Technology
Who has done this before?
The movie Mad Max Fury Road has a scene with a huge, fantastical dust storm.
How have they done it?
The main, large core of the twisters were 3D volumes, almost entirely shader-based, allowing internal lighting. These were then wrapped in multiple, dense particle simulations that connected to the ground and sky. The sky was a 3D, animated matte painting created as numerous layers in Photoshop and assembled in Nuke. Houdini was used to create the twisters through custom gas and particle setups, rendered in PRMan using Iloura’s custom particle instancer called Mincer.
How is yours different?
The dust storm in Mad Max Fury Road is very fantastical and unrealistic. It’s a big spectacle piece to show at the climax of the first act of the movie. My dust storm will be smaller, more realistic, and will tie into the narrative more than just a big show to make your movie more exciting.
Design
Who has done this before?
In the movie Christine, there is an old, beat up car that fixes itself and becomes new again.
How have they done it?
For the movie the crew had more than one of the car. Then they used stuff to compress the car to make it look beat up. They took that footage and played it in reverse to make it look like the car is fixing itself.
How is yours different?
In my thesis I am not taking something old and beat up and making it new again. I am taking something old and burying it, making it forgotten in place of something new.
Narrative
Who has done this before?
Pixar’s movie Cars tells the story of a road and nearby town that became abandoned after a highway was built nearby.
How have they done it?
In Cars, the town of Radiator Springs is abandoned because after a highway was built nearby nobody used that road anymore. Lightning McQueen gets lost and comes speeding through the town accidentally ruining the pavement of the road. Throughout the movie he ends up re-paving the road, becoming friends with the residents and helping fix up the town. By the end of the movie cars start to drive down that road again and the town becomes revitalized.
How is yours different?
In my thesis the dust storm will come and consume the old gas station. The camera will then pan to see a modern city in the background. Unlike Cars where the old town becomes new again, the gas station will be forgotten in place of the future.
