The Battle of the Bastards.
Next week AIT AND APDG are presenting a special in-conversation event with Iloura VFX artist Glenn Melenhorst, going in-depth on the episode that defined Game of Thrones season 6 – episode 9, The Battle of the Bastards.
Nominated for an Emmy in Outstanding Special Visual Effects, Melenhorst and his team at Iloura delivered photoreal shots for the episode, working in particular on the episode’s battle sequence, "combining 3D visual effects and hand animation to realize the production’s vision," according to a statement.
"The battle that was created by Iloura required numerous collisions between photoreal horses and riders, 3,000-strong armies and close-up shots of live-action actors and sets composited with CG humans and animals and massive crowd simulations. Hundreds of assets – CG armoury, weapons, flags, saddlery, body parts and environmental assets such as blood, mud, smoke, fire and mist – were also needed to augment the plate photography."
"Because the show has a huge, dedicated fan base accustomed to high production values, who pay close attention to the VFX across the series, the show’s VFX Producer Steve Kullback and VFX Supervisor Joe Bauer were looking especially for a strong rigging and muscle pipeline and a robust animation team."
The free event takes place at AIT's Sydney campus – Level 2/7 Kelly Street Ultimo NSW 2007 – next Thursday, August 18, at 6pm sharp.