FILM
TOP: Colleagues Watts (Thandiwe Newton) and Nick Bannister (Hugh Jackman) help people relive their memories for a cost. BOTTOM: A proud moment for Paul Cameron occurred when an electrician took the initiative to light a disused Ferris wheel that provided great dramatic effect. (Photo: Ben Rothstein) OPPOSITE TOP TO BOTTOM: Facial capture was done of Rebecca Ferguson in anticipation that she would have to leave for another project before principal photography was completed. Even though the story is set in Miami, principal photography primarily took place in New Orleans. (Photo: Ben Rothstein) Rebecca Ferguson and Hugh Jackman talk to Lisa Joy, who made her feature directorial debut on Reminiscence. (Photo: Ben Rothstein)
the machine and tank would go, I had to go through and figure out roughly where Hugh Jackman or Thandiwe Newton would be on any given scene and what their relationship would be to the projection during principal photography. Not only did I have to shoot the scenes on location, but I also had to shoot the projection angles for projection in Nick Bannister’s office, which happened towards the end of the schedule. You’ve got to know your lens, distance, height and, of course, the machine is off the ground a couple of feet. It’s a combination of doing the math and saying, ‘This feels right.’ There were three 20K projectors rigged on set.” The requirements of the storytelling lead to the creation of approximately 600 visual effects shots. “The reminiscence machine was Scanline VFX, the water was Rise FX, and Hollywood VFX did simple composites and paint-outs,” remarks Jones. “More important than anything for me is key art. We had great key art that gave us a visual palette in which to work with. Then we did a fair amount of previs and techvis because some of our shots were complicated.” A lot of conceptualizing went into devising the look of the reminiscence machine, Jones recounts. “Howard built the bottom portion. We had to build the top part and the cables. With all of these things, we want to make sense of it. How does the machine work exactly? Are there electrons being positively charged by somebody’s memory? There was a lot of research that went into it that you don’t actually see in the screen.” The reminiscence machine was affectionately referred to as ‘The Hamburger,’ he adds. “It has a cyberpunk sci-fi look and an hourglass shape. A 24-foot diameter round pedestal sits up on the floor. Then there is another disk that sits on top, and the two grow out. The final look of the hologram was more like beads of light that are volumetric. “There is a wonderful opening shot that takes us right off the
76 • VFXVOICE.COM FALL 2021
PG 74-78 REMINISCENCE.indd 76
8/29/21 2:44 PM
