Page 34 - 3D Artist 110 - 2017 UK

ILLUMINATING ANIMATION

It’s more in the character

development side of things
where a lot of the changes
have come about
Kyle Balda,
Director

intimate bond with gru. there’s a love-hate thing
going on between them. It’s more in the character The movements of
development side of things where a lot of the Balthazar Bratt was
determined by his love
changes have come about.” of dancing to music
Some animation tests were required. “We had from the Eighties
an interesting sequence to build with the lighting
and visual effects mixed with the animation,”
states Soret. “gru is brieing Dru on how to get in
Bratt’s lair. [the entire] interface was made in
visual effects, like in Minority Report, so we had to
make the character mime as if he’s manipulating a
real interface. this was something we have never
done before.” Bubble gum is also effectively used
as a weapon by Balthazar Bratt. “the visual
effects team had given us so much to choose from
in terms of the textures and styles,” remarks
Balda. “We tried lava-style bubble gum. Eric
guillon, who was a co-director and the production
designer, gave us these circular shapes to give that
feeling of elasticity, such as when lucy jumps and
lands on it, and credibility as the bubble gum
becomes like a bungee cord later on when the
girls are being saved from the building. the more
technical thing were the consequences of it. the
big-scale bubble gum caused buildings to
crumble, the ground to be lifted and all of the
water dripping from the raised ship.”
the inal battle between Balthazar Bratt and
gru takes place on a different continent to Dru’s
mansion located on a ictional European
mediterranean island known as Freedonia. “there
is so much reference to los angeles in terms of
what the Sun looks like here. We would probably
get criticised from los angelinos about which
direction the Hollywood sign faces, but those
were creative liberties taken to make a more
interesting story. the place where the artists had
the most fun is Bratt’s lair. all of his control panels
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