In order to bring a unique visual effects experience to the audience for Marvel Studios’ Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Digital Domain VFX Supervisor Joel Berhrens and his team of artists introduced visual elements unlike anything ever seen before. Hopping from one incredible reality to another, Joel and his team were able to successfully create a new world and new reality.
From metaversal destruction to twisted environments and the mirror realm, Digital Domain once again proved the power of VFX despite the challenging tasks at hand. To create the ruined worlds, Digital Domain began by designing pieces from two separate realities, each with their own distinct flair. One world matched our own New York City and the other a Victorian-inspired version of New York. Our team of artists also added assets to match each world, including buildings, familiar landmarks, tons of debris and more.The VFX team also digitally recreated part of the physical set to bring the collisions down to the street level.
To build the idyllic apple orchard, which was quickly replaced by a warped and twisted environment, Digital Domain artists digitally created a corrupted version of the orchard, highlighted by twisted, ruined trees, dusty grounds and a red sky covering it all, which conveyed the consequences of dark magic. Digital Domain also provided visual effects for the scene that takes place at the Kamar-Ta where Wanda finds herself caught in a powerful mirror trap. Our team of artists started with the sequence’s previs to establish the full look and movements. Artists then began to create a smaller, more contained version of the mirror realm initially introduced in 2016’s Doctor Strange. As the character Wanda moves into the mirror realm, launches a hex bolt, created using the same techniques Digital Domain used for Wanda’s evolving magic in the WandaVision series. The mirror then shatters, creating multiple shards, generated in Houdini.
In addition, the Digital Domain team also created the Sinister Sanctum, which was modeled from the ground up with concept art by our artists, provided full digidoubles for Wanda and Dr. Strange to all VFX facilities, created several digital cloaks for Dr. Strange and much more.
