With its established reputation for crafting photorealistic fluid effects, Scanline VFX was the ideal partner for the blockbuster “Aquaman.” Engaged by the production team in early 2017, the studio was tasked with creating several water-based sequences, including the lighthouse exteriors, the ocean backdrop, the film’s title card, Aquaman’s submarine rescue, Orm’s tidal wave, and the dramatic encounter between Arthur and Mera and the Trench creatures. VFX Supervisor Alex Reyes oversaw the creation of 450 VFX shots, meeting regularly with Director Lisa Huang and overall VFX Supervisor Jordan Lee during post-production.
Behind the scenes, Scanline’s Engineering Lead, Tara Kim, ensured the studio’s render farm was ready to handle the intricate work, which involved dynamic CG creatures and complex simulations. Throughout the production of “Aquaman,” Scanline accomplished an impressive 5,381,615 render hours (equivalent to 614 years, 123 days, 23 hours, and 18 minutes), handling an average of 152,700 tasks daily through a combination of 2,000 dedicated on-premises nodes, 400 virtual nodes, and up to 600 idle workstations, all coordinated via AWS Thinkbox’s Deadline.
“Deadline is fundamentally essential to our workflow,” stated Kim. “Every single image we produce for the big screen relies on Deadline. Its flexibility allows us to swiftly adapt the system to meet the specific needs of each project.”
For a comprehensive look at the artistic challenges faced by Scanline in their VFX work on “Aquaman,” be sure to check out this insightful interview with Reyes at Art of VFX. Scanline has utilized Deadline since 2013, employing the software for a range of prominent projects, including disaster films like “San Andreas” and “Geostorm,” DC films such as “Suicide Squad” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” along with multiple “Game of Thrones” episodes and several Marvel Studios titles. The studio has continuously evolved its Deadline implementation to keep pace with the changing demands of various projects, as well as a significant increase in workload.
Looking ahead, Kim sees cloud-based services as a way to further optimize the studio’s operations. “Cloud rendering will enhance our agility to meet project demands while alleviating the need for extensive on-premises infrastructure,” she noted, reinforcing the importance of adaptability in the fast-paced industry.
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