Dupe brings magic to this historical action adventure
Overview
Services The fantastical story of Nell and her magical sidekick, Dupe collaborated with the three directors and show VFX Supervisor Gary Brown to bring the power of Billy Blind to life. From tech viz to compositing, the team delivered eight CG assets and 338 shots across all eight episodes.
Renegade Nell
Premiering in March 2024 on Disney+ , Renegade Nell is a fantasy action-adventure series set in 18th century England. DupeVFX was asked to support the show with complex technical pre-viz, on-set supervision, compositing, FX simulations, CG assets, face replacements, and more.
“We’re thrilled to see our work for Renegade Nell come together on screen. It was great to work with Director Ben Taylor (Sex Education) again on a show that proves our capability to lead, support and deliver complex VFX shots from pre-production and on-set supervision through to comp and FX”.
– Jonathan Harris, founder Dupe VFX
Coming on board in pre-production, Dupe was asked to devise and validate methodologies for shooting Billy, a magical spirit with extraordinary powers.
SUPPORTING ON-SET
VFX Supervisor Peter Eszenyi worked closely with Brown, Adam Jenkins, the 1st Assistant Director for the VFX segment of the show, as well as Dan Stafford-Clark, director of photography for the visual effects shoot to plan and capture the performance of specific scenes, including complex technical shots of Billy’s motion in flight using a robotic arm with Robo Moco.
VISUAL EFFECTS
In parallel to the production schedule, meticulous visual effects work continued at Dupe. Billy's motion in flight was modified depending on the requirements of the shot. In post, the comp team added Billy’s wings, researching wing structure, movement, speed, and colour patterns to reflect a degree of natural realism, and augmented Billy’s performance with subtle interactions, including light trails and shrinking effects. Additionally, the FX team created dust and smoke effects for pivotal moments in the show.