Monthly Archives: March 2021
Analogue Pocket Gets Delayed Due to Component Shortages…and the Boat in the Suez Canal
Breaking Down Cyberpunk 2077 and CDPR’s Future
Netflix Purchases Knives Out Sequels for $450 Million
NBCUniversal May Pull Movies From Netflix, HBO Max
Spider-Verse Producer Explains How Film’s Animation Inspired New Netflix Movie
If you loved Into the Spider-Verse’s unique animation style, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s upcoming The Mitchell’s vs. The Machines has plenty in store to surprise you.
The new comedy film, which focuses on an incredibly dysfunctional family as they fight off the robot apocalypse, utilized some of the talents from Spider-Verse in order to give the world a painterly look that blends similar comic book and action movie vibes. Miller took to Twitter Wednesday to explain how the new trailer does it.
Much like Spider-Verse, a lot of the beauty is hidden in the details. It makes sense, considering Michael Lasker, CG supervisor on Spider-Verse, was brought on as VFX supervisor on The Mitchells.I’m going to point out some details you may have missed in shots from #TheMitchellsVsTheMachines trailer to show how @michaelrianda & team created a film with such groundbreaking visuals. A thread! pic.twitter.com/hxNv2oGMLQ
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
Miller points out that father Rick Mitchell’s fur collar is just brown painted squiggles rather than a realistic fur/hair simulation, something that Miller says is harder to pull off.
Inversely, some trees and bushes seen in the background of a suburban yard may look like watercolor paintings, but are in fact traditional 3D CG.Look closely at the texture on the fur collar of Rick Mitchell (the dad)‘s jacket. Instead of super realistic detailed fur simulation, it’s a bunch of hand-painted squiggles. Which is actually much harder to pull off. pic.twitter.com/yiNDQf58Km
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
A lot of love for Spider-Verse’s character designs stemmed from how each character was highlighted like a traditional comic book character, with thick outlines. In The Mitchells, characters, environments, and even hair have hand-painted outlines to help define each character. Character Katie Mitchell’s hair is drawn with watercolor-washed shapes, then accented with thick lines throughout.These trees are 3D CG but look hand painted: pic.twitter.com/4RrB9oJZCT
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
Katie’s design carries over into the overall world, too. As an indie filmmaker, her exaggerated personality gives life to comical 2D animations that spring up around her, such as the cartoon smiley faces that appear when her dad catches her in the air. It bears the most obvious similarity to Spider-Verse’s comic book “pow!” and “bagel!” animations.The characters themselves have subtle hand-painted outlines as well as the props and environments -even hair is made with watercolor washed shapes accented with linework. pic.twitter.com/2xkitHRer6
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
The titular machines that threaten humanity are also drawn with watercolor aesthetics, but are given a much more different color palette and drawn with a somewhat cleaner look to reinforce the idea that they’re a singular intelligence focused on one goal.Production Designer @lindseydraws had her team including @lilynishita & @AliceLemma draw 2D “KatieVision” around her to represent her worldview. Everything from little squiggles to more complicated cartoonery: pic.twitter.com/M5nnrFQ7k8
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
There are sure to be some other animation tricks and easter eggs spread throughout The Mitchells vs. the Machines, so keep an eye out when it hits Netflix on April 30. The film is directed by Gravity Falls’ Mike Rianda and stars Eric Andre, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson, along with guest stars like Chrissy Teigen and Conan O’Brien. Lord and Miller are both serving as producers. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/furby-phobe for IGN. Harvest him on Twitter.But even in the clean world of PAL everything still has watercolor textures and hand-painted outlines. Look closely at this robot: pic.twitter.com/8tBPa8vFpC
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) March 31, 2021
Elder Scrolls Online Comes to PS5, Xbox Series X in June
Although Blackwood is a standalone story, its events will further the overall Gates of Oblivion narrative that will continue to unfold throughout 2021. Also revealed is the all-new Companions System that will give players the option to choose between two new companions whose playstyle will be defined through selecting their gear and leveling up their skills. Blackwood Chapter will be released on PC on June 1, 2021, and will be available on consoles, including ESO: Console Enhanced, on June 8, 2021. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/27/the-elder-scrolls-online-gates-of-oblivion-blackwood-expansion-trailer"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com. Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.Our next Chapter will take you on an adventure across Tamriel, from the walls of Leyawiin to the wilds of Blackwood. The #GatesOfOblivion adventure continues on all platforms this June. pic.twitter.com/6Y3GSoK5Ub
— The Elder Scrolls Online (@TESOnline) March 31, 2021
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City Movie Delayed
IGN Prime Free Game: Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures
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CD Projekt Says Leaked Cyberpunk 2077 Add-Ons Aren’t DLC Names, So What Are They?
- Ripperdocs Expansion
- Body Shops Expansion
- Fashion Forward Expansion
- Gangs of Night CIty
- Body of Chrome
- Rides of the Dark Future
- The Relic
- Neck Deep
- Night City Expansion
- Expansion Pass