JimSteelFX - Johnny English film effects

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My first project for Double Negative was Johnny English, starring Rowan Atkinson, Ben Miller and Natalie Imbruglia, and directed by Peter Howitt.
I was initially employed to help complete the extensive effects schedule over the last 6 weeks to deadline. I produced several shots involving projector displays but my priority was to supply one of three driving sequences. Unfortunately 7 of 9 of the driving shots were cut from the film on the day they were finalled, due to a last minute re-edit to improve the film's pacing.
Examples of the shots I worked on are below.

The three images above are taken from the start, middle and end of this shot, which opens on Pascal Sauvage (played by John Malkovich) briefing other members of the criminal underworld on his plans to turn Britain into a gigantic prison to hold all the world's criminals. A huge tapestry behind him slides open to reveal a projection of his plans in simplistic 3D on the screen behind. On set, behind the tapestry was a greenscreen which I tracked and replaced with the 3D element. Rotoscoping was used for the reveal, and I added a diffuse version of the 3D projection over the tapestry and light beam effects to make it appear as if the projector is turned on as the screen begins to rise, hitting the tapestry as well as the screen.

The six images above display the next shot, which continues from the first in close-up, and was a simple matter of applying enlarged versions of the effects from the previous shot with new rotoscope mattes for the screen area. The 3D went through several design changes before a final was approved, and with the pipeline already in place it was a simple case of inserting the new element each time.

This is the first shot from the driving sequence which remains in the film. Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) and Bough (Ben Miller) discuss the gadgets on their new car as they drive along a London street. These shots were all filmed against a greenscreen on a gimbal to add some driving motion to an otherwise static car. Backgrounds for the rear window and side windows were filmed and composited in. Reflections of trees and buildings were faked in the car bonnet and windscreen and tracked in to place. Defocus techniques were applied to specific areas of the car and background to match the camera length and keep our attention on the actors, and extensive colour matching work was necessary to remove green spill and maintain continuity through the sequence.

This is the other shot from the nine originally produced for the driving sequence that remains in the film. The greenscreen was keyed and rotoscoped to place in a tracked and matchmoved background, and again reflections faked, defocus applied and colour correction used in specific areas to remove spill, recolour and match grades from the surrounding shots.

When all but one of MI5's top agents are killed in an explosion, it is left to the inept Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) to try and discover who has stolen the crown jewels from the Tower of London. Accompanied by his assistant Bough (Ben Miller), Johnny bungles his way from one farsical mishap to the next.

The official Johnny English website can be found at:
http://www.johnny-english.com

Above is one of the official posters from the movie.
Below are several other images taken from the production.

This shot of the car on a trailer was obviously filmed in-situe. There were three greenscreen driving sequences produced by Double Negative, one of which I produced as displayed above.

Johnny English
CLICK HERE TO GO BACK TO THE JIMSTEELFX HOMEPAGE
	My first project for Double Negative was Johnny English, starring Rowan Atkinson, Ben Miller and Natalie Imbruglia, and directed by Peter Howitt. I was initially employed to help complete the extensive effects schedule over the last 6 weeks to deadline. I produced several shots involving projector displays but my priority was to supply one of three driving sequences. Unfortunately 7 of 9 of the driving shots were cut from the film on the day they were finalled, due to a last minute re-edit to improve the film's pacing. Examples of the shots I worked on are below.


	The three images above are taken from the start, middle and end of this shot, which opens on Pascal Sauvage (played by John Malkovich) briefing other members of the criminal underworld on his plans to turn Britain into a gigantic prison to hold all the world's criminals. A huge tapestry behind him slides open to reveal a projection of his plans in simplistic 3D on the screen behind. On set, behind the tapestry was a greenscreen which I tracked and replaced with the 3D element. Rotoscoping was used for the reveal, and I added a diffuse version of the 3D projection over the tapestry and light beam effects to make it appear as if the projector is turned on as the screen begins to rise, hitting the tapestry as well as the screen.




	The six images above display the next shot, which continues from the first in close-up, and was a simple matter of applying enlarged versions of the effects from the previous shot with new rotoscope mattes for the screen area. The 3D went through several design changes before a final was approved, and with the pipeline already in place it was a simple case of inserting the new element each time.


	This is the first shot from the driving sequence which remains in the film. Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) and Bough (Ben Miller) discuss the gadgets on their new car as they drive along a London street. These shots were all filmed against a greenscreen on a gimbal to add some driving motion to an otherwise static car. Backgrounds for the rear window and side windows were filmed and composited in. Reflections of trees and buildings were faked in the car bonnet and windscreen and tracked in to place. Defocus techniques were applied to specific areas of the car and background to match the camera length and keep our attention on the actors, and extensive colour matching work was necessary to remove green spill and maintain continuity through the sequence.


	This is the other shot from the nine originally produced for the driving sequence that remains in the film. The greenscreen was keyed and rotoscoped to place in a tracked and matchmoved background, and again reflections faked, defocus applied and colour correction used in specific areas to remove spill, recolour and match grades from the surrounding shots.