Behind The Scenes Hoop-lah!

Click here (warning: film look spoilers!) to see a featurette about the visual effects post production work ongoing on "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe." I believe this is one of the behind the scenes documentary style movies that are all the rage these days (used as a compliment to the DVD package). There are a few of my shots in the mix. They are the ones that feature the "flying hawks and gryphons" during the battle sequence. What you see there is definitely "work in progress" and I was surprised to actually see them in there! Because they are missing all sorts of elements and so forth... C'est La Vie! There has been a lot of press buzz being generated out of Sony Imageworks especially, and WETA Workshop, about the work and it has been a bit of a thorn in the side of the companies who do not have the same level of PR resources: Rhythm and Hues Studios in particular. It is very difficult for a truly independent studio like Rhythm and Hues to go head to head with Sony when it comes to "exposure." Little do people know that Rhythm and Hues Studios is officially the Lead Visual Effects Facility, entirely responsible for the digital Aslan character, the Centaurs, all the Massive work in the film, and for that matter the vast majority of the key battle sequence towards the climax of the film. In the long run, when the credits roll I think that the perception of Rhythm and Hues Studios will stack up really well. The shot that I feel is really exemplary of the full range and level of the work is featured very briefly as a split screen of a centaur walking. Totally convincing. And I might add that the background roto/prep work is astounding on its own. Lookin' good people!