TIME BANDITS PRODUCTION
A BIT OF BOTH In the beginning, VFX created the heavens and the earth. “How do we do this?” asks Tobias Wolters, VFX supervisor. “We had three months to shoot; it was a crazy undertaking. Every episode spans multiple timelines and worlds, all of which needed to be designed. Given the schedule, we needed to come up with a solution – that solution was the volume and virtual production.” Typically confined to post-production – “which is a problem because it delays decisions,” admits Wolters – the VFX team came in much earlier on Time Bandits , creating previsualisations and
storyboards, “sometimes even [for] the non-VFX scenes,” he adds. With creative decisions solidified as early as possible, the showrunners could focus on the drama rather than how to execute complex scenes mid-shoot. “We should be thinking about the final result and planning for it well,” Wolters argues. “If we’re there from day one and can influence the production and decisions from the start, that usually allows for a smoother process.” Headed by Dimension Studio’s James Dinsdale and John Allardice (both acting as VP supervisors), Time Bandits ’ VP team dovetailed with VFX. “If you use VP, it’s not
just about putting content on a screen; you’re pretty much creating another production entity,” claims Wolters. In this case, VP and VFX worked in tandem, creating LED backdrops which were part virtual and part real. “We wanted to embrace the handcrafted feel,” Wolters recalls, in part to pay homage to the original 1981 film. “How can we mix the old-school techniques with the new? How can we use miniatures? How can we use an oil painting?” he asks. To create believable backgrounds, like the Mayan temples in episode 2, the art department built miniatures, which the VFX team
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