Search form

Framestore CFC Nurtures Constant Gardener VFX & DI

Framestore CFC was honored when Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles (CITY OF GOD) and cinematographer César Charlone brought political thriller THE CONSTANT GARDENER to their London premises. In addition to providing some 35 VFX shots, including the creation of the fire elements for a burning village, Framestore CFC created the film's Digital Intermediate.

Colorists Adam Glasman and Asa Shoul worked on the grade, which was closely supervised by Charlone, over February and March 2005. Framestore CFC uses the Baselight system from FilmLight, a software-based grading system for film and video that can be combined with dedicated hardware to support realtime grading at 4K. THE CONSTANT GARDENER provided Glasman with his first opportunity to use the latest iteration of this system, Baselight Eight.

The film was shot in both 35mm and Super 16, which the Framestore CFC kit handled in a single pass. Much of Glasman and Shoul's efforts were focused on bringing out tonally the different worlds that protagonist Ralph Fiennes' character finds himself in. The dispassionate cool world of the High Commission and the diplomatic life was contrasted dramatically with the vivid, beautiful and chaotically colored real world to be seen in the Kenyan scenes.

In addition, with so much of the film set in Africa, the combination of bright sunlight, dark African skin tones and contrast added at the cinematographer's request meant that a loss of detail in the faces was a real danger.

Three of the keys to Framestore CFC's continuing success in the relatively new specialist service of DI are speed, precision and artistry.

Framestore CFC VFX credits:* Digital Supervisor: Adrian de Wet* CG Supervisor: Andrew Rawling* VFX Exec Producer: Drew Jones* VFX Producers: Charles Howell, Michael Davis* Compositors: Corrina Wilson, Adrian Metzelaar, Sule Bryan Hurst* Digital Paint: Tim Young, Howard Protheroe* VFX Editor: Roz Lowrie* VFX Avid Editor: Tom Partridge* Data Operations: Cal Sawyer

Framestore CFC DI credits:* Colorists: Adam Glasman, Asa Shoul* Producer: Maria Stroka* Senior Producer: Claire McGrane* Exec Producer: Jan Hogevold* Digital Assembly: Steve Wagendorp* Scanning and Recording Manager: Andy Burrow* Scanning, Recording and Digital Clean Up: James Clarke, Dan Perry, Annabel Wright, Jonathan Dredge, Matina Skouteri, Paola Varvaro, Dan McRae, Joe Godfrey, Kevin Lowery, Paul Doogan, Jason Burnett, Tom Bunnell, Thomas Hicks, Gareth Jones* Data Operator: Dianne Gordon* Film Mastering Engineer: Alistair Hamer

London-based Framestore CFC (www.framestore-cfc.com) is one of the leading visual effects company working on effects for feature films and commercials.

Bill Desowitz's picture

Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.