By Hans Jakob Harms
The idea for the short film “S/N:05” (Sinos) came about when I read Catrin Misselhorn’s book “Grundfragen der Maschinenethik” in 2019 and imagined a scene in which a small machine fights a cat, a symbol of freedom. Which position do we take? That of the clunky machine or that of the cute cat? At the time, however, I didn’t realise that the topic of artificial intelligence would experience such a boom with ChatGPT and co. All the more reason to take another look at Catrin’s Reclam book.
Jonas (script) and I worked out the story in detail and convinced the FFF Bayern to support the project with an animatic. It was important to Noah (camera) and me to achieve a dark, cool tone in the visual design, as we couldn’t tell the whole dystopia in nine minutes and with the tight budget. To achieve the look we wanted, we decided to shoot
to shoot on a RED Gemini 5k with anamorphic lenses. The film mainly takes place in two locations, a children’s room and a remote house, which Andreas (set) decorated according to a precise construction plan and colour concept. Then Ivetta (producer) and I planned the shoot before we threw ourselves into the fun. Eight days of filming. With cat, child and CGI – you can find the rest of the key data here: is.gd/sinos_imdb.
Maya, our leading actress, impressed us with her talent both at the casting and during filming. Although she was only twelve years old at the time, she knew exactly where to go. It was a lot of fun working with her. Up until the first day of filming, we were very worried that Gizmo the cat wouldn’t be in the film. But Barbara’s (animal trainer) stars are used to the hustle and bustle on set. We did our best to create a feel-good atmosphere for the little one, and lo and behold, Gizmo delivered shot after shot. Now there was just one more hurdle: Sinos.
Shooting
It was important to us that the film looked like a snapshot from the future, as realistic as possible. To achieve this, we worked on the character of Sinos and the monstrous machine long before filming. Alan (metal artist) built the robot from scrap parts based on a sketch by Michael (illustrator). Using a small scaffold that we retouched in post, we were able to move Sinos’ head and limbs. So we used the real Sinos in the close-ups and a CGI double in the wide shots. As the images in the film often follow each other directly, we needed an exact digital copy.
This is where Markus comes into play. He recreated the figure in Cinema 4D true to the original. He used a scan and the real model as a reference and the result was amazing. In the end, we were even able to mix the real model with the 3D model. For example, we unscrewed the arms from the real Sinos during the shoot and animated them in post.
It was nice to see how the character gained personality with each step during the creation process. Based on my description and some references, Michael drew the first picture of Sinos and gave him the features of an old, limping man. From there we could have gone straight to 3D and made the film with a digital model. But Alan’s sculpture, which
but Alan’s sculpture, which he assembled from metal parts (such as pliers, screwdrivers, pistons, etc.) and which is subject to the laws of physics, breathed a different essence into the little rascal. Now he looks more like a chunky baby who is struggling to hold his screws together. An ideal teammate for Maya, who plays his mother in the film.
Unfortunately, we were unable to recreate the large machine. We did have the idea of modelling the machine with individual elements, but the budget was too tight. This time, Markus created the 3D model directly from a concept by Michael and refined it according to his ideas. During filming, we used tripods as a reference to estimate the size of the machine for the shots. This allowed the actors to visualise the machine with a lot of imagination.
With my background in post-production, I was able to take on a dual role on set as director and VFX supervisor. A static camera and lots of references provided a solid basis for post-production, so that the 3D elements could be combined well with the filmed material. I realised the animation of the machines in Cinema 4D and rendered them with Arnold. The renderings were then applied to the plates in After Effects and played out for Resolve.
The large number of VFX shots and the tight budget made detailed planning in advance essential. Even though the possibilities of digital post-production are becoming easier and more accessible to everyone these days, poor and often unnecessary visual effects can take away the authenticity of a film. We scrutinised the VFX twice for every shot and only shot what was necessary to tell the story. But of course, in this science fiction film with fantasy characters, there were still a lot of images that had to be supplemented with renderings.
To avoid headaches in post-production, it helps to have a storyboard in which the tasks are precisely specified after filming. This makes it possible to estimate and possibly reduce the scope of post-production in the pre-production phase. Of course, it is an advantage if you have mastered the craft yourself or at least have a basic understanding of it. Otherwise, I would always involve an experienced VFX supervisor in the planning.
A film lives from its actors and the roles they embody, and VFX are known to complicate the acting during filming. That’s why I distributed the focal points in the resolution of the scenes. In one shot, I focussed on the actors, giving them the freedom to perform. In other shots, however, the visual effects took centre stage and the entire team concentrated on the clean execution. Of course, it is particularly appealing to merge an elaborate visual design with an emotional play in one shot. But the problems that arise during staging and the high, often incalculable effort involved in post-production should not be underestimated, especially for an independent film. I acquired my post-production skills through my own film projects. After school, I made my own short films, in which I always had to take on several positions. As a few days of shooting were often followed by several weeks of post-production, I honed my skills in the areas of editing and animation in particular. I am first and foremost a filmmaker and like to tell stories that don’t require elaborate VFX. That’s why it’s important to me to work with programmes that produce meaningful results quickly.
I want to keep the technical effort in post as low as possible and emphasise creativity. Cinema 4D offers a user-friendly introduction to the 3D world and is similar in structure to the standard Adobe products. At the same time, it is equipped for most challenges in terms of scope. In special areas (e.g. simulations) there are software solutions that are better equipped. However, when I reach my limits, I usually look directly for artists who can help me with their specialisation.
Marie and Thomas helped me with the organic animation of a deer. Tapan tracked a drone shot that Cinema 4D couldn’t solve. Tanver helped me rotoscope the actors and Nagendra removed a rig from Sin’s eyes that I couldn’t retouch in After Effects. Of course, as with almost every project, there were problems that can get on your nerves. My tip: ask Reddit. The community is full of professionals who are happy to help if they have a solution.
I have kept the animation pipeline as simple as possible. With a rough animation of a low poly model of Sinos on the tracked plates, I was able to determine the timing in the cut and play out a picture lock with preview renderings. I then linked the rig of the low-poly model with that of the high-poly model for the final rendering. In this way, the turnarounds with the final scene were kept within limits.
The nature of Sinos, a robot made of rusty metal parts, suited me for the animation. Simple mechanical movements and the combination with the real model enabled me to create the animation myself. Rigging and animating the monstrous machine was a little more complex, but manageable thanks to the few settings.
Colleagues asked me why I chose Arnold as the render engine. Markus had prepared the 3D model with Redshift materials. But I think GPU renderings are not yet “on par” with classic CPU renderings. Technically, I don’t know much about this area. That’s why I converted the materials from
Markus’ materials to Arnold and compared them with the Redshift renderings. We both liked the look of Arnold better and so the decision was quite easy.
The soundtrack by Giovanni, the sound design by Alexander and Florian and the colour correction by Lukas and Nadir put the finishing touches to the images and brought the menacing world to life. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who was involved in this project and helped make this short film come to life.
Conclusion
We have submitted the finished film to several festivals and are waiting to see if it finds an audience there. It will then be made freely available to everyone on the internet. A trailer is available on the Instagram page. We are currently working on a screenplay for a feature film to continue the story of Sinos in the dystopia.
