LA CABANE - 3
Tarzan surfs a tree branch:
Here I must pay tribute to the performance of the actor. He plays it perfectly. He followed the directions. In technical terms the difficult part is to place the image of the actor on the branch in a way which makes the slide seem credible.
Here I must pay tribute to the performance of the actor. He plays it perfectly. He followed the directions. In technical terms the difficult part is to place the image of the actor on the branch in a way which makes the slide seem credible.
Jane's fall into the water:
This time it was not a green background. Blue water and the fittings around the swimming pool had to be removed. To separate the actress from the background a green background had to be painted round her for image after image. (500 stills left and right). The pool curb and lights had to be manually removed. The water was coloured green in After Effects.
This time it was not a green background. Blue water and the fittings around the swimming pool had to be removed. To separate the actress from the background a green background had to be painted round her for image after image. (500 stills left and right). The pool curb and lights had to be manually removed. The water was coloured green in After Effects.
The crocodile's dive:
To simulate the crocodile's dive in the real water, a bucket of water was thrown into the pool at the correct angle. But once again that meant a big editing job. The bucket, its string, the pool edge and lights all had to be masked manually in each frame for the right and each frame for the left eye ... before embedding the crocodile. The water was made green and reeds were added to the foreground. The sound of the splash is the bucket hitting the water.
To simulate the crocodile's dive in the real water, a bucket of water was thrown into the pool at the correct angle. But once again that meant a big editing job. The bucket, its string, the pool edge and lights all had to be masked manually in each frame for the right and each frame for the left eye ... before embedding the crocodile. The water was made green and reeds were added to the foreground. The sound of the splash is the bucket hitting the water.
The death of the crocodile:
The actor's performance is crucial in this scene. Again he followed the directions exactly.
It was also a lot of work editing. About 2000 images were processed manually before compositing with drawn crocodile drawn.
The actor's performance is crucial in this scene. Again he followed the directions exactly.
It was also a lot of work editing. About 2000 images were processed manually before compositing with drawn crocodile drawn.
To twist the crocodile around the actor, the scenery was made into a sandwich. The film with the actor in the pool was divided into two main mattes.
The main one was normal.
The second (front) was 30% transparent, with holes made by masks. This is to show the crocodile in front of and behind the actor and appear partly in the water (like Tarzan).
The main one was normal.
The second (front) was 30% transparent, with holes made by masks. This is to show the crocodile in front of and behind the actor and appear partly in the water (like Tarzan).
The elephant in the river
The tricky part of this shot was to match Jane's movements exactly with those of the elephant. The fake trunk was made invisible. In fact it was the actress's father with his arm wrapped in green paper. This allowed her to grasp the outstretched arm which later became the elephant's trunk.
The tricky part of this shot was to match Jane's movements exactly with those of the elephant. The fake trunk was made invisible. In fact it was the actress's father with his arm wrapped in green paper. This allowed her to grasp the outstretched arm which later became the elephant's trunk.
Gripping the trunk:
For compositing it was essential that the trunk and Jane's hand were perfectly aligned left/right and above all in depth. The movements of the elephant had, of course, to follow those of the actress.
For compositing it was essential that the trunk and Jane's hand were perfectly aligned left/right and above all in depth. The movements of the elephant had, of course, to follow those of the actress.
The elephant walk:
The actors had to be filmed pretending to rock back and forth thanks to the elephant's walking. The bringing together of actors and drawings had to be precise. The elephant's ear hid parts of Tarzan's leg. The elephant's head was set in front of the actor and stayed independent of its body - all being synchronised with the animation. Chita had also to be placed on the elephant's back to give the illusion he was clinging to Jane.
The actors had to be filmed pretending to rock back and forth thanks to the elephant's walking. The bringing together of actors and drawings had to be precise. The elephant's ear hid parts of Tarzan's leg. The elephant's head was set in front of the actor and stayed independent of its body - all being synchronised with the animation. Chita had also to be placed on the elephant's back to give the illusion he was clinging to Jane.
Setgting off for school:
Here again it was necessary to make a sandwich of two elements to bring the scene off. Chita is behind the boy, but in front of the girl. No gaps could appear. It was achieved by using two mattes with 100% opacity but with specific gaps in the masks before positioning Chita between the two (left and right).
Here again it was necessary to make a sandwich of two elements to bring the scene off. Chita is behind the boy, but in front of the girl. No gaps could appear. It was achieved by using two mattes with 100% opacity but with specific gaps in the masks before positioning Chita between the two (left and right).
Music:
My friend Michel LEBOURG composed the music for the film. The first time he played watching the silent film, being shown on an iPad. It was good on the first take.
My friend Michel LEBOURG composed the music for the film. The first time he played watching the silent film, being shown on an iPad. It was good on the first take.
Editing and calibration:
This photo of my work station shows my ideal working arrangement. A graphic tablet, a regular monitor and another capable of 3D. This second screen let me manage the work in real time, in passive stereo mode without any distortion of the colours. Sadly this screen broke down during the work on the film, which forced me to make hundreds of test renderings in anaglyph form for each shot.
This photo of my work station shows my ideal working arrangement. A graphic tablet, a regular monitor and another capable of 3D. This second screen let me manage the work in real time, in passive stereo mode without any distortion of the colours. Sadly this screen broke down during the work on the film, which forced me to make hundreds of test renderings in anaglyph form for each shot.
Projection:
There are several stereo systems around: interlaced images, side-by-side images and the anaglyph (red/cyan) version. This film was conceived for side-by-side use on 3D television sets and special 3D projectors. The anaglyph version was made for use with normal televisions and standard projectors.
There are several stereo systems around: interlaced images, side-by-side images and the anaglyph (red/cyan) version. This film was conceived for side-by-side use on 3D television sets and special 3D projectors. The anaglyph version was made for use with normal televisions and standard projectors.
Out of necessity the last version had to be used for competitions. Sadly the colours are distorted and often ghost images appear thanks to the way the projector is set up (for contrast and colour) and the quality of the screen. ... And at least 10% of the audience will not perceive stereo in these conditions, because of problems with their sight. The colours of the filters in the spectacles are not always as precise as we might wish.
600 pairs of these spectacles in red and cyan were made for the event.
Conclusion
This “3D technique” should appear regularly on our screens, but the difficulties from shooting to projection will probably keep the brakes on for this EXCITING process.
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TECHNIQUE
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SOFTWARE
Macintosh G5 computer – iPad2 – Wacom Tablet - Animation desk – 2000 sheets of paper – 3B pencils. |
To watch more of M. Dublique's creations visit: www.youtube.com/user/SourisBleuesStudio
