While you were probably distracted by Blake Lively battling a shark for the lean hour and a half of James Collet-Serra‘s mid-summer delight The Shallows, you may have missed just how much seamless CGI was utilized. While Steven Seagull captured our hearts, visual effect companies Oblique FX and Important Looking Pirates were creating the shark from scratch and filling in vast ocean landscapes and CGI crabs.
Discussions around CGI usually focus on creations that smack you in the face, but the underrated functionality of its usage lies in its ability to fill in landscapes and subtly enhance environments, which can be seen in the first reel below. For example, removing safety harnesses in Mad Max: Fury Road is enough of an argument for why CGI should be around as it allows for incredible stunt-work in real-life environments, while still keeping the safety people happy.
Oblique FX now adds to this argument as they’ve released a VFX promo reel demonstrating their extensive fill-in and textural work on the oceanic thriller, which ranges from blood and moisture additions to full ocean extensions. Then there’s Important Looking Pirates’ work, which astounds with its life-like creation of terror. See the full reels below, along with our podcast discussion if you missed it.
Note: Click image below to see second visual effects reel.
