FIRST MAN recently added to its nomination tally with an Academy Award Nomination for Best Visual Effects! The film’s VFX team, lead by Paul Lambert of DNeg, and the Director of Photography, Linus Sandgren, called on Fred Waldman of Visual Integration Department, LLC to develop a custom LED backdrop for immersive camera photography. They needed powerful 4K processing to drive the backdrop and transport the cast and crew into space, without leaving the sound stage.
Waldman and fellow system engineers, Mitch Lathrop and Jared LeClaire, knew the M8 Processing System, a proprietary Megapixel VR technology, was up to the task. They were further impressed by Megapixel VR’s color processing capabilities to precisely match the requirements of the VFX and Camera teams.
The 180-degree curved LED backdrop with a 60-foot diameter, in concert with the M8’s 4K processing and industry-leading color accuracy, provided an unparalleled workflow synchronizing previously un-seen NASA footage and 360-degree spherical images, with mounted set pieces to accomplish the groundbreaking in-camera effects.
Check out the following articles to see how our technology became an integral part of this award-winning film:
ICG Magazine
LA Times
IndieWire
VFX Voice
