March 16th, 2018,Vlad Bina, senior digital film art director who participated in the production of “The Matrix, “The Da Vinci Code and Man of Steel as art direction, digital film scene designer and 3D environmental designer, came to ShanghaiTech to introduce the production process of movies and shared his own experiences.
Today, 3D art design is very important in the way movies are increasingly dependent on special effects. For his work in film production, Mr. Bina outlined: “My work is centered around a complex 3D database covering all aspects of architecture, design and art history, and throughout the production process.”
When the director is going to shoot a movie, first he needs a script. Therefore, the writer is often the earliest finalist. After the script is formed and the budget is approved, the project will sign the directors and actors one after another, and the film production will officially begin. In this process, the art department will gradually take shape, from the very beginning of the artistic guidance of the conception and design work.The department will hire about 20 people, including clothing, props, scenery, location and other departments.
With the revolution in digital design, two new departments debut: Previsualization and Visual Effects. Before 2000, people still thought that things related to computers belonged to the visual effects department, but then, 3D visual preview gradually became the most accurate way to create blueprints in film shooting. In the 3D model, it is possible to continuously preview and adjust the shooting angle to achieve the best results. This convenient and quick way is immediately favored by the directors.
Because of the growth and separation of art production in various fields, the visual preview, visual effects, and the division of traditional art departments become clearer, sometimes even diverging: For example, in the production of Da Vinci Code (2005), this contradiction became very clear. At that time, the physical scenes were only porches, pillars and awnings, and the traditional art department arranged the simple green curtain setting which was not conducive to the production of visual effects. Ironically, we also had to use a number of replica to replace the physical porch, because the texture of the pillars was not correct when actually setting the scene.”
When asked whether artistry is more important or story is more important, Mr. Bina did not respond directly. After the 3D models of scenes and props were produced by the visual preview department at the early stage, it still used the script as a blueprint to promote the plot. However, in certain scenes, the script would be modified according to the artistic effect to achieve a stronger expression. A film can only touch people's heart if it combines artistry and storytelling.
3D modeling has set off a technological revolution in the film industry, completely changing the artistic effects and shooting process of traditional movies.
