Writeup about the VFX of Cruella by MPC/Technicolor

There are now articles online discussing the work that MPC and Technicolor did for Cruella's visual effects. I am very excited to see pieces like this featuring the work our company did, and to be quoted discussing their work.

From the article MPC Film Deliver Bold and Rebellious VFX for Cruella:

Joining Forces with Technicolor Post-Vis

Technicolor’s Post Visualization team joined forces with MPC Film on Cruella, working on 15 sequences within the film. Utilizing character assets created by its Character Lab team in Montreal, the team’s work largely consisted of animating CG dogs and compositing them into plates with a variety of complexity and lighting. Working alongside them was the Art Department; Senior Concept Artist Ivan Khomenko and Art Director Leandre Lagrange fleshed out the environments and key story moments, envisioning Cruella’s world in 1970’s London with the creation of concept frames for the VFX team.

“Cruella was an enormous and exciting collaboration for our team of thirteen visualization artists,” said Technicolor Post-Vis Supervisor Josh Lange. “Operating from Technicolor's Pre-Production department at the MPC office in Culver City, Los Angeles, we joined up with MPC's wide network to utilize assets created by final VFX teams at the offices in Montreal and London.

With this foundation, we animated scenes with complicated quadruped body mechanics, drama, intensity, subtlety, and even broad comedy. VFX Supervisor Max Wood guided us along the way, as we completed bluescreen-heavy shots and explored ways to design a pivotal surprise moment in the third act.”

This was the team’s first production affected by the COVID pandemic, but they quickly pivoted to fully remote working conditions, where post-vis artists seamlessly continued their work until early Autumn of 2020, followed by the VFX team wrapping in Spring of 2021.

“Looking back at the efforts of our team and MPC/Technicolor as a whole, I am tremendously proud of our exceptional artists and what they achieved under such unusual conditions on this project,” concluded Lange.

For more information about my time on the film, visit my Cruella project page.