LLB Online: Fx Goby on using Rotoscope to celebrate an iconic vehicle as its production comes to an end
Volkswagen welcomed in the new decade with a moving ode to its most iconic vehicle, the Beetle, which will be discontinued this year after 81 years of production. We teamed up with agency Johannes Leonardo to craft a fitting heartfelt farewell under the direction of Fx Goby. LBB Online dives deep behind the scenes with Fx here:
LBB: You decided to animate the film in live action – can you explain why you took that approach and what animating in that way does to the final film? Fx: Haha! Yes! It probably looks silly to do the film twice! This technique is called Rotoscope and it consists of drawing over the live action frame by frame, which means we had to shoot our film first to then draw over every image. I chose this technique as it brings more realism to the scenes; it conveys some of the subtleties of the acting that we would probably accentuate in traditional animation. It also brings craft and allows for a strong art direction with pure colour blocks and textures, creating a very illustrative feel. I see this film as a nostalgic postcard, glimpses of life where the car was always at the right place. This illustrative feel really completes the essential warmth for the story to feel right.
LBB: What were the main challenges of this approach and how does it impact the final film?
Fx: What is great with this technique is that you know exactly where you are going because you have a working approved edit. What is hard is that it is a bit counter-intuitive. You might think the average animator can handle it because it is basically tracing over the live action. Well, it actually requires extremely talented animators to have the accuracy and the taste to compensate for the little accidents we see in live action. It is a tedious task that needs precision and we made sure to have a kickass team!
