American Cinematographer - October 2008 - (Page 14)

The T-1000 (Robert Patrick) commandeers a helicopter in his pursuit of satellite service. Lola VFX handled the background compositing and liquidmetal effects for this spot, as well as de-aging duties for the Poltergeist commercial. cally, it’s quite challenging, but the audience we’re talking to is made up of people who really love film and television. [Because] a lot of these people know these movies so well, every detail has to be spot-on, especially the lighting.” Plummer was tasked with creating a medium exterior shot of the T-1000 (again played by Patrick) hanging off the spinning helicopter and an interior shot of him in the cockpit. Because the direction of the light was always changing, the cinematographer had gaffer Jim Young and key grip Mike Milella rig a 10K tungsten Fresnel on a curved track around a mock-up of the helicopter fuselage, which was mounted on a gimbal against bluescreen. 1K Par cans were panned across bounce cards to add to the effect. On set, Plummer shot slightly flatter than the original so he could control the contrast in post. Edson Williams at Lola VFX — the company that de-aged Nelson in the Poltergeist spot — tied everything together with background compositing and liquidmetal effects. In his 1991 interview with AC, Greenberg recalled the night he shot the original scene with an actual helicopter: “I felt [the Cyberdyne building] was like an army base, so I placed Xenon lights on towers around the building to control the area … I actually used those as practical lights to illuminate the set, along with a huge, bright light on the helicopter.” With every new “Fourth Wall” ad he directs, Joiner tries to push the envelope a little further. “It truly is a unique experience every time [DirecTV] comes at me with one of these,” he muses. “The Poltergeist and T2 spots are hugely different in the ways we went about them.” “I’ve shot a lot of music videos where you’re often basing the look of a video on someone else’s work,” comments Plummer. “It’s always a strange experience to go against what your instincts might tell you to do, but I love what Greenberg did on T2, and it was a privilege to try and match his work.” Upon viewing the spot, Greenberg noted its effectiveness, but he couldn’t help adding, “You can never replace the original.” I 14 October 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - October 2008

American Cinematographer - October 2008 Contents Editor's Note Short Takes: DirecTV's "Fourth Wall" Campaign Production Slate: Prison Break Production Slate: Need for Speed: Undercover Middle East Intrigue Kingdom of Light Memoirs of a Spook Landmark Gains Post Focus: An Overview of the ASC CDL Filmmakers' Forum: Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC New Products & Services International Marketplace Classified Ads Clubhouse News ASC Close-Up: Ross Berryman

American Cinematographer - October 2008

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