Rodeo FX won three Visual Effects Society Awards for its work on Game of Thrones at the 15th VES Awards ceremony in Los Angeles. The awards honored the studio’s work on Battle of the Bastards, the ninth and most memorable episode of season six.
Rodeo FX delivered 126 visual effects shots for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, including many featured creatures and their environments, the magical reconstruction of a destroyed room, and Macusa – the elaborate headquarters of the wizarding world.
Rodeo FX completed nearly 200 visual effects shots for The Legend of Tarzan, including action sequences with CG hippos and crocodiles, where realistic water interaction was critical for the success of the shots. The studio’s VFX work helped lift these animal sequences to a level where they look like scenes from a nature documentary. Along with butterflies and leaf cutter ants, Rodeo FX created a pod of hippos, including one ‘hero’ hippo that attacks Jane, as well as a bask of crocodiles seen in the final sequence of the movie.
One of the most memorable episodes of season 6 of Game of Thrones was the Battle of the Bastards, in which Meereen is under attack by a huge fleet of ships firing flaming pitch at the city. It was also just a sample of the effects work that Rodeo FX did for the series. The studio created FX simulation of flaming cannonballs, shot from ships in the harbor and ripping holes in buildings while CG smoke and particles fill the air. The Dothraki Horde comes to the rescue, during which there is a CG decapitation. Daenerys climbs on Drogon, flies across the Meereen gates, and gets the dragon to breathe fire to destroy the ships.
Rodeo FX completed close to 230 VFX shots for Deadpool, Tim Miller’s R-rated depiction of the Marvel Comics anti-superhero. The studio, led by VFX supervisor Wayne Brinton, worked on complex sequences that required fire and embers, grotesque skin alterations, and set extensions. Rodeo FX brought its unique skills to this collaborative VFX effort, ensuring that the finished product was much more than the sum of its parts.
Rodeo FX has won a Visual Effects Society Award for its work on season five of Game of Thrones. The award for Outstanding Created Environment in an Episode honored the studio’s creation of the city of Volantis. Rodeo FX received the award last night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles and can add it to the VES Award it won last year for its work on Birdman.
Rodeo FX recreated 19th-century Nantucket for Ron Howard’s latest film, In the Heart of the Sea, including concept art, seamlessly interwoven set extensions, and evocative matte painting for a total of over 260 visual effects shots. The VFX studio’s work demonstrates the power and impact of visual effects, not only for bringing period films to life, but also expanding the storytelling pallet by conveying drama and atmosphere in support of the unfolding narrative.
Rodeo FX completed 50 visual effects shots for the latest Brad Bird movie, Tomorrowland, including digital matte painting, blue screen compositing, scene enhancements, CG effects and simulation, and a thrilling sequence in which the central characters escape in a rocket-propelled bathtub pod moments before their farmhouse explodes.
Rodeo FX produced 240 stunning visual effects shots for Angelina Jolie’s World War II biopic Unbroken. Partnering again with Industrial Light & Magic, the Montreal-based VFX studio crafted photorealistic images, creating the breathtaking air combat between the B24s and the Zero fighter planes, among other spectacular sequences. Unbroken has been nominated for three Academy Awards, which will be handed out this Sunday.
Rodeo FX, which has contributed visual effects to over 70 films and recently won an Emmy Award for its work on Game of Thrones, has opened an office in Venice, California.
