everything else down - showing everything in slow motion while the person with superspeed moves normally. This is fair enough when showing attention to detail, but I'd also just like to see a few shots where the person with superspeed is nothing more than a flash or blur, just to convey how quick they are.

 

[MiddleSuperName]

I want the slow down thing like in the matrix where he sees what is going on and everyone else is slow motion around him.

I think heat vision should be like cyclops in xmenlook at 44 seconds inhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw9mTbTa_zA&feature=relatedperfect combine the color of heat vision beam with the wavy microwave effect

I take this

over this

anyday

 

[LaraLane]

Wow this totally buried my thread I have to say the SV heat vision is rather boring. It just looks like a gas leak to me If you smoke a cigarette while he is doing the heat vision there will be a large explosion.I like the cyclops pic, BUT I would make it a deeper red.

Hmm I like this.

 

[Showtime]

bump

 

[Tacit Ronin]

Cyclops doesn't have heat vision.

 

[Kal-El Fan]

If I'm the director of the Superman revival film, I want my Superman to fly on-set as much as possible (i.e. wire, harness, etc.) I realize there are limitations and times when CGI must be used.

But...I have to be able to see him fly using practical effects as long as I can...

I think this is it. This was something that Singer seemed to fail to realize. Why when there is a close up of Supes casually flying by is it a CGI double and not Routh?

As for companies, I have to agree with many here. Either WETA or ILM.

 

[Kal-El Fan]

I want the slow down thing like in the matrix where he sees what is going on and everyone else is slow motion around him.

I think heat vision should be like cyclops in xmenlook at 44 seconds inhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw9mTbTa_zA&feature=relatedperfect combine the color of heat vision beam with the wavy microwave effect

I take this

over this

anyday

I disagree. Superman's heat vision is not as limited as Cyclops' energy blast. Scott is either on or off, Clark can control the level of intensity. The look should depend on what he's using it for. For the normal stuff, SV's is better and a bit more realistic. If he's taking out an army of Doomsdays, then it would look more like Scott's blast.
I'd love to see him use the "normal" heat vision throughout a film and then need a "super blast" in the climax, just to amp up the action, show the range of the power and just plain look cool.

The same can be said for freeze breath and everything else.

 

[Alien Anal]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59ThGMdd0Mg

old but great still, if the flying scenes look like this or better ill be happy

 

[SuperDaniel]

^That is amazing! I expect even better flying for the next Superman movie.

SR was so terrible that the effects for STM done in 1978 looked better.

 

[KRIM]

Industrial Light & Magic or WETA Digital should handle the VFX.

We can only hope. I'm praying that Sony ImageWorks will be too busy working on Spidey to sign on for Superman. They're always the go-to VFX team if ILM or WETA are unavailable. I don't think they're nearly capable enough to deliver the same quality so maybe good fortune will keep their schedule busy. If the big two for whatever reason can't work on it, I'll gladly take Digital Domain. Very underrated team who have a knack for pushing boundaries while keeping their work invisible.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59ThGMdd0Mg

old but great still, if the flying scenes look like this or better ill be happy

I'm shocked that I was so impressed with this. From what I can tell all the midrange to close range shots were the actual actor and that made all the difference. The opening shot in the beginning was especially effective. The rippling jeans and the ambiance of the wind gave a natural vibe to the flying. Camera work also wasn't too flashy so there was the immersion of flying with the man instead of watching him. Great example to work off of.

 

[Mako]

I would say Weta or ILM maybe even Double Negative for some of the smaller things

 

[Karelia]

I have absolutely no worries when it comes to visuals/effects for this film. Btw, that commercial of that guy flying was really awesome!

 

[mclay18]

Sony Pictures Imageworks will be done with the Spider-Man reboot by the time Superman is in post-production. Not to mention they did spectacular work for Doctor Manhattan in Watchmen.

Although Zack Snyder doesn't mind working with several smaller CGI companies -- like Animal Logic, Moving Picture Company, CIS Hollywood and Rising Sun Pictures. And I think WB and Nolan will encourage that route, rather than booking a more expensive higher-end company like ILM, WETA and Sony Imageworks.

 

[KRIM]

You pay for what you get. I'd be surprised if they skimp on this crucial aspect of the production.

 

[Herolee10]

^That is amazing! I expect even better flying for the next Superman movie.

