Capturing Anamorphic Data

35 mm lens grid

For the production of Four Ways to Destroy South Aspen High, we were fortunate to shoot on Cooke Anamorphic lenses. While these optics provided a cinematic texture and production value rarely seen in student films, they introduced a unique set of challenges for the VFX pipeline. To achieve a seamless look, we had to meticulously analyze and replicate the specific lens distortion and anamorphic characteristics in every shot.

Utilizing Cooke Anamorphic glass significantly elevated the visual aesthetic of the project, but it also demanded a more rigorous technical workflow. Integrating VFX required us to account for the distinct "Cooke Look"—specifically the nonlinear distortion and unique bokeh—necessitating custom lens grids and precise match-moving to ensure our CG elements integrated flawlessly with the raw footage

On top of the lens grids we also shot some flare reference in case we needed to recreate it digitally. This was ultimately not essential for the project but was nice to have otherwise.