Rodeo FX Masterclass

A FIRST MEETING

The reopening of borders and the easing of international travel conditions has allowed the return of studios based abroad. It was therefore with great pleasure that the Montpellier campus welcomed the representatives of the studio Rodeo FX studio : Romain Puig – Talent Acquisition Lead -, Yvon Jardel – Head of Animation – et Kenza Chehadi – Talent Acquisition Specialist – for their very first visit to our school.

A warm welcome was given to them with a breakfast inviting all the 4th year students of CG Animation and FX Master Degree in Montpellier. The day began in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere before getting to the heart of the matter: the masterclass dedicated to monsters. This one was followed by the other campuses in digital version, the studio not being able to travel to all the schools.

MASTERCLASS: MAKING MONSTERS

Before getting to the heart of the matter, it is always a good idea to go back to an overall presentation of the studio, which was done by retracing the history of Rodeo FX, as well as the way the company operates and the many advantages it offers.

The theme of the masterclass was a little bit special: monsters and their making. It was led by Yvon Jardel, head of the studio’s animation department. He exhibited several creatures designed by the studio.

The Murlap :

A kind of rat crossed with a porcupine, the spectator can find this creature in the film The Fantastic Animals. The Murlap has the particularity of being the first creature made by the studio. Yvon Jardel went back over the creation process to reach the final result (research into reference animals, research into the skeleton…; the modelling and rigging part). He also explained some scenes in particular, explaining how the studio proceeded to make their work fit the story.

The “augmentations”:

The technique consists of changing a part of an actor, real, and to bring 3D modifications. It is a question of starting from a reference, the actor himself and the clothes he can wear, and recreating him – in whole or in part – in 3D. The studio was asked to work on the clown character in the film Ca and several clips from the film were shown to the students to explain the application of the process.

Stranger Things:

Another work on a creature, the character of “Tom Bruce” from Stranger Things. Once again, it was a question of inventing a monster, both in terms of its appearance and its skeleton. Yvon Jardel went over the creative process and how they came to shape it as well as the whole rigg and animation part of the beast.

Eskel:

Last example proposed by the studio and taken from the series The Witcher through the character of Eskel and his infection metamorphosing him. The human, a real actor, gives way to a fantastic and horrific creature. Once again, Yvon Jardel presented the behind-the-scenes work done to achieve this man-tree mix and its interaction in the scenes.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE RODEO FX STUDIO

Rodeo FX was founded in 2006 in Montreal, Canada, by Sébastien Moreau. Their scope of action encompasses both big screen and commercial projects, always with this specialization which is their core business: special effects.

Recognition came quickly, two years after its opening, the studio benefited from an important recognition through its first project: Crossroads: The Golden Compass by obtaining an Academy Award and then BAFTA and VES Awards. From the beginning of the 2010s, the studio has grown exponentially, taking on a series of acclaimed projects such as Game of Throne, Blade Runner 2049, Stranger Things, Hunger Games: The Crush, Birdman, Pacific Rim… and increasing the number of its recruits in parallel, even opening several branches in Quebec City, Toronto, Los Angeles and Munich.

The studio welcomes several of our graduate students and we are delighted to see them participate in this great adventure.