Vincent London transports the 2D cartoon into a futuristic 3D world
Ben Tennyson is a ten-year-old boy whose wrist-worn Ominitrix device enables him to change into alien creatures and fend off attack from extra-terrestrial forces.
The Ben 10 animated series first aired in late 2006, and ran for four seasons until 2008. This was followed by three seasons of Ben 10 Alien Force, and two seasons of Ben 10 Ultimate Alien. The fourth instalment, Ben 10 Omniverse, has been running since 2012 and is now entering its fifth season, in which Ben comes face to face with Albedo, an evil clone created by the alien Galvan race.
To promote the new episodes, Turner Broadcast and The Cartoon Network turned to Soho-based studio Vincent London, which produced three spectacular slots for the campaign. "The project was intended to showcase Ben and his alter-ego within a dual cityscape environment," explains Creative Director, John Hill. "We wanted to create a flexible futuristic world to host the epic fight scenes between Ben 10 and his new nemesis."
The work is a slick combination of 3D environments, created with CINEMA 4D, and 2D characters, which were drawn and animated in-house using Adobe Flash. The design was one of the key challenges, states Hill. "The 3D world needed to compliment the iconic Ben 10 artwork and style and allow us to flexibly composite 2D character animation. The buildings and cityscapes had to reflect the good and the bad renditions of Ben 10 and also create awesome spaces for the fight scenes." Accordingly, the green and red outfits of Ben and his clone were used to colour-code the environment.
With all the dynamic camera moves and shifts in perspective, the melding of 2D and 3D required thorough planning to ensure all the elements matched up. "We worked up fairly detailed hand drawn animatics," says Hill, "followed by more considered pre-vis animatics for each shot. This enabled us to sync up the interactions between Ben and the 3D scenes as well as plan overall shot composition and timings."
"CINEMA 4D was easy and quick to use when realising our hand-drawn cityscape designs," he continues. "It brought us time when wanting to experiment with various sets and environments for the action."
A few of the 2D character shots were combined with the backdrops in post-production, but Hill suggests that for the most part it was all done in the 3D realm. "Although some shots were composited in Adobe After Effects, we also rendered them out with the 3D scenes to get additional GI and shadow passes. The more you can do in 3D, the better the composite and final result, we find."
This workflow makes sense when you realise that the characters are often required to produce subtle reflections on the floor and cast shadows (like when Ben is running through the explosions). To achieve this, the team applied alpha-mapped animation onto a flat plane positioned within the scene, and animated accordingly. They then used the Reflection, Global Illumination, Material, Diffuse and Shadow passes for use in the final composite.
Stylised explosions were handled similarly: "After animating them in Flash, we added them to the 3D scenes to help add GI lighting and shadows," says Hill. "We mixed 3D explosions with the hand-drawn 2D explosions to merge the styles."
An abstract cityscape of monolithic buildings makes an ominous backdrop to the action. "We sketched out quite a few cityscapes and building designs before settling on the self-illuminating futuristic style," Hill says, "as this worked best for atmosphere and premise. We used mainly geometry for the neon-style wireframes as the render is always cleaner than using textures."
He adds, "The simple cityscape complimented Ben 10s graphic style well; we had to be careful not to add too much detail as this moved the design too far away from Bens 2D artwork."
The angular buildings are lit by area lights to add subtle glows, with occasional flashes to make the city feel alive. However, the main light sources come from a network of flying cubes, which also give the city a sense of scale. These were simple boxes containing lights in conjunction with self-illuminating textures to add detail.
Lighting proved the hardest part of the project, admits Hill. "Atmospheric lighting with flicker-free GI is always time consuming," he says, adding that the challenge was to "create subtle mid-tone detail in a night-time dystopian environment so as to not end up with a flat graphic look."
Naturally, CINEMA 4Ds MoGraph tools were used for the floating cubes, with a little hand animation and keyframing to get the right results. "MoGraph is probably my favourite tool," declares Hill. "Its so flexible, and so much complex animation can be achieved with very simple scenes."
In one sequence, evil Bens influence spreads through the city, creating giant cracks in the buildings and causing explosions. The team employed CINEMA 4Ds in-built Dynamics to create the tumbling debris, then hand-animated ripples and deformations in the floors and walls for extra detail around the impact areas.
The Tron-style environment is full of bright objects and details that were required to glow, and its usually best to add these in post-production for more control. "We used the material illumination pass as an EXR file sequence, and 32-bit linear compositing," explains Hill. "The After Effects glow effect does a pretty good job with high colour depth. Blurred overlays in After Effects can also prove helpful for glows when treated well."
To sweeten the shots, lens flare effects were added to bright sources and explosions. Again, these were added in post, using After Effects plug-ins, although some were actual lens flares, photographed by Vincents team, or hand-made textures.
Depth of field is used to great effect, too, adding drama and helping to tie the 3D and 2D elements together. "Most dept
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
19/04/2024
Thank You for visiting us at NAB 2024!
Thank you for joining us at the ToolsOnAir booth during NAB Show 2024!
We were delighted to showcase our latest inno...
19/04/2024
PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 18: (L-R) John Early and Theda Hammel attend the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Stress Positions premiere at Library Center Theatre on ...
19/04/2024
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
19/04/2024
Pictured: Midnight Family
By Stephanie Ornelas
A great way to get to know a city as culturally unique and rich as Mexico City is to listen to the stories tol...
19/04/2024
St. Louis, MO - April 18, 2024 - Studio Network Solutions (SNS) announced today that MOD won three prestigious industry awards at NAB Show 2024 held this week i...
19/04/2024
Spotify's mission is to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the ...
19/04/2024
It's a beautiful day to be a Swiftie. Today, Taylor Swift dropped her 11th s...
