MPC on Pinocchio (Disney+)

MPC has revealed the work it put into Disney+’s Pinocchio remake. 

It provided a host of services for the film, including pre and postvis production as well as over 920 VFX shots - which included developing complex multi-plate stitched shots and refinements and innovative visual effects and animation. All this was provided over two years, with around 1200 MPC crew members, led by VFX supervisor Ben Jones and VFX producer Sarah Moussaif, involved with the reimagining of the animated classic that tells the story of a wooden boy brought to life through the power of magic. The film was released on Disney+ last month. 

Working with director Robert Zemekis, the team developed all sequences throughout the movie, with its animation team, led by animation supervisor Christophe Paradis, heavily involved in previz, virtual production, and the final VFX to closely guide and develop each character’s individual performance.

The character of Pinocchio was created entirely using CG, as was Jiminy Cricket, Figaro the cat, Cleo the goldfish, Sophia the seagull, Honest John, and his sidekick Gideon. The MPC tech-animation experts also generated the characters’ post-animation details, using multi-layered cloth and fur simulations for their intricate costumes.

Ben Jones, MPC VFX supervisor, said: “Almost every shot in the film involved significant VFX additions to plates, and approximately half of the shots in the movie were full CG creations, giving the filmmakers and the animators scope to design any shot and camera they liked. 

“We also built a pack of donkeys and other animals for use in a few different sequences and a new puppet character called Sabina.”

The artists created many digital environments in and around Pinocchio’s hometown and school, including a complex theme park environment called Pleasure Island and a fully digital replica of the interior set of Geppetto’s workshop, complete with many unique animated cuckoo clocks.

In addition, the MPC FX department generated detailed water simulations that feature heavily in the film’s climactic moments, with Jones adding: “The team did a splendid job at producing detailed and controlled simulations on a challenging sequence and timeframe for the ocean chase in the movie’s final act.”

The artists also helped produce hundreds of particles, fluid, destruction, and volumetric effects, ranging from the blue fairy’s dust and magic to a wide range of looks in Pleasure Island, including fireworks, rivers, and destruction.

Jones concluded: “Zemeckis is no stranger to ambitious visual effects and animation projects, and Pinocchio would be no different.

“His and Disney’s expectations for quality and delivery were high, as always, particularly so with a production like Pinocchio, which is one of the studio’s most loved stories and with a history stretching all the way back to Walt Disney himself. Much of what we all love about classic Disney movies trace back to the original Pinocchio, so the responsibility, and privilege, of working on such a treasured franchise was very apparent to all of us throughout production.”

Images: Disney Enterprises