Variety: Prior to working on “1917,” special effects artist Tristan Versluis had designed no more than five or six corpses. But Sam Mendes, director of the WWI drama, which has garnered 10 Oscar nominations, needed Versluis, who picked up one of those noms in the hair and makeup category, to create 30 corpses and dead horses, all at different stages of decomposition.
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I’ve read behind the scenes articles about other movies where the actors or crew would get freaked out because there would be a mutilated body double of an actor on set. They said it was disturbing because it wasn’t a real person but it really seemed like the person. Therefore I cannot imagine what it would be like to be around war-torn corpses. The team behind this makeup work clearly did their research. When they talked about the bodies being like rotting cheese I had an immediate image in my head of their decomposition and I felt disgusted. I would like to give big props to the actors who had to get up close and physical with these bodies, my stomach can barely look at them, much less put my hand through one. I think it is impressive how technology has progressed in terms of human replication - this team was able to complete such a large and complicated task because of the progression in technology and our understanding of the human body and how it decomposes.
"Over the years, Versluis had built up a back catalog of images of real corpses..." the things we do for our careers. I'm sure if someone searched through our internet histories, and they didn't understand the nature of our work, they would be so very concerned about our mental well-being. But this is what we do, and obviously, having the catalog paid off. Whenever I travel or I'm simply in a new area, I try to take pictures of the architecture, scenery and so on. It becomes so helpful when designing. The amount of times that I have had to find research images that were factual, but the internet failed me, is beyond me. In those moments, you feel so helpless because you can't teleport yourself to a different place and time. Though, libraries exist and they help, but they are time consuming. So taking pictures when you see something that may be helpful in the future is worth it. Whether that be of a building from a specific time period, or even how a personality type would keep their surroundings...anything helps. People edit and photoshop a lot, as well as stick labels on things incorrectly. So having your own stash of primary research is so very helpful. Even if it's a simple paint treatment that's unedited. It's a great habit. With that being said, I really appreciate the way that Versluis used the research and applied it to the corpses that he was meant to create. Even the diary with the descriptions of what that soldier was seeing, that's all such amazing research and I'm sure it made those scenes so much better.
I'm queasy enough about blood and gore that I'm not sure I would be able to work on a film like this. The incredible things designers do to make things feel real create products that are meant to make people uncomfortable sometimes. Even reading about an actor having to put a hand through a realistically made fake corpse made my stomach churn. But that's what makes their art so great. They evoke emotions through their attention to detail and dedication to painstakingly create something realistic. The fact that they studied corpses and Versluis themself created a catalog of real corpse photos over not just the time of the film but years. I wouldn't spend my days studying pictures of decomposing corpses for anything. Reading an article earlier on a man who made a flight simulating structure of a P-51 Mustang cockpit it's really struck me this week that the levels of production we see have so much research and creative thinking behind creating a sense of trueness to the effects we see.
While watching 1917, I remember thinking how realistic the corpses looked! Not only did they seem real with the makeup, but they also looked real, with the clothing, body structure and the state of the decomposing process. The fact that the artists had a catalog full of pictures of corpses in various stages of decay is not only horrifying, but also pretty freaking cool. I never would have thought that creating a corpse would involve research, but then again, I've never seen rotting corpses in a river before either. I am glad that the artists have been nominated for their work, as it was quite impressive. Even the corpses of the horses were lifelike and very gruesome. Creating full bodied corpses for the 360 cameras as well was just another factor into creating these masterpieces of horror. I loved 1917 for its cinematography, and now I love it even more because of the corpses.
I have yet to see this movie and I am so upset about it. Also, opening this article and reading, “Prior to working on ‘1917,’ special effects artist Tristan Versluis had designed no more than five or six corpses,” really threw me for a loop. How crazy would it be to say that you get paid to design corpses? Wild. Anyway, from the promotional photos and trailers for “1917”, I can tell that Tristan Versluis’ work is greatly valued, and it adds a necessary impact to the film. What really piqued my interest was the part of the article that revealed their use of 3D technology. Whenever I watch films with large crowd scenes, I always wonder if the image is manipulated or they actually hired all of those people. It is really cool that they were able to digitally add the mass of people to the film, and knowing that information will probably alter my focus when I finally see the movie.
