Custom R&D

Never content with the status quo, Frantic Films is well known for pushing the boundaries of VFX technology on every motion picture project. When current technology fails to produce anything less than stellar images, Frantic's Research and Development team jumps into action, creating software and custom code to achieve incredible results. Oftentimes, these motion picture assignments drive the development of new, cutting edge technology ultimately benefiting the VFX industry as a whole. This has been the case for many of Frantic's R&D innovations. From the Deadline® Render Farm Management System, to Krakatoa, the high-volume particle renderer, to the Amaretto 3ds Max interface for the NVIDIA Gelato renderer, to the Flood Fluid Simulation Suite, Frantic Films is pushing the envelope of conventional thought and applying real science to create tools and technology that truly open a whole new world of possibilities for VFX professionals.

The R&D team achieved unprecedented nautical realism by developing Flood: Surf an innovative ocean surface software program. Based on a statistical model of deep ocean waves, Flood:Surf accurately reproduced natural oceanic flow, while enabling users to manipulate variables such as wind speed, wind direction, wave direction, water choppiness and surface shading. The early ocean surface shots were so convincing that many producers and industry professionals were unable to tell if the shots were real footage or CGI.