Vampir – An Agile Case Study

Weaving the Agile Post Pathways framework into the production from an early stage, Final Post was able to create a smooth, efficient and highly creative path for all involved.

Recently, Final Post worked with triple threat writer/director/actor Anya Beyersdorf of Gifthorse Films on her intriguing script Vampir.

Anya’s dream team included producer Nicole Coventry and award winning cinematographer, Warwick Field ACS. The key protagonist, Vladimir was played by the all absorbing Tony Rogers, complemented by a mix of striking young faces forming the rest of the cast, adding to the Eastern Bloc aesthetic. The all star crew was rounded off with the involvement of boutique editing house, The Butchery in Melbourne and composer John Kilbey to create a haunting score for the film.

Intriguing rural locations were hand picked to give the film it’s eerie vampire vibe. Shooting dusk ’till dawn not only made the busy crew nocturnal, but also gave way to stunning pictures captured by Warwick. Shot on Red Epic with vintage Kowa anamorphic lenses, this promised to be a feast for the eyes. Of course, we rubbed our hands together with glee, seeing the precious art that would find our theatre for finishing – we really relish these moments!

Shooting with a compact crew, on location and at night meant that our Agile Dailies workflow would fit this production perfectly. Our Agile supervisor Chloe Brandstater developed a workflow and data plan suited for Vampir, to arm Nicole (producer) with confidence and assurance that their beloved project would have a clear path through the technological jungle that is digital cinema production.

"I’ll admit, the technicalities of data management are not my strong point, and with our post happening interstate it was imperative that we had professionals on board to take on the responsibility of driving Vampir along its post production pathway. Knowing there was a team of dedicated and reliable professionals managing all the “back of house” post processes – meant I could concentrate on the myriad other aspects of the production that needed attention. It’s impossible to quantify the contribution Shane, Chloe and Eleanor have made throughout the process of bringing Vampir to the screen!"

Final Post armed the 2nd AC with our workflow and minimum requirements to implement the agile workflow. By securing the footage, making triplicates of the data, completing checksums and a simple QC, we received the rushes in tip-top shape. Of course, Shane couldn’t help himself and drove down to the last day of filming with daughter Amaya.

Once we received the footage at Final Post, we pumped it through our powerful dailies software, which meant that we completed processing of 3 shoot days of footage in under 4 hours. This included:

Created AVID editorial files for The Butchery with synced audio / LUT / metadata input / burn-ins
Provided Footage log reports for producers
Secured LTO digital negative backup
Preparation for round trip back to the DI (colour grading software).
Created HD ProRes files for directors for viewing.

The editorial files were delivered to The Butchery in Melbourne, where they were able to open up the AVID bins, prepped and organised– and began cutting immediately.

When we received the locked EDL edit the project conformed impeccably – no doubt due to our strict data processing and agile workflow. This allowed the edit to be loaded into the Nucoda system, linked to raw media within minutes – ready for Warwick, Anya and Shane to start grading in the theatre.

The film is due to be released in 2016… follow it’s journey on Facebook and watch the trailer here.

"It was so great being able to start the dialogue about the look of the film with Shane before the shoot even started. Shane is a true artist, painting with light and colour to find emotion and nuance – the look we finished with has left the film with a very distinctive and unique look as its signature"

It's always a pleasure when technology makes way for the creative process to flourish.

Due to simple planning and management of the pipeline from set through to finishing, every artist involved were able to work to their fullest.