Nocturnal Animals

From writer/director Tom Ford comes a haunting romantic thriller of shocking intimacy and gripping tension that explores the thin lines between love and cruelty, revenge and redemption. Academy Award nominees Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal star as a divorced couple discovering dark truths about each other and themselves in Nocturnal Animals.

Deluxe creative teams at Company 3 and Rushes worked together on Nocturnal Animals, with Company 3 finishing the feature and Rushes delivering the opening title sequence and over 400 VFX shots for the film.

The visually stunning film that to date has already been recognised with the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, was largely shot on 35mm by Director of Photography Seamus McGarvey (Fifty Shades of Grey, Godzilla, Pan) and graded at Company 3’s London facility by Senior Colourist Siggy Ferstl (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Blood Father) working closely with Director Tom Ford to realise his vision for the film.

Ferstl commented, “The film has these parallel storylines that are intertwined throughout. So it was really important to make sure that the viewer is always oriented to which storyline they're watching and much of that comes through the colour palette. Of course, production and costume design and Seamus's cinematography all contribute to that but it was all fine-tuned it in the DI.”

“It starts with the character's real life, which is set in the glossy and modern world of galleries and high fashion. For this part of the film, where people are dressed in a very stylish, high-fashion way, they all have absolutely perfect hair and makeup. We enhanced that aspect of the look through colour using cool blue tones.”

“A significant portion of the film is inside the world of a book Amy Adams's character is reading. These scenes are set out in the country in Texas. Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey shot big skies and vistas and amazing cloud formations for these sections. The feeling is of great vastness, gritty and tinged with warmth and golden hues.”

He added, “A colourist’s job these days is really about much more than just broad strokes colour. Filmmakers expect a really fine brush of colour and image manipulation, that happens during the DI, where they can see the changes play in context and on a big screen.”

Rushes VFX Supervisor Leo Weston led a team of artists who worked across 15 scenes in the film. This included green screens and light removals for key sequences. Rushes also created CG elements, set extensions and other enhancements. Artists from Rushes also completed the opening title sequence with designer Guy Hancock working closely with Tom Ford to refine an elegant look which complemented the film visuals.

The Deluxe Global Private Network enabled high-speed transfer of files between the Deluxe Group companies working on this production, while Deluxe Technicolor Digital Cinema team created multiple Digital Cinema Packages to deliver across territories.

Read less