By TREVOR HOGGImages courtesy of Paul Lambert, except where noted.Paul Lambert, Visual Effects Supervisor. A proud accomplishment for Lambert was creating the IBK Keyer, which is still used today in Nuke to deal with bluescreen and greenscreen plates.Nowadays, Paul Lambert is at the forefront of Hollywood productions as a visual effects supervisor, with memorable visual accomplishments being the dystopian Los Angeles cityscapes and the lead hologram character from Blade Runner 2049, the transition to the Moons surface in IMAX in First Man and the realism of the worlds of the Dune franchise. Ironically, the ability to combine art and technology, which has been the key to his success, originally made him an anomaly in the British education system. Forced to choose between the two, he initially decided to earn a degree in Aeronautical Engineering at the University of London. Upon graduating, Lambert realized that engineering was not his calling, so he took a job as a courier in London and studied sculpture as a part-time art school student. Frequently, deliveries for Salon Productions led to visits to Shepperton and Pinewood Studios, and eventually saw him hired by the company that provided editing equipment to the film industry.At Salon, I learned how to put together and fix Steinbecks, KEMs and Moviolas, Lambert recalls. I even had to go over to Moscow to fix a Steinbeck being used by [Editor] Terry Rawlings for The Saint. It was during this time that Lambert became aware of the digital transition in the film industry. Avid and Lightworks non-linear editing systems were starting to disrupt the industry. It was this digital transition that made me more aware of something called visual effects. The discovery was worth exploring further. SGI had a big old building in Soho Square and were running week-long courses under the name of Silicon Studios, where you could play with Monet, Flint [the baby version of Flame] and Houdini. I left Salon and did this course, which was amazing. A six-month odyssey of looking for employment came to an end when a runner at Cinesite went on a two-week vacation. They kept me because I was so enthusiastic and hungry for knowledge. It was at a time when you could jump ontothe graphics workstations, whether it be the Flames or Infernos or Cineon machines, at night in your own time. I taught myself. I was so hungry and focused. I had finally found what I wanted to do. It was a good balance of creativity and technical know-how. When I started at Cinesite, they had two Flames, and by the time I left I was the head of that department and we had seven.A portion of a seawall was constructed for Blade Runner 2049, with the action shot in a water tank in Hungary. (Image courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures)Why would you put up with these crazy deadlines or having to move around the world if you didnt truly love it? If you truly love something, youre going to come up with creative ways of doing things and participate in some of these beautiful movies.Paul Lambert, Visual Effects SupervisorFascinated by a proprietary compositing software developed by Digital Domain, Lambert had a job interview with the visual effects company founded by James Cameron, Stan Winston and Scott Ross. I added substantial pieces of technology to Nuke because by that time I had figured out the ins and outs of compositing, Lambert reveals. It was an obsession of mine of how an image comes together. Digital Domain was on the verge of commercializing Nuke but didnt have a keyer. I spent six months playing around with this idea of keying, came back to them and showed them this algorithm. It was the IBK keyer, and thats still in Nuke. Simplicity drove the programming process. What I cant stand as a compositor is when there is a node and its got 50,000 sliders in there. Nobody knows what those sliders do! Its trial and error. What I tried to develop is something simple but a process where, if you can combine these things in a particular way, you can work with bluescreens and greenscreens, which are uneven, and it gets you to a good place quickly. The irony is, now I tend to try not to rely on bluescreens or greenscreens!Director/writer/producer Denis Villeneuve, left, and Lambert on the set of Dune: Part Two. (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photo: Niko Tavernise)Lambert celebrates winning an Oscar for Dune: Part One with his wife, Mags Sarnowska.Over 90 minutes of footage had to be created for the LED screens used for First Man. (Image courtesy of Universal Pictures)A major benefit of using the LED screens for the space and aerial scenes in First Man was the ability to capture reflections on the visor and in the eyes of Ryan Gosling, which are extremely difficult to achieve in post-production. (Image courtesy of Universal Pictures)After 12 years at Digital Domain, Lambert joined DNEGs facility in Vancouver in 2015 where he began his transition as a production visual effects supervisor starting with The Huntsman: Winters War. The size of the visual effects budget is only part of the equation for success. By the time we had finished First Man it was a $7 million visual effects budget, which is relatively tiny, but we came up with some incredibly creative ways to do stuff, Lambert remarks. We used a number of great techniques for the visuals. Doing a bigature and miniature for space work is ideal because you can control the light so that