A huge deep dive on the VFX of 'Wicked: For Good'

All the big sequences broken down in the magazine.

Issue #48 of befores & afters is here! If you’re a DIGITAL MAGAZINE tier member, you’ll be able to download the mag direct from the shop post.

Not a member? Sign up as a DIGITAL MAGAZINE subscriber, or buy the mag direct from the shop post (to do that, purchase the post to get the mag).

In Jon M. Chu’s Wicked: For Good, the second half of the two-part adaptation of the Broadway musical, the story turns darker and more politically charged as Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) lives as a hunted rebel, Glinda (Ariana Grande) rises within the Wizard’s carefully curated regime, and the truth about Oz’s power structures begins to fracture friendships and reshape destinies.

Bringing this escalation to the screen required a sophisticated blend of practical special effects and digital visual effects, from large-scale fantasy environments that expand Oz far beyond physical sets, to complex creatures, enhanced magic and flying scenes.

That work was overseen by production and Industrial Light & Magic visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman. Like the first film, ILM (visual effects supervisors Anthony Smith and Robert Weaver) and Framestore (visual effects supervisor Jonathan Fawkner) were the principal VFX vendors. Further contributions were made by Outpost VFX, Rising Sun Pictures, OPSIS and BOT VFX. Framestore Pre-production Services (FPS) and The Third Floor provided visualization services. Paul Corbould was the special effects supervisor. The final VFX shot count reached over 1,800 shots.

In this special issue of befores & afters magazine, we go in-depth on the effects in the film with Helman, Fawkner, Corbould and Framestore animation supervisor Dale Newton. We cover the opening yellow brick road sequence, the methodology for making Elphaba fly, crafting Emerald City, building Glinda’s flying bubble, the mirror effects for ‘The Girl in the Bubble’ sequence, animating animals, the Kiamo Ko environment, simulating the tornado, and delivering more invisible effects such as the young Wizard flashback.

You can also grab the issue in PRINT from Amazon (that’s the US store, make sure you try your local Amazon store, too).

Here’s the links to various Amazon stores:

USA: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GDGT28NC

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0GDGT28NC

France: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Spain: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Italy: https://www.amazon.it/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Australia: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Japan: https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0GDGT28NC

Sweden: https://www.amazon.se/dp/B0GDGT28NC