Frantic benefits from the acquisition too. In its new location, Frantic can tap into Post Logic's high-end color science, 4K scanning and DI capabilities. Frantic Films created CG roses and vines for this scene in The Ruins. 

Malhotra touches on the physical changes that have taken place at Frantic Films and how they have benefited. "Since the acquisition, Frantic Films VFX moved their LA office to Hollywood, and are now co-located with Post Logic Studios (another Prime Focus Group company), which benefits both facilities and their clients with an extended service slate and resources.

"Frantic VFX now benefits from the high-end color science, 4K scanning and DI capabilities of Post Logic. Additionally, Post Logic now benefits from the strong effects, R&D and pipeline capabilities of Frantic VFX.

"Additionally, Frantic has expanded operations in Hollywood by setting up a full-scale matte painting department headed by [artist] Ken Nakada. In the future, we look forward to expanding operations across all our facilities."

Besides aligning with Post Logic and moving into their 55,000 square-foot facility, being acquired by Prime Focus Group gave Frantic Films the financial backing to also expand creatively.

"At Frantic Films we really didn't have the backing to do some of the things we wanted to do," Bond admits. "We brought in Ken Nakada, because I worked with him in the past on some projects. The idea is that we're going to be doing a lot of virtual environments, set extensions, matte painting work and some art department conceptual things through that department.

"It's one of those things that you have to find the right talent when it shows up, not when it aligns with a project necessarily. Matte painters and matte artists are generally fairly rare positions. It wasn't something we could finance before. But it was something that was in the scope of present work within the Prime Focus family in a lot of different projects. So, they really thought that it would be beneficial and allowed us to build this department."

Nakada discusses the challenges and benefits of starting up and integrating the new matte division. "The main challenges are recruiting talent and building a pipeline. Environments will encompass different elements to varying degrees. We will always have matte painting as a main resource for environment building.

"Although many companies do matte paintings, there is truly not a large pool of experienced and properly trained matte painters. When trying to build photoreal environments that need to cut seamlessly with production footage, the number of capable matte painters drops dramatically.

"The recruiting must be complimented with a good training program. And this is what we are doing at Frantic. We are looking for experienced photo-real matte painters, while concurrently building a place to grow talent.

The latter takes time and involves a department that includes art levels from apprenticeships to junior matte painters to senior matte painters."

Nakada also discusses the additional elements and skill sets that are needed within the department to round out 3D world building. "We have to have water simulation, volumetric cloud building, tree/plant pipelines, cityscape pipelines, atmospheric effects, smoke/fire elements, rain/snow simulation and other physical phenomena that naturally occur within a scene. Also, there are the not-so-natural effects that may be requested, which is common in sci-fi/horror/space related features. And lastly, once you build an environment, you have to populate it. These can range from people, vehicles, bugs and animals. Luckily, many of these pipelines exist at Frantic VFX. I am trying to bring in the main resource, matte painting, and round out the other needed elements."

Since getting off the ground a few months ago, the integration of the new digital mattes and concepts department at Frantic Films has gone exceptionally well.