The post production process for the film Madras Cafe was handled completely by Prasad Group – Mumbai. Prasad were involved in various processes related to the film, right from the DI and VFX, all the way to the final deliverables.
“Since the project was shot with multiple cameras, the project required an advanced workflow and pipeline which we’ve adopted a while ago to handle all the camera formats in their raw native state during the DI process. The cameras used on this project ranged from the Arri Alexa, both raw and ProRes to the RED Epic, GoPro camera systems and Canon 7D”, says an official spokesperson for Prasad Group.
Informs more, “Right from the word go we received VFX pull-lists which were prepped and all the visual effects shots were delivered to the in-house VFX team. The shots were delivered to the team with the maximum latitude possible intact. This allowed the visual effects team to seamlessly integrate all the visual effects elements into the film and deliver them back for final DI.”
“Our colorist and the director of photography Kamaljeet Negi laboriously went over the material grading every scene to a detailed perfection over the course of one month in our main grading theater. The DP having shot the film so magnificently only allowed our colorist to further the palate presented and bring his vision to life. For the process itself, we have customized the way we handle all the digital formats coming into our pipeline by putting it in the widest color space & gamma space available for that camera system using various input translation developed over the course of time.”
“This process gives the DP and the colorist a wide range of information to translate back to print film and the final DCP. The collaborative nature of this process allowed us to contribute to the overall quality of the film, but the true credit lies with the director of photography who has elevated the visual aesthetic of the film to a whole new level. The appreciation the film has garnered thus far is testament to his work and our collaborative process.”
Adds Hima Kumar, Vice President for VFX & DI at Prasad Group, “For the visual effects, we delivered a total of 220 shots. These shots varied from the now popular helicopter sequences, which were briefed to us to be as photorealistic as possible and were multiplied from just being used in one sequence to being strewn across the film.
“We also delivered various cleanups, material removals, muzzle flashes, blast enhancements and crowd multiplications for the film. The main idea for the visual effects team was to stick to the original concept of making this film look gritty and to seamlessly integrate their work with the live action sequences. Towards this, the finishing/compositing team spent a lot of time polishing up the end result because we believe in the fine and small details that lend themselves into blending beautifully with the rest of the material being presented on screen. This in itself is a true victory when you can’t tell what’s being composited or added as visual effects element and what’s real”.