Early reviews of Matt Reeves' The Batman hint that the much-anticipated film will be the blockbuster fans have suspected. Along with an enthusiastic director and well-known cast, the latest film about the Caped Crusader also had the benefit of a new film technology called The Volume, which assisted Reeves in creating his vision of Gotham.
The Batman will arrive in theaters this Friday and fans are hungry for any new information about the upcoming film. In anticipation of this release, Reeves is opening up a bit more about the process behind The Batman. Over the weekend, Reeves revealed the use of a technology called The Volume, which is essentially a combination of 20 foot tall LED panels that are unbelievably intelligent. The Volume has the ability to render in real-time and responds to camera movement. This allows the constant correction of perspective, lighting, and other elements of the panels. First developed for use on The Mandalorian, The Volume was essential for the filming of The Batman.
For years, the film industry used green or blue screens while filming and the scenes were created later with CGI. This can frustrate actors, as they have no environment to assist them with getting into character and the scene. The collection of LED screens, which can render any environment filmmakers can think of, makes this problem a thing of the past. The screens encompass the actors, essentially encapsulating them in a rendered world, which undoubtedly makes getting into the headspace of your character easier. Reeves also discussed how this new invention also fixes the past issue of matching lighting to "a space that [didn't] yet exist." The use of The Volume means that the space does exist and, along with helping actors get into the proper headspace, it also functions as a reference point for the film crew responsible for lighting the set. It is a fascinating piece of technology and is already benefiting the film industry in huge ways.
The Volume first made headlines when it was developed for The Mandalorian series, which would have had huge post-production costs to remove the green screen in the reflection of the Mandalorian's armor. In response, The Volume was used on the set and that problem was solved. The Batman used this technology in a different, but just as useful, manner and it will be intriguing to see how this invention continues to be used by filmmakers.
Computer-generated imagery is capable of incredible things, but recently fans have shown signs of CGI fatigue. The oversaturation of CGI use in the film industry recently became a topic of discussion when the Lord of The Rings: Rings of Power trailer was released, revealing the series depends heavily on the use of computer-generated images. Some fans were impressed by the CGI, while others preferred to see more practical effects.
Good news for both sides of that argument, Reeves revealed that The Batman used The Volume, but also relied on more practical effects. For example, the Batmobile jumping through the fire during a hot pursuit of the Penguin was actually performed on set and did not use any form of CGI.
The Batman will be released on March 4, 2022.
Source: Comicbook.com