SR was so terrible that the effects for STM done in 1978 looked better.

Agreed; I mean if STM can achieve the effects taht they did with no CGI, then a modern day film should be able to do both the same and better.

Less CGI for when Superman is flying please.

 

[sf2]

I disagree. Superman's heat vision is not as limited as Cyclops' energy blast. Scott is either on or off, Clark can control the level of intensity. The look should depend on what he's using it for. For the normal stuff, SV's is better and a bit more realistic. If he's taking out an army of Doomsdays, then it would look more like Scott's blast.
I'd love to see him use the "normal" heat vision throughout a film and then need a "super blast" in the climax, just to amp up the action, show the range of the power and just plain look cool.

The same can be said for freeze breath and everything else.

cool, cool. agree totally.

 

[mclay18]

You pay for what you get. I'd be surprised if they skimp on this crucial aspect of the production.

Well, District 9 was made for a modest $30M, and the extensive visual effects blows away a lot of the bigger films with 4-5x the budget. That was due to the visual effects being farmed out to smaller companies like Zoic, CIS Vancouver and others. I think WETA took part in the CGI too, it was probably heavily discounted due to Peter Jackson's involvement.

Paying through the nose to get the top-notch visual effects companies to work on films doesn't always pay off visually. WETA's been involved with Fox films like The A-Team and Knight and Day -- and their work was shoddy compared to their stellar work on Avatar. Same thing with ILM when they were overloaded with films in 2002.

And given how much SR cost the studio, WB isn't going to fork over $200M to make another film. They're going to downsize the budget to a more reasonable $150M-$180M... which Nolan had to work with on both Batman films and Inception.

 

[KRIM]

Well, District 9 was made for a modest $30M, and the extensive visual effects blows away a lot of the bigger films with 4-5x the budget. That was due to the visual effects being farmed out to smaller companies like Zoic, CIS Vancouver and others. I think WETA took part in the CGI too, it was probably heavily discounted due to Peter Jackson's involvement.

There's that, the main core of the vfx team was headed by Neill so that's another discount, the movie was basically shot in the dump, most of the actors and extras were actually friends, etc. etc. So in other words it's a bad example to compare to any tentpole film in terms of budgeting. Too many people reference that film's ability to make something extraordinary for cheap, but don't take into account the many factors that allowed them to do so.

Paying through the nose to get the top-notch visual effects companies to work on films doesn't always pay off visually. WETA's been involved with Fox films like The A-Team and Knight and Day -- and their work was shoddy compared to their stellar work on Avatar. Same thing with ILM when they were overloaded with films in 2002.

Of course. A lot of the responsibility also falls on the director as he's ultimately the one that signs off on their work. Zack has a penchance for detail however, so I'm confident he's not the type to accept subpar material. But you can only work with what you're given.

And given how much SR cost the studio, WB isn't going to fork over $200M to make another film. They're going to downsize the budget to a more reasonable $150M-$180M... which Nolan had to work with on both Batman films and Inception.

I wouldn't be so quick to jump the gun. This was just from last week:

Culture minister Lindsay Blackett confirmed Wednesday that part of a $200-million Hollywood film will be shot in Alberta. He would not name the film, the director or the studio behind it, but did say that the production is expected to spend roughly $35 million in the province.

He said he expects an announcement to be made within two months.

An industry insider told the Herald that this likely means Superman: Man of Steel, director Zack Snyder's big-budget reboot, will have a unit shoot here. Another source confirmed that producers behind Man of Steel have been looking at Alberta, but said nothing has been confirmed.

The Warner Brothers movie is expected to start filming in Vancouver in the summer.

"I would expect there will be an announcement in the next 60 days about a significant picture, a blockbuster to be shot in Alberta," says Blackett.

"There might be one that is a $200 million, but it's probably more like a $35-million Alberta spend. The details are fairly intricate right now. That's a big-budget movie for us. The success of Inception and all the good comments made by the crew and actors and director go a long way. That is a movie that made a lot of money."

If WB was going to be hesitant on making a Superman film because of money, they wouldn't have gone through with it. They're not going to skimp on a franchise they absolutely need to succeed with both Batman and Potter going away soon. A large part of making this whole thing work is to ensure it is a visual spectacle. That costs money. They're not stupid, they're going to hire the best crew that's available. And for top dollar.