In Contention

Tag: Best Visual Effects

  • TECH SUPPORT INTERVIEW: The crafts of ‘Benjamin Button,’ part two

    Tech Support at In ContentionYesterday was the first of our two-part look at the crafts artists behind “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” Today, I feature conversations with cinematographer Claudio Miranda, visual effects supervisor Eric Barba and film editors Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall, who have all received Oscar nominations for their work on the film.

    When asked about the enormity of the project, Wall rhetorically asks, “‘How do you eat a whale? One bite at a time.  The metaphor we always used is that we always look not at the peak but our feet. It was a two-year process and you have to be sure of every decision you make every day because it affects the end project.”

    Miranda admits he was intimidated by the task of breaking down the script. “I had to just try to imagine how this would be realized on screen,” he says, “going through each task at hand, devising a plan for all the different looks, especially with some things on blue screen.”

    Barba was especially scared that the main character would have to be created by visual effects for the first 50 minutes. “We had to make it work or else it wouldn’t be believable,” he says. “I had to think of the enormity of having to do what up until now hasn’t been done.”

    As regards the man at the helm, Baxter agrees with his colleagues who were featured yesterday that David Fincher is “extremely helpful and very very clear. He knows when to be loose and when to be a lot more specific. He’s got great intuition on what his crew needs from him.”

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  • POLL: Who deserves it? — BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

    First off, I was rather surprised that the inclusion of “In Bruges” in the original screenplay category was the readership’s pick for happiest surprise, just edging out Michael Shannon.  Very interesting.

    Anyway, I’m going to be running the next few polls a couple at a time throughout the next month.  So here’s your chance to pick which contender of the nominees in each category deserves to win.

    We’ll start with Best Visual Effects.  So have at it in the sidebar poll!

  • TECH SUPPORT: The aftermath

    Tech Support at In ContentionSo the nominations have descended upon us. “The Dark Knight,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” as expected, all did phenomenally well, garnering seven crafts nominations each. The only absolute shock, in my opinion, was “Wanted” managing to show up in the sound fields.

    Allow me a few comments on each category…

    Best Art Direction
    As expected, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Changeling” and “The Dark Knight” all managed to score nominations.

    My “Frost/Nixon” hunch and “Slumdog Millionaire” gamble, however, were incorrect. Rather, Michael Carlin’s lavish sets for “The Duchess” and Kristi Zea’s recreation of 1950s suburbia on “Revolutionary Road” managed to overcome guild snubs and find a home here.

    Best Cinematography
    My hunch that the guild and the AMPAS branch would not match 5/5 was right on as Tom Stern managed to prevent a second consecutive double nomination for Roger Deakins. Stern’s work on “Changeling” was his sixth collaboration with Clint Eastwood this decade; a nomination seemed inevitable eventually.

    Joining him, as expected, are Chris Menges and Roger Deakins for “The Reader,” Claudio Miranda for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Wally Pfister for “The Dark Knight” and Anthony Dod Mantle for “Slumdog Millionaire.”

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Final preview special, part two

    Tech Support at In ContentionThis is part two of my last glance at the year’s tech category contenders.  For part one, click here.

    Best Music (Original Score)
    Now here is a category where there are no locks. Nonetheless, considering the success of their films and scores in awards season to date, A.R. Rahmen (for “Slumdog Millionaire”) and Alexandre Desplat (for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”) seem solid bets.

    Thomas Newman, despite only having a BAFTA nomination to his credit so far in the awards season, often scores when the precursors don’t coming calling so I think he’s in for “WALL-E.” Alternatively, he could get in for “Revolutionary Road.”

    The rest of the Golden Globe nominees strike me as facing challenges. Clint Eastwood has performed well this season with “Changeling” but I am doubtful he will ever be embraced by the music branch. James Newton Howard’s compositions for “Defiance” may be lost with his film while Hans Zimmer’s Globe citation for “Frost/Nixon” seems more like a tribute to the composer, a Globe favorite.

    I would actually wager that Zimmer and Howard have a better opportunity with their fantastic “The Dark Knight” collaboration. Zimmer has been campaigning hard. Even so, I’m skeptical the duo will score. Co-composers receiving Oscar nominations is extremely rare. (Though, in all fairness, so is co-composing.)

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  • Learn the FX secrets of ‘Benjamin Button’

    This website has been made available to the visual effects branch for the purposes of Oscar voting.  Have a look.

