Sonic the Hedgehog
MPC first got involved in the project in 2018, with MPC Production VFX Supervisor Ged Wright teaming up with Paramount Pictures and director Jeff Fowler. MPC completed over 1300 shots across 18 months and several of MPC’s global studios.
It was essential the visual effects were seamlessly integrated into the Sonic universe, with the in-house production team, led by Joel Prager, creating post-viz shots for an efficient workflow.
Translating the Sonic design into a 3D character was a challenging process. The team ensured there was a high level of control over Sonics’ key expressive elements. This means his eyes, face, and hands, as well as having the ability to either scale, subtly break, or enhance these characteristics, allowed us to keep Sonic on model and in character across the whole production.
Learn more about our work on Sonic the Hedgehog in this Art of VFX interview with Production VFX Supervisor Ged Wright.
Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Unlike previous iterations of the iconic duo, Rescue Rangers features a combination of film styles, treating viewers to live-action actors, interacting with 2D cartoon characters, photo-real 3D animals, and even claymation models, mixing several media styles that reflect the history of filmmaking and the history of Chip ‘n Dale from the 1980s to present day.
MPC’s Production VFX Supervisor Steve Preeg, VFX Supervisor Axel Bonami, Producers Ben Harrison and Siobhan Bentley, and Animation Supervisor Omar Morsy led MPC’s global team of VFX artists to deliver over 1450 shots for the film. This included the creation of Chip and Dale themselves, as well as over 100 2D hand-drawn characters, 60 3D animated characters, and 30 full computer-generated, designed, and lit sets.
In addition, MPC’s visualization team, led by Patrick Smith and Leandre Legrange, delivered the previz, techviz, postviz, as well as concept art for over 50 characters, and hundreds of variations, for the movie.
Terminator: Genisys
Led by MPC VFX Supervisor Sheldon Stopsack and VFX Producer Chad Nixon, MPC completed more than 300 shots for Terminator: Genisys. Working closely with Production VFX Supervisor Janek Sirrs and VFX Producer Shari Hanson, the team’s work included recreating a ‘young Arnold’ T-800 digital character, Endoskeletons, an explosive battle at LAX, various CG set extensions, and FX work.
The biggest challenge for MPC’s team was the creation of the iconic 1984 Arnold digital character, for a 1-1 recreation of scenes from the original Terminator movie and a brutal showdown between young and old at the LA Observatory.
MPC’s work began on set with VFX Supervisor Gary Brozenich joining the filmmakers to capture principal photography. For the recreation of the CG character, it was crucial to get the best coverage from the shoot including texture photography, set measurements, and HDRI capture.
For the model build, a scan of an original cast taken of Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1984 was used along with a huge library of reference videos and images. Around 220 different face shapes were crafted as a base for facial performance. The team then completed a MOVA performance capture with Arnold Schwarzenegger himself. This set of defined FACS shapes were used to refine what had been built up until that point. Performances of specific dialogue were taken.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
MPC VFX Supervisor Pier Lefebvre, DFX Supervisor Sebastien Raets, and VFX Producer Sarah Moussaif worked alongside Production VFX Supervisor Alessandro Ongaro to deliver Director Jason Reitman’s vision for Ghostbusters: Afterlife. A team of VFX artists, production crew and software developers spread across 3 continents, collaborated to work on some of the movie’s most complex visual effects and animation.
MPC’s biggest challenge was to bring the character of Dr. Egon Spengler, played by the late Harold Ramis, back to the big screen. To begin to craft a photorealistic digital Egon, MPC’s Character Lab team began by building a library of reference material from the 1984 and 1989 Ghostbusters films, and were provided access to digital scans of previously unseen footage.
From studying the footage, they were able to select key angles and facial expressions to begin to create an accurate likeness. Once they were confident with the matching of the young, the team inserted him into shots from the original Ghostbusters movie and organized a screening for the filmmakers to see if they could tell which shot was from the movie and which was the digital Egon. The next stage was to explore the aging process to reflect the concept art supplied by the filmmakers. Alongside the concept art, the Character Lab team was supplied with scans and photography of the double who performed on set. Texture artists supplemented this with their own library of skin maps and photography of a life model of a similar age.
The Character Lab team then began to develop the features. They used nuanced facial modeling techniques and rigging to ensure MPC’s animators could create a convincing and emotional performance, and photorealistic hair and skin were developed. Particular attention was given to the look development of the eyes.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
At MPC the film was supervised by Adam Valdez, produced by Marianne Speight, with CG supervision by Kevin Hahn, animation supervision by Gabriele Zuchelli, and compositing supervised by Charley Henley.
Lucy and Edmund Pevensie return to Narnia with their cousin Eustace where they meet up with Prince Caspian for a trip across the sea aboard the royal ship The Dawn Treader. Along the way, they encounter dragons, strange islands, and a band of lost knights, before reaching the edge of the world.
MPC’s main challenge was to create some of the key characters for the film. MPC’s team of animators once again performed the role of Reepicheep the mouse, voiced by Simon Pegg. Reepicheep – a courageous knight of Narnia – accompanies Caspian on his voyage in the hope of finding Aslan’s Country at the end of the world. To make sure Reepicheep’s sword skills were unrivaled, MPC’s Animators took fencing classes to learn the moves and tricks of the trade. With over 200 hero shots, Reepicheep was upgraded to take the spotlight. MPC’s art department designed subtle changes for a wiser and more mature Reepicheep. MPC’s Furtility was once again the grooming tool of choice.
Read more about Reepicheep here and check out our filmography to discover more iconic characters.