This article is actually quite interesting. Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to see 1917, though I would really love to do so, and now more in order to see the final product of the special effects put in to create the dead soldiers and horses. It's really interesting to read about the way that special effects have changed to the point where now, Versluis used 3D technology in order to design and print different parts of the bodies in order to make it easier on him. I always love to read about how much technology has changed to benefit artists as well as people from all different careers and industries. Also, just thinking about the amount of research put in to create these corpses gives me a headache. I've never been a huge fan of history, but its remarkable how much designers and creators pay attention to detail in order get their creations as realistic as they possibly can.
Rotting corpses make me as uncomfortable as the average person (I’d hope…) but to my surprise, I found myself noticing the attention to the detail of the dead soldiers as I watched this film last weekend. Decomposing human skin is something I’d normally turn my head from, but it was so incredibly well done in this film, and I noticed. And it was important for the team to do a solid job, because the dead characters had quite a big role in this story. When the lead soldier accidentally stuck his wounded hand into a cavernous rotting human chest, I genuinely felt SO uncomfortable—their effect was successful! I read the article last week about the cinematography/filmmaking techniques for this film, and it’s interesting to read this and get a deeper understanding of the single shot 360° method and its impact on the rest of the departments. It’s becoming apparent that a lot of the artistic process of creating this film primarily on location was trial and error, so it was neat to read that the team had to create full corpses. I also didn’t know (or put the pieces together) that they could 3D print the bodies—that is SO COOL and great because it creates a realistic product but allows more time for the rest of the process by cutting that time down.
I always appreciate when a filmmaker makes the choice to use handmade effects rather than CGI because it can show off the true craftsmanship of an artist and make a scene more impactful. There was a moment in1917 when one of the soldiers put his injured hand straight through the gorey chest wound of a deceased German soldier and the entire theatre I saw the film in gasped from disgust, including myself. The whole audience knew it wasn’t real, but because the prosthetic was so realistic, the scene was perfectly executed to show off its disturbing impact. Reading about the amount of research and detail Tristian Versluis put into his effects was impressive and to also see he got an Oscar nomination for his work is wonderful. Movies like 1917 show how effects can go a long way in creating the atmosphere of the world and realism can trump computers.
This is really intense. I have yet to see 1917 but I am very excited to do so. It amazes me the level of detail that can be attained on film sets these days. The craft is so detailed and ornate and so much work is put into each minute aspect of the film. I love the connection between technology and artistry as well that is represented through these corpses. They were able to utilize new 3D printing technology as well as modern silicone to create the bases of the corpses, but the details relied on the artists themselves to create. It is such a morbid idea, and I wonder how the artists dealt with such an in-depth study and then production of these gory and morbid props. It is incredible the amount of factual information they relied on in order to create such realistic figures, It goes to show how important in depth research is on every project, not just multi-million dollar war films.
One must imagine what it was like to act in a pool of dead bodies. Must be a hell of an experience, probably harrowing, to some extent. Now I must imagine what it's like to be a part of the corpse-making process. Honestly, if not to be a part of it, I definitely would like to see the process of it, either in person or as a time-lapse video. This article actually makes me really want to see 1917, whereas before I had no intention to do so whatsoever. Getting to know the behind the scenes of a film really makes one appreciate it on a whole different level, especially when it employs a practical craft as opposed to computer-generated images and visual effects. I think practical effects are the film equivalent of immersive theatre, discounting movies in 3D, because it is a genuine experience for the actors and a more real effect for the viewers. I hope many more behind the scenes stories like this are shared.
Well this sounds cheery. I imagine that creating dead bodies good enough for film is a fun problem to solve, just form a technical standpoint, but I can't imagine that it is always enjoyable work. The artist would have to consider exactly what happened to somebody in what was probably the most traumatic moment of their lives, and then to consider exactly what effect that would have upon them and their bodies. It must be an immense amount of work to create a dead body with high enough quality and realism for a movie, especially when, as noted, it has to be realistic from all angles, and for any shot. Not to mention that they did this thirty times, and also with horses, which I imagine are even more complex than human corpses.
Part of what made the movie 1917 really impactful for me was the way that we viewed the aftermath of war on screen and part of the way that we viewed that aftermath was due to the makeup pros that created realistic dead bodies on the screen. I have seen the movie twice, and both times that one of the two characters sticks his hand into the chest of a deceased German, the entire audience let out an agonizing groan. It was very convincing. Another very uncomfortable but effective moment occurs at the end of a river where there are lots of bodies piled up that the character must climb over. This part was hard to watch because the bodies were so convincing that we were upset that the character had to go through something like that. It seemed so real when we were in the theater watching the film.