    Username: sfx
    Password: buttonsbuttons

  • AMPAS narrows the visual effects field to seven

    Iron ManLast month, the Academy whittled the contenders for Best Visual Effects down to 15 hopefuls.  Today, the branch has chipped away at it further.

    And then there were seven:

    “Australia”
    “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    “The Dark Knight”
    “Hellboy II: The Golden Army”
    “Iron Man”
    “Journey to the Center of the Earth”
    “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor”

    And from the press release:

    On Thursday, January 15, all members of the Academy’s Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 15-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films. Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.

    The most surprising omissions are probably “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” and “The Incredible Hulk.”  Maybe “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” if you want to go there, but I don’t.  I can’t believe it made the list of 15, frankly.  And after watching “Hancock” again over the holiday, as well as the visual effects featurette, I was beginning to think it might have a decent shot.  But my guess is that we’re still looking at “Button” and “Iron Man” as sure bets with “The Dark Knight” likely filling in the third and final slot.

    Then again, this show of love for “Hellboy II” could translate to somewhat unexpected nominations both here and in the makeup field.  And I feel like “Journey to the Center of the Earth” has more stroke with this group than many are assuming.

  • 15 films vie for visual effects recognition

    The Dark KnightA little late to the party on this.  Been out, so, apologies.  But it looks like AMPAS has narrowed the Best Visual Effects field to 15 contenders, as follows:

    “Australia”
    “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”
    “Cloverfield”
    “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    “The Dark Knight”
    “The Day the Earth Stood Still”
    “Hancock”
    “Hellboy II: The Golden Army”
    “The Incredible Hulk”
    “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”
    “Iron Man”
    “Journey to the Center of the Earth”
    “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor”
    “Quantum of Solace”
    “The Spiderwick Chronicles”

    I’ve always had the itching feeling that “The Spiderwick Chronicles” could surprise in this category, but that could be the same feeling that told me the same thing about “I Am Legend” and “The WaterHorse.”  Anyway, after seeing “The Day the Earth Stood Still” Thursday night, I’m inclined to take it off my predicted three (where it’s been for a few months now).  There wasn’t anything particularly popping about it, and really, all the effects are ultimately in the trailer.  I thought there’d be more.

    So with that, I still think “Iron Man” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (your winner, ladies and gentlemen) are secure.  Then I’d say it’s a free-for-all.  Love for “The Dark Knight,” despite a reliance of practical effects, could spread to this field.  Though after checking out the DVD’s special features, I see there’s more CGI going on than I thought.  Interesting to see “Cloverfield” on here, and really, I wouldn’t be shocked.  “Hancock” is still a possibility, but come on.  Most of those effects were kind of cheesy.  Maybe.

    Any of the summer films — “Prince Caspian,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Hellboy II” — could pop up here, but I might lean toward the Bat at the end of the day.  We need to here from the Visual Effects Society to get a better idea.

  • WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Road,’ ‘Soloist’ out, ‘Frost’ stumbles, Ledger buzz

    Busy week, this. Here is how it went down:

    • In the biggest story of the week, the pool of contenders narrowed as “The Road” got bumped to 2009…

    • … followed, in quick succession, by “The Soloist.”

    • The London Film Festival kicked off with “Frost/Nixon,” which got off to a middling critical start. We were underwhelmed.

    • More London coverage here, here and here.

    • As Tech Support ran down the Visual Effects contenders, we got an angle on the tantalising FX for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”

    • Heath Ledger’s buzz remains as solid as ever — word went round that a lead campaign was in the works, but they’re staying put in supporting. Good move.

    • More (and still more) foreign film contenders bring the field to a record tally of 67.

    • We responded to the bad “Changeling” buzz with a kinder view, but like everyone else, are looking ahead to “Gran Torino.”

    • And finally, we solve your sartorial dilemmas in time for Halloween.

  • Sweet buzz for ‘Button’ effects

    Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonFresh on the heels of Gerard’s visual effects Tech Support column this morning, I got an email from an industry friend who keeps his eye on the tech races and, indeed, the Oscar races in general.  It seems “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” which was always going to be a delicate effects balance, is striking the right chord with those who ought to know.

    Here’s what our source had to say:

    Don Shay, who founded and is EIC of Cinefex magazine, which is more or less the gold standard for folks in the visual effects industry, has already seen “Benjamin Button” and told a mutual friend that it’s as big a leap forward in visual effects as “Jurassic Park” was. Coming from him, that’s a big deal.

