VFX Legion Creates 100+ CG Effects For ‘DON'T BREATE 2’- Including 40 Digitally Ingnited Fire Sequences Featured in Legion VFX Breakdown Reel, 'Fire & Fury'
- 3 years ago
VFX Legion was called on by Lionsgate to delivered 100+ visual effects for director Rodo Savagues’ action thriller, ‘Don’t Breathe 2,' theatrically released on August 13th. The franchise was born from the creative partnership of Savagues and Fede Alvare, the director of the highly successful first installment, ‘Don’t Breathe,’ in 2016.
Visual effects were key to bringing co-writers Savagues and Alvare’s vision of the film to life. Complex CG sequences and digital shots were relied on to augment imagery captured on practical footage - elevating the visceral emotions elicited by the atmospheric thriller.
Shot in Belgrade, Serbia, and Detroit in the fall of 2020, the pandemic slowed down production of the film considerably. When it became clear that the original visual effects vendor lacked the resources to meet the film’s needs, shots were spread out among numerous companies. Legion was asked to bid on 30+ effects and initially awarded just a handful of the most complex shots.
Within days, the studio contacted Legion to bid on more work and awarded the LA/B.C. based company nearly all the effects for a big sequence with variety of complex effects. Working as a collaborative team, Legion's artists created raging fires, time warps, fluid dynamics, split screens, and CG muzzle flashes, along with other shots for the scene.
“The quality of the intricate, multi-layered shots that we produced exceeded the client’s expectations, dramatically elevating the look of the original digital effects while meeting tight deadlines,” says James David Hattin, Legion’s Founder and VFX Supervisor. “Our initial work on the film gave us the opportunity to earn the client’s trust which led to Legion being brought on board as one of the primary visual effects vendors and ultimately, delivering over 100 shots for the film.”
The massive opening shot of the movie, well over 1500 frames long, incorporates a wide range of effects. Legion created a fully CG double of an actress, custom graffiti, computer-generated overgrown foliage, and integrated multiple digital elements into the footage.
'Don't Breathe 2' includes at total of 40 digitally ignited fire sequences. The complexity of these effects would have made building them from scratch costly and time-consuming. Legion’s association with ActionVFX, a stock visual effect company with a vast archive, enabled its team to provide an efficient alternative. Legion's artists found stock fires that were a fit for all but one of the shots - and digitally augmented the elements to seamlessly blend with complex action scenes and other practical footage.
The protagonist sets a house on fire, with some digital help.Later he desperately looks for a way out as the intensity of the CG flames grows, virtually consuming the structure. Using Autodesk’Maya, artists digitally crumbled the floors as he makes his way to a window and dives out escaping the enferno.
Visual effects were key to bringing co-writers Savagues and Alvare’s vision of the film to life. Complex CG sequences and digital shots were relied on to augment imagery captured on practical footage - elevating the visceral emotions elicited by the atmospheric thriller.
Shot in Belgrade, Serbia, and Detroit in the fall of 2020, the pandemic slowed down production of the film considerably. When it became clear that the original visual effects vendor lacked the resources to meet the film’s needs, shots were spread out among numerous companies. Legion was asked to bid on 30+ effects and initially awarded just a handful of the most complex shots.
Within days, the studio contacted Legion to bid on more work and awarded the LA/B.C. based company nearly all the effects for a big sequence with variety of complex effects. Working as a collaborative team, Legion's artists created raging fires, time warps, fluid dynamics, split screens, and CG muzzle flashes, along with other shots for the scene.
“The quality of the intricate, multi-layered shots that we produced exceeded the client’s expectations, dramatically elevating the look of the original digital effects while meeting tight deadlines,” says James David Hattin, Legion’s Founder and VFX Supervisor. “Our initial work on the film gave us the opportunity to earn the client’s trust which led to Legion being brought on board as one of the primary visual effects vendors and ultimately, delivering over 100 shots for the film.”
The massive opening shot of the movie, well over 1500 frames long, incorporates a wide range of effects. Legion created a fully CG double of an actress, custom graffiti, computer-generated overgrown foliage, and integrated multiple digital elements into the footage.
'Don't Breathe 2' includes at total of 40 digitally ignited fire sequences. The complexity of these effects would have made building them from scratch costly and time-consuming. Legion’s association with ActionVFX, a stock visual effect company with a vast archive, enabled its team to provide an efficient alternative. Legion's artists found stock fires that were a fit for all but one of the shots - and digitally augmented the elements to seamlessly blend with complex action scenes and other practical footage.
The protagonist sets a house on fire, with some digital help.Later he desperately looks for a way out as the intensity of the CG flames grows, virtually consuming the structure. Using Autodesk’Maya, artists digitally crumbled the floors as he makes his way to a window and dives out escaping the enferno.