“Lebanon, Pa.” Director Ben Hickernell wanted Hollywood-quality post production while maximizing the Pennsylvania Film Tax Credit. He naturally chose <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE for feature film expertise and precision in visual effects, RED digital cinematography and the Digital Intermediate (DI) process.
<a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE ((www.divevisual.com)), the visual effects and film finishing division of Shooters Post & Transfer, was instrumental in Director Hickernell’s choice to handle production entirely in Pennsylvania. Shooting on RED with limited finances, Hickernell worked with <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE from the very beginning, to setup a workflow that would carry his film smoothly through post– on time and on budget.
Premiering March 14th at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival in Austin TX, “Lebanon, Pa.” stars Josh Hopkins, Samantha Mathis and Mary Beth Hurt and features music from Matt Pond PA. The film follows Will, a Philadelphia ad man, as he returns home to attend his father’s funeral. When Will strikes up a friendship with his bright, newly pregnant 17-year-old cousin, both struggle with formidable decisions about the path their lives will take.
“We were very lucky to work with <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE on this project as we always had a limited budget. [Executive Producer] Andy Williams and the team at <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE made it happen,” says Hickernell.
Some of the film’s scenes show billboards featuring the ad executive’s work that mark his journey to his hometown. <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE‘s Digital Effects Artist Jeremy Fernsler created billboards in 3D and then projected artwork onto them. The team then pushed boundaries to achieve a realistic rendering. “They put extra hours and effort into the show at every step of the way. [VFX supervisor] Mark Forker actually pushed his team farther for realism than I did,” says Hickernell.
Hickernell had also originally planned to handle the R3D renders for the final picture himself, but in the end he turned to <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE to be certain to have the maximum color latitude of what his DP Jeff Schirmer captured. Colorist Rob Giglio worked with Hickernell and Schirmer to achieve a look that fit the organic feeling of the story—a look that was realistic and beautiful.
“I really feel like we were treated with great respect. We got it done, but thanks to <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE, we got it done well. We now have a top-quality product that we can confidently take to SXSW,” says Hickernell.
Lebanon, Pa. makes its SXSW premiere on Sunday, March 14 at 6:45 at the Alamo Lamar 2 Theater in Austin, TX. View the trailer here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRtKFkW4LFg
CREDITS
Colorist Rob Giglio
Visual Effects Supervisor Mark Forker
DI Producer John-Michael Trojan
Digital Effects Artist Jeremy Fernsler
Supervising Producer Andy Williams
Dubs and Engineering Chris Rauch
Dubs and Engineering Andrew Young
EQUIPMENT:
– daVinci Resolve RT, 2k data
– Autodesk Smoke / Inferno 2010
– Sony SRW-5800
– Nuke
– Qube! Render Farm
– Autodesk Maya
– Autodesk 3ds Max
– Adobe After Effects
About <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE
Based in Philadelphia, PA, <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE ((www.divevisual.com)), is the visual effects and film finishing division of Shooters Post & Transfer, led by veteran Visual Effects Supervisor Mark O. Forker most recently Visual Effects Supervisor at Digital Domain, Los Angeles. As one of the east coast’s premier post production facilities for film finishing services, <a href="http://(www.divevisual.com)“>DIVE offers filmmakers the opportunity to complete Visual Effects, Digital Intermediates and Titles by coupling creative continuity with an integrated workflow.
