Blumhouse Productions called on VFX Legion to create the visual effects for ‘The Black Phone,’ director Scott Derrickson’s newest horror genre film. Co-written by Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill (‘Sinister,’ ‘Dr. Strange’) and starring Ethan Hawke as the maniacal villain, the chilling tale is an adaptation of Joe Hill’s short story of the same name. Legion, also the primary visual effects vendor for ‘Sinister 2,’ (2015), re-teamed with Derrickson, Cargill, and Blumhouse, delivering over 200 shots for their new psychological thriller, which opened in theatres on June 24th.
Set in suburban Denver, Colorado in 1978, ‘The Black Phone’ is the story of Finney Shaw (Mason Thames), the latest victim of a sadistic serial killer dubbed ‘The Grabber’ (Ethan Hawke). The boy is held captive in a basement where help comes in supernatural form through calls from his kidnappers’ previous victims on a disconnected phone.
SPW CreditsTITLE: ‘The Black Phone’ | GENRE: Horror-Thriller Film | THEATRICAL RELEASE: June 24, 2022
PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Blumhouse Productions, Crooked Highway, Universal Pictures
PRODUCERS: Jason Blum, Scott Derrickson, C. Robert Cargill
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Joe Hill, Ryan Turek, Christopher H. Warner
CO-PRODUCER: Jennifer Scudder
DIRECTOR: Scott Derrickson
CO-WRITERS: Scott Derrickson, C. Robert Cargill
BASED ON SHORT STORY by Joe Hill
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Brett Jutkiewicz
EDITOR: Frédéric Thoraval
VISUAL EFFECTS by VFX Legion LA/BC
SENIOR VISUAL EFFECTS SUPERVISOR / CREATIVE DIRECTOR: James David Hattin
VISUAL EFFECTS PRODUCERS: Nate Smalley, Antonio Gallardo
VISUAL EFECTS PROJECT MANAGER: Dylan Yastremski
VISUAL EFFECTS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Reid Burns
CG SUPERVISOR: Rommel S. Calderon
ON-SET VFX SUPERVISOR: Kent Johnson
VISUAL EFFECTS COORDINATORS: Joseph Soloway, Mace Al-Hendi
DIGITALCOMPOSITORS: Nick Guth, Adam Kelway, Kate T.C. Lin, Matthias Lowry, John R. McConnell, Lauren Morimoto, Brad Moylan, Eugen Olsen, Rafael Perez, Daniel Keith Raffel
SENIOR ANIMATOR: Sebastian Weber
MATTE PAINTER: Dave Tipper
TRACKING ARTISTS: Ruy Delgado, Michael G. Jackson
CG ARTISTS: Eric Ebling, Bryan Shepperd, Shantel Short, Erik Van Horn, Jonathan D. Feldman, Patricio Harris
Boma | Camp Sugar Brand Identity
Rebel Wilson's Directorial debut “The Deb” premiered as the closing night film at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Adding a touch of creative flair to the film’s debut, the team at Boma helped in crafting the brand identity for Wilson’s production company, Camp Sugar.
“Rebel and her team approached us with this adorable character design and a simple question: ‘Can we make this happen in time for Toronto?’” shares Jason Cohon. “As huge fans of animation, and with such a fantastic concept from Josh and Meredith on Rebel’s team, it was an easy ‘yes!’”
The :05 identity opens in a serene forest scene featuring a hand-carved wooden sign reading “Camp Sugar.” As the camera reveals two hands gently holding the sign, a little girl playfully peeks from behind, inviting the audience into the world of Camp Sugar. Boma was tasked with designing and animating the 3D environment and character, delivering a fully rendered introduction that will serve as a long-lasting signature for Rebel Wilson’s films for years to come.
“We had so much fun making this and hope to be able to do many more unique versions for all of Camp Sugar’s films.”
Based in Los Angeles, Boma was created to fill a need for quicker turnarounds and tighter budgets while maintaining quality at the highest creative level. With a fully remote pipeline, global partnership across three continents and a team of senior creative talent, Boma is equipped to scale projects rapidly, regardless of budget or timeline constraints.
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