Tau Films Adds Explosive Effects Work to Skyfire
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Los Angeles, CA, December 12, 2019
Tau Films created the animation, environments, and VFX for Skyfire (2019), an action-packed disaster film directed by Simon West. The plot centers around people trapped in a tropical resort when a volcano erupts. The project, produced by Meridian Entertainment and BaseFX, is expected to be a benchmark for big-budget, action-disaster movies in China.
According to Justin Jones, VFX Supervisor at Tau Films, the volcano is a key character in the plot. “While working on this project we were able to highlight the contrast between the serene beauty of the volcano before it erupts against the terror that ensues following the explosion,” said Jones. “While the monorail first takes visitors from the resort near the shore up to the caldera, we created the majestic ride up, which consisted of a full CG forest, cave, waterfall and rocky terrain. Once the eruption occurs we got to destroy all of that with lava bombs and deliver a thrilling ride back down to the bottom.”
Over the course of 9 months in post production, Tau Films delivered 147 shots involving animation, FX, and environments/matte paintings. “We had a massive waterfall with detailed interaction, a train car sliding down a mountain side through foliage and rubble, destruction, tons of lava bombs and a gargantuan pyroclastic flow,” said Karl Kohlman, FX Supervisor. “All of which were to be completed within 4 months time. Our team of 10 FX artists were working around the world, from the Canary Islands to Los Angeles, Belize, and India, utilizing SideFX’s Houdini to create the photo realistic simulations and renders needed to feel the power of this cataclysmic eruption.”
The Tau Films Animation, Lookdev, Lighting, FX, and Compositing teams had the task of recreating the dramatic lighting and the environment of the tropical resort as the natural disaster descends on the people and the infrastructure of the resort. “Our Tau Films global team of artists had a lot of fun taking on the challenge to create a gorgeous resort island that we would want to visit, and then blow it all up with fireballs and explosions. Disaster films are a blast to work on and we hope the audience enjoys the ride as much as we did,” quipped Jones.
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Skyfire (2019) on IMDB
Skyfire (Available via Amazon Prime)
About Tau Films, LLC (2019)
Tau Films is an international creative content and visual effects group formed by a diverse team of exceptional artists, technologists, and visionaries. We are known for creative solutions in an ever-changing landscape of story, media and content, and we service high-end feature film, theme park, commercial, television, special venue, and museum clients in the global marketplace.