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By TREVOR HOGGImages courtesy of Wt FX and Paramount Pictures.At first glance, having Robbie Williams depicted as a primate in Better Man comes across as a novelty rather than inspired creative choice, but there was a method behind the madness of Michael Gracey, who was previously responsible for The Greatest Showman. The visual effects artist turned filmmaker wanted to show the British popstar as he sees himself rather than his public persona. Wt FX was hired to produce a believable CG protagonist that causes the animal persona to quickly dissipate and allows audience members to get lost in his personal struggles with addiction, mental illness and fame.He had a scream. It was like, Lets really peel those lips back and get those canines out. The nose wrinkles. Lets make it feel primal. But it was never like a full departure. We never went quadrupedal or monkeyish behavior. It helps because you get swept up with the character and story. We dont want people to go, Im looking at a monkey. Dave Clayton, Animation Supervisor, Wt FXThe costumes and fur for Robbie Williams were treated as if they were characters in their own right.When people hear the premise, they get a picture in their head about what this movie is going to be, and then they see the film and the film never matches that picture, notes Luke Millar, VFX Supervisor at Wt FX. They think it will be comedic and caricatures, but there are a lot of components that layer in the character the cinematography, the gritty British backdrop and the fact that Robbie is the only digital thing for the majority of the movie. Better Man has a lot of heart and emotion; thats what sweeps you up. The ape metaphor falls away in the first few shots or scenes. It was a fine line to get the proper onscreen performance. There is an uncanny valley that we were careful not to fall into. Robbie Williams is represented as an ape in the film, but, essentially, he is human in the way he interacts, wears clothes and the style of his hair. Compared to the previous films that weve done, this is probably one of the biggest differences, Millar notes.Three different versions of Robbie Williams had to be produced. Hes a young lad, a teenager and a young man, remarks Dave Clayton, Animation Supervisor at Wt FX. Within there, we had a little bit of give to fill in the blanks. We previsualized a lot of this movie to help not only get into all of the details of how we were going to shoot it but also to help describe the entire arc of the movie and how this character was going to evolve. Its a long journey to get the most out of a character like this; hes had a complex life. Ape characteristics were generally avoided. Its not to say that we didnt have monkey mouth shapes or do a little bit more or less here and there to help things, Clayton states. He had a scream. It was like, Lets really peel those lips back and get those canines out. The nose wrinkles. Lets make it feel primal. But it was never like a full departure. We never went quadrupedal or monkeyish behavior. It helps because you get swept up with the character and story. We dont want people to go, Im looking at a monkey.A new technology was developed by Wt FX that enabled their VFX pipeline to receive data files from concert stage lightboards that allowed them to accurately recreate the lighting digitally.As we do a take, our on-set editor, Patrick Correll, would literally take that take and cut it into the timeline, switch out the previs, and then make sure that we got the camera timing, beats and action lined up. Then we went again. For each setup we would do 30 to 40 takes to try to get the perfect take. The nice thing about this was after shooting we already knew that the things were going to work. Luke Millar, VFX Supervisor, Wt FXAll of the musical numbers were previs. As we do a take, our on-set editor, Patrick Correll, would literally take that take and cut it into the timeline, switch out the previs, and then make sure that we got the camera timing, beats and action lined up, Millar explains. Then we went again. For each setup we would do 30 to 40 takes to try to get the perfect take. The nice thing about this was after shooting we already knew that the things were going to work. The Rock DJ scene was 5,334 frames long and featured five costume changes for Robbie and 500 dancers. Michael didnt want any obvious wipe points such as someone walking in front of the camera right in front of it, Millar remarks. We always tried to do it in a way that we could have some kind of continuity of movement going over the stitch like a digital bus would drive through. Everything was handheld with a little bit of crane work. No motion control work. One of the biggest challenges was getting that single cohesive camera, and it was further complicated by the fact that the two interiors were shot in Melbourne about a year before we shot on Regent Street. We always had to dovetail into those interiors and then back out onto the street again.The wide shots of Albert Hall were filmed with a real audience in London while the orchestra pit was filmed at Melbourne Dockland Studios with 200 extras. The footage from the two locations was combined to create an audience of 5,500.An