The seventh and final season of The 100 premiered Wednesday, May 20 on The CW, and the season premiere offered CoSA VFX the opportunity to provide visual effects for several sequences in the opener which was called “From the Ashes.”
CoSA VFX Supervisor Nick Lund-Ulrich talks about the elements of the season premiere in the interview below.
Can you talk about the anomaly and CoSA’s involvement with it?
CoSA was involved with creating the look for the anomaly in season 6 and then were brought back to continue it in season 7. The anomaly is a combination of both dynamics artists using Houdini to generate various elements and then turning it over to the nuke compositing artists to create the final look. Then, the anomaly really takes on a layered approach where we continue to add more and more elements until it ends up at the look you see in the finished show.
What kind of direction does CoSA get when creating an effect like that?
The folks over at The 100, led by Michael Cliett, have always supplied us with great reference and descriptions for what could otherwise be challenging looks to develop. That being said, they have also allowed us to flex our creative muscles and bring interesting looks to the table to help refine and get everything looking cool.
CoSA worked on a jellyfish element that can be seen in The CW’s Season 7 extended trailer. Can you talk about that?
The jellyfish was created in Maya/Zbrush by our 3D team. We were given concept art from production but told to really run with it and make look as interesting as possible. This was definitely a challenge because jellyfish are so amazing looking to begin with it’s hard to find a good design that is definitively recognizable as well as looks like nothing else anyone has seen.
Can you talk about creating other planets and landscapes for the series, without spoilers.
We were responsible for a key environment later in the season, that was really exciting to help bring to life. We were given concept art and great direction on what it was supposed to be, and then were just allowed to play and come up with something really interesting looking. Sorry I can’t say much more than that!
How is working on The 100 different from other series that CoSA may have worked on?
The one thing that sets The 100 apart is that it’s on its seventh season, which doesn’t happen as much anymore. It definitely feels like there is another layer of challenge for the VFX to continue to create new and exciting things for the long term viewers of the show to enjoy.
It’s been really fun to get involved with a show that so many people are passionate about and have stuck with over the years. Working with Michael Cliett, Emanuel Fidalgo, Tim Scanlan, as well as everyone else on the team has been fantastic. It’s always great to work with folks who have solid creative ideas, but also willing to let the VFX team do its thing and help contribute to the great stories that they are telling.
You can see a clip of our work from The 100 season premiere below.
ABOUT CoSA VFX
Founded in 2009, CoSA VFX has grown from a small boutique into a thriving visual effects studio with offices in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Vancouver. The CoSA VFX team has received Emmy nominations and wins for their work on TV series including Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Almost Human, Revolution, and Gotham, and currently provides visual effects for multiple studios, networks and streaming television services.
FOLLOW CoSA VFX
http://cosavfx.com
http://facebook.com/cosavfx
http://twitter.com/cosavfx
https://www.linkedin.com/company/cosa-vfx/
MEDIA CONTACT
Craig Byrne
Publicist/Social Media Manager
Craig.Byrne-IC@cosavfx.com
