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Elasticity Effects in Movies

Special effects in live-action movies are either done on-camera or during the movie's post-production. Popular special effects seen in movies include fire, explosions, rain, snow and smoke. A number of movies also showcase effects that change the look of characters like those that make a person look older, younger or monstrous. Other effects can make the body elastic or even transform into another person, creature or object. Props and sets can transform on screen through the use of various special effects.
  1. Mechanical Effects

    • The movie production can create elasticity effects for a movie directly during the shoot instead of making them from the computer.These live effects often use elastic materials such as rubber or spandex. Depending on what the story needs, an elasticity effect can be shown when the actor pulls or stretches the material during filming or when the elastic material is incorporated in a puppet or an animatronic creature. Animatronic technology uses a mechanically or electronically controlled mock-up character operated by a person or a group of persons. Animatronic characters usually work as magical, supernatural or animal creatures in movies.

    Makeup and Prosthetic Effects

    • While cosmetic makeup is used to enhance natural beauty, special effects makeup for movies is typically used to enhance the out-of-the-ordinary look of a character. For instance, when making a part of the body look elastic on screen, special makeup is used to polish its final look. This makeup is often used in conjunction with prosthetic effects as they play crucial roles in helping a character look different, weird, eerie or funny. Whether using regular makeup or layering and blending additional materials to complete a prosthetic effect, it should always look convincing on screen.

    CGI Effects

    • Making elasticity effects from computer-generated imagery (CGI) means creating photorealistic or out-of-this-world special effects by using image, graphics and animation programs to create designs and models. These models are then animated to match the live-action footage shot for the movie. This type of special effects production usually requires the use of a chroma screen during the shoot so it's easier to combine elasticity effects on the final footage. Aside from this chroma-keying process, the production can use the rotoscoping process to incorporate elasticity effects into the live-action footage. Rotoscoping is an animation technique wherein a CGI effect is directly placed over the footage frame by frame.

    Chroma Screen Effects

    • Shooting a movie using a chroma screen can benefit the creation of elasticity and other special effects. These effects are finalized during the movie's post-production by replacing any green or blue screen background or any object covered by a green or blue matte in the live-action footage with the visual effects specifically created for the movie. The effects that replace the green or blue mattes on a footage are either separately shot mechanical effects or CGI effects created using animation programs or any other graphics/special effects programs.

Film Production

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