Wow!!! I’ve never really thought about the fact that when you see dead bodies in a movie that someone has had to have made the dummy. 1917, being a war movie, I’m sure shows many many dead people. The makeup team for 1917 is just incredible. The fact that they constructed or printed 30 dead humans and horses for the movie is crazy. And most of them were full body silicone. I have so much respect for people who are so talented in special effects makeup. I would love to learn more about or take a class on special effects makeup. It’s so useful to know those types of things especially for theater in which sometimes we have a dead body or severed limb that’s needs to be part of the production. Also the artists who did the makeup for the dummies had a hard job because they had to make them realistic but also visible from all directions since the one shot take aesthetic meant that the camera could move up to 360 degrees.
I have to say I’m surprised at the number of corpses needed for this movie. I actually would have put the count at way over 30 if I were to guess. I wonder how the team in this movie addressed the emotional toll of working on such a really gory movie. Do they keep someone around to help people through difficult content? In such a high paced professional environment, I think it would be easy to just accept the dead bodies on set and simply move on, but how healthy can that be. That must put stress on the brain at least subconsciously. I also think it is interesting how easy it is to find pictures of decomposed bodies of people and horses on the internet. I don’t know how I feel about it. Overall I think 1917 teaches us quite a bit about filmmaking because everything had to be done to such a high level because of the camera views and method of filmmaking.
I still have not seen this movie, but I so want to. This article specifically interested me because I - and this will sound very odd - but I love looking at how life-like corpses are made for film and television. There are whole departments dedicated to creating corpses (especially for series like “Bones” and other such crime related shows) and it really is so fantastically interesting to see how one creates not only a life-like body, but a dead life-like body. Honestly, I’m sure that the FBI is really looking at these artists’ computer search history because I am not sure how else one might know how a person’s corpse would suppose to look (other than Versluis’ corpse “look book”, I suppose). The amount of collaboration with the 3D visual effects department is insane, too. For a war movie like “1917”, the amount of carnage they would have needed to create was far beyond the amount of time that Versluis’ team had, so they basically copied and pasted body parts which I think is amazingly efficient.
Honestly, when I saw this movie I wasn't sure if all of the corpses were actors or effects. It makes more sense that they are dummies and CGI, not casted actors, but it's very interesting to hear about the process and how they got all the corpses to look so realistic. One thing that I am curious about that they did not touch on within the article is the cost of creating all of the Carnage within the movie. Versluis talks about the use of silicon How he has seen prosthetic materials improved over the years, and how one can manipulate silicone to look close to human skin. I wonder how many people were on the effects team to create the corpses. I also wonder if the team had to work while the camera was shooting, in between moments to show the change of decay and such. The most impressive moments I noticed within the whole “one shot” was when Blake got stabbed. Between the stabbing and his death he progressively got paler and visibly more corpse-like. My friends and I discussed if they did that using cuts, or if the makeup team was working during the shots. It was a very cool effect!
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As gross as corpses seem, I find it fascinating that some people are willing to study such a thing. The article didn’t mention this specifically, but this made me think of body farms which are places that bodies are kept in various stages of decomposition for research and for learning how to identify them. Human remains detection (HRD) dogs I believe train using something like a body farm and I know that search & rescue trackers sometimes will get to go to them in order to increase their understanding. The 3D modeling software is also interesting because it’s just one more way that 3D modeling is permeating our industries from dental work to film. The last thing that this article made me think about (which I have been thinking about a lot) is that with movies and plays, you have to cater to the most advanced people in every field. In a movie like 1917, the corpses have to look correct to someone who works with dead bodies, and the chaos has to look correct to anyone who's been to war and so on.
I’m reminded of when I was a junior in high school, our advanced stagecraft class made casts of our hands and made silicone moulds of them to cut up/paint to look bloody and dead for our production of Sweeney Todd. But this article largely reminds me of last year when the artistic director for Game of Thrones visited the school and part of her presentation included how they created the mounds of dead bodies/horses in the Battle of the Bastards. She talked about how they had to costume, paint, render, and makeup a variety of them all to make them unique and realistic enough to be believable. She also mentioned how for the crew and cast it was even kind of spooky or uncomfortable to be around the pile of fake bodies, so I can’t imagine what it would be like for this movie where the setting is in our world and only 100 years ago. I haven’t seen the movie 1917 yet , but considering how recent it is I can only imagine how much more realistic the prop corpses are. I’d love to see more in-depth articles or videos about the processes for creating these props are, as well as how the cast/crew handle them once they’re complete.
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