Hellboy: Falling Scenes

In the very first Hellboy, made in 2004, there are a lot of falling scenes. You could have seen that coming from an action film. Something I noticed was that there was something weird going on from the scene before to the falling scene. I couldn’t quite figure out what exactly it was, but then it hit me. All this fishiness was due to a switch between real filming and animation!

One minute you are watching actual actors running and fighting in or on top of buildings, and the next you are watching some animated character falling from a window or edge. You probably have to be more keen to detail to really notice any difference, but that’s just what happens when you have watched the film so many times.

I’d like to discuss the difference in effects between switching from real film to animation, and using actual stunt doubles to finish the scene off. First we will start with real film to animation. While if done correctly, it can be effective, you also have to consider that it takes so much more time to actually make the animated scene and be able to merge it into the scene before so that it isn’t completely noticeable to switch. You need someone who is extremely educated and experienced in the animation field to be able to even make the scene let alone merge it. This will really slow you down and cost you a lot of money.

Keep in mind, a stunt double is definitely no rodeo either. They are also very expensive! You have to pay them, and also have a paramedic team on hand incase there is a large accident or injury if the stunt gets done the wrong way. You can’t just hire anyone off the street and call it good. Therefore this also takes up a lot of time and money. Stunts are no joke, and definitely not something amateur. I would definitely suggest to wait a bit until you try a serious stunt so that you are assured that everything will go smoothly and run with minimal fall backs.

So now we are faced with the question, which one would you suggest? Well, if you were to take the cost out of everything and be left with just the fact that you have the choice between using a scene with a stunt double or an animated scene, I would suggest the stunt double.

There are timelines for everything even when you are a grown person and you have to keep that in mind. You can’t spend months upon months just making the scene. You have to think about how you can merge it in the most effective way. That way would be to use real film. There is less of a chance that a person is going to catch the fact that you switch actors rather than switching film techniques. There is also the fact that it is going to take less time to film a separate person and link the scenes rather than merging filming techniques as well.

With all that in mind, I wish you the best of luck!

Dramatic exit-- Director J