Getting hit by a car at DVinfo.net

Victor Guzman · October 1st, 2008, 08:19 PM

Hello is there a tutorial on how to create the effect of getting hit by a car? I have seen one before on Video Co Pilot, but they were using a green screen and I dont have one. all assistance will be appreciated

Dufu Syte · October 2nd, 2008, 11:22 AM

- Have a car moving at 1 mph
- Have someone standing in front of the car, slightly off to the side where the will not actually get hit.
- When the car comes very close to them (remember the car is going at 1 mph) have them jump and fall down. Note, the actor never actually come into contact with the car.
- Speed up the footage in post, making it play at 500%

If you filmed it from the correct angle, it will look reasonably like the actor got hit by the car. When editing, be sure to only show the shot for a short moment, and then immediately follow it by another quick shot, such as the actor rolling up the windshield (which you can film from inside the car while the car is perfectly still, or a shot of the actor flying through the air in any random direction (which you would film on a trampoline, or just have the actor dive off a chair onto some pillows, etc).

Shawn McCalip · October 2nd, 2008, 11:54 AM

Is it absolutely necessary to show the person being struck with the vehicle? There are ways to give the viewer the impression that someone has been hit without actually showing it. For instance, you can start with a POV shot from the car driving toward the individual on the road, cut to a quick reaction shot of the guy about to be hit, and then cut to the interior of the car showing the driver's reaction. The sequence can end with a worm's eye view of the car's tires screeching to a stop. Or, if the character being hit was holding some kind of object, you could shoot that object after being thrown in the air, or the character's hand laying still on the pavement.

It may not be what you had originally intended, but if done right, you won't have a cheesy looking effect while still being able to pull off your goal. Hope this helps...

Giroud Francois · October 2nd, 2008, 12:41 PM

in the video copilot there is a tutorial using no green screen.

Victor Guzman · October 2nd, 2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giroud Francois

in the video copilot there is a tutorial using no green screen.

is there? I cant find it. do you know were it is?

Chris Coulson · October 2nd, 2008, 04:04 PM

VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production

or here's the full list.

VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production

Victor Guzman · October 2nd, 2008, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris Coulson

VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production

or here's the full list.

VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production

that is the one that uses green screen

Giroud Francois · October 2nd, 2008, 04:36 PM

yes there is small green screen used, but in the commentary, when removing the feet that are not in the green screen , he says you can use the same technique (basically =rotoscoping) for all the guy, it is just longer.
and frankly this kind of green screen setup is not very difficult versus the time you can save.

PJ Gallagher · October 2nd, 2008, 11:51 PM

You can buy a greenscreen like the one they used for about 50 bucks on Ebay. Maybe consider it as an investment to add to your kit. I try to buy one new piece of kit, however small, whenever I shoot a film. Remember, this ain't a cheap hobby, you have to expect to shell out the dollars now and then, if you want to make something that looks good.

Otherwise, it's like Giroud said, use the rotoscoping techniques mentioned in the Videocopilot tutorial. Or use techniques like those mentioned by Shawn and Dufu.

Basically, for going the visual effects route, it comes down to you can have it cheap or you can have it easy. Pick one.

Victor Guzman · October 3rd, 2008, 04:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PJ Gallagher

You can buy a greenscreen like the one they used for about 50 bucks on Ebay. Maybe consider it as an investment to add to your kit. I try to buy one new piece of kit, however small, whenever I shoot a film. Remember, this ain't a cheap hobby, you have to expect to shell out the dollars now and then, if you want to make something that looks good.

Otherwise, it's like Giroud said, use the rotoscoping techniques mentioned in the Videocopilot tutorial. Or use techniques like those mentioned by Shawn and Dufu.

Basically, for going the visual effects route, it comes down to you can have it cheap or you can have it easy. Pick one.

Actually, I did buy a green screen from ebay, but it wont get here until next week and I need footage complete by this weekend. I got a real good deal, ebay rocks!!

Giroud Francois · October 3rd, 2008, 06:43 AM

basically, anything green will fit.
you can probably find such fabric for cheap into the any supermarket.

Chris Davis · October 3rd, 2008, 09:13 AM

There is nothing "magic" about a green screen. The reason green and blue are popular is because it does not match skin tones. You can use any color of fabric, you just need to make sure it doesn't match the clothes or skin of the subject. If I were you and I needed to do this today, I'd grab a blue bedsheet.

Aric Mannion · October 6th, 2008, 01:54 PM

I didn't read this whole thread, but I'm surprised to hear people say you can just use any old blue or green sheet to color key. I've found it impossible to properly key with anything other than a Chroma green or a Chroma blue (and of course black and white screens work fine). Good keying plug ins often expect chroma colors, and if you were to select a random color they usually don't function right at all. It's true that you can come close to matching a chroma color at home depot to buy cheaper paint, it's not "magic". But using any old blue and any old green sheets have always been absolute nightmares to key and never ended up working at all.

Frank Hardie · October 9th, 2008, 04:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aric Mannion

I've found it impossible to properly key with anything other than a Chroma green or a Chroma blue (and of course black and white screens work fine). Good keying plug ins often expect chroma colors, and if you were to select a random color they usually don't function right at all.

I've managed to pull acceptable keys using almost every shade of green imaginable. Keylight can key any color you choose. The only real issues (chroma green or not) are that you must have even lighting (of your green/blue/red/purple screen) and reasonable distance (separation) between the actor and the background.

Jeremy Hughes · October 9th, 2008, 01:52 PM

Guessing Im a little late now but as mentioned above, use white or black and luma key it out. Depending on what you are shooting on you'll probably like the results better anyway and have less work with lightwrap, etc. A nice trick also with using white is you could hit it with lights from behind the screen as well to really kick it even and hit right at 100 IRE

October 1st, 2008, 08:19 PM	#1
Victor Guzman Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Kansas Posts: 113	Getting hit by a car Hello is there a tutorial on how to create the effect of getting hit by a car? I have seen one before on Video Co Pilot, but they were using a green screen and I dont have one. all assistance will be appreciated

October 9th, 2008, 01:52 PM	#15
Jeremy Hughes Major Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Columbus, Ohio Posts: 276 Images: 2	Guessing Im a little late now but as mentioned above, use white or black and luma key it out. Depending on what you are shooting on you'll probably like the results better anyway and have less work with lightwrap, etc. A nice trick also with using white is you could hit it with lights from behind the screen as well to really kick it even and hit right at 100 IRE __________________ www.elevate-m.com filmvideostuff.blogspot.com

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October 2nd, 2008, 11:22 AM	#2
Dufu Syte New Boot Join Date: May 2007 Location: Princeton, NJ Posts: 22	- Have a car moving at 1 mph - Have someone standing in front of the car, slightly off to the side where the will not actually get hit. - When the car comes very close to them (remember the car is going at 1 mph) have them jump and fall down. Note, the actor never actually come into contact with the car. - Speed up the footage in post, making it play at 500% If you filmed it from the correct angle, it will look reasonably like the actor got hit by the car. When editing, be sure to only show the shot for a short moment, and then immediately follow it by another quick shot, such as the actor rolling up the windshield (which you can film from inside the car while the car is perfectly still, or a shot of the actor flying through the air in any random direction (which you would film on a trampoline, or just have the actor dive off a chair onto some pillows, etc).

October 2nd, 2008, 11:54 AM	#3
Shawn McCalip Major Player Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Anchorage, AK Posts: 315	Is it absolutely necessary to show the person being struck with the vehicle? There are ways to give the viewer the impression that someone has been hit without actually showing it. For instance, you can start with a POV shot from the car driving toward the individual on the road, cut to a quick reaction shot of the guy about to be hit, and then cut to the interior of the car showing the driver's reaction. The sequence can end with a worm's eye view of the car's tires screeching to a stop. Or, if the character being hit was holding some kind of object, you could shoot that object after being thrown in the air, or the character's hand laying still on the pavement. It may not be what you had originally intended, but if done right, you won't have a cheesy looking effect while still being able to pull off your goal. Hope this helps...

October 2nd, 2008, 12:41 PM	#4
Giroud Francois Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: switzerland Posts: 2,133	in the video copilot there is a tutorial using no green screen.

October 2nd, 2008, 04:04 PM	#6
Chris Coulson Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Kent, UK Posts: 101	VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production or here's the full list. VideoCopilot.net Video Tutorials & Post Production

October 2nd, 2008, 04:36 PM	#8
Giroud Francois Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: switzerland Posts: 2,133	yes there is small green screen used, but in the commentary, when removing the feet that are not in the green screen , he says you can use the same technique (basically =rotoscoping) for all the guy, it is just longer. and frankly this kind of green screen setup is not very difficult versus the time you can save.

October 2nd, 2008, 11:51 PM	#9
PJ Gallagher Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Canberra, Australia Posts: 78	You can buy a greenscreen like the one they used for about 50 bucks on Ebay. Maybe consider it as an investment to add to your kit. I try to buy one new piece of kit, however small, whenever I shoot a film. Remember, this ain't a cheap hobby, you have to expect to shell out the dollars now and then, if you want to make something that looks good. Otherwise, it's like Giroud said, use the rotoscoping techniques mentioned in the Videocopilot tutorial. Or use techniques like those mentioned by Shawn and Dufu. Basically, for going the visual effects route, it comes down to you can have it cheap or you can have it easy. Pick one.

October 3rd, 2008, 06:43 AM	#11
Giroud Francois Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: switzerland Posts: 2,133	basically, anything green will fit. you can probably find such fabric for cheap into the any supermarket.

October 3rd, 2008, 09:13 AM	#12
Chris Davis Trustee Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Willmar, MN Posts: 1,400	There is nothing "magic" about a green screen. The reason green and blue are popular is because it does not match skin tones. You can use any color of fabric, you just need to make sure it doesn't match the clothes or skin of the subject. If I were you and I needed to do this today, I'd grab a blue bedsheet.

October 6th, 2008, 01:54 PM	#13
Aric Mannion Major Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Boston, Massachusetts Posts: 616	I didn't read this whole thread, but I'm surprised to hear people say you can just use any old blue or green sheet to color key. I've found it impossible to properly key with anything other than a Chroma green or a Chroma blue (and of course black and white screens work fine). Good keying plug ins often expect chroma colors, and if you were to select a random color they usually don't function right at all. It's true that you can come close to matching a chroma color at home depot to buy cheaper paint, it's not "magic". But using any old blue and any old green sheets have always been absolute nightmares to key and never ended up working at all.