"Being invited to join the conceptualisation phase of the ceremony gave us creative licence; it also meant our team got to work with some of the best brains in our industry. There were a large number of elements to our work, but it seems the real crowd pleasers were the watering hole, the marimba, and the newspaper," said Gerd Müller, MD of Ministry of illusion.
The animation software used by MOI for the entire project was 3D Maya and Autodesk Flint and was rendered using Quicktime Animations at 50p (50 frames per second). It included the compositing of the final HD football video footage - supplied by VWV during the last week of the tournament which it integrated seamlessly into the three 3D animation scenes. Adobe after effects were also used for converting files to the correct formats.
The work most applauded at the ceremony, the newspaper, the marimba, and the waterhole, were created entirely in 3D to begin with, after which live action footage was seamlessly integrated to keep it ascetically real. Once it was all systems go, the footage was dropped into the 3D animation. MOI had booked lint for an expected 10 days to complete the work but due to stretched deadlines and FIFA approval requirements, the actual lead time was an almost impossible, nail-biting six days.
"Our team worked around the clock for eight weeks. Complementing four 3D graphic artists, two final cut pro editors, two graphic designers were a lead compositor, two producers and two machine room operators. Our total man hours clocked was easily 600 hours. We also had to work closely with the choreography team for the marimba scene to ensure the recorded video supplied to us of the dancers jumping on the keys had the precise timing for final animated output."
ETC, the French-based projection company joined the MOI facility for a week to digitse the animation of quicktimes at 3200 x 3200 pixel resolution at a faster transfer rate. The projection team received footage from MOI on a weekly basis in order for integaration and testing through the already installed projections at the stadium.
Muller concluded, "It was one of the more stressful jobs that the MOI team had to produce. The deadlines were crazy and the responsibility was gargantuan. Standing on the side lines of the field at Soccer City on 11 July, 2010 is a night I will never forget we were part of something special, something real, and most importantly something that showcased South Africa to the world."
(Jim Evans)
