The Pregnant Ground (2019)

“After a traumatic stillbirth, a woman starts to believe the ground below her apartment becomes pregnant.”

As lead compositor on this project, I strategized with director Haolu Wang to decide how best to represent her emotionally evocative fantasy elements. My responsibilities included on-set supervision, set extension, CG compositng, clean up, and quality check for delivery to grade.

Some highlights for me included attending an underwater shoot, supervising the set-up and capture of a large outdoor greenscreen set, and offering to be an extra in a pool scene on one of the hottest days of the year (extra points of you can spot me!)

November 1st (2019)

“Traveling to witness the execution of her son’s murderer, a mother is torn between retaliation and reconnecting with her estranged daughter.”

As the lead compositor on this project, my main tasks were screen replacements and merging CG damage onto an unscathed car.

November 1st was a 2019 Student Academy Award Winner! Congrats team!

Almost There (2019)

“On an everyday train journey quite unlike any other, a not-so-casual observer goes to extreme lengths to avoid other passengers, a giant baby runs away from his parents, a romantic woman starts an ill-fated relationship with a cuckoo, and a naïve boy discovers that some problems can’t be fixed by pictures of unicorns.”

As lead compositor on a film taking place in a moving train largely without in-camera exteriors, I knew there was going to be plenty of work ahead. The passion and teamwork behind this project assured that it could only be made into the wonder that it is!

I met regularly with the director, production designer, and cinematographer in order to strategize about the best way to approach this stop-motion and 2d blend. We developed the exterior images and light interaction level together. Getting to know the different sections of the train, and all the unique characters made compositing for this project so fun.

A Bird With No Legs (2019)

“Theo plays his saxophone to lead his broken father, James, inside a magical song. Theo’s goal - to help James overcome his grief.”

For this stop-motion animation, my primary role as compositor was consulting. I frequented the set to strategize with the director, Nick Cinelli, about what was possible to tackle in post, and what needed to be done in camera. I also did the compositing for a few shots.

Digital Verbunden (2020)

For this experimental sci-fi film, I worked with the compositing lead Oliver Buus to deliver clean up and compositing of the greenscreen digital grid environment.

Good Samaritans (2018)

“Romania, 1784. Young Elena finds herself stranded alone in a dark, secluded wood. When she is approached by two thieves, Elena’s true guise comes to light.”

If you’re a DFX student at the NFTS, you know one of the biggest projects you’ll work on during your time there is Gorefest - a horror project that takes place once a year and combines SFX, special effects make up, and every digital technique you’ve learned so far during the course. Looking at this daunting task, Ashleigh Ramirez and I decided to team up as co-producers to handle all things organization.

Starting in pre-production, we met with the director to discuss his ambitions, production design students to determine the set extension needs, and talent such as actors, and costumes. We attended the shoot, made sure everyone had their needs met, and that we captured all the necessary material.

For the VFX work, we divided the work democratically based on the timeline and interests of each of our peers. I myself got to work on compositing some big set extensions and eye effects. One among us who specialises in grading created a working LUT, and then graded complete edit. Then we rendezvoused with the editor, sound design, and composing students to create a final film. Finally, we organized a viewing in the school cinema with a DCP and invited all those involved.

Sindy MSM (2019)

As a junior compositor, for this commercial my primary responsibilites were compositing of multiple animation layers, clean up, flicker removal, and DMP integration.

Urban Myths : Bleak House Guest (2019)

As a compositor on this short for Sky Arts, I did paint and retime work.

Loose Leaves (2019)

I had the chance to approach this student project as both lead compositor and producer. As part of a team of classmates from the NFTS, we planned this short as a test of the use of motion capture.

We storyboarded the shoot ourselves, keeping in mind the need for simplicity for scaled recreation. We then travelled to Centroid and assisted with the capture of motion data. My classmates edited the animation and then added FX. I composited it together and then created the final edit.

The Phoenix (2019)

“A lifelong friendship is rekindled when Martha’s elderly mother dies and Gloria decides to accompany Martha on a final trip aboard The Phoenix, the similarly ageing canal boat Martha grew up on, to the boat yard where she plans to sell it.”