shadows are really hard. We used real 1960s footage for the launch, but we repurposed that footage with CG to make it more cinematic. Also, we utilized one of the first LED screens, but we had it up for six weeks with operators for a fraction of the cost of what it costs now. Ninety minutes of LED screen content had to be created. This is where my gray hair has come from! We did not take the visor off one single shot. We even got reflections in the eyes!Two fundamental elements have to be respected for a visual effects shot to be believable. Im going to try not to change the actors performance or the light because I know that changing the light with our current tools always looks a bit artificial, Lambert explains. Your eye will pick up on something which takes you out, and in our current environment people will say, Its bad CGI. No, its the fact that youve taken the natural balance of the original image and gone too far by changing the background to acompletely different luminance or trying to add a different light on the character. You see it all the time. Im sure you will be able to do it with generative AI soon enough where youre relighting or regenerating the image based on some form of transformer and diffusion model, but using current tools I try to avoid it. I would rather the continuity of a background be off rather than have a composite feel wrong. If I shoot something knowing that a background is going to be a certain background in post, then I try to have that screen be of a tone of luminance that Im going to put the background in. Hence the sand-colored backing screens on Dune: Part One and Two.Never underestimate the significance of having a clear vision. With Denis Villeneuve there is such a clarity of vision as to what he wants, so its a pleasure to work with him, and you dont do crazy hours and overtime, Lambert states. There isnt a mad rush. Its a sensible approach to things. There are hiccups along the way, but its not like you have to ramp up to 1,000 people towards the end because youre 5,000 shots short. For Dune, the concepts were the basis of what we built and photographed and what I ultimately created in visual effects. Blade Runner 2049 was a special project with Lambert working on behalf of DNEG. It was special to come into this world and see pure professionalism at work with Denis and [Director of Photography] Roger Deakins, and witness them shooting with a single camera all the time. He is also proud of his collaboration with Cinematographer Greig Fraser on Dune: Part One and Two. Greig uses a multitude of lenses and some were old Russian lenses. Hes totally into degrading and giving character to the image. Then, of course, I have to try to match these things! We have a good understanding of the way we work. Greig is given untold freedom in how he wants to do things, but when I need something, he listens and will adapt, he says.Lambert in the Mojave Desert near Edwards Air Force Base for the landing of the X15 in First Man.Moviemaking is becoming more accessible to the masses. Youll see the cream rise to the top like you always do in whatever industry, Lambert notes. You will have directors who have a vision and bring that forward. I keep reading and seeing this whole idea of democratizing our industry, and it will happen. It depends on whether we put guardrails up or not to help with the transition. Youll have different ways to visualize things. Youll have the ability to put your VR goggles on and enjoy the movie that you just created. Great films are built upon solid collaborations. Ive been lucky with my path so far in that Ive never had a bad experience with another HOD [head of department]. In the end, Im only successful if the photography that we have shot works and people have put their heart into it. If I get the best foundation that I can, then I can add to that and bring it to the final where the director will hopefully love it.Blade Runner 2049 marked the first time that Lambert collaborated with Denis Villeneuve as a facility supervisor at DNEG, and it resulted in him receiving his first Oscar. (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)From left: Rebecca Ferguson (Lady Jessica), Director/Writer/ Producer Denis Villeneuve, Lambert and Production Designer Patrice Vermette on the set of Dune: Part Two. (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photo: Niko Tavernise)First Man resulted in Lambert winning his second Oscar and his first as a production visual effects supervisor.Lambert joined Wylie Co. in 2021 as the Executive Creative Director and is currently working on Project Hail Mary with directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller as well as Cinematographer Greig Fraser. Im thinking on my feet on Project Hail Mary more than Ive ever done before because of trying to keep the camerawork and everything fluid, Lambert remarks. That means youre not clinically breaking up the shot into layers because what tends to happen is you lose some of the organic feel of a shot if you do this and that element. Im a big believer in having a harder comp which will always give you a better visual. Even with a trio of Oscars, his enthusiasm remains undiminished. Why would you put up with these crazy deadlines or having to move around the world if you didnt truly love it? If you truly love something, youre going to come up with creative ways of doing things and participate in some of these beautiful movies.