MPC SLOWS DOWN FOR PANASONIC, 'VIERA'

Brett Foraker has directed the new campaign ‘Blink of an Eye’ for the Panasonic Viera television, produced by Annabel Ridley at RSA.  The ad describes how every split second matters and uses slow motion to demonstrate how this particular camera captures motion more clearly than others.  This slow-motion snapshot shows various split-second eventualities can change the course of a life forever.  To help realise Brett’s boards, MPC created 3D animated bullets, glass aeroplane windows and jet streams and shoals of sharks and fish.

As the action was to be shot at very slow-mo, the correct equipment was paramount; in this case the DOP opted to use the Phantom camera.  Using this required a change to the traditional post pipeline, removing the telecine grade as first step to accommodate the HD rushes captured on the shoot.  These were graded directly in Flame where a filmic look was achieved.  This method was used to ensure maximum control for every detail within the imagery.  Depth was added to the white on black environment with tiny details integrated to enhance the perspective.  3D elements; bullets shooting through the air, flower petals and the smoke trails and glass parts of the aeroplanes were created in Maya and combined with the HD plates in Flame.  To ensure the shark and fish appeared as photo-real creatures, MPC’s creature animation department developed detailed textures and models.

A master grade was added in telecine at the end of production. 

There are 50, 30, 20 and 10 second versions of the commercial, which went on air in the Netherlands in April, and which may air in 25 other European territories throughout April and May.

Credits:

Director: Brett Foraker

DOP: Alex Barber           

Editor: Adam Rudd @ Final Cut

Agency: Strawberry Frog

Agency Producer: Annemarie Semeijn, Monique Wichard

Creatives: Michelle Gauci & John Peacock

Production Company: RSA

Production Company Producer: Annabel Ridley


Post Production Company: MPC

Post Production Producer: Louisa Cartwright

VFX Supervisors: Xavier Fourmond, Jake Mengers

2D VFX Team: Andrew Salter, Marcus Wood, Stirling Archibald, Ziggy Zigouras

3D VFX Team: Adrian Williams, Ahmed Gharraph, Alfonso Sicilia, Ashley Bernes, Giles Davis, Henrik Holmberg, James Bailey, Kieran Belshaw, Phillippe Gaulier, Ronnie Anzenberger, Yafei Wu, Wayne Simmons.

Telecine: Mark Horrobin and Xavier Fourmond