Reliance MediaWorks, the film and entertainment services arm of Reliance Group, has been applauded for its work in the past and the man who has been in-charge of delivering unparalleled visual treats when it comes to cinematographic content is Reliance MediaWork’s president of post production service Krishna Shetty.
Popularly known as Krishnaji in Bollywood, he oversees the entire operations at the post production and visual effects studios of RMW. Being responsible for precise translations of the director’s vision though the lens of his cameraman on the big screen; Shetty is one of the most sought after person by cinematographers and directors and he has had an impactful presence in the digital and technological revolution of the post-production scenario in India as well.
His fame lies in the meticulous management of processing and DI labs, VFX, restoration and conversion, and he constantly strives to achieve and offer cinematic proficiency for every single among the several film projects that roll out of the studio.
Known for his key relationship management skills, Shetty is extremely passionate about cinematic content and is constantly on the lookout for technological advancements that would benefit the industry as a whole. His efforts have been significant in RMW, securing 16 National Film Awards for Cinematography and Post-Production, four of which have been over consecutive years for highly successful films like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Swades, Kadal to name a few.
In a free flowing tete-a-tete with AnimationXpress.com’s Sidharth Iyer, Shetty throws light on his personal journey, his professional journey, winning the National Award, future of VFX in India and much more…
Excerpts:-
How would you describe your journey in the industry and the longstanding association with Reliance MediaWorks?
I consider myself fortunate to be a part of the Indian film industry that is responsible in bringing smiles on the faces of millions constantly. I’m also honoured to be a part of an organisation like Reliance MediaWorks (RMW) that has created the robust infrastructure for the dream merchants to translate their vision on celluloid and has constantly enriched the filmmaking and thereby the film viewing process.
In terms of the journey, well it has indeed been a fabulous one and we have had some really great experiences; having been part of several iconic projects, won so many awards and recognition; but what stands tall among all the accolades is the faith and confidence that the filmmakers and their team members have constantly bestowed upon us.
That is something that I cherish every single day of my work life and it is that association that helps us at Reliance MediaWorks going in terms of the offerings that we make as contribution to the film production process.
You are responsible for the entire operations at the postproduction studio at RMW, how big is the team? And which are the main verticals that function?
At the moment, the services that we offer under post-production include: digital inter-mediate and colour grading, digital cinema mastering, visual effects along with the processing lab for films.
Essentially we offer the entire gamut of visual post-production that leads to the crisp and beautiful images that are strung together as a film. We have recently accomplished the milestone of working on over 400 films for the DI lab.
The total team including all the departments and the artists working on all aspects of the visual post-production includes 200 plus team members.
You have been bestowed with the National Award 16 times, how does it feel to be recognised for your efforts with such an honour?
Awards and recognition always feel good because it is a validation of the commitment to the industry and hard work at RMW.
Among other things, a national award feels even more special since it is the highest honour instituted by the government of India and thus, winning this award for the lab makes me really happy.
That we have been winning this award several times over the last few years, is again a reinforcement of the quality, commitment and something different that we at Reliance MediaWorks make to the process of filmmaking through our consistent efforts.
Yes it is the 16th award, and the third one in a row now. In the past as well, we have won this award for successive years, once for six years in a row. All these statistics sort of become a constant and periodic quality check for our service offerings. I am very satisfied about it.
What are the difficulties that you face on any project, which you take up? Which has been the most difficult project that you have headed?
My work mantra is to look out for solutions rather than talk about problems. In terms of challenges, well every project comes with its share of challenges. Doing justice to the creative vision of the director and DOP, keeping the producer’s budget in mind and managing the delivery timelines all at one go for every single project is my core job. So each project is unique, each project is challenging and each project is enjoyable.
What is the brief that you get from the director of the film before he/she hands over the shots that need to be worked on?
RMW as an organisation represents trust, quality and credibility that we have built over the years through our relentless efforts in wanting to make a difference to the film making process. These are some of the key drivers for an association to happen, with a filmmaker or the producer.
The brief is generally very simple; to deliver the best possible and stunning visual wonders for each and every frame of the film and that the same needs to be done within the stipulated timelines, and of course budgets. The team members directly working on the project, and assemble for workflow planning, delivery as per the production schedule and finally the release date requirements.
Where do you think we stand in terms of VFX in movies? Do you feel we are well equipped to handle VFX for the next Avatar and Gravity completely in India? If not, when will we get there?
In terms of creative capability and delivery potential I firmly believe that the Indian VFX industry is catching up very quickly with its international counterparts. Just look at the number of international and Hollywood projects that have a significant component of Indian VFX work associated with it.
What we now need as an industry is the support system to make that happen. Tentpole franchises, with VFX heavy features would drive growth of our industry even if it’s made in collaboration. That support on the macro-level coupled with the grooming of the talent on the micro-level will do the trick for us as an industry.
What is the future of VFX in India and where does RMW figure in it?
Geography will be incidental in the business going forward. The global cultural exchange, cross fertilisation of talent and advancement of technology will be the three key reasons for it. What had been as a one off case over the past few years has the full potential in becoming a trend going forward with global VFX pipelines being custom built for specific projects. In fact we at Reliance MediaWorks are already offering world-class support to Hollywood films on VFX services through our association with Digital Domain.
With high-speed media net transfer capabilities; virtual worlds are being driven by technology that keeps getting better with a wider reach across the world. That too is something that will benefit the business and is one of the key focus areas for us here at RMW.
We need to invest a lot in R&D with technical resources that will drive growth of the VFX industry and become one of the major drivers of change for the industry. In fact one of our key areas of research in the R&D vertical is – Hollywood, which will change the way films are viewed, because we are investing in technology to ramp up the frames per second, thereby delivering clearer images with crisper details and greater extent of detailing.
The movie making value chain has undergone a metamorphosis and it is indeed encouraging to see that mainstream Indian filmmakers plan their production schedules to accommodate the VFX component of the film. Going forward, the trend will catch up even further and thereby become the standard operating procedure. That also will pave the way for further integration of VFX within the script, which may eventually lead to creating a film like Gravity out of India. I sincerely hope so.
Any closing thoughts, you would like to share with the readers and the industry?
I’d just like to say thank you to all our esteemed clients, partners and well wishers, who have been instrumental in our success and continue to drive our growth. I feel fortunate to be a part of this industry and to be able to handle this aspect of the business, for a company like Reliance MediaWorks.
