Film Logo Animation: Rainmaker Films

Rainmaker Films reached out to the Brewmasters for film logo animation. Boy, did we have fun with this one, from wigs to wind-blowers, we hope you enjoy this behind-the-scene footage. Rainmaker generously gave us full creative range, so let the brainstorm begin! At Digital Brew, we always look for inspiration starting with the client. Rainmaker Films is a film fundraising company. Raising funds for a film is no easy task, but Rainmaker is not fazed by the challenges. Jackpot. Here’s our concept: the grace of a ballerina combined with the force and power of the ocean. Take a look at the visual concept. The project had a quick turnaround. Our strategy was to take a lot of test footage to ensure everything was where it needed to be when we needed it to be there. Naturally, there’s always something that doesn’t go according to plan. The dancer’s dress was not the right style or color. Luckily the dancer was quick on her feet. She drove to Millennia Mall (a good 15 minutes away) and back in just 45 minutes with the perfect dress. It was seriously impressive. The Brewmasters were shooting in Michael’s garage on a green screen with a Sony F55. One piece of equipment we especially had fun with was.. wait for it… the leaf blower. Yes, that’s Digital Brew’s Cinematographer Sean Benson with a wig and Digital Artist, Douglas Jarman (the muscle behind the project) with a leaf blower. Not only did we have an immense amount of fun with this project, we’re also very pleased with the way it turned out. Douglas Jarman is the man to praise. Take a look at his process work and what he has to say about the project.   “We shot our talent on a green screen using multiple lighting setups. This ensured plenty of options for keying and editing. Once I had the basic key I created a separate mask for the hair so I could keep the soft edges and individual hairs intact (I used Keylight 1.2v15). I used solids as placeholders in 3D space to block out the environment and then started searching around our visual library for elements I could use in the final composite.” “After manipulating all the photos and footage we had available it was really just about adjusting each elements’ saturation and contrast to make them fit together in the comp. The most challenging part of the whole project was keying the waves crashing onto the rocks from other footage we had handy. I used a few tricks with displacement maps for the clouds, simple curves and masks for the lightning and a basic color grade to tie the scene together. Finally, I brewed up some sound design using Audition to bring the environment come to life. This project allowed me to take some risks that I have never taken before and it opened my mind to a world of possibilities for the future. Fake it till you make it.” Feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions about us, the project, or Rainmaker Films. We’d love to hear from you. Cheers!