VR technology was used in filming "Rogue One / Star Wars Story" movie

In the movie "Rogue One / Star Wars Story" released on December 16, 2016, numerous VFXs are used in dog fight in space and battle scenes on the ground, and 89th in 2017 I was nominated for the Academy Award VFX category (Visual Effect Award). It is Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) owned by Lucasfil in charge of the VFX of this work, but it is clear that VR technology was used for shooting by coverage of British broadcasting station BBC.

Rogue One: Visual effects revealed - BBC Click - YouTube


According to Steve Ellis, who is responsible for the VFX team, Gareth Edwards is a type director who walks around the set and walks the set himself and draws a plan for the shooting, in order to produce a reality in shooting Many sets and props actually made are used.


In the scenes where CG is used, it is impossible for Garece / Edwards to actually walk around, but the VFX team overcame this problem with VR.


The VFX team created a real time VR system "VCam Renderer" that combines the iPad with the HTC Vive controller of the VR headset.


For example, a scene where Star Destroyer passes through Death Star. In the scene from the back of the huge Star Destroyer, even a huge death star appeared, the viewer should have felt overwhelming fear of Death Star.


The VFX team first created this scene with 3DCG and put it into VR. Director Gareth Edwards moved about in the VR in a casual way and decided to plan the shooting such as where to shoot, what angle to shoot, where to start and end shooting.


If you move the iPad up and down, left and right like images, you can see the scene from various angles.



Mr. Ellis showed me next is the scene where the X wing plunges into the shield gate.


Even in this scene Gareth Edwards said he decided the shooting plan while moving the iPad.


At the pre-production stage of the movie, staff and actors share what scenes will be made with the storyboard. However, the number of movies that heavily uses CGs has increased recently, and it is difficult to judge what kind of scenes will be the result of adding CG by using only a storyboard. That appeared there, create a simple CG in advance and share the imageAnimaticRogue One's VCam Renderer will also be a kind of animatic.


In the past Peter Jackson coachI made animatics using ARAlthough it may be, the fact that VCam Renderer is amazing is that it was made using existing products called iPad and HTC Vive. Disney is undertaking the live action remake "Lion King" and director John Favreau is shooting "Lion King" as well as the VCam Renderer adopted in Rogue OneVR technologyIt is clarifying to use.

Animatics used by Peter Jackson 's "Lord of the Rings / Travel Companions" can be confirmed from the following movie.

The Lord of the Rings BTS - 01.12 - Previs Animatic - The Stairs of Khazad - dum - YouTube