Stereo Consulting Group has contributed their stereographic expertise in pre-visualization, shooting and post production to a new :60 spot for Volkswagen, Jetta. Produced by1stAveMachine with its director, Vinicius Costa for Red Urban agency in Toronto, the spot blends high-concept CG animations with 3D stereographic effects for in-cinema presentation beginning November 5th. Bringing 3DCG‘s talent team on board allowed 1stAve to directly control the 3D stereo shoot and work in progress under their production umbrella. By bringing 3DCG‘s David Stump, Johnathan Banta, Chris “CB” Brown and Rebecca Ramsey onto the team, 1stAve was able to keep the production, edit and post under their roof with the exception of the final color correction which was done at Technicolor in Los Angeles.
“I remember interviewing the guys at 3DCG when considering bringing them onto the team. I asked them to tell me the “rules of 3D” fully expecting a constrictive list of all the things that we couldn’t do since we were shooting 3D. Chris Brown’s response insured the relationship, he said that their job was to promote the director’s vision and that it was the mission of their company to use 3D in new and inventive ways. Therefore we did not need to worry about “the rules”. Chis, Rebecca, Johnny and Dave of 3DCG are an amazing group of individuals who supported our director’s vision and flawlessly guided us in order to make the best spot possible.” says 1stAve’s Executive Producer, Sam Penfield.
To develop the pre-visualization for the spot, 3DCG‘s Banta joined 1stAveMachine‘s director, Costa and the company’s in house CG animators in New York to initiate the 1stAve team in creating 3D stereo animation and effects. Banta details his process explaining, “It was my job to introduce stereo visual effects techniques to a seasoned crew of traditional CGI artists. The need for precision in stereo visual effects work is unfamiliar to most at this time, and 1st Ave Machine wanted to get their pipeline established quickly. To that end I helped design their stereo pipeline, educate their artists, and they completed the work.” The 3D and compositing teams at 1stAveMachine quickly grasped the concepts, and modified their technique. Their creative input, and technical skill produced an exciting stereo experience.
At the same time in Los Angeles, stereographer Dave Stump, A.S.C., and producer, Rebecca Ramsey, both of 3DCG, were prepping for the West Coast live action shoot. Stump created custom plans for the 3D Stereo camera rigs and crew that would enable the live action crew to capture simultaneous “left eye” and “right eye” footage to generate the stereographic dimensionality.
Stump recounts the complexity of converting rigs and systems to support the multi-camera set ups, “The principal challenge was mounting the two camera, 3D rig onto the car shoot mounts which were designed for single camera use. We also reconfigured the driving crane vehicle to accommodate a dual camera stereo rig and all its gear. We somehow managed to shoehorn all the gear and people into place onto that Chevy Suburban!” The Jetta was on a tow mount behind the camera crane and had it’s own camera on a specialized side mount that had the twin stereo cameras on a rail along side the car; equipped with motorized systems operated by remote control from the crew riding on the suburban.
Stump brought all these systems together with Video Equipment Rentals’ Director of 3D for Broadcast and Digital Cinema; Aaron Latham-James, and the capable crew they assembled. Stump acknowledges the VER team’s efforts saying, “Aaron, Sean and Keith were fabulously supportive in helping us achieve these goals.”
Anticipating the desires of their clients to view the 3D on the set, Stump and company configured a set up that replicated the same stereo experience audiences will view in theaters. “We were able to pull the shoot vehicle into the base camp, and plug into the 3D playback system to view what had just been shot.” Stump explains. The Director of Photography Dana Christianson, 1stAveMachine‘s executive producer and producer; Sam Penfield and Leanne Amos, as well as Red Urban’s agency representatives were all able to view the takes with the same glasses and systems that audiences would be viewing the spot through in the theaters.
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