VFX Legion Delivers 160+ Effects for Blumhouse’s ‘Black as Night’

Black as Night
(VFXLegion’s latest)

VFX Legion recently produced the effects for the vampire tale, Black as Night, a co-production of Amazon Studios and Blumhouse Productions. The movie premiered October 1st on Amazon Prime, kicking off the rollout of the final four films in the thematically related series, Welcome to Blumhouse.

Legion, the visual effects vendor for the seven original films produced for the package, assembled a team tailored to the movie’s needs from its LA and B.C. studio’s roster of talent. Working as a collaborative unit the company created over 160 high-quality effects, exploring options that elevated the impact of the thriller, while meeting tight deadlines.

Black as Night director Marritte ‘Marty’ Lee Go’s feature film debut is the anthology’s most visual effects-intensive film to date. The production relied heavily on digital imagery to realize the potential of its story, masterfully penned by Sherman Payne (‘Legacies,’ Scream’, ‘Shameless’). 

The thriller is set in New Orleans where vampires prey on a vulnerable population displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The undead are waging war in a bid to take control of ‘The Big Easy,’ and ‘turning’ humans to increase their ranks. The story unfolds as its teenage protagonist Shawna and her friends execute a bold plan to destroy the vampire’s leader and turn his disciples back to human form.

Legion’s Co-Founder/CD James David Hattin provided the creative direction for the film’s digital effects. Based in Burbank, the visual effects industry veteran worked closely with the production company and the director to ensure that the final shots aligned with her vision. Take a look at the fx reel below:


Nate Smalley, the LA studio’s Head of Production, and Dylan Yastremski, Head of Production at Legion’s B.C. facility, maintained an overview of the job, assessing its needs, and managing the logistics of producing the large volume of shots. They assigned work and scheduled artists, strategically allocating resources to maximize efficiency and keep the job on budget, while delivering the highest-quality effects.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

“Marty knew exactly what she wanted to accomplish with each visual effect and communicated with us through every stage of the production,” says Hattin.  “The time dedicated to discussing shots, working out small details, exploring ways to cost-effectively elevate the payoff of each digital effect was well spent. The close collaboration enabled our team to deliver final shots that met – and often exceeded – her expectations.”

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

The range of effects created for Black as Night runs the gamut – from transitioning humans to vampires to designing the look and progression of their digital demise – and everything in between. Legion transformed teeth into sharp fangs, replaced human eyes with the mesmerizing orbs of a vampire, and created smoke emanating from skin touched by silver.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

Artists engulfed people in CG flames, scorched flesh, animated bodies on fire as they fell from a window. digitally materialized clouds of garlic dust and billows of ash, along with creating a variety of other effects that the film required.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

The mix of tools were used to create the effects for the film include The Foundry’s Nuke for compositing, Autodesk’s Maya for animation, SideFX Houdini for ash, smoke, fire, garlic powder, as well as proprietary technology integrated into Legion’s pipeline.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

Lee Go was very keen on making the demise of the vampires a shocking affair, with the undead exploding as they meet their end. After multiple tests and exploring various options, Legion came up with an effect that digital detonated the blood-sucking creatures with a force that obliterates their human shells leaving a dense cloud of ash. The team fine-tuned the look, lighting, and texture, creating final shots with the impact the director was seeking.  


REELated: VFX Legion creates 100+ effects For ‘Don’t Breathe 2’


“In 2019 we started talking with Blumhouse about the original movies slated to be produced for Welcome to Blumhouse, and Legion was brought on board,” says Hattin. “Our ongoing relationship with the co-producers working on the films (Nocturne, Black Box, Evil Eye, Bingo Hell, The Manor, Madres, and Black as Night) allowed us to build on our experience. The insights it provided into their approach enabled our team to work more efficiently – and push the boundaries of digital effects a little more with each new film.”

VFX Legion has a long history of working with Blumhouse on television shows and films, such as Eye Candy, Sinister 2 and Insidious: Chapter 3.  

