NAB Roundup - "Rogue One" Post: Step By Step

By: Marjorie Galas

The Motion Picture Sound Editors had a crowd 500 people deep for their special NAB Super Show Session.  Entitled “The Force Returns: Rogue One-A Star Wars Story”, the panel featured the Industrial Light & Magic post team crucial to finalizing the film.  Joining Carolyn Giardina, Technology Editor at the Hollywood Reporter who guided the panel were John Knoll, visual effects supervisor, Hal Hickel, animation supervisor and Matthew Wood, supervising sound editor.  The three team members provided a visual guide that ushered the audience through their work on “Rouge One.”

The panelist began by stressing every element of the production process defined their how they would proceed in post.  For example, the choice made by cinematographer Greig Fraser and director Gareth Edwards to use the Alexa camera dictated the linear space.  With the overall texture and qualifications of the filmic look defined, the visual effects and production design teams then moved into determining and breaking down the balance between physical and virtual sets and extensions.

The production team determined the main spaceship was within budget to build out, however a virtual extension enhanced elements such as deck and lighting technology and its connection to various backgrounds.  Proxy forms of the ship helped determine the fall of light, shadows and compositing.  Massive physical screens were also installed on the set that projected realistic lighting onto actor’s skin, aiding Fraser’s ability to capture a look that fully matched the action being depicted.

“This enabled us to get realistic results from tricky lighting situations,” said Knoll, “creating a photographical image that the camera could use from a lighting design perspective.”

Computer technology also played a massive role in production, well before post.  Previs built off storyboards allowed Edwards to move through environments as if he were on a camera plane.  This enabled him to test different camera angles for both aesthetic and action requirements.  A unique program was also created that played homage to the original “Star Wars.”  During the modeling phase of space crafts in the original film, random model pieces were used to embellish the exterior of X-Wing fighters and other ships.  Many of the model pieces have long been discontinued.   The program captured a 3D image of all original model pieces, virtually sorted them and enabled designers to pull from the original shapes that were used in the 70s.

Before the panel concluded, an in-depth discussion defining the details involved in digitally recreating the character Grand Moff Tarkin.  Tarkin was portrayed by actor Peter Cushing, who passed away in 1994.  After receiving the blessing of Cushing’s estate to use his likeness in the film, the visual effects team had the daunting task of balancing the actor’s “likeness” with the character’s “lifeness.”  The process combined referencing original footage, using look-alike actor Guy Henry for a full motion capture of his facial expressions, and utilizing a program that replicated the lighting and camera texture of the 70s to arrive at the final recreation.

The panel wrapped with an overview of the sound design and editing that went into “Rogue One.”  Working in Dolby Atmos, Wood and his team looped the audio slightly to help create a documentary feel to the sound.  They also utilized original audio tapes from the 70s as well as creating entirely unique and other-worldly sounds.  In some instances, common words were recorded, looped and processed until they achieved the desired effect.  Wood revealed one race of aliens is actually saying “Larry Mullen Jr.” – the name of U2’s drummer – when it is speaking.

“Lucas always felt sound was 50% of the experience,” said Wood.  “You really have to stop and think about what all the elements in this universe should sound like."