    Obviously, the odds for it go even higher if the picture ends up being a sweeper, which I’m betting on as I know two other guys who have seen it in rough shape and both of them – straight shooters and neither of them particularly emotional – were crying at the end.

    I say if you watch that second trailer, and you get all of that sweep and Americana AND you’re crying at the end, it’s going to be a major force.

    When I first talked to Eric Roth about “Button” almost two years ago, he told me director David Fincher was keeping his recipe for the film’s effects close to the vest.  A wise move, considering the finished product could have become lost in its own good intentions.

    But that doesn’t seem to be the case.  With a Los Angeles Times write-up on makeup wizard Greg Cannom still to come and an Industrial Light & Magic feature just waiting to happen, I’d say the below-the-line achievements on the film might be inching it toward consideration as the tech giant of the year.

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Visual Effects — Volume One

    Tech Support at In ContentionWhile cinematographers and film music composers may sometimes find themselves featured in the media more than many of their crafts artist colleagues, the one “tech” discipline awarded by the Academy that often brings people into the movie theaters on its own is visual effects.

    The category is whittled down to three nominees after the year’s content is narrowed to a list of seven “bake-off” contenders. The bake-off finalists consistently give insight into the branch’s thinking even if missing a prediction after their announcement isn’t unheard of. The makeup branch has a similar system.

    An expensive art form, which often involves hundreds of crew members working behind the scenes, the visual effects arena seems to be finding new ways to “wow” audiences every year. The Academy’s branch has tended in recent years to reward computer-generated imagery (CGI) as opposed to classic practical effects actually captured on camera. This category is also usually the home of blockbusters and moneymakers. “The Golden Compass,” last year’s surprising winner, was a very rare nominee considering its disappointing box office. For it to win was even rarer.

    I suspect that Jon Favreau’s “Iron Man” is leading the way this year. Immensely critically respected and with fantastic box office to back it up, I’d be quite surprised and taken aback if it failed to get a nomination here. The creation of the title character alone put it in contention. This is not to mention Jeff Bridges’s transformation and the war zone explosions.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Fall and Winter Contenders

    Tech Support at In ContentionLast week we took a look at the films that have already been released and now appear to be in contention for crafts nominations come Oscar time.  Now that the dust is settling from the Toronto and Venice Film Festivals, it’s time to look ahead…

    Very often we see films dominate the crafts categories and end up with many nominations.  Recent examples include “The Aviator,” “Memoirs of a Geisha” and “Dreamgirls” though, in all fairness, not to the extent expected.  Such films tend to be set in period, large in scope and contenders in the main categories as well.  And a number of upcoming efforts are aiming for that kind of recognition.

    Baz Lurhmann’s “Australia” seems the obvious example.  Lurhmann is a visual master and this film could be an amazing palette.  Cinematographer Mandy Walker and production designer/costume designer Catherine Martin (Mrs. Lurhmann) strike me as likely nominees.  This is not to mention great opportunities in sound, editing, makeup and a potential return to the game for Aussie composer David Hirschfelder.

    David Fincher has the opportunity to finally break through with Oscar in a major way with “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”  His films have — shamefully, in my opinion — received a grand total of three Oscar nominations to date.  While a few hasty bloggers gave some cold knee-jerk assessments of a reel of footage at Telluride, I’m willing to give it the benefit of the doubt for now.

    Moreover, “Button” should prove to be visually spectacular.  The cinematography, editing, visual effects and makeup will likely be integral to the plot.  The sets and costumes will span 80 years.  This sounds like the makings of a potential crafts category behemoth.  And don’t forget the score from Alexandre Desplat, my favorite working composer.

    Edward Zwick’s “Defiance” is another film that could be a massive player in the crafts fields.  While Zwick’s films are notorious for their flat critical receptions, they almost always involve themes the Academy loves and “Defiance” should prove no exception in this regard.  Indeed, his films usually take at least three nominations in the crafts categories.

    Zwick has not disappointed in amassing a slew of respected artists who have been recognized by the Academy in the past: cinematographer Eduardo Serra, costume designer Jenny Beavan, film editor Steven Rosenblum and composer James Newton Howard.  Veteran production designer Dan Weil seems bound to be nominated eventually, while the still undocumented sound designers are sure to be top notch.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Pre-Fall Contenders

    Tech Support at In ContentionWhile this week is rightly being most noted by awards-watchers for the Toronto International Film Festival, I’m actually going to go a bit of a different route today. I will be sure to comment on the movers and shakers of TIFF next week as the dust begins to settle, however.

