A lavish trip through Europe quickly unfolds into a race against time to solve a murder aboard a train. Everyone’s a suspect when Detective Hercule Poirot arrives to interrogate all passengers and search for clues before the killer can strike again.
MPC VFX Supervisor Patrick Ledda worked with director Kenneth Branagh and overall VFX Supervisor George Murphy to deliver 500 shots as lead studio.
Given the vintage style and look of the movie, the role of the visual effects team was to help expand the scenery and the environments the train rides through. This required a delicate balance between being beautiful and grand but also grounded in reality. MPC’s work was varied and challenging, spanning from the creation of the famous train, The Orient Express, to vast mountainous environments, an avalanche and various set extensions.
MPC’s first shots were to build a CG extension to the train station in Istanbul for the Express’ departure. MPC extended the interior of the station, including it’s ceiling and walls. The first few carriages were built practically on set and MPC’s team created additional carriages as a CG extension.
As the train sets off on its journey, the audience is treated to a series of wide establishing shots showing majestic landscapes, from the drier terrains of Turkey to the snowy mountainous of the Alps. These shots were based on aerial photography plates, adapted and extended by MPC’s artists to create Branagh’s vision. For these panoramic shots, the train is a full CG model built by MPC’s artists based on a very realistic practical train which features throughout the movie. As the train stops in Vinkovci station, MPC was asked to replace the existing set with a complex digital version, which more accurately resembled the station in the 1930’s.
As the train travels thought the mountains it is hit by a massive avalanche. MPC created the environment, digital train and avalanche for these full CG shots. To create the avalanche that engulfs the engine MPC’s FX artists used proprietary tools and Houdini. The environment was created in 3D with 2D projection to add further enhancements. The initial stage of creation was based on actual satellite data of an alpine region with real world data used to create the mountain range. This was subsequently altered to achieve the director’s desired look. Creating this full CG world allowed for greater creative freedom, particularly with the lighting and mood.
Another complex scene MPC were tasked with was the chase between Poirot and Mcqueen along the viaduct. To add a sense of peril to this scene, MPC modified the appearance of the viaduct to look weaker and more distressed using 2D projections onto the real beams to give the degraded look, and added CG broken beams to augment the look.
CG environments were also added to final scenes where the snow is finally cleared and train continues on its journey towards Brod station.
