‘Real Steel’: When Mechas Meet Virtual Production

Before "Pacific Rim," what's the standout mecha film in your memory? There is one packaged sci-fi mechas and virtual production techniques together, dating back over a decade – and that's the "Real Steel" released in 2011.

For many, virtual filmmaking is a recent frontier in cinema. However, after James Cameron's "Avatar," numerous films began exploring virtual tech, including DreamWorks Pictures' “Real Steel.”

"Real Steel" was adapted from Richard Matheson's short story "Steel" in 1956, originally an episode in "The Twilight Zone." The film's script shifted focus to the bond between a father-son duo, aligning more with traditional American backdrops. Set in 2020, it centers on washed-up robot boxing handler Charlie (portrayed by Hugh Jackman) fighting for custody of his son, exploring their hardships while venturing into the adrenaline-packed realm of robot boxing.

Under the guidance of Art Director Tom Meyer, the art department not only handled the scenes but also managed the design and production of the robot boxers. Typically, animated characters in films are the domain of animators, visual effects artists, and sculptors. However, in this film, which primarily focused on robots, the Art Director had to invest more energy into this domain.

Given its near-future setting, the film featured lifelike, high-tech products reflective of everyday life. While the world therein appears not too different from today's reality, the Art Department collaborated early on with DreamWorks Pictures' strategic partners like HP Inc., Nokia Corporation, and Beats headphones, developing the futuristic product designs featured in the movie, serving as ideal prototypes for those companies' future product lines.

Robots

Creating robots initially required designs distinct from existing patented ones while considering aesthetic feasibility and functionality. They included gears and pistons and needed to express human emotions somewhat. Alongside the digital versions of the hero robot characters by Digital Domain, famous special effects model maker Legacy they created full-scale mechanical models of robots like Atom, Ambush, Noisy Boy, and Axelrod.

[Virtual Production] - It completely changes our approach to filmmaking and storytelling.

—— Motion Capture Director Jeff Wisniewski

Art Director Tom Meyer, the art department, and concept artists imparted unique personalities to each robot character. Entertainment design heads from the Art Center College of Design (ACCD) collaborated with multiple concept designers to craft designs for non-conventional robots like Spitfire, Albino, Axelrod, Twin Cities, and Midas.

In production, every robot needed meticulous attention to detail in design and mechanical principles, minimizing differences between digital and physical versions. Robots' lifelike and material arrangements proved highly valuable for the virtual versions as references for lighting and texture details. Digital Domain reshaped models provided by the art team, enhancing them through texture mapping and rigging before they appeared in specific shots, including those with fleeting background robot characters.

Artists at Legacy Effects constructed articulated, full-scale models of robots like Ambush, Noisy Boy, and Atom, including a partially damaged Axelrod. These practical robot effects were used for scenes involving interaction with real actors and solo upper-body shots. The results artists initially 3D printed one-fifth-scale models based on Maya files from the art team, which served as reference models. Subsequently, these models were disassembled, and multiple components were created, followed by final assembly.

Filming Locations

Detroit, a classic American city, was considered an optimal filming location by the Art Director. Symbolic of the American industrial age and renowned for machinery and automobiles, Michigan boasted numerous locations and buildings steeped in historical and technological significance. The art department transformed a Ford Model-T factory atop Highland Park into an industrial arena. The surrounding region featured picturesque hills and classic townscapes, resembling a miniature version of an American city.

Boxing, fundamentally, revolves around energy and its exchange. Hence, one could spot numerous elements reflecting strength and energy in the arena's design. Features like resilient flooring and spring steel cables absorbing striking forces aimed to immerse audiences into the power of humanoid robots. Every nut and bolt on the boxing ring was custom-made, with 80% of the set construction and production crew sourced from Detroit's industrial base.

Starting in September 2009, the Art Director led the concept art team in crafting the robot characters, with Atom being the first. From 2D concept sketches to 3D modeling, some characters even commenced directly from 3D design. Both physical and VFX departments used the 3D models provided by the art department directly, reducing discrepancies between two-dimensional and three-dimensional transitions.

Additionally, during the 3D design phase, designers observed physical interaction and lighting between characters in animation rendering software to convey texture and emotion precisely.

The film was an early example of employing virtual production processes. Like previous virtual shoots, such as "Avatar," the art department had to prefabricate virtual assets beforehand, which was crucial during motion capture. Assets included robot models and environmental spaces like the boxing ring, essential for directors and cinematographers to visualize the action in a virtual space.

Before and after location scouting, the art department created set models in the virtual 3D software, experimenting with various animated shots. Sometimes, precise 3D models of actual locations were established for meticulous scene construction calculations.

Virtual Previsualization

Virtual previsualization simplified what was typically a complex and error-prone process of budgeting and responsibility planning. The principal crew could determine collaboration approaches across departments during the conceptual and pre-fabrication stages, moving beyond abstract ideas or concepts. This streamlined cost for production, allocating resources efficiently.

All scenes crafted by the 3D set designers in the art department were previewed by the visual effects supervisor and other creatives, deciding parts to be physically built and segments to be digitally extended.

Before virtual shooting, the crew used professional laser radar 3D scanning equipment to scan set locations, precisely matching them with virtual scene models created by designers. The camera's movement and range must correspond precisely with real-world spatial environments during virtual shoots. If it exceeded the shooting distance, warning lights blinked. Virtual aspects were calculated as physically as possible to allow directors to guide based on traditional experience, considering material textures and shadow positions. Operations of the virtual camera within the virtual setting mirrored conventional equipment control, like virtual crane arms and telescopic cannons.

In virtual production, motion capture wasn't solely for previews anymore; recorded motion data was ultimately integrated into actual shots through the virtual camera. Real-time motion-captured virtual characters underwent simplification, reducing polygon counts, and were simulated in Autodesk's motion capture software, Motion Builder. The sequence featuring the opening bullfight against Ambush extensively relied on virtual shooting, offering authentic references for virtual animation of the bull's movements.

Due to the considerable proportion difference between motion capture and the final boxing ring, where the robots' height and physique were roughly 1.3 times larger than average human dimensions, the virtual production department coordinated between the visual and set departments to resolve disparities. In motion capture mapping, they considered the rationality of robot limb movements driven by real humans. The final gigantic parts of the boxing ring were precisely machined using a CNC machine.

In essence, movie virtual production is a filmmaking process through collaboration and interaction via CGI. CGI might involve (but is not limited to) actors performing in a CGI environment or natural environment captured by cameras. This technology process, widely used in modern video game production, was developed and applied in filmmaking by James Cameron's team during "Avatar."

In "Real Steel," the digital performances of the robot characters seamlessly matched the live-action actors. It was a non-linear and iterative process; the digital assets created by the art department were the initial starting point. As a preliminary step, it moved away from the traditional post-production mindset; continual adjustments between design and previews were critical early collaboration elements across departments.

The virtual production in "Real Steel" hinged on concerted efforts across teams in new technological and process-oriented directions, relying on advanced systems developed by the tech departments. For instance, Virtual Production Supervisor Glenn Derry provided camera and virtual photography systems developed for "Avatar." These camera-tracking data seamlessly collaborated with AVID's editing workflow, achieving rough cuts to complete segments for post-production within a day.

Virtual production allowed real-time creative collaboration across all departments. It needed to be involved in directors' and designers' decisions early on to harness the potential of the virtual output. Virtual shooting wasn't merely a preview; it was making a film. "Real Steel" amalgamated more technology, paving the way for virtualized movie production. It offered a seamless platform blending the past, present, future, and imagination.