Things get a little hairy for Dr. Michael Corvin, played by Scott Speedman. Photo courtesy of Framestore CFC.

Tatopoulos and his team created a large number of life-sized werewolf maquettes, complete with minute details such as pores and hair follicles. The prosthetic suits were then constructed utilizing special stilts created by prosthetic limb manufacturers. The werewolves were designed to have 25 axes of rotation to give them lifelike movement and the look of an entire new breed of werewolf — scary, but cool and hip. Exactly what Wiseman wanted.

Prosthetic makeup was also part of the mix. Scott Speedman, who plays med student Michael Corvin, went through hours in the makeup chair. “It took five hours to put it on and one night it took seven people an hour and a half to get it off.” Although the makeup crew was prepared for him to be bored and antsy, he says, “It was a really interesting process to sit there and watch them do this amazing work on your body.”

These digital ninja stars were just some of the character’s arsenal. Photo courtesy of Framestore CFC.

Framestore CFC London handled more than 150 digital effects shots under the supervision of Rob Duncan. These included a lot of wire-removal and bluescreen work — the “invisible” effects. There was also 3D work involved, such as the digital “ninja stars” that some of the characters used. Luma Pictures added additional animation under the supervision of Payam Shohadai.

However, Duncan stresses Framestore's own transformation work, including Corvin's hybrid monster: "We worked on top of a live-action plate of the character in their human form, developing them into their 'beast' form," Duncan explains. Rather than morphing from plate to plate, they started with a human plate and ended with a CG creature.

Overall, Underworld is a stunning achievement, showing that it’s not the budget of the film; it’s the imagination behind it.

Scott Jenkins has been creating art on the computer since 1987. He has an extensive professional writing career, freelancing articles for print and online magazines. Especially interested in pushing the art of computers, he continued his career teaching and lecturing at schools, conventions and companies, on animation and compositing. Some of his clients include DreamWorks, Sega, Film Roman and Centropolis Special Effects. He is currently writing (digital) Compositing for New Riders and articles for Animation World Magazine. He is also freelancing as a writer and digital content creator.