The St Trinian's girls are back, and Rushes, in collaboration with Matt Curtis of Abrahams Pants, have come up with the goods in the graphics department yet again, throwing their hats further into the fray with not only opening titles but also providing light-hearted graphical transitions, and visual narratives throughout the film to keep up the pace of the latest installment of the franchise.
Using the first film as a reference, Matt Curtis approached Rushes’ MGFX producer Warwick Hewitt with an idea that would require the whole of the MGFX department at full throttle for the whole month. “Matt always brings us good stuff to work on, He seems to be on the same creative wavelength as our Head Designer Matt Lawrence, which has proved to be a fruitful partnership in the past across various projects, this one being no exception”.
Rushes was asked to create several elements: An opening title sequence, a main title sting, 4 shot transitions, 5 still graphics and a lengthy, 4 part sequence playing on the Google earth application all referencing the plot line of buried treasure, whilst trying to incorporate a little of the St. T’s girl’s anarchy. The idea gradually developed, and became a coherent and evolving set of graphics which sits in neatly throughout the film; starting with the opening titles and moving through to the final shot transitions.
“Matt C's brief, focused on maps, and map elements being revealed either through ink splats or using ink as some sort of graphical device. As we started to play around with ideas though, it became clear that to get a truly inky feel we would have to shoot real ink splats … I’m glad we did, the transitions, wipes and little inky touches really sell the piece, much more so than trying to fake it with mattes or fades.” Matt Lawrence (Lead MGFX Designer) “Using the shot textures, as well as real map elements really allowed us to go to town on the opening sequence, layering ink footage and map sections with supplied graphics and generated content creating a truly immersive sequence, the idea being to really draw the viewer into the scene, get them involved immediately, make them feel part of the story as soon as it started”
To make sure the work was completed on time and to the high standards Rushes, Matt Curtis and the MGFX team are known for, workflow management was very important. “We split the work up as best we could to ease the bottleneck. While Matt (Lawrence) was animating sections, I would be texturing the elements for him to drop in later, then, as they became more fully developed I would move onto a different animation and set that up while Barry Corcoran, our MGFX freelancer started on yet another. Spreading the workload was advantageous to everyone, from the client down, as each section was able to move forward almost simultaneously whilst easing the pressure on any one individual as nothing lay squarely on any one person’s or more importantly one machine’s shoulders” says Brad Le Riche (MGFX Designer).
The end result is yet another successful partnership with Matt Curtis and another film title sequence under Rushes’ belt, with the MGFX boys really starting to carve an MGFX shaped notch in the grain of the title sequence market.
Title: "St. Trinian's - The Legend of Fritton's Gold"
Product: Feature Film Titles & Motion Graphics
Agency: Abraham Pants
Director: Barnaby Thompson & Oliver Parker
Producer: Christian Colson
Production Company: Celador Films
Designer: Matt Curtis
Post Facility: Rushes
Rushes Producer: Louise Hussey
Rushes Assistant Producer: Warwick Hewitt
After Effects: Matt Lawrence (Lead),
Brad Le Riche, Barry Corcoran
Cinema 4D: Matt Lawrence
Photoshop: Matt Lawrence, Brad Le Riche
Product: Feature Film Titles & Motion Graphics
Agency: Abraham Pants
Director: Barnaby Thompson & Oliver Parker
Producer: Christian Colson
Production Company: Celador Films
Designer: Matt Curtis
Post Facility: Rushes
Rushes Producer: Louise Hussey
Rushes Assistant Producer: Warwick Hewitt
After Effects: Matt Lawrence (Lead),
Brad Le Riche, Barry Corcoran
Cinema 4D: Matt Lawrence
Photoshop: Matt Lawrence, Brad Le Riche