While most of the shots in the film have been enhanced in-house, and those that were beyond my skill set were contracted out as small jobs on services like 'Upwork', there is one shot that I desperately need the help of a professional in completing. I need a 3D animator.
Ripley's sacrifice at the end of the movie is one of the most egregious offenders when it comes to post-production sloppiness, and it severely impacts the emotional weight of the story's conclusion.
There are three visual effects shots that make up her fall into the fire. The first, which shows the Xenomorph bursting out of her chest, then seconds later a close up on her face, at peace with her fate. These first two shots have been completed to the standard set by the Legacy Cut. I have cleaned up the lines around Ripley, added new fire and smoke effects, and removed the distracting flicker from these Theatrical Cut shots. I’ve even created a newer, cleaner version of the chest-burster animation.
I am confident they will greatly enrich your viewing experience.
However the final shot of Ripley actually falling into the flames remains the final hurdle to completing The Legacy Cut fan edit, and this shot is of very poor quality in both the Theatrical Cut and the Assembly Cut.
I’ve tried numerous times in different ways to make the shot work with 2D animation. I was able to fix the two previous shots this way, by rotoscoping and using digital paint and stock effects, but for the final shot of Ripley falling it just doesn’t work, and looks comically bad, completely breaking immersion and undoing all the good work that came before. There is no workaround, I need the skills of someone who can map a 2D image onto a 3D model, and manipulate that model to fall toward the flames, have the lighting reflect a body in motion, perhaps even have the clothing ripple as she descends. It’s a quick shot, only lasting two seconds, but it’s something I can’t do on my own.
There are four remaining Xenomorph shots I am working on. The process is laborious and time-consuming, hence the October release date, but they are well within my capabilities. However this one shot of Ripley falling into the fire is beyond my skills.
I have created a new 2D image of Ripley with the Alien held to her chest, and have created the background plate video of the furnace and flames for her to fall into. What I need is for a 3D animator to merge my 2D image of Ripley onto a 3D model, and create the animations for her falling, and being consumed by flames, on the path I've laid out.
If there are any capable 3D animators out there who would be willing to donate their time and efforts to bringing this shot to life, I (and the rest of the Alien fan community) would be eternally grateful. I would of course credit your work on the website, which will be staying up long after the release, so I can keep in touch with fans and take on feedback.
If a labor donation is not possible, I could manage a significantly reduced fee, but quotes I've looked at range into the thousands of dollars, which I simply do not have access to. A34K is a fan project done in spare time, and while I have been spending $50 here or $100 there to contract smaller jobs and bring these shots to life, I just don’t have the resources to fund a huge contract like this.
Please do reach out if you have the skills to create this shot and would be willing to work with me. You can email me directly at admin@a34k.net, or use the contact page, quoting '3D animation' at the top of the message.
Many thanks,
- Project A34K