Most recently, its team delivered the visual effects for The Black Phone starring Ethan Hawke, slated for release January 28, 2022, on Amazon Prime.

CREDITS:

Title – Black as Night

  • Type: Feature Film 
  • Genre: Drama/Action/Thriller
  • Release Date: October 1st, 2021
  • Airs: Streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime

Production Companies:

  • Amazon Studios
  • Blumhouse ProductionsAmazon
  • Prime Video (2021/Worldwide) 
  • Directed by –  Marritte Lee Go
  • Written by – Sherman Payne
  • Produced by – Jason Blum – executive producer
  • Jeremy Gold – executive producer
  • Marci Wiseman – executive producer
  • Lisa Bruce – executive producer
  • Guy Stodel – executive producer
  • Maggie Malina – executive producer
  • Chris Dickie – co-executive producer
  • John H. Brister – producer
  • Terra Abroms – co-producer
  • Adan Orozco – co-producer
  • Cybel Martin – Cinematographer
  • Tim Mirkovich – Film Editor

Visual Effects Company – VFX Legion LA/B.C.

  • James David Hattin – visual effects supervisor
  • Nate Smalley – visual effects producer
  • Dylan Yastremski – visual effects project manager
  • Matthew T. Lynn – visual effects supervisor 
  • Reid Burns – visual effects executive producer
  • Mace Al-Hendi – visual effects coordinator
  • Joseph Soloway – visual effects coordinator
  • Rommel S. Calderon – cg supervisor
  • Eric Ebling – cg artist
  • Ruy Delgado – tracking artist
  • Patrick Conaty – digital compositor
  • Nick Guth – digital compositor
  • Michael Honrada – digital compositor
  • Matthias Lowry – digital compositor
  • Lauren Morimoto – digital compositor
  • Brad Moylan – digital compositor
  • Tyler Nathan – digital compositor
  • Eugen Olsen – digital compositor
  • Rafael Perez – digital compositor
  • Chris Wood – digital compositor


Black as Night
(VFXLegion’s latest)

VFX Legion recently produced the effects for the vampire tale, Black as Night, a co-production of Amazon Studios and Blumhouse Productions. The movie premiered October 1st on Amazon Prime, kicking off the rollout of the final four films in the thematically related series, Welcome to Blumhouse.

Legion, the visual effects vendor for the seven original films produced for the package, assembled a team tailored to the movie’s needs from its LA and B.C. studio’s roster of talent. Working as a collaborative unit the company created over 160 high-quality effects, exploring options that elevated the impact of the thriller, while meeting tight deadlines.

Black as Night director Marritte ‘Marty’ Lee Go’s feature film debut is the anthology’s most visual effects-intensive film to date. The production relied heavily on digital imagery to realize the potential of its story, masterfully penned by Sherman Payne (‘Legacies,’ Scream’, ‘Shameless’). 

The thriller is set in New Orleans where vampires prey on a vulnerable population displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The undead are waging war in a bid to take control of ‘The Big Easy,’ and ‘turning’ humans to increase their ranks. The story unfolds as its teenage protagonist Shawna and her friends execute a bold plan to destroy the vampire’s leader and turn his disciples back to human form.

Legion’s Co-Founder/CD James David Hattin provided the creative direction for the film’s digital effects. Based in Burbank, the visual effects industry veteran worked closely with the production company and the director to ensure that the final shots aligned with her vision. Take a look at the fx reel below:


Nate Smalley, the LA studio’s Head of Production, and Dylan Yastremski, Head of Production at Legion’s B.C. facility, maintained an overview of the job, assessing its needs, and managing the logistics of producing the large volume of shots. They assigned work and scheduled artists, strategically allocating resources to maximize efficiency and keep the job on budget, while delivering the highest-quality effects.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

“Marty knew exactly what she wanted to accomplish with each visual effect and communicated with us through every stage of the production,” says Hattin.  “The time dedicated to discussing shots, working out small details, exploring ways to cost-effectively elevate the payoff of each digital effect was well spent. The close collaboration enabled our team to deliver final shots that met – and often exceeded – her expectations.”