    In a couple of weeks, I’ll start exploring each of the technical categories, one at a time, examining the potential contenders.  But right now, I think it’s a good time to look back on the contenders we’ve already seen.

    Many of the highest profile films of the year could garner nominations in the major categories at the Oscars. Heath Ledger’s classic turn in “The Dark Knight” seems almost certain to score recognition. (In my opinion, the film has much more potential than just Ledger, though that will depend on the reception of films we’ve yet to see.)

    Penelope Cruz’s work  in “Vicky Christina Barcelona” is bound to come into play during the awards season, with writer Woody Allen not too far behind. Films like “Frozen River” and “The Visitor” could wind up in contention for the performances of Melissa Leo and Richard Jenkins.

    Not to mention Andrew Stanton’s beautiful “WALL-E,” which may have had its “summer favorite” buzz stolen by “The Dark Knight,” but that does not take away from the prestige the Pixar name brings. (Though the minimal dialogue may prove a problem in garnering a screenplay nomination.)

    But as I noted in a column here two years ago, the pre-Fall months can be a major source of nominations in the crafts categories.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Kicking off the new year

    Tech Support at In ContentionWell here we go again. Welcome to the third year of “Tech Support” here at In Contention, still the Oscarweb’s only weekly column devoted strictly to the crafts elements of filmmaking and the awards process that surrounds them.

    The Toronto International Film Festival will be commencing tonight in my hometown and I am yet again “up the creek” (the creek being Lake Ontario) in Kingston. TIFF is correctly acknowledged as the true starting point of awards season so the next few weeks will really be an intro to the year ahead posing the intial questions that the oncoming season will eventually answer. The crafts categories will be no exception in that regard.

    So before we get there, perhaps stating the purpose of Tech Support, for both new and veteran readers, is a good place to start.

    Consider camera work. Sets. Costumes. Editing. Sound. Visual Effects. Makeup. Music.

    It goes without saying the absence of either element would negate the film-going experience. It might be true that the average moviegoer will see a film because of its director or its stars and not its
    cinematography but that does not take away from the work that crafts artists do behind the scenes to
    bring a movie to life, to improve it and to push the medium of film forward.

    Tech Support is an attempt to give the artists behind this work a more prominent role in the media, a role they almost never find themselves in. At In Contention, our focus is obviously on the awards side of the filmmaking industry. Discussing phenomena seen in the categories that award these disciplines, discussing particular categories and interviewing those “in contention” are frequent subjects of the weekly debate and discourse.

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  • TDK, FYI

    Christian Bale in The Dark KnightMuch as I admire his spunk, I think Awards Daily contributor Ryan Adams might be getting ahead of himself with his Oscar hopes for “The Dark Knight.”

    In a recent post, he labels the categories of Best Makeup, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, Best Supporting Actor and Best Visual Effects as “virtual certainties.” The other categories mentioned he feels are Oscar-worthy enough and have a good shot as well.

    Best Visual Effects isn’t going to happen. This branch abandoned practical effects considerations long ago. The makeup, meanwhile, could find some trouble from aging and transformative efforts later in the season, so I wouldn’t call it a sure thing either.

    We can all, I think, assume that Heath Ledger is on his way to a nod, and, indeed, the sound work in the film is top notch and worthy of serious consideration. The rest…nah. In fact, I think the most hastily over-predicted category for this film so far has been Best Art Direction, where Nathan Crowely scored at the BAFTAs in 2005 for “Batman Begins.”

    There aren’t a lot of manufactured sets here. All the stuff that looks like a creation was even, for the most part, a practical set. London’s Battersea Power Station really shows up well when used in the film, for instance, and looks like a manifestation. But it’s not.

    Lee Smith’s film editing is certainly a possibility, as he took things up a notch (to say the least) in this effort, but James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer will not be eligible for their brillaint score because of that pesky rule Rule 16b.

    (By the way, speaking of the boys, anyone else just LOVE that creepy two-note string theme for the Joker that is a clever inversion of the Batman theme?)

    I would, however, call Wally Pfister’s work behind the camera this film’s closest thing to a lock. The lensers have tons of respect for this guy (I’d say his nod in 2005 was a surprise) and given the technological steps taken here with the IMAX technology — the sheer balls of lugging those cameras around for these action sequences — I’d say he’s in.

    And of course — I’ve always felt Christopher Nolan has a play here. But I’m not willing to go there. Yet.

    Just my two cents.