2019

COMMERCIAL
ROLE: On-Set Flame Compositor (Los Angeles Shoot)
VENDOR: Artjail, N.Y.
CLIENT: Domino’s
VFX SUPERVISOR: Lee Towndrow
AGENCY: Crispin Porter & Bogusky
PRODUCTION CO: Arts & Sciences, L.A.
DIRECTOR: Matt Lenski

Riffing on iconic ’80s pop-culture references, this pair of Domino’s spots ties in their latest delivery and online ordering services with nostalgic character moments from memorable personalities of the era.

The former, titled “Cheers to Domino’s,” focuses on the loveable character of Norm from the sitcom “Cheers,” where everybody knows your name. The latter, “Risky Delivery,” recreates Tom Cruise’s infamous underwear dance from the coming-of-age comedy “Risky Business.”

New York-based shop Artjail contracted me to do a few days of on-set interactive Flame work for their Los Angeles shoot, which I might add, was a welcome diversion from my typical suite-bound duties. Working alongside VFX sup. Lee Towndrow and MD/EP John Skeffington, I was tasked with testing and ensuring that the on-set photography would be effectively usable in post – a luxury that compositors don’t always get, but often need.

Each spot had its own unique challenges.

For “Cheers,” scanned archival footage of Norm (actor George Wendt) entering the bar had to be composited with newly shot footage of a Domino’s pizza interior, mocked up to mimic the “Cheers” bar. This entailed multiple test comps, from tracking Wendt’s head onto a body double to utilizing the original Wendt footage in its entirety.

In the case of “Risky Business,” Tom Cruise wasn’t available to reprise his iconic role. But “Hamilton” actor and former winner of “Dancing with the Stars” Jordan Fisher was more than able to assume the mantle … with one minor exception. Fisher was recovering from a leg injury, which hampered his ability to perform certain moves, such as the scissor spread slide up from the floor into a full standing position. Through some careful editorial tricks and rough morphs, I was able to aid in finding a solution that effectively filled those gaps. And judging from the final result, it looks like these solutions worked in the final comps.

My only regret is that I didn’t get to work on Artjail’s post-production team to achieve the final result of these spots.

Here’s a link to Artjail’s team that comped and finaled these spots.