In the Flesh
The drama centres on teenage Zombie, Kieren Walker, who returns home after his death in 2009 to a less-than-warm welcome. He’s part of a zombie group that has been treated for PDS (Partially Deceased Syndrome), but the zombie-hating Human Volunteer Force, which is backed by local churchman, Vicar Oddie, is adamant in its stance against rotters, despite the government’s agenda of acceptance and tolerance. Kieren must confront the community that reject him and deal with haunting flashbacks of what he did in his untreated state.
The brief for this project demanded that, above all else, the VFX component should never draw attention to itself. Director, Jonny Campbell wanted realism and strict restraint in order to create a coherent world in fictional ‘Roarton’ without a trace of fantasy.
This called for a paramount level of pixel precision and care. The Space team avoided green screens entirely and didn’t ever let VFX concerns dictate the filming of a scene. We did cast replication and gave some props the most subtle digital additions to prove their authenticity. We scattered graffiti and banners throughout the casual hand-held shots, and meticulously designed them to be so deliberately drab and amateur that no viewer would ever question their reality. We also enhanced a whole lot of secret things that just weren’t perfect enough.
Space created VFX shots across 3 x 60-minute episodes including: