Keeping a sense of scale at arm’s length.

Shadowplay Studios’ opening title sequence for director Jason Reitman’s “Up in the Air” intoxicates us with neatly happenstance compositions of a casual topology from a commuter’s perspective with music by Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings that savors common ground. Just below the stratosphere there is our gaze and our patterns. We’re big, we’re small.

Art of the Title: What were the initial design stages like, from the early inspirations to the development process? How many different concepts did you go through?

Gareth Smith: The script for Up in the Air was fantastic, and a real inspiration for us. It was different from Jason’s other films… more adult, sophisticated and darker.

A title sequence that incorporated aerial footage was our first thought. We assembled a gallery of interesting aerial photography that had an abstract quality and sent it off to Jason. We looked at the artwork and photography of Andy Goldsworthy, Ed Ruscha and Alex MacLean during our research. Our initial thought was to do it by hand somehow – perhaps painting the aerial shots with a subdued color palette. We assumed that there would be NO WAY to actually shoot this footage, given the budget of the title sequence.

My co-designer (Jenny Lee) and I got married right before Jason started shooting the film. And then we left for a long honeymoon while the film was in production. We returned from our trip, refreshed and ready to make a title sequence, and Jason surprised us by showing us that he had captured hours and hours of beautiful aerial footage, shot at a high altitude from a JET. Our jaws kind of dropped when we saw a rough edit of some of the footage in the film. He was planning on using a number of these shots throughout the film for city title cards as well. This was an absolute gift, and we were thrilled to have access to such spectacular footage.

Jenny loves to fly, and she was super happy that her job was to watch a bunch of this footage and to edit it to music. I, on the other hand, hate to fly, but I’ll do it, because it gets you to places where drinks are served in coconuts and where you can see buildings that were built earlier than 1960.

We prepared some simple style frames to show the general look of what we wanted to do. At this point we were thinking that the typography would have a dry, corporate look (think Helvetica and Bryant), a reference to the corporate visual theme that surrounds Ryan’s character in the film. Some of the style frames we created were supposed to look like internal corporate brochures (yawn). We thankfully ditched this approach a bit later in the process.

‘Cut Out’ styleframe (Click to Enlarge)

‘Modern’ styleframe (Click to Enlarge)

‘Modern Xerox’ styleframe (Click to Enlarge)

We discovered that the aerial footage did have an issue… because of the camera rig and altitude, it was heavily vignetted and very grainy. The negative, as the colorist described, was “thin,” meaning there wasn’t a lot of material to work with on the negative.

We decided, therefore, to try to treat the footage – to degrade it further. We experimented with a technique where we printed each frame of the footage on an ink jet printer, then color xeroxed it to give it a vintage quality. At this point the music was going to be “Ramblin’ Man” by Hank Williams. It’s an old recording – and the vintage look was appropriate to the sound of the song. We all really loved this look, but Jason ended up changing the music to a modern recording of “This Land is Your Land,” so the heavily treated look didn’t work quite as well.

‘Modern Xerox’ motion test (Click to Watch Quicktime)

We eventually were invited to see some of the aerial footage in the color timing room, and we were actually really happy with how it looked (this was the first time we saw it projected). It had a real vintage style to it that made it look like it was shot in the 1970s. It looked like it could have been in The Conversation or The French Connection… super funky color that makes you think of jumping and sliding over the hood of a Trans Am. The vignetting and grain accentuated this look, and we decided to go ahead and use the footage as it was, but color correct it to push the vintage look a bit.

Aerial footage still selection (Click to Enlarge)

At this point we were looking a lot at postcards from the 60s and 70s, specifically ones that feature incredibly dull locations. One was labeled “SO. DALE MABRY (U.S. 92) AT HENDERSON BLVD.” Makes you want to visit, right? Can’t wait.

Postcard reference (Click to Enlarge)

These inspired the color treatment, the typography and the simple split screens (with white borders) throughout the sequence. This look really helped the sequence capture the nostalgia for how commercial flight used to be – romantic and fun… back when people actually wanted to fly, and airlines used to have super cool advertising like this:

TWA advertisement (Click to Enlarge)

The sequence ultimately depicts the world as Ryan (George Clooney) sees it: distant, abstract, and detached. Landmarks (like the St. Louis Arch) are visible in the sequence, but they blend into the scenery because of the high altitude of the photography. I love the aerial photography in this sequence, because it shows the world from a different point of view than we’re used to in films. It’s the view you see when you’re flying in a jet, where the world takes on a bit of an orthographic, Google-Earth-like 2D quality.

ATS: How involved were you with the live action aerial photography?

GS: Most of the footage from the title sequence was shot by Robert Mehnert. He shot the 35mm material. These shots have that slightly vintage, shot-in-the-70s quality that we loved so much.

GS: Dylan Goss shot the high definition material that we used in the sequence, and most of the aerial shots that are used in the film itself. We used his footage for the “George Clooney,” “UP IN THE AIR,” “Anna Kendrick,” and the fabulous crop circle shots just before and under “Chris Lowell.” This material was much crisper than the film footage (as high definition tends to be), so we actually had to degrade it a bit to match the look of the film. This shoot took place late in the process, so we were able to make several very specific requests for footage from this shoot. We asked for a shot to go with the “ribbon of highway” lyric, and several more cloud shots that we could use for the main title card.

“We used a Cessna 337 airplane also known as a Skymaster. Normally I fly in jet helicopters that are much more sophisticated machines with more power and a much higher cost per hour to operate. The plane was chosen for its economy and ability to transit at a higher speed when not filming since we had such a large area to cover it helped. One thing that was probably mis-understood about this choice is that most of the altitudes we worked at 8k’ or 10k’ (we maxed out at about 13-15k’) can be done in a helicopter and the plane didn’t give a huge advantage there. With the unpressurized cabin the pilot and I wore oxygen masks at or above 10k’.

The camera was a hi-def-only system called the Gyron that is housed partially in an 18″ ball. The smaller size of this system allows it to be mounted on the aircraft with minimal weight or structural issues. This was a pre-engineered solution that has been used mainly I believe for sports broadcasting and such where the planes low cost and ability to stay up in the air for a long time before refueling (endurance) make it a good choice.
The camera ball mounts on a vertical track that sits against the left middle side of the plane and allows the ball to be lowered below the fuselage in flight for a more clear view (360′ when aimed somewhat downward). This system is small due to the fact that it only houses the head of a Sony 950 4:4:4 1080p camera while the camera body, controls and record deck are all remote and located inside the aircraft. The gyron ball is married to this Sony system and it is a permanent part of it.

Production photos by Dylan Goss (Click for Slideshow)

With the deck being inside the aircraft I can change tapes etc. without landing. One of the few things we need to land for other than fuel is to wipe the lens if we get anything on it – usually bugs while landing and taking off if the camera is not stowed looking backward. Rain is another issue that is tricky, just a few drops in the wrong spot and it’s a long time down and back up to land. Those are “normal” aerial issues though.

The basic flight characteristics of an airplane took some getting used to. I was in the rear of this plane with small high mounted windows and a poor view (I would use the camera to sight around me. Re-doing things (a second take for example) was unpractical unless the shot was really required – the time to circle back was prohibitive sometimes. Also due to the tight production schedule and the show being essentially done, I often would have small windows to work in – shoot some city at 2pm in higher light since we needed to get to the next by sundown.

‘In Flight’ movie (Click to Watch Quicktime)

From a schedule standpoint one thing that helped was the long endurance of the plane – up to 4.5 hours flying between landings. We would sometimes shoot one city on takeoff, fly to another and film it and land in a third possibly filming it on the way in. When I had cell coverage I spent a little down time trying to figure out some local quick food where we were headed. I am crazy about this very polarizing St. Louis pizza and had one ordered before we landed for 45 minutes of downtime for fuel and rest. Wichita meant Steak-N-Shake burgers I think. Omaha meant a serious steak. All this and GPS based Facebook updates at each landing kept it an adventure after over 5000 miles flown and I think at least five hours of usable footage.”

ATS: What’s your favorite part of the process?

GS: We love the collaboration with the director and other creative folks who work on the film. It’s such a great vibe working with Jason and his team because everyone just wants to make a great movie. We also loved being able to work with, and edit, the beautiful aerial photography we had access to.

Another fun part of this particular title sequence was being able to work with the colorist to create the look of the shots.

ATS: How do you stay fresh?

GS: I think it’s important to be able to turn work off, outside of work. It’s important to let your mind contemplate other things than the specific creative task you’re working on. We love to travel and try to get out of the city as often as possible to clear our heads. Jenny and I never planned on becoming title designers – we kind of just stumbled into this career. Because of that, we don’t live and breathe title design. That said, we love the work, and especially enjoy meeting and working with such talented creative people.

ATS: You’re three for three with Director Jason Reitman. Is this a career for Shadowplay?

GS: I think that our title design work, especially the work we’ve done with Jason, will be what Shadowplay is remembered for. Title design is such a visible form of design, and we’re very lucky to be able to do it. And we’re lucky to be able to work with Jason, who repeatedly directs high quality films that both critics and audiences enjoy. I hope that we’ll be able to continue this collaboration for many years!

ATS: How does Jason approach the title sequences to his films? Please tell us a little bit about the shorthand you’ve developed with him over each of his films.

GS: A good opening title sequence is particularly important to Jason – it’s one of his signatures.

He brings us in very early in the process. For both Juno and Up in the Air, he sent us the screenplay well before he shot each film so we could have some time to work out concepts for the title sequence, and see if there were any ways to take advantage of the physical production. For Juno – we came up with the simple transition idea of Juno walking behind some sort of vertical element that we could use to wipe into the animated world. I sent him the storyboard while he was shooting the movie, and he ended up getting that shot for us. And we were able to go up to Vancouver to photograph Ellen Page – taking advantage of the live action production to help make a stronger title sequence.

Working with Jason is a true collaboration. He trusts us to do what we do well, and we respect and like him very much. It feels much more like doing work for a friend than our typical client relationship. He leaves us alone to explore concepts and to develop the design. And when he makes comments and criticism, he’s spot on and always takes the sequence in an even better direction.

And just as important – he sticks up for us throughout the post production process and helps us get what we need to do our jobs well. With Up in the Air – we were able to spend a number of hours color correcting the footage with his colorist, Natasha Leonnet, for the opening title sequence – a luxury that we often don’t have as title designers. Because the title sequence is so important to Jason, it’s important to everyone else in the post production process.

A fun step through espionage nostalgia, a ball becomes a blip becomes a bullet becomes a drip connecting the brightly colored character facets in the opening to Adam Reed’s very funny “Archer.”

Art Director Neal Holman details the creation of the title sequence for us.

I saw the mock Saul Bass Star Wars open a few years ago, around the time when we were working on our previous series, The Xtacles and I loved it, just the playfulness of it. It was simple, but really fun, so that prompted a lot of research into that style, who had done it before etc.

Star Wars vs. Saul Bass (Click to Watch YouTube)

Originally, I had this idea that the silhouettes would be made of fire, moving over top of a burned/textured background. I loved the end titles of 300, the depth they achieved by zooming past elements to reveal the next sequence. The “grungy” textures in the back would be separated into various elements, so we can move past them or pan off them, creating a 3D world affect. The in-house mockups below were done to test the look.

Early “Grunge” look test (Click to Enlarge)

The mockups aren’t perfect, but the idea is there. At this time we were all starting to tire of grunge logos and effects, so ultimately we decided not to go this route.

Early “Grunge” look test (Click to Enlarge)

Another approach was to go for more of a cleaner, halftone effect. I liked it as a still, but in movement it wasn’t translating.

Early “Halftone” look test (Click to Enlarge)

Though it might be hard to tell from the pic, the last mockup was the start of the opening sequence as we know it. Once I found the font, the rest followed suit. Every time I finished another bit of the sequence, I would show it to the other guys (there were only 9 of us total) and get feedback. Each of them, Adam Reed especially, had an important hand in shaping the direction of the sequence.

Early “Saul Bass” look test (Click to Enlarge)

The challenge was to do this entire opening sequence with as little new drawings as possible. By using silhouettes as our main character pieces, I could reuse every element we created for the pilot. Scott Sims did the title music, and I felt like simple shapes could be doable and effective in the incredibly short time frame we had. Also note that the show was titled “Duchess” up until around the last day or so of animating the sequence.

Character element breakdown (Click to Enlarge)

We added some bells and whistles once the series got the green light, just to finesse some of the background animations and improve some small timing issues. Overall, I’m still pretty happy with it, though there are some nitpicky tweaks I’d like to adjust. Maybe in Season Two!

As Art Director, essentially, I’m responsible for every visual element you see on screen. Mack Williams, our Animation Director, is responsible for how those elements move and interact, though this doesn’t mean I draw every element (rarely if ever) or he animates every scene (rarely if ever) we’re the guys directing those departments.

I design almost every environment and work with Trinity Animation as they build those environments, also working with Eric Sims, our backgrounds director, on compiling all of the renders which his team then paints. Chad Hurd is our Lead Character Designer so he and I work together, talking with Adam Reed (creator) about how he wants the cast costumed and styled, etc.

The other half is working with Mack and his department fixing anything that’s not working. The total production team is I believe just above 40, including our exec. producers. It’s a great crew. We generally have four episodes in production at once, all in various stages; one being written, one being boarded, one being drawn, one being animated and Adam Reed plays a large role in the all of the production, he’s got an amazing eye.

View Archer on Hulu. Episode 1: Mole Hunt (Aka Pilot) – Click to Watch (Rated: TV-MA)

Two fine fire melt title reveals open Howard Hawks’/Christian Nyby’s “The Thing from Another World” and John Carpenter’s immutable and Hitchcockian “The Thing,” respectively. In speaking with Krystian Morgan, a 21-year-old from Wales we relearned a thing or two about work ethic, humility and the importance of fresh eyes. Morgan’s title sequence, based on Carpenter’s vision, was created when Morgan was in his final year in university where he studied motion graphics and compositing. His grave atmospherics veer into different territory, away from the effective simplicity of the originals with mutations rising to the fore, all the while echoing 90’s Romanek/Reznor and involuntary quivers of the Brothers Quay.

Special Optical Effects, Peter Kuran discusses the title effect from John Carpenter’s “The Thing: Terror Takes Shape”:

“When I did the effect for the title I used…a fish tank that was about four feet wide by two feet high. I put smoke in the fish tank and on the back of the tank I put the title that was drawn on an animation cel and behind that I had a piece of plastic garbage bag which I stretched over a frame and behind that I had a light pointing through the letters. When I photographed it, I put a flame from a match to the plastic. The plastic would open up and let the light through the letters. That is how the letters look like they form and burn on with the [light] rays. It was a simple process but we went through a lot of takes; one take only formed the letters “N.G.”

NOTE: On a film set, the mark of “N.G.” or “N.F.G.” is taped to any equipment that does not work. No good.

Art of the Title: Please discuss your inspiration for this piece on an immersive and influential level. What stirred your soul to go this dark with the material?

Krystian Morgan: When I saw the title sequence for Se7en for the first time, my mind really was opened to how perfect imperfections could be. Up to that point i was so used the the same after same ‘perfect’ white titles on the opening footage, that seeing this raw, and wrong looking type showing up on screen was just mesmerizing and more than that was that it had reason to be. I also remember at that time really being excited about the style of the opening and closing animation of the 2008 Onesize reel. I am inspired by the thought processes that goes into the work of others. The titles for Dexter for example. I’m a big fan of substance over style.

I tended to trade between dark projects and lighter projects in university. I relate with the darker material a lot more, that side of films; humanity, morality even. I’ve always been fascinated with the power that film and video can have over a person, that people can be taken to places. With that in mind I wanted people to be unsettled by this piece, to want to look away.

ATS: The beat in the action at the beginning is invasive and the text penetrates and issues forth. Tell us about how you went into animating the type, conceptually, from start to finish.

KM: For me the text is the representation of ‘The Thing’ itself. I wanted the text to encapsulate the essence of what the ‘The Thing’ is and what it does, in a subconscious way. We know that the creature is made up from all the different forms of life that it has come in contact with, so the text had to have that same mutt characteristic. It’s oddly shaped, it’s made up from different font styles and sizes, it latches on, it changes and morphs. It’s relentless, when it fades away into the background it finds a way back in a different form (the next name). I wanted it to feel organic, alive and unpredictable in movement.

ATS: It is interesting you did not attempt to match the look of the film but managed to get the feel of it.

KM: It’s always quite a touchy subject talking about updating something that is so recognizable and loved passionately by so many. John Carpenter’s remake was warranted and worked because he felt he had something to show that the original Howard Hawks film didn’t. But I found it strange that whilst he updated the monster and the film that the titles are almost identical to the original. I like both titles, but personally think the original Hawk’s titles are superior from a visual stand point and the Carpenter’s titles are better in the sound department.

Howard Hawk’s The Thing From Another World (Click to Watch QuickTime)

The prospect of getting a fish tank and filming the burning of the titles practically, was exciting, but I wanted to explore some different ideas, some of which meant taking certain liberties by means of a different perspective and not being destructive to the film by trying to either repeat or one-up it.

My concept was to both show the creature and not show the creature. I wanted ambiguous shots. The way I see my title sequence is a precursor to the film; what actually happened to the Norwegians? It was important that I used real footage as I wanted even the thought of such textures near you, on your skin to be excruciating.

ATS: The hand is a very effective cap to the sequence. Did budget constraints fuel creativity?

KM: I had pretty much zero budget on this sequence, I think I ended up spending less than 20 GBP’s on the entire video. I used a combination of a borrowed HDV camera with my trusty mini dv and point and click camera to capture all the footage, and worked almost only in After Effects.

I felt the end needed some reality something that a viewer could identify which would transfer us from the sequence to the film itself. It was suggested to me to watch Jacob’s Ladder its use of suggestion has the viewer questioning if what we saw actually happened. The idea being that the hand is instantly recognizable as human, but the movement suggests otherwise. This is one of the areas of the sequence that I would have liked to have taken further, I believe I could have found something more there.

ATS: You mentioned you believe your stills are stronger than the video itself. If you step through a sequence shouldn’t every frame seduce the eye?

KM: When I said that I think I was far to close to the video, it was my life for a while and the way it turned out wasn’t exactly as I pictured it beforehand. I’m now looking at it for what it is and not what it was set out to be. I don’t think every frame of a sequence needs to seduce the eye, I think that could be a limiting idea. Like films the in-between shots can be used to make the ‘key’ frames or key plot points more resonant and I think if you skip frame by frame through most films or title sequences you will pick out high points from the low points. Of course this is not always the case. The titles for ‘The Island of Dr. Moreau’ is so saturated with imagery and design that any frame is as good as the last.

When I made the title sequence I was still very much trying to find myself, I still am, but it’s a lot clearer now. I experimented with a different workflow and structure…[it] is hard to [address what] didn’t work because to this point it’s a video that’s taken me farther than most of my others and I’ve had a lot of great feedback; something I was initially scared of, I was worried I’d be savaged by the film’s fans for trying to tamper with something that’s important to them, but this has not been the case. But I have to say I probably wont use the same approach again.

I haven’t yet been able to fully translate what is in my head but I’m still learning everyday and trying to improve, more so now than ever since leaving university and now doing it every day as an occupation.

ATS: Why did you make this? What were the requirements (self-imposed and instructed)?

KM: It was my third and final year at university and I was feeling a bit disappointed in myself that I hadn’t worked nearly as hard as I could have in prior projects. This particular project was open so I got to decide what I wanted to do. I really enjoyed doing a title sequence in year one and title sequences are definitely the thing I like most about motion graphics and design in general. I knew I wanted to go dark, and I wanted something “virusy.” My tutor Chris and I were discussing possible ideas, namely thinking of a Cronenberg type of movie. Later on I posted on Twitter asking for suggestions for movies based on my ideas for the video and someone [Rupert] suggested, “The Thing.” He told me that he had stayed with Dean Cundey, the Director of Photography of “The Thing” and got a chance to see a lot of the props from the movie. So the next day I told Chris about the prospect of doing “The Thing” and he thought it was a perfect choice. It worried me a little as the original title sequence was shown to us in year one in a compilation of brilliant examples of title sequences, he also told me that he expected a lot from me on this project as he too was a fan of the film and wanted me to do it justice.

John Carpenter’s The Thing opening titles (Click to Watch QuickTime)

I’m ashamed to say that up to that point I had not seen the film, so I bought a double dvd of both the Hawks’ and the Carpenter’s versions and watched in awe. The John Carpenter film seemed like home, like I’ve seen it a hundred times before, like “Jaws” or “The Shawshank Redemption.” Once I came up with the concept of where I wanted to take the title sequence I couldn’t think of anything else.

ATS: How do you view the idea of collaboration after going through this process?

KM: Now, great!

I’ve always been a solitary designer, I come from a small village in Wales and have trouble relating with a lot of people as my interests are so different to what is considered normal there, so I’ve always felt by myself in that sense and even when there were more like-minded people in university I always took my work home and brought it in when it was due. “The Thing” to me is a movie primarily about isolation, you could watch it with the mindset that there is no creature and everyone’s suspicions [fueled] the killing and it would still work.

Up to that point “The Thing” sequence is ironically the most collaboration I had done on a project, in the sense that I listened to someone else’s suggestion and feedback. When I’m solely working on a video, I have a tendency to get tunnel vision so an outsiders perspective is really valuable.

Going from university to working in the creative industry has been a shock; I’ve been able to progress and progress because of collaborative [environments]. If I start being unhappy with an aspect of work or life, I’ll change and am not afraid to be ambitious in the future and follow the dreams I had as a kid. Teamwork is a great thing, but working alone can have benefits too, if you’ve ever heard the saying, “A camel is a horse designed by society,” that can sometimes be the case. I think I’m a better decision maker and idea generator than a designer at the moment, but I’m having fun working on the latter…I’m currently developing a feature film which I’m going to produce over the next four years.

The Thing (1982)
Visual Effects Designed by: Visual Concept Engineering, Peter Kuran
Miniature Supervisor: Susan K. Turner
Animators: Katherine Kean, Keith Tucker
Opticals: RGB Optical, James Hagedorn, George Lockwood

USA | 1982 | Color | 2.20:1 | English/Norwegian

The Thing From Another World (1951)

USA | 1951 | Black and White | 1.37:1 | English

Quick and affordable 3D printing technology applied to classic stop-motion opens Dutch science program “Het Klokhuis” (The Apple Core) which is Holland’s oldest youth television show, covering everything from the history of dinosaurs to how an iPhone is made. It is a hybrid of hand crafted frame-by-frame animation and cleanly rendered apples with sprouting science experiments encapsulated like the seed of an idea about to be discovered.

Johnny Kelly: This title sequence is unusual in that it was commissioned through an advertising agency, Kesselskramer in Amsterdam. The program “Het Klokhuis” is dearly beloved to many people in Holland; it has been running for over 20 years. The program primarily covers science but includes lots of other things like culture, history and technology, and is on every day. They wanted to refresh the show with a new logo and titles and approached Nexus to see if I would be interested in making them.

The art director at Kesselskramer, Christian Borstlap, had made a logo graphic, with the idea that we would come up the final logo design in the course of production. They had an idea of how the sequence would work, made up of a series of scientific experiments on a series of apples, but were entirely open about what exactly these scenarios would be. These were mostly based on what could animate in an interesting way, with fun results. You can see some of these initial ideas in Examples 1.1-4.

Examples 1.1-4: Early Apple suggestions (Click for Slideshow)

The problem at this point was how to do justice to Christan’s beautiful logo shape. We hadn’t decided yet how the apples would actually be made, and discussed different materials. Something like plasticine wouldn’t have the right accuracy. I had used paper before but it wasn’t very good with curvy objects like an apple. My partner Jenny is a product designer and has used 3D printing quite a bit, and this seemed like a option that could work. This technology, which is still relatively niche, creates a physical object printed up in plastic from a 3D computer file, and is most commonly used by industrial designers to create prototype models. The film Coraline used 3D printing to create facial expressions, using individual models for each mouth shape, etc. Pixar also used it to create the models for their Zoetrope.

Apple prototype model renders (Click to Watch Quicktimes)

As it was for a public television station (NPS), our budget was very low, and as it turns out, the cost of getting the models produced here in London would have been prohibitively expensive. Then I remembered having come across a website of a company called Shapeways – who offer on-demand 3D printing by mail order and were much better value. The website is a little like YouTube, people upload 3D files, other people can leave comments, rate them, and you can order any of the models in various materials. Using this company – who fortuitously ended up being based in the Netherlands too – we were able to make simple shells for the whole apples, as well as ‘core’ shapes which we would be able to fill up with each apple’s insides (Example 2).

Example 2: 3D layout in 3DS Max (Click to Enlarge)

I contacted Jethro Haynes, a model-maker/sculptor/illustrator whose work I have long been a fan of, to see if he was available and interested in collaborating on the project. Jethro worked incredibly hard in just a few weeks to build everything, with a limited budget. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of materials and is full of ideas, so it was always a pleasure to see what he came up with for the planets, fish and other elements (Example 3).

Example 3: Shoal of fish design (Click to Enlarge)

Making the models in 3D came with other advantages – we were able to plan the shoot quite precisely. Using 3D software we were able to work out what size plinth we needed to build, what camera lens would offer minimum distortion and how far back it would need to be. We were also shooting at two different scales, and Ben here at Nexus was were able to set it up so that the camera and background wouldn’t need to change when we swapped between these (Example 4).

Example 4: Studio layout via computer (Click to Enlarge)

One of the sequences we had difficulty building was the melting bubblegum apple. We considered plasticine but decided that it would not give the right results, not being glossy enough. In the end we decided on creating a sequence of 25 individual models, one for each stage of the melting apple. These were then painted up by Jethro (Examples 5a & 5b).

Examples 5a & 5b: Raw and painted apple models (Click to Enlarge)

The animation was shot in 10 days in August at Clapham Road Studios, a film studio in south London which specializes in stop-frame animation. We used Dragon software which allows for very precise stop frame animation. Matthew Day, the DP on the project went to great lengths to create the perfect reflection on it, building up quite an elaborate set and lighting rig to this effect. The final result is quite surreal, looking so close to how the original models looked when rendered on computer. I’m happy with the resulting aesthetic, a sort of blurring between digital and analogue (Example 6).

Example 6: Studio setup (Click to Enlarge)

The end titles show what is coming up on the following episode of Klokhuis. Christian at Kessleskramer designed some typography for this, and suggested integrating video to show a preview clip. With some episodes there would be three or four of these listed, other times just one, so we designed the animation sequences to be modular. You can also loop the ticking clockwork for as long or short as necessary. The agency supplied us with some placeholder text so we could show how it works. This Dutch text on the sample animation we made reads “Next week on Klokhuis… Farts… Submarines…. Hip Hop” – so it covers pretty much everything you need in a TV show.

Het Klokhuis End Titles (Click to Watch Quicktime)

Jethro dismantled a large clockwork machine and rebuilt it inside one of the apples, designing it in such a way that it could collapse when hit with a mallet. Amazingly, many of the machine parts were still functional, so we were able to animate these (Example 7).

Example 7: Apple clock parts (Click to Enlarge)

We had an extraordinarily heavy prop mallet that we wanted to use. The problem was that we wanted to rig it up for animation, but weren’t allowed drill holes in it or damage it in any way. Max at the studio arranged a counterweight to the mallet using a sandbag. This allowed us to animate it quite precisely without worrying too much about it falling on top of the apple (Example 8).

Example 8: The mallet (Click to Enlarge)

Ultimately it was a challenging but enjoyable job to work on. Much of it was unknown territory and each sequence posed its own unique difficulties. I had for example planned to use real smoke for the final logo reveal and film this live action, but in the end opted for the stop motion staple, cotton wool. I find it interesting to try and use these old fashioned stop frame animation techniques and blend them with the benefits of new technology. This type of experimentation doesn’t fit every job but it seemed fitting given the show’s subject matter itself, and interestingly the first rebranded episode of Het Klokhuis will be all about the making of the title sequence itself.

Behind the Scenes of “Het Klokhuis” on Johnny Kelly’s flickr – Click to Watch Slideshow

Client: NPS
Agency: KesselsKramer
Creative Team: Christian Borstlap
Agency Producer Pieter Leendertse