19/04/2024
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 19, 2024 - The Board of Directors of L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.16 per common share, payab...
19/04/2024
PARIS Intel has announced that its plans for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 will include using artificial intelligence technology powered by Intel ...
19/04/2024
LAS VEGAS Technologists working on all aspects of the 8K media production chain offered an optimistic update at the 2024 NAB Show on the state of 8K in video pr...
19/04/2024
OpenDrives New Software-Defined Platform Atlas Wins 2024 NAB Show Product of the...
19/04/2024
Grass Valley Showcases Next-Generation T3 Series 4K/HD Digital Recording and Pla...
19/04/2024
NiTRo's M-CUBE Studio Levels Up Esports Productions with AJA Gear
Brie Clayton April 19, 2024
0 Comments
Esports' rapid rise to popularity can...
19/04/2024
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 19
Brie Clayton April 19, 2024
0 Comments
Major update adds new DaVinci Neural Engine AI tools, new color ...
19/04/2024
Sony Pictures Entertainment is reportedly in talks with Apollo Global Management to make a bid to acquire Paramount which itself is currently discussing a merge...
19/04/2024
Simon Wilkinson, head of VFX at 1185 films, talks about the technology behind the newly-released horror
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: April 19, 2024
Simo...
19/04/2024
The global electronics company is said to be considering joining forces with investment firm Apollo Management to bid for Paramount Global
By Jenny Priestley
...
19/04/2024
The report broke the economic footprint of EBU member sports broadcasting into three main areas
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: April 19, 2024
The report b...
19/04/2024
CBS Stations has launched CBS News California Investigates , with Julie Watts named regional CBS California correspondent. She will uncover and raise awarenes...
19/04/2024
MediaCo Holding, which owns radio stations WQHT (Hot 97) and WBLS in New York, said it acquired Estrella Media's Spanish-language video, audio and digital c...
19/04/2024
Netflix has ordered season five of fantasy drama The Witcher, which will be the final season. Production has recently begun on season four, and the two remainin...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream said it added eight more The CW affiliates to its lineup on Thursday....
19/04/2024
CBS has renewed Elsbeth for the 2024-2025 season. The drama, with Carrie Preston in the lead role, debuted February 29....
19/04/2024
With the Bears picking first, NBCUniversal Local's properties in Chicago plan extensive coverage of the NFL draft next week....
19/04/2024
PHILADELPHIA As government subsidies for broadband services come to an end, Comcast has launched NOW, a new product portfolio of lower-cost Internet, mobile and...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream has added more local CW stations for its streaming customers in Boston, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Hartford-New Haven Conn., Phoenix, San ...
19/04/2024
NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES MediaCo Holding Inc. has announced that it has acquired all of Estrella Media's network, content, digital, and commercial operations....
19/04/2024
SAN JOSE, Calif. Adobe has announced that the all-new Adobe Express mobile app is available to all users, bringing features powered by Adobe Firefly generative ...
19/04/2024
LOS GATOS, Calif. Netflix reported another blockbuster quarter by adding 9.33 million new subscribers in Q1, 2024 as global paid memberships hit 269.6 million, ...
19/04/2024
The Current State of the Industry and the Future Impact of AI
Hillary Lewis April 18, 2024
0 Comments
The Entertainment Industry: How did we get here ...
19/04/2024
After Effects Tutorial Text Blur Reveal
Andy Ford April 18, 2024
0 Comments
Here's a way to do a quick blur reveal for your text layer. Start by...
19/04/2024
Hollyland Mars M1 Enhanced Wireless Transmitter / Receiver
Colin Smith April 18, 2024
0 Comments
This tutorial shows the new wireless transmitter rece...
19/04/2024
Resolve Fusion: Writing Expressions with Lua
Simon Ubsdell April 18, 2024
0 Comments
The answer to the very frequently-asked question: what is the pro...
19/04/2024
B+C and Next TV have announced the winners of Best of Show Awards for the 2024 NAB Show. The awards were judged by a panel of industry experts at the convention...
19/04/2024
Cate Blanchett narrates the Netflix series Our Living World, which premieres April 17. The four-part series looks at the extraordinary creatures around the glob...
19/04/2024
Apple TV Plus has a spinoff of For All Mankind in the works. It is called Star City and details the cosmonauts, engineers and intelligence officers working behi...
19/04/2024
Jacquie Walker, longtime anchor at WIVB Buffalo, will step down from the anchor desk. She has spent over 40 years at WIVB and her last day as an anchor is May 2...
19/04/2024
Bob Hearts Abishola will premiere in broadcast syndication this fall on such station groups as Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair, Hearst Television, Tegna, E.W. Scr...
19/04/2024
Live With Kelly and Mark remains TV's top entertainment talk show as Kelly Ripa and her co-host and husband Mark Consuelo celebrate their one-year anniversa...
19/04/2024
Sean McLaughlin has been named VP of news for Graham Media Group. He had been senior VP of local news at E.W. Scripps. He will will be responsible for developi...
19/04/2024
Netflix has shared the first trailer from One Hundred Years of Solitude, a series based on the esteemed novel by Gabriel Garc a M rquez. The streamer is on boar...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 in Review: West Hall - SportsTech Buzz From AWS, Appear, Ateme, The Swi...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 Draws 61,000+ Attendees With More Than Half Attending the Show for the ...
19/04/2024
Rohde & Schwarz and VIAVI support European OTIC in Berlin for O-RAN conformance ...
19/04/2024
Wuppertal April 19, 2024
Riedel launches Bolero Connect for seamless integration with PunQtum A pioneer in the field of digital intercom, Riedel has recently ...
Vincent London transports the 2D cartoon into a futuristic 3D world
