Muse VFX creates visual effects for 'Y: The Last Man' with Fusion Studio

Fusion Studio, solution developed by Blackmagic Design, has been used by Muse VFX to create visual effects and animations for television fiction And: The last man.

Based on the hit comic series, And: The last man chronicles the repercussions of a cataclysm that annihilates all mammals with a Y chromosome, except for a single man and his pet monkey. The survivors will try to recover what was lost and build something better. The show stars Diane Lane, Ashley Romans, Ben Schnetzer and Amber Tamblyn, among others, and is available on the platform FX of Hulu.

Fusion Studio of Blackmagic Design was the solution used to generate some key elements of the post-apocalyptic world in which the plot takes place, such as photorealistic explosions, computerized vehicles and objects, compositions with masks and virtual extensions of the studios. John Gross, co-founder of Muse VFX, provides more details: “We use Fusion on explosions, helicopter crashes and virtual set extensions, as well as other less noticeable effects, such as split screens and compositions with blue backgrounds.”

Key scenes

The team of Muse VFX has highlighted some of the key moments in which they have gotten the most out of Fusion Studio. Fred Pienkos, co-founder and special effects supervisor, highlights the scenes that take place in the Pentagon: "We used part of the Pentagon hallways during filming. Afterwards, we used Fusion to extend and render them, as well as to follow the movement of the cameras, apply rotoscoping techniques, create compositions with blue backgrounds and add lighting."

Another key moment was the explosion of a bomb in a house. Since no effects had been filmed, the team used LIDAR measurements of photographic references to recreate the visual effects sequence. In order to achieve this, it was necessary to resort to a large number of layers in order to integrate the explosion of the house with the environment, which included several trees and bushes, some of which had to be replaced with digitally generated plants.

Pienkos provides further insights: "Camera tracking and rotoscoping techniques, as well as foliage, debris and digital flames, were combined in Fusion Studio, including a simulation of car windows exploding as a result of the detonation. Our goal was to make the effects as realistic as possible. Likewise, we created a crash sequence that began with a helicopter hanging off a building and then falling to the ground. Fusion Studio was great for integrating the computerized elements with the images. filmed images and making the effects look photoreal.”

Material generated in 5K

According to Muse VFX, the work dynamics in And: The last man It is closer to that of the cinema than to that usually seen on television: "The quality gap that existed between film and television has completely disappeared. Today, television demands the same level of detail and skill traditionally reserved for the film industry. By filming the series with anamorphic lenses in 5K resolution, its stylized appearance is more similar to that of a film,” says Pienkos.

Once the entire season has been delivered, the Muse VFX team is satisfied with having chosen the Blackmagic Design solution. Gross, while highlighting that the project “was not easy,” also states that “our team knew how to face the challenge, and with tools like Fusion Studio, we had fun doing it.” For its part, Pienkos openly praises the software: “Fusion Studio is the fundamental pillar of our compositions, and it was the only program we used when working on And: The last man. It allows artists to be creative and versatile in their approach when processing shots or sequences. From preparation, rotoscoping, overlays, tracking and particle systems to final compositing, Fusion Studio is just what we need. “Its quality, speed and efficiency make it an exceptional tool for this series.”