TV/STREAMING
our communication had developed a kind of shorthand which was enormously helpful. Having said that, hundreds of people on our VFX crews had to pivot to a work-from-home scenario in a matter of weeks, which was a mammoth undertaking from a technological and psychological standpoint.” João Sita, Visual Effects Supervisor, Framestore: “Framestore quickly adapted to the technical changes, providing artists with the necessary hardware to connect remotely, and the Systems team were heroes in staying up-to-date with artists’ requests regarding technical issues. As we moved to the work-from-home setup, maintaining our regular daily schedules as if we were back in the office was key to ensuring artists were engaged while upholding the established delivery rhythm.” Kevin Sears, CG Supervisor, Framestore: “We had a consistent small crew that bonded for at least a year prior to the pandemic. This was certainly an advantage with the tight communications in the FX and Assets teams as we began developing the VFX-heavy finale toward the end of 2019. Work from home was implemented at the beginning of March 2020. The facility teams and senior managers at Framestore took it very seriously and somehow got the entire studio in Montreal, where I’m located, remotely working in less than two weeks.”
PROJECT POWER: HOW FRAMESTORE ‘FINALED’ THE FILM MID-PANDEMIC By IAN FAILES
Matthew Twyford, VFX Supervisor and Head of 2D London, Framestore: “Unfortunately, a few members of our crews were ‘trapped’ overseas, so this required further management protocols to get them up-and-running wherever they were. When communicating with these artists it was amazing how the video calls had such varied backgrounds, from the misty Scandinavian rains to the glorious scenes of a sunny Mediterranean!” TECH SOLUTIONS FOR A REMOTE DELIVERY
Coline Six: “Framestore’s Systems team did an incredible job, and in a couple of weeks Project Power’s team was fully set up with Teradici, a technology which allows us to see our remote computer screen in a secure and encrypted way, and ready to deliver.” Matthew Twyford: “Project Power was a multi-site show for Framestore, so the disruption was staggered as the London, Montreal and Pune lockdowns came through at different times. The technical setup between sites meant we used different solutions for some of the artists and this allowed us to work multiple options to get the best artist setups worldwide.” João Sita: “Framestore deployed tools to allow for screen sharing in a secure environment so we could continue our reviews as in the office – running Framestore’s SRP review tool – and share
Framestore was only weeks away from delivering its visual effects for the Netflix film Project Power, directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Like just about all VFX studios, it moved to a work-from-home model, with artists in London, Montreal and Pune having to complete the final shots from home. To get a sense of how Framestore managed that transition process for the superhero film, several lead members of the team revealed what going into lockdown required from a technical point of view, how shots continued to be worked on, and how those last crucial weeks of delivery were managed remotely. THE MOMENT THINGS WENT REMOTE
TOP: Newt’s power is the ability to selfimmolate. Framestore took live-action photography with practical makeup effects and LED lights and added fire during the visual effects process. (Image copyright © 2020 Netflix) OPPOSITE BOTTOM: Rodrigo Santoro as Biggie in practical effects makeup and prosthetics. Biggie possesses the power to rapidly increase in size and strength. (Image copyright © 2020 Netflix)
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PG 14-18 PROJECT POWER.indd 14-15
Coline Six, Visual Effects Executive Producer, Framestore: “We were six weeks away from delivery when the lockdown happened. Everything happened very quickly, as it did everywhere in the world. From one day to the next, we had to leave the office and adapt to the work-from-home reality. We re-worked the schedule to accelerate and absorb the delay created by the crisis. We talked to Netflix who understood the situation, and we managed to deliver the show on time. Project Power was the first show that Framestore delivered during the pandemic.” Ivan Moran, Overall Visual Effects Supervisor, Framestore: “We were incredibly fortunate that we had already completed shooting and were into our final VFX delivery. By then, we all had such an innate trust and working relationship with each other, and
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