Previs now is getting very elaborate. On X-Men 2, we used previs not just for the technical aspects of filmmaking, but to determine dramatic points as well. I worked with Tom Sigel on many shots to previs lighting set-ups as well. This saved much time on the set, particularly with the rigging crew that needed to stay one jump ahead of us.

On the show I’m working on currently, Constantine, a sci-fi thriller starring Keanu Reeves, we are previsualizing all of the action and effects sequences in the film to aid not only in the scheduling and production of the film, but to help the director show the studio what we intend to shoot. We are trying, in these sequences, to give some representation of the appropriate lighting of the scenes. For this film, lighting is critical to visualizing how the scene will play out. The schedule and budget on Constantine are very tight, and previs helps everyone understand what they have to do to create the film.

In technically challenging motion pictures, previs is now absolutely essential. And, because of the expense and time required for some effects shots and sequences, previs is being used more and more often as a political tool — directors present their vision of a sequence to a studio to get budget approval and to give the studio executives a better idea of what the film might be like. This is particularly important in extremely complicated and expensive sequences such as the X-Jet Tornado Chase in X-Men 2. It has been the critical element in getting the approval to spend millions of dollars on a sequence or tens of millions on an entire film.

In Baby’s Day Out, Fink mixed previs and live-action footage in realtime to check the camera work. TM & © 1994 Twentieth Century Fox.

The new demands on previs require that previsualizations have more complex lighting, textures and animation. Luckily, these demands have been met by the ever-increasing sophistication of the software, so we’ve had the time to refine the images based on the needs of the project. In recent projects, we’ve been using higher-end software, such as Softimage XSI and Alias Maya, because of the complexity of the animation. As previs technology gets more sophisticated, and the importance of previs moves from just the technical and into the aesthetic, political issues come up when we create animatics that I must be conscious of. For instance, the director of photography is the person on a film who has the responsibility to set shots and help the director decide on lens, camera and lighting choices in his attempt to tell a story. But I often have scenes previsualized months before the DP is hired. The DP, and any others involved in helping the director tell the story, must be brought into the previs process as early as possible so that there are no surprises, and no bruised egos, along the way.

In the recent films I’ve worked on, previs sequences have been cut into the film to give continuity to the cut before the sequences have been photographed and completed. This has been very successful, to the point that there are times when the editor and the director, used to seeing the same previs shot in the film for months, come to believe the shot is done — they forget they are looking at previs since all their work is at video resolution.

A slightly darker, but sometimes funny, side of previs is that there are many times when the look of a favorite previsualized shot cannot be duplicated exactly in live-action. Although the live-action may be great, the director is so used to seeing the previs that he or she may have a hard time accepting the real footage. In the end, it always works out, but it has led to some interesting days on the stage and in the cutting room.

I can’t imagine mounting a visual effects effort on a film now without previsualization. Just like many of the tools we use (I remember the days before video assist. Yep, it’s true.) previs has become an essential tool in producing any film with complicated visual storytelling.

I truly enjoy the process of previsualizing scenes, and I expect that it will only get better.

Michael Fink has been involved with visual effects since he was a young boy, when he created his first miniature shot — a still of a rocket to the moon — in the hallway of his parents’ home.

In 1995, Fink joined Warner Bros. in starting a new venture — Warner Digital Studios — a full service visual effects facility. Under Fink’s direction, Warner Digital grew to 150 people, and produced highly lauded effects for such films as Eraser, Mars Attacks! and Batman & Robin, as well as commercials and special venue films. In the fall of 2000, he joined Cinesite Inc. as a senior visual effects supervisor. Fink was honored in October 2001 at the Premio Imaggine in Milan, Italy, for his contribution to the art and science of digital filmmaking. Fink is on the board of directors for the Visual Effects Society.