Film and animation 3D Printing Application-Shenzhen Seetop Technology Co.,Limited

As a multi-billion dollar industry, film and TV production crews are often tasked with the heavy burden of bringing artistic visions to life – fast. Luckily, 3D printing can help designers quickly manifest their wildest imaginations into the physical reality, and Hollywood has taken notice. Here are the 3 biggest ways 3D printing is hitting the big screen.

Practical effects specialists, prop makers, and costume designers are responsible for most of the double-edged battle axes, sweeping dresses, and exploding cars in movies and TV. I say “most of” because many of those things are now created digitally. Digital effects have progressed to a very convincing level of detail, but many directors (and audiences) still prefer the realness of practical effects for a variety of reasons that we won’t discuss here. Up until recently, nearly all practical effects were made by hand using clay, plaster, foam, chicken wire, fabric, wood, and bits of consumer goods combined in creative ways. Nowadays, those same designers are adopting 3D printing to produce many of their props and makeup effects. There are clear benefits to using 3D printing in the film and TV industries:

Fantasy and sci-fi props are among the most printed objects in Hollywood right now. The makers of ‘Game of Thrones’ utilized 3D printing with most of their armor, masks, jewelry, and weapons. Their forte was in developing lightweight and realistic props that pop on-screen and are more cost-effective than teams of digital effects artists. In fact, in some scenes the creators entirely eschewed the digital route and used an enormous 3D printed dragon.

The ‘Jurassic World’ films did something similar by printing dinosaur remains. Archaeologists and designers worked together to bring the various species’ skeletons to fruition, giving them realistic textures and even including details that indicate their gender and age. They 3D scanned real fossils to help them recreate the printed props.

Bright Lights! Big Stars! 3D Printing!? David Leigh, president of Harvest Technologies, a Stratasys Company, and Jason Lopes, lead systems engineer at Legacy Effects and longtime Stratasys customer, will be taking to the stage for a special presentation at SXSW 2015, March 13-22, 2015, in Austin, Texas, to demonstrate the way 3D printing is reshaping the movie making process.

“There has been a significant impact in visual effects through the marrying of CGI and physical models manufactured with 3D printing, creating a seamless transition in the editing and post processing of the final product. There is just something the human eye picks up when it compares a traditional model to CGI designs,” Leigh said. “3D printing provides the best of both – it’s an exact replica of the CGI model crafted in a digital space that can now be brought to reality, facilitating a better cinematic experience.”

Stratasys’ 3D printing technologies have been used in Legacy Effect’s prop and costume making process for countless movie blockbusters. In addition, Legacy Effects also partners with Stratasys’ service bureaus for custom parts using ID-Light™, cast urethanes and large FDM components. Outside of the silver screen, Lopes and his team also assisted in building Bodock, the giant creature, and the Wired robot at Comic-Con 2013.

Marvel’s Heroes and Villains Come to Life with 3D Printing

3D printing has played a major role in recent movie production, especially several of the recent Marvel blockbusters, changing the way costume and prop shops build some of Hollywood’s most memorable characters.

Lopes’ integration of 3D printing into the creative work at Legacy continues to be transformative in costume development. 3D printing has opened doors to material options and has changed the way actors interact with the set and their costumes. The power of prototyping using 3D printing for costume design is evident in Marvel’s Iron Man trilogy. Iron Man’s suit, articulated gloves and integrative costume pieces were prototyped and produced on a Stratasys 3D printer using PolyJet technology. Lopes and his team also 3D printed numerous costume and prop components, including intricate helmet parts for Pacific Rimand RoboCop.

“The adoption of 3D printing at Legacy Effects has allowed us to take our craft to the next level and create things that before were unimaginable,” Lopes said.

The Star-Lord helmet in Guardians of the Galaxy, as well as Korath’s suit, were both 3D printed by UK costume shop FBFX. The Stratasys 3D printed parts were used directly on Star-Lord’s helmet featured in the film.

But 3D printing isn’t limited to costumes. Moddler 3D printed the prototypes for the weapons used in Men in Black 3 , and Thor’s legendary hammer Mjolnir came to life with rapid prototyping at the Propshop.

What’s Next on the Big Screen?

According to Lewis Simms, Marketing Manager at Harvest Technologies, a Stratasys Company, “3D printing is now changing the film industry in a manner that hasn’t been done since the introduction of computer-generated imagery. Studios and special effects experts are now able to utilize 3D printing to produce everything from concept models to scaled and full-size props, set-pieces, and costumes. These computer-generated designs are literally brought to life, bringing fantasy just that much closer to reality.”

Intrigued? Want to learn more? More details on the SXSW panel are coming! Make sure to join us at SXSW 2015 to hear more about the future of 3D printing in the film industry!

Film and animation 3D Printing Application

Why 3D Printing is Hollywood’s Latest Super Hero

Marvel’s Heroes and Villains Come to Life with 3D Printing

What’s Next on the Big Screen?