Short Film
In Event of Moon Disaster
Dec 15, 2011
Filming recently took place for the DAC’s newest animated short, “In Event of Moon Disaster”. The film, based on presidential speechwriter William Safire’s most infamous speech, is set for completion in 2012 and already has a very promising future. Using the latest in Optitrack’s motion capture technology, IEMD is going to be like no other DAC animated film before it. If you will remember, “8 Second Dance” featured the premier work of CBSD, and the partnership will be continuing over the course of Spring 2012 to create this bigger-than-life reenactment of William Safire’s infamous speech...the speech which would have been read had Neil Armstrong and Buzz Alrdin not arrived safely on the moon. With a very serious and respectful take on the speech, “In Event of Moon Disaster” explores what writing the speech must have been like for Safire, what must have gone through his head, and will even depict the horrifying possibility of what would have happened had the crew not arrived safely. It was written by Howard Cook (whose previous work includes LucasFilms LTD, Paramount Pictures’ Star Trek TV series, and Universal Studios’ Apollo 13) and Craig Volk (screenwriter for over 20 years, staff screenwriter for the 90’s hit Northern Exposure and the 2007 winner of the PENN Center Award), both UC Denver faculty.
You can stay tuned here for more information on this film as it matures, with more pictures and videos soon to come. It can be rest assured that the soundtrack will be nothing short of professional and absolutely breathtaking. The process began with creating a sound-reinforced tent around the camera technology. Because the cameras and attached computers must be in the same room and were too bulky to move elsewhere, we had to make sound work around the visuals. This created a very unique problem, as we had to deaden the room while not compromising the integrity of the camera calibrations or the producer’s ability to direct the actors. What you see is the end result: C-Stands gaff taped together to create a very sturdy tent. Sound panels and blankets were placed along the walls as well to provide extra support. We then attached a lav to the actor and placed a boom on a stand in front of them for double coverage. Because the motion capture recognizes the dots via reflective surface, any conflicting reflective surfaces in the area needed to be covered or removed...and this included gaff taping the lav mic itself, which was quite shiny.
We wound up rolling 41 different takes between our two actors, in about 3 hours’ time, to capture the VO and motion capture data. This is obviously only the beginning, as the director looks through the takes to find the ones he wishes to commit to. Then it’s on to post prep and spotting as the animatic becomes the fully-featured film! Honestly, working with the Digital Animation Center here in Denver has been nothing but the most professional and enjoyable experience I have ever had, and I have yet to experience one reason to not recommend each and every one of their animators for further work. I know that they will continue to churn out on the most top-quality films an animation studio can make, and I can only hope that I get the privilege of working with them for many years to come.
You can stay tuned here for more information on this film as it matures, with more pictures and videos soon to come. It can be rest assured that the soundtrack will be nothing short of professional and absolutely breathtaking. The process began with creating a sound-reinforced tent around the camera technology. Because the cameras and attached computers must be in the same room and were too bulky to move elsewhere, we had to make sound work around the visuals. This created a very unique problem, as we had to deaden the room while not compromising the integrity of the camera calibrations or the producer’s ability to direct the actors. What you see is the end result: C-Stands gaff taped together to create a very sturdy tent. Sound panels and blankets were placed along the walls as well to provide extra support. We then attached a lav to the actor and placed a boom on a stand in front of them for double coverage. Because the motion capture recognizes the dots via reflective surface, any conflicting reflective surfaces in the area needed to be covered or removed...and this included gaff taping the lav mic itself, which was quite shiny.
We wound up rolling 41 different takes between our two actors, in about 3 hours’ time, to capture the VO and motion capture data. This is obviously only the beginning, as the director looks through the takes to find the ones he wishes to commit to. Then it’s on to post prep and spotting as the animatic becomes the fully-featured film! Honestly, working with the Digital Animation Center here in Denver has been nothing but the most professional and enjoyable experience I have ever had, and I have yet to experience one reason to not recommend each and every one of their animators for further work. I know that they will continue to churn out on the most top-quality films an animation studio can make, and I can only hope that I get the privilege of working with them for many years to come.
Comments