How to make a photoreal CG octopus: the VFX of ‘Remarkably Bright Creatures’

May 19, 2026

Behind the scenes with Untold Studios, including a whole bunch of before/after images.

Today on the befores & afters podcast, we’re chatting about the new Netflix film, Remarkably Bright Creatures, directed by Olivia Newman. In the film, we meet the character Tova, played by Sally Field, who befriends an octopus named Marcellous (voiced by Alfred Molina).

Marcellous was brought to life mostly as a CG creature by Untold Studios. In this podcast, we chat to the film’s visual effects supervisor Chris Ritvo. He breaks down how all the octopus scenes were created, including with some fun stand-ins, and then via some incredible animation and CFX work by Untold. This is a fun ep exploring the challenges that come with integrating a CG character into live action plates, with the added complexity that comes with making a CG character with tentacles.

Check out a whole bunch of imagery, and a featurette, below.

Filming the stand-in octopus stuffie. Cr. Diyah Pera/Netflix © 2026.

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