These 4 screens show the phases of production of the film Suggestion Diabolique.
th-cam.com/video/K4JDGyPG-7M/w-d-xo.html
While motion control is used every day, its potential for executing complex longer shots remains unexplored. I decided to test this form of cinematic complexity in the context of a musical short film.
step 1 -- reference video
Precision and utter controllability are the main assets of motion control and in order to make the most of them, a 3D animation of pianist André Laplante performing Suggestion Diabolique had to be created. The first step in designing this reproduction of our subject matter was to shoot a simple reference video of André.
step 2 -- the shot in 3D
The animation part of the project was handled by Oscar-winning director Chris Landreth. From the reference video, he created in Maya a computer graphics (CG) version of André Laplante seated at a Steinway piano. The CG Steinway and CG André have the same dimensions as their real counterparts. Then Chris did a crude rotoscoping of André's performance based on the reference video. Although crude, this rotoscoping is precise enough to show where Andre's hands will be at any point in the final performance. Suggestion Diabolique's continuous camera movement was elaborated in that 3D envoronment and anchored to the virtual performance.
step 3 -- shooting the film
On the day of the shoot, André, the piano, the motion controlled camera and a giant turntable were brought in the studio, along with a cluster of computers, to transpose in reality what had been conceived virtually during the preceding months. André and the piano were mounted on the turntable which interacted with the Milo to simulate the circular shot. Shooting took three days.
step 4 -- the finished film
The resulting movie is best viewed on its own:
th-cam.com/video/K4JDGyPG-7M/w-d-xo.html
Future projects of mine involving motion control include a dramatic feature and another musical film, this time with an orchestra.
Thanks for sharing !
Frederick Reid