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

The range of effects created for Black as Night runs the gamut – from transitioning humans to vampires to designing the look and progression of their digital demise – and everything in between. Legion transformed teeth into sharp fangs, replaced human eyes with the mesmerizing orbs of a vampire, and created smoke emanating from skin touched by silver.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

Artists engulfed people in CG flames, scorched flesh, animated bodies on fire as they fell from a window. digitally materialized clouds of garlic dust and billows of ash, along with creating a variety of other effects that the film required.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

The mix of tools were used to create the effects for the film include The Foundry’s Nuke for compositing, Autodesk’s Maya for animation, SideFX Houdini for ash, smoke, fire, garlic powder, as well as proprietary technology integrated into Legion’s pipeline.

Black as Night
Before
Black as Night
After

Lee Go was very keen on making the demise of the vampires a shocking affair, with the undead exploding as they meet their end. After multiple tests and exploring various options, Legion came up with an effect that digital detonated the blood-sucking creatures with a force that obliterates their human shells leaving a dense cloud of ash. The team fine-tuned the look, lighting, and texture, creating final shots with the impact the director was seeking.  


REELated: VFX Legion creates 100+ effects For ‘Don’t Breathe 2’


“In 2019 we started talking with Blumhouse about the original movies slated to be produced for Welcome to Blumhouse, and Legion was brought on board,” says Hattin. “Our ongoing relationship with the co-producers working on the films (Nocturne, Black Box, Evil Eye, Bingo Hell, The Manor, Madres, and Black as Night) allowed us to build on our experience. The insights it provided into their approach enabled our team to work more efficiently – and push the boundaries of digital effects a little more with each new film.”

VFX Legion has a long history of working with Blumhouse on television shows and films, such as Eye Candy, Sinister 2 and Insidious: Chapter 3.  

Most recently, its team delivered the visual effects for The Black Phone starring Ethan Hawke, slated for release January 28, 2022, on Amazon Prime.

CREDITS:

Title – Black as Night

  • Type: Feature Film 
  • Genre: Drama/Action/Thriller
  • Release Date: October 1st, 2021
  • Airs: Streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime

Production Companies:

  • Amazon Studios
  • Blumhouse ProductionsAmazon
  • Prime Video (2021/Worldwide) 
  • Directed by –  Marritte Lee Go
  • Written by – Sherman Payne
  • Produced by – Jason Blum – executive producer
  • Jeremy Gold – executive producer
  • Marci Wiseman – executive producer
  • Lisa Bruce – executive producer
  • Guy Stodel – executive producer
  • Maggie Malina – executive producer
  • Chris Dickie – co-executive producer
  • John H. Brister – producer
  • Terra Abroms – co-producer
  • Adan Orozco – co-producer
  • Cybel Martin – Cinematographer
  • Tim Mirkovich – Film Editor

Visual Effects Company – VFX Legion LA/B.C.

  • James David Hattin – visual effects supervisor
  • Nate Smalley – visual effects producer
  • Dylan Yastremski – visual effects project manager
  • Matthew T. Lynn – visual effects supervisor 
  • Reid Burns – visual effects executive producer
  • Mace Al-Hendi – visual effects coordinator
  • Joseph Soloway – visual effects coordinator
  • Rommel S. Calderon – cg supervisor
  • Eric Ebling – cg artist
  • Ruy Delgado – tracking artist
  • Patrick Conaty – digital compositor
  • Nick Guth – digital compositor
  • Michael Honrada – digital compositor
  • Matthias Lowry – digital compositor
  • Lauren Morimoto – digital compositor
  • Brad Moylan – digital compositor
  • Tyler Nathan – digital compositor
  • Eugen Olsen – digital compositor
  • Rafael Perez – digital compositor
  • Chris Wood – digital compositor