Whiskeytree and ILM worked together on many sequences for ‘Tomorrowland’,
using lengthy iteration to nail the look, with cineSync to collaborate and avoid
surprises or misunderstanding.
Whiskeytree and ILM Traverse ‘Tomorrowland’ with cineSync |
The artists responsible for bringing the alternate utopia of‘Tomorrowland’to the screen work at visual effects studiosIndustrial Light & MagicandWhiskytree. Whiskytree is located at San Rafael, California, just north of ILM in San Francisco. Consequently, the two companies have worked together previously on ‘The Lone Ranger’, ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and ‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’. |
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Fast, Iterative ApproachBecause a fast, iterative approach was the quickest, most direct way to achieve and refine the desired look for the production, efficient communication was also critical. Whiskeytree, ILM, Lucasfilm and the director synchronised their work and held reviews throughCinesync. Although originally developed to overcome distances between teams, Cinesync’s tools have become a standard for communicating about productions generally. In some circumstances, CineSync sessions may be more useful than holding a conventional conversation or review. The TDs at WhiskytreeSteven CaronandBrian Meanleyfound it especially useful several times when the studio was asked to put their own creative ideas into their shots. For example, for the exterior shots of the Tomorrowland cityscape of spires, flowing waters and narrow pathways, instead of receiving pre-approved assets, Whiskytree contributed to defining its looks. |
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“The key point was getting the silhouette right from a distance," Brian said. "At any point during the sessions, Barry could just draw on the screen different versions of that silhouette, or they would give our renders to the concept team internally at ILM. They would chop it up, work on it and make some variations that Brad could pick favourites pieces from here and there, and form new concept art based on our renders,” Brian said. After the director signed off on the final concept, Whiskytree built new assets from this artwork and proceeded to render out the final shot. |
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Narrative IntentA memorable sequence in the film, more pensive than adventurous, unfolds while the film’s main characters rest under a small group of bioluminescent crystal trees. The team needed to enhance the glowing light and help define the emotional side of the scene. Launching New TechniquesWhiskeytree had known that their involvement in this film would evolve over time, and they were pleased that it continued to demand more creativity from them and bring more variety than usual. During the Paris shuttle launch sequence, for example, the Eiffel Tower splits in two, revealing a hidden rocket to transport the film’s heroes to Tomorrowland’s alternate reality. |
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“That sequence involved some techniques that we had not experimented with before,” said Brian. “For the shot of the shuttle taking off, we had to recreate the overhead views of Paris as accurately as possible. We used a lot of open-source map data and constructed geometry based on vector map data of Paris. This took us outside of our normal workflow, but worked well.” Variable retimes and speed ramps on a large number of the shots, and invisible effects such as set extensions and modifications to the plate, proved quite time-consuming, and they also compiled a completely digital shot to perfectly resemble footage that was actually shot as a time lapse sequence. “When ILM forwarded such sequences to us, a similar iterative process always followed. Sometimes a version of a shot would change dramatically from one version to the next, and sometimes it was small tweaks here and there, but cineSync was used each time to collaborate and make sure there were no surprises or misunderstandings,” Brian said. www.cinesync.com |