Tag Archives: Visual Effects House

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The Sword and the cineSync: VFX of King Arthur

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The Sword and the cineSync: VFX of King Arthur

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword feels like the logical next step in Guy Ritchie’s career – after all, who better to direct a modern reimagining of King Arthur than British film royalty? Ritchie has spent years moulding rough and rugged England into whip-smart stories of sleazy charm, and Ancient Albion feels like home turf.

Ritchie has driven a bolt of trademark energy through King Arthur’s folklore, the murky grasslands and staunch stone castles fizzling with the director’s verve. This is mythological Britain filtered through modern-day cinematic technique – not to mention some truly exceptional VFX, delivered under the watchful eye of VFX Production Supervisor Gavin Round (sadly not of the round table).

Boasting a decade of experience in visual effects, Round has worked on numerous blockbusters, chalking up visual feasts such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Edge of Tomorrow. He teamed with Ritchie on King Arthur to breathe new life into the classic tale of swords, sovereigns and sorcery, corralling the project’s global VFX teams around a singular vision with support from cineSync.

“I came onto King Arthur in 2014, working with VFX Producer Alex Bicknell and VFX Supervisor Nick Davis, who I’d worked with on Edge of Tomorrow,” he explains. “Thanks to that experience, we had an established, effective workflow in place for meeting with vendors, viewing material, and of course, using cineSync. In other words, we could hit the ground running on King Arthur.”

Vendors of the round table

cineSync was key to making King Arthur’s VFX a reality, given the nine separate vendors involved in the process. Framestore stood as the lead vendor, operating out of both its London and Montreal studios. Contributions also came in from MPC’s Montreal team, Method Studios in LA and Vancouver, Scanline in Vancouver, and many more, totaling nine different studios.

Round was in the thick of the battle on King Arthur from pre to post, helping to establish Ritchie’s new kingdom of myth and magic across all studios involved.

“My duties involved managing vendors, making sure the shots came in on time and that the vendors had everything they need,” recalls Round. “cineSync enabled us to review the material constantly, so we were always aware of the status of any given shot. We could see it in real-time to discuss with the vendors.”

cineSync played a large role in creation of King Arthur’s many mythical creatures, such as a nine-foot CG villain, whose creation was split between VFX vendors Framestore and MPC.

“It was a delicate process, as we had to maintain continuity between the two vendors, who were essentially building different parts of the same being,” explains Round. “We needed to constantly review and check the material back-to-back to ensure everything transitioned correctly, no matter which vendor it came from. This is the exact kind of situation where cineSync is so useful – it saves a lot on travel!”

cineSync was used almost every day in post on King Arthur, particularly towards the end of the project. “We relied on cineSync heavily during the backend of the post schedule, at which point we were ramping up and getting most of our shots through,” says Round. “We used cineSync with all the vendors involved – we knew we could rely on it.”

The sword and the cineSync

cineSync proved to be a powerful tool throughout the filmmaking process – and one that, unlike Excalibur, anyone could wield: the entire King Arthur production team fell in love with the simplicity of cineSync – in particular, VFX Supervisor Nick Davis, who would make sure every VFX shot was reviewed, analyzed, and improved by all vendors.

“He likes to do cineSync sessions because he can pull up a shot, make marks on it, draw on it and tell the artists exactly where he wants a creature to walk,” says Round. “We did it for the big shots and small shots alike – whatever we were working on, cineSync ensured that the sequence ended up looking much better on screen.”

For Round, King Arthur revolved around the power of cineSync, ensuring that every shot was delivered to the ultimate satisfaction of all involved: “cineSync was completely intertwined in our day-to-day workflow. It was a brilliant overall tool and made my life much simpler.”

Or, as the British would put it: Bob’s your uncle!

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Iloura might be the best visual effects studio you’ve never heard of

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The Creators Project has an interesting article up about Iloura who has grown from a traditional post business working in advertising to a dedicated feature animation and VFX studio.

Perhaps the studio’s greatest recent coup was working on episode nine’s “Battle of the Bastards,” widely regarded as the pinnacle of Game of Thrones’ sixth season. Iloura’s involvement with the show was a long time coming, as Rosenthal explains: “We had been in conversations, on and off, with Steve Kullbeck [the Game of Thrones VFX Producer] for a number of years about the possibility of getting involved,” he says.

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Jobs: Production Coordinator at Stereo D- Burbank office

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Stereo D Logo - GCAbout this position:

The Production Coordinator is responsible for the assignment and tracking of tasks for assigned area of responsibility. Facilitates the movement of shots between teams, coordinates daily reviews, and communicates status updates to ensure the delivery of shots on schedule. Provides administrative support to the production management team and supervisors.

Responsibilities Include:

  • Under the guidance of the Production Supervisor, tracks progress of tasks for assigned artists or sequences in the production tracking system.
  •      Maintains production tracking system with revisions, omits, and shot length changes; notifies the affected crew as needed.
  • Partners with other production personnel to ensure shots are scheduled and delivered in a timely manner.
  • Follows up with Artist Leads on a daily basis to ensure task deliveries remain on schedule; communicates any schedule changes to appropriate Artist Leads, Supervisors and Production team as needed.
  • Coordinates all client deliveries (outgoing and incoming), both physical deliveries and digital deliveries, with I/O Coordinator and maintains log of all deliveries.
  • Responsible for multiple dailies sessions each day, as well as client reviews.
  • Taking clear and accurate notes in all dailies and review sessions, and disseminating notes to all necessary parties and within production software.
  • Generates and maintains production reports; including nightly production updates for assigned projects.
  • Generally providing overall production support to the production management team.

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in film, art, communications or related field preferred.
  • 2+ years proven production experience in established VFX or post production facility.
  • Demonstrable experience in highly technical, dynamic departments is a must.
  • Experience with heavy schedule management in a very time sensitive atmosphere.
  • Must be diligent, resourceful, meticulous and able to thrive under pressure.
  • Thorough understanding of CG/VFX production pipelines, software packages and post-production is essential.
  • Outstanding organizational skills and attention to detail coupled with exceptional people skills and the ability to work within a team environment.
  • Strong project management skills and a sensitivity towards deadline related deliveries.
  • Must be able to handle multiple changing priorities in a dynamic environment and understand how this impacts departmental schedules.
  • Able to communicate effectively across multiple teams with excellent written and oral communication skills.
  • Proficient computer skills are required; with particular emphasis on Production Tracking Software and Asset Management, Microsoft Office Applications such as Word, Excel, Office, and standard PC applications.
  • Knowledge of Nuke is very helpful
  • Knowledge and understanding of stereoscopic production and 2D/3D conversion not required but a plus.

About Stereo D:

Stereo D is the recognized leader in high-quality conversions of 2D theatrical content into stereoscopic 3D imagery. Formed in 2009, the company works with major motion picture studios, directors, cinematographers, and VFX supervisors to bring their vision of 3D storytelling to the screen. Stereo D has completed work for such films as JURASSIC WORLD, ANT MAN, THE AVENGERS, JURASSIC PARK in 3D, TITANIC in 3D to name a few. The company also provides end-to-end 3D production services on feature films, television productions and commercials.

Stereo D is a business run by filmmakers, valuing artistic excellence and speaking the language of film. Our production teams and artists are among the best in the business, driven by an innate passion for all things film. Our unique artist-centric environment enables our people the creative freedom to conceptually support the creative visions of directors, delivering the finest, most dynamic 3D imagery in entertainment.

Stereo D is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Deluxe Entertainment Services, an Equal Opportunity Employer.