New PACIFIC RIM VFX Breakdown Reveals What Was Digital & What Was Practical

Pacific Rim - VFX Breakdown from Rodeo FX on Vimeo.

Rodeo FX was once again called upon to create exceptional environments and immersive 3D matte paintings. However, Rodeo's CG contributions were much larger than on any previous motion picture. In addition to environment work, ILM trusted Rodeo FX to create, simulate, and animate fully CG creatures and vehicles for a variety of sequences. Rodeo FX was also responsible for all the variations of the interior Robot Head shots, which included building and animating a complex CG rig used to control the actions and movements of the robots – a seamless photo-real blend of both CG and practical FX.

PACIFIC RIM SYNOPSIS - When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes-a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)-who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.