Double Negative Decodes Da Vinci Code
Double Negative (UNITED 93, HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE and BATMAN BEGINS) was selected to create a number of sequences to enhance THE DA VINCI CODE, which opened to smash business for the weekend period ended May 21, 2006.
In order to facilitate director Ron Howard’s vision for the visual effects sequences in the film, Double Negative’s vfx supervisor, Paul Riddle, and CG supervisor, Jesper Kjolsrud, were on set during shooting at Shepperton studios, as well as in Scotland and Paris, while their vfx producer, Steve Garrad, managed the project from Double Negative’s London office.
Angus Bickerton, the overall vfx supervisor on THE DA VINCI CODE, said: “Double Negative are filmmakers. They understand how things change and evolve during the life of a film. Paul, Steve, Jesper and the team accommodated those changes with grace, were great to work with, and delivered in excess of my expectations.”
Riddle explained: “Our brief was to create stylized sequences that enhance the drama and mystery of the film without straying into the realms of fantasy. We wanted to take our shots just to the edge of impossibility, but without crossing the line and being too showy. With this subtle approach, the audience can enjoy the narrative without being jolted out of the experience by an obvious vfx shot.”
In a breathless race through Paris, London and beyond, Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) and Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou) match wits with a faceless powerbroker who appears to work for Opus Dei: a clandestine, Vatican-sanctioned Catholic organization believed to have long plotted to seize the Priory of Sion’s secret. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory's secret — and a stunning historical truth — will be lost forever.
During this breathless race, Silas, the monk (Paul Bettany) is seen frantically driving a car through the streets of Paris. Using a combination of live-action plates with stunt drivers and bluescreen motion control passes of Silas driving a partial car, Double Negative created an impossible camera move that pulls out from the speeding car’s dashboard, out of the rear window, and then around the car. A full photorealistic CG digital model of the car: a Renault Vel Satis, was placed over the live-action plates, with the surrounding environment of trees, road and other traffic created digitally from live action photography.
Castle Gandolfo, the private residence of the Pope, plays an important role in the film; however, the building is not accessible to the general public. For the scenes that take place at the Pope’s residence, Double Negative created a CG structure from a variety of reference photographs and Art Department sketches. In Double Negative’s most impressive shot in the sequence, the camera starts by slowly zooming into the castle. Multiple elements, such as CG water, CG buildings and a matte painted background of the Italian landscape, were all used to create a swooping vista of the Castle. This was filmed during daylight hours but then digitally altered to give the impression of night. Riddle explained: “Filming at night wouldn’t give the same results, since light levels are too low to pick up all the small details. Turning day to night is a stylized approach, but means we can preserve the level of detail while conveying the drama of the scene as intended.”
In order to facilitate director Ron Howard’s vision for the visual effects sequences in the film, Double Negative’s vfx supervisor, Paul Riddle, and CG supervisor, Jesper Kjolsrud, were on set during shooting at Shepperton studios, as well as in Scotland and Paris, while their vfx producer, Steve Garrad, managed the project from Double Negative’s London office.
Angus Bickerton, the overall vfx supervisor on THE DA VINCI CODE, said: “Double Negative are filmmakers. They understand how things change and evolve during the life of a film. Paul, Steve, Jesper and the team accommodated those changes with grace, were great to work with, and delivered in excess of my expectations.”
Riddle explained: “Our brief was to create stylized sequences that enhance the drama and mystery of the film without straying into the realms of fantasy. We wanted to take our shots just to the edge of impossibility, but without crossing the line and being too showy. With this subtle approach, the audience can enjoy the narrative without being jolted out of the experience by an obvious vfx shot.”
In a breathless race through Paris, London and beyond, Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) and Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou) match wits with a faceless powerbroker who appears to work for Opus Dei: a clandestine, Vatican-sanctioned Catholic organization believed to have long plotted to seize the Priory of Sion’s secret. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory's secret — and a stunning historical truth — will be lost forever.
During this breathless race, Silas, the monk (Paul Bettany) is seen frantically driving a car through the streets of Paris. Using a combination of live-action plates with stunt drivers and bluescreen motion control passes of Silas driving a partial car, Double Negative created an impossible camera move that pulls out from the speeding car’s dashboard, out of the rear window, and then around the car. A full photorealistic CG digital model of the car: a Renault Vel Satis, was placed over the live-action plates, with the surrounding environment of trees, road and other traffic created digitally from live action photography.
Castle Gandolfo, the private residence of the Pope, plays an important role in the film; however, the building is not accessible to the general public. For the scenes that take place at the Pope’s residence, Double Negative created a CG structure from a variety of reference photographs and Art Department sketches. In Double Negative’s most impressive shot in the sequence, the camera starts by slowly zooming into the castle. Multiple elements, such as CG water, CG buildings and a matte painted background of the Italian landscape, were all used to create a swooping vista of the Castle. This was filmed during daylight hours but then digitally altered to give the impression of night. Riddle explained: “Filming at night wouldn’t give the same results, since light levels are too low to pick up all the small details. Turning day to night is a stylized approach, but means we can preserve the level of detail while conveying the drama of the scene as intended.”
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