VFX

Rollerblading Turtles Get Me Every Time

A good broadcast advertisement should hook the viewer and keep them watching until the very end, be it 15, 30, or 60 seconds in length. UK train operator Avanti West Coast does just that with a wonderful feel-good 60 second spot that features a rollerblading turtle. What better way to welcome passengers back after 18 months of pandemic than with a fun spot like this. The tag line at the end of the spot sums it up perfectly.

This spot was directed and produced by Tom Kuntz and London VFX force Untold Studios. While you might not know the names off the top of your head, if you do a search for either on Vimeo you’ll recognize their work. Take a minute and enjoy the video below, its absolutely fabulous.

The Kitchen.

Most people never realize just how much work goes into producing a TV commercial. For the most part what we see, if we are fast-forwarding over them, is the fifteen-second edit of the original sixty-second spot. They whiz by in a blip sandwiched between other ads that blend into a seamless stream of no one paying attention. But occasionally someone posts a video showing how things get done.

Have you ever wondered how they match the 3D animations to live action footage? Blend shots together? What the total production of a video looks like? The video below for Canal+ shows you. No it doesn’t go into any lengthy detailed VFX breakdown, but it does give you a pretty solid idea of what it took to produce the promotional spot titled “The Kitchen”.

The finished sixty second spot

How they made it.

A VFX Breakdown of “Deadpool”

First a disclaimer. I have not seen the movie Deadpool and probably won’t. That doesn’t mean that I can’t be impressed with the VFX in the film. Take a look at the VFX breakdown below and you’ll understand why. There is so much computer graphics, and post work going on that it makes you ask, is this a live action movie, or an animation featuring some live characters in the scenes? The movie might have been bad (this is what my friends have told me so don’t get mad at me), but the VFX are pretty damn spectacular.

“Deadpool” marks the beginning of a new era for superhero films, and one sequence in particular was key to setting the tone. This is an in-depth VFX breakdown reel showcasing the behind-the-scenes efforts by the Atomic Fiction team. The work involved creating computer generated characters, vehicles, and an entire urban environment, for the thrilling car chase that kicks off this new franchise!

Special thanks to Tim Miller, Jonathan Rothbart, our friends at Blur, and 20th Century Fox for the opportunity to contribute to these sequences.

Music Credit: Deadpool (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

The Nature of Louis XIII.

When your Remy Martin, and your Louis XIII cognac costs around $3500.00 a bottle, you can afford to pull out the big boy budget for your next ad. This spot for was produced for Fred & Farid for Remy Martin, and trust me it probably cost a small fortune to produce. You have a big name star, a ton of VFX and post work happening here, and an end product that is top notch. Now go out and buy a bottle of Louis XIII so Remy Martin can pay for this.

Agency: Fred & Farid
Production: Moonwalk
Producer : Gaspard Chevance
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Director of Production: Fabrice Damolini
Studio VFX : Benoît Holl
VFX Supervisor: Stéphane Allender
VFX Production: Christophe Huchet
CG: Thomas Mouraille
Modeling: Sébastien Haure, Kadeg Boucher
Tracking: Peanut
Rotoscope: Florian Sanchez
Compositing: Sergeï Lourié, Jeanne Loyer, Loïc Caer
Lighting: Thibaud Floutier
General: Corentin Provost, Rida Simmou, Guillaume Gaussuron
Matte Painting: Thomas Mouraille, Benjamin Bardou
After Effects: Quentin Letout, Maxime Cordier
Etalonnage: Magali Léonard
Coordination VFX: Nicolas Huguet
Datalab: Nicolas Daniel, JeanMartin Mossu, Léa Latassa, Pauline Royo, Elodie Doudoux