internal battle literally and figuratively takes place. In Let Me Entertain You, Robbie is having an internal struggle where hes literally battling with himself, Clayton states. They were small versions of Robbie, but armies of them. Its using MASSIVE, but also our motion edit team to put together an army and some simulation tools for the tight-quarters characters getting jostled around by each other. Another fully CG scene occurs underwater for Come Undone. Robbie ends up in a surreal moment under the water, and there are these suicidal teen girls who are upset about him leaving [boyband] Take That. We did some motion capture of using a rope rig to get the performers suspended up in the air pretending to swim, Clayton remarks. We got some good movement there. Then we augmented that. We looked at some references of underwater sports like underwater hockey or rugby to see people struggling against each other.Everything was handheld with a little bit of crane work. No motion control work. One of the biggest challenges was getting that single cohesive camera, and it was further complicated by the fact that the two interiors were shot in Melbourne about a year before we shot on Regent Street. We always had to dovetail into those interiors and then back out onto the street again. Luke Millar, VFX Supervisor, Wt FXCentral to making the primate version of Robbie Williams a believable character was the motion capture performance of Jonno Davies.Atmospherics are in almost every scene. It makes things more complicated in terms of integrating Robbie because theres always these elements that are over the top of him, Millar observes. The dry ice was another level on top of that. The special effects team did a fantastic job of pumping tons of this stuff that they had, but it disappears so quickly. It was the same with the flame mortars in front of the stage. They set those up but we couldnt fire them all up because there was a crane that swept over the top of them. We were replacing half of them and patching in dry ice. However, when you have a real component onstage and were matching up to it, then youve got a great visual goal.In Let Me Entertain You, Robbie is having an internal struggle where hes literally battling with himself. They were small versions of Robbie, but armies of them. Its using MASSIVE, but also our motion edit team, to put together an army and some simulation tools for the tight-quarters characters getting jostled around by each other. Dave Clayton, Animation Supervisor, Wt FXVFX artist turned filmmaker Michael Gracey directs Raechelle Banno while shooting Better Man.At home, Robbie finds solace in his grandmother Bettys (Alison Steadman) support. Robbie Williams is represented as an ape in the film, but he is human in the way he interacts.The world-building offered something different compared to previous projects. Im proud of the scene when Robbie is on the billboard right at the start with his mate, Millar remarks. Normally, we have to build beautiful vistas and epic landscapes, and we ended up building a ring road like a dual carriageway with hideous sodium vapor lighting. Heaps of litter were digitally added. Not only litter but what would you find on the side of a motorway in the U.K. People would chuck some mattresses, shopping trolleys and beer bottles. Its that kind of rich patina of crap that is quintessentially British! That sort of world-building is an area that we never get to experience in the visual effects world. Its always creating these heightened realities, not a gritty down-to-earth reality.Raechelle Banno as Nicole Appleton and Jonno Davies as Robbie Williams performing Shes the One. Films like All That Jazz were an inspiration to director Michael Gracey because they didnt shy away from showing the darker moments and the truth that audiences respond to.At the Knebworth Festival in the U.K., a deteriorating Robbie Williams faces the nadir of his journey while performing Let Me Entertain You for 125,000 fans. The motion edit team put together an army of small Robbies and some simulation tools for the tight-quarters characters getting jostled around in the crowdWt FX was responsible for 1,968 VFX shots. The thing that I find with Better Man, now that weve finished it, is you can watch the whole movie and go, Of course, this was always going to work, Millar states. But I try to picture what was in my head right at the start of this whole process before we had done anything and you didnt know. I had complete faith and confidence in Michael Graceys vision in that we could realize it and make this world work. My first reaction when I heard of the film was, I dont get it, Clayton admits. But then I read the script and said, Yes. I would love to work on this because it sounds unique and different. I loved it. It has been such a special project to be a part of. Ive always thought this was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime, but maybe there are some filmmakers out there who want to innovate like this. I cant wait to see what everybody thinks of Better Man.Watch a behind-the-scenes VFX featurette with director Michael Gracey, Robbie Williams and Wt FX on how Better Man came to life. Click here. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDxOxGnPTvm/