As lead compositor on this project, I knew going in I was going to get to play with fire - and I was excited. I worked closely with FX artist Liam Wedge to plan how we should enhance the flames, while minimizing render weight. Getting to play with custom elements and having the flexibility of layers made the job very enjoyable. Besides fire, I was also involved in cleaning up some unwanted artifacts.

The Fire Next Time (2020)

“As the rioting spreads and looters push police lines back, the shadows in the housing estate and high street grow longer and the oppressive environment takes on a life of its own. A young mum stresses out about her benefits, a struggling father has a barney with security guards at the Job Centre and teenagers grow angry with the police who dog their every move.”

As compositor on this project, I worked closely with the director and cinematographer to advise about the best way to capture elements such as greenscreen and multiple exposures in order to achieve the desired effects. I also composited some backgrounds.

This mixed media approach was new to me at the time, and I’m greatful I could learn from and be involved in a film with such a great style and message!

Misconduct (2019)

“Annie and Daniel are a miserable middle-aged professional couple who want what they can’t have - but this doesn’t stop them pursuing their goals via any selfish, unsavoury means possible.”

— imdb

For this dark comedy, my primary tasks as compositor were screen replacements.

Listen to Me Sing (2019)

“A miserable hotel performer finds her most primal self when she falls in love with a walrus.”

As a compositor on this project, I worked with the lead, Cécile Ceppi, to create consistent compositions of greenscreen-ed stop-motion puppets on miniature sets, and to enhance smoke effects.

Sheba: Resistance is Futile

Working closely with director Nick Cinelli and animator Nelly Michenaud, I integrated the 2d characters into the miniature set. As the sole compositor on this project, having the discussion about exactly how much interaction there should be with this style was very enjoyable.

In The Silence (2019)

In The Silence is a tense short, addressing the affects of PTSD for a veteran. For this project I provided clean up work as a compositor.

LilMissCandy786 (2019)

“In search of an identity, Candy wanders through the digital landscape, leaving fragments of herself behind in this experimental short drama.”

LilMissCandy786 was broadcast on BBC Four as part of a night of short films marking the 30th anniversary of the World Wide Web. My primary role on this project was VFX consultant - I spoke with the producer about how they might most practically achieve effects that they wanted. I also did some clean-up work.

You can learn more about the film on the director, Myriam Raja’s website HERE

AEON (2019)

“A cinematic ride through the inner-workings of first life, the diversity of the animal kingdom, and the organised chaos of the modern world. ”

I leant my compositng skills to this journey through nature in the form of clean up of unnecessary elements.

Inanimate (2018)

“Katrine has a normal life, a normal job, a normal boyfriend and a normal apartment in a normal city. Or at least thats what she thinks, until one day everything starts falling apart - literally!”

I took over as lead compositor for Inanimate at the end of its production when the previous lead had to leave due to other commitments. I personally completed tens of shots, and organized and oversaw the delivery of final shots to the online edit. The work on this project was varied, but some recurring tasks were rig removal and clay smoothing.

Inanimate went on to receive many awards, including third prize at the Cannes Film Festival in the Cinéfondation Selection and the BAFTA Special Jury Prize.

Moth (2018)

“Jumping between reality and fantasy, Moth is the story of a grieving family told through the eyes of lonely 8-year old Mabil and her vivid imagination which shows her how a tragic loss is breaking apart her parents.”

As a junior compositor, my main role was rig removal for this stop-motion animation project. Believe it or not - those moths don’t fly without wires!

Fishboy (2018)

“Fish Boy lives in darkness, his guilt about the past slowly consuming him. His girlfriend Laura is a light of hope in his dark world. But despite his efforts, his past continues to chase him, eventually putting them both
in danger.”

Fishboy uses a unique combination of textures - from fabric to paint - to tell a compassionate story. As a junior compositor, I assisted by overseeing final export organization, and shot delivery to the grade.