We’re lifting the lid on what it’s like to work Inside Technicolor. Nicole Melius shares all about workin on Season 1 of Apple TV’s ‘Severance.’ as a VFX producer at The Mill.
Tell us about your favorite project from Technicolor Group & why you’ve chosen it?
My favorite project with TCS would have to be working on Season 1 of Apple TV’s ‘Severance.’ We were given the opportunity to collaborate with Ben Stiller and work closely in NY and with our Bangalore team for almost a year crafting over 800 VFX shots for the series. It was a creative challenge both in establishing the look of this normal-not-normal world, and also producing the budget/schedule for such a large project. I learned a lot from my colleagues and the project in general.
Why did you get into the visual effects industry?
Is it lame to say Harry Potter? I honestly loved all the behind-the-scenes parts of those films and after taking classes in college and realizing I actually understood how it all worked, something just clicked. I thought it was the coolest thing ever to be part of a process that makes it possible for hippogriffs to exist, or to fly around on a broom. We get to transport people, and I love getting to do that.
If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?
The world will not end if something goes wrong. I spent a lot of time being stressed out when projects would go in a direction that we didn’t expect, and after gaining more experience you just know that there’s always a solution to every problem. And at the end of the day, you can only do the best you can and go from there.
What excited you the most about working at Technicolor Group?
I came from a very small studio where there was a lot of multiple hat-wearing. While that was great for learning the ropes and how departments work together, I was really excited for the giant support system that comes with joining TCS. There are much larger scale (and cooler) projects that I get to work on now, and we have such talented artists and production teams here. I have lots of people I can ask questions to and learn from – and I always want to grow as a producer.
Are there any trends in the industry inspiring you right now?
The virtual production workflow is really interesting to me. Whether it’s screens on a set or using projections on driving shots in a studio, I think it’s something that really helps elevate what we do.
What are your predictions for the world of VFX in 5 years?
In 5 years, I think 90% of all the beauty / aging work is going to be done using AI computer learning. One of our artists is developing internal tools that take a lot of the manual work out of the process. There’s still a lot of artistry that goes into it, and I think the computer side of it is only going to get better.
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