Rockline group is a huge name in the southern industry and has forayed into Bollywood working with some of the biggest names. Founded by southern star Rockline Venkatesh, the 30 year old company has already produced 25 films including Salman Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan(2015) and Rajnikant’s Lingaa(2014) in the past.
Today the reigns of the flourishing company lies strongly in the hands of Rockline Venkatesh’s ambitious, talented and extremely down to earth son, Yateesh Venkatesh. He is currently the managing director of Rockline Group. Yateesh not only believes in a great storyline but also in cutting edge technology which can uplift the visual storytelling imensively! This entrepreneur is all set to take the Rockline Group to an international level.
Currently, Yateesh gears up for the release of his company’s biggest and the most ambitious project yet, Munirathna Kurukshetra. Based on epic Mahabharat’s historic 18-day battle, the upcoming war-epic will be the most expensive Kannada film till date. It has been budgeted in the scale same as that of Baahubali and will release in 2018. Southern producer and MLA Munirathna is the producer of the film and it has been directed by Naganna.
The film has been shot extensively at Hyderabad’s Ramoji Film City using the latest 3D camera technology. This eliminates the need for 3D stereoscopic conversion and everything is converted into 3D directly during the shoot itself. Good news for the industry!
In Baahubali, there were two major fights only but Munirathna Kurukshetra has seven major fight scenes which will have a huge VFX extravaganza.It seems that this film will indeed break all records and create a history of sorts! Some of India’s biggest names in the VFX industry are working for its visual effects which has not been revealed yet.
Animation Xpress’s Swati Panda spoke to managing director of Rockline Group, Yateesh Venkatesh at MIPCOM 2017 event in Cannes, France. He shared his passion for the industry, technology, love for knowledge and his upcoming grandeur plans.
Tell us briefly about the Rockline Group.
Yateesh: We are into the production of Kannada movies since 30 years and have also touched upon other south Indian languages such as Tamil, Telugu. We are based in Bangalore and we are involved in production, distribution and execution. We have a couple of multiplex screens in Karnataka for the exhibition and the group is also acquiring a few more in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
What’s the story behind naming your company ‘Rockline’ Group?
Yateesh:We had a well known business that was famous as Rockline in Bangalore. Most of the directors and producers knew my father as the owner of the place and started calling him Rockline Venkatesh and soon our company got the same name as well.
How was your MIPCOM 2017 experience?
Yateesh: This was my first visit to MIPCOM 2017 as I wanted to explore the global market. ABAI’s joint secretary B.S. Srinivas encouraged and guided me for visiting here, so I am really thankful to him. Due to constraints of technology, the movie industry is very restricted. But MIPCOM provides the opportunity for producers to showcase their films. I really wanted to learn more and more as a person and as the managing director of my company. I believe knowledge and technical knowhow takes you several notches higher.
Do you see people from the overseas ready to invest in India now?
Yateesh: Yes, there are many US production companies that have entered the Indian market. They have started distributing their movies in Indian languages and it has helped in developing the market. Many of the foreign countries from the production front are very keen on learning about the Indian market. Now that’s a win-win situation for both parties.
How do you decide the story of a project?
Yateesh: We decide on the basis of how the market is going, how people respond to scripts now and in the future as well. If we have a story in mind we inform a scriptwriter and they take it from there. Most of the time,there are good scriptwriters that come to us. And that’s how we take things forward. Other cases would be remake of movies that can be inspiration for us and can also get in good terms with the audience.
Is this the first time, that a direct 3D camera is being used for movie production in your industry? Who did the VFX for the movie?
Yateesh: We were the first to use 3D camera technology in the country with the film Katari Veera Surasundarangi which was hugely successful. The second movie using this technology is also our production titled as Munirathna Kuruskshetra. It has a high budget and will release next year in March or April. The film is based on the Mahabharata war and is the costliest movie ever made in 3D. It involves a lot of VFX and cutting edge technology. The shooting is still on going and only 30 per cent of the movie has been completed.
How have you improved the technology in movie production ? What would yield a better quality movie – shooting directly 3D or conversions?
Yateesh: Technology-wise, we are the first production house to shoot a movie directly by a 3D camera. Yes, there was no 3D stereoscopic conversion. That’s a technology we brought in and the movie did well. It was a big budget movie and the post production expenses were high. Conversions won’t yield a better quality. Shooting straight in 3D gives a much better clarity and has a very good sharpness as well.
Did you recover the finances invested in making the 3D movie?
Yateesh: We recovered the first investment. There were high expectations due to the fact that the movie was shot in 3D. Everyone, including people from the rural parts of the state were keen on watching it on the big screen. We released the movie in every single rural area of Karnataka simultaneously. We had it screened through projectors and on a silver screen instead of the usual white screen. That is how we introduced 3D films to the Kannada industry.
From where did you procure this technology? Is there any particular scene in the movie where technology is prominently used?
Yateesh: There is a well-known person from the US who has this technology and has shot a couple of Hollywood movies.They have worked on our second movie as well with the upgraded technology.
What keeps you interested in the technology side of a film? How does it add value to your production?
Yateesh: I am very passionate about advanced technology, hence I like to explore anything new. Whether it is a new camera or a new lens, we upgrade it every three to four years. We have our own outdoor unit and also possess all kinds of lights, cameras, lens.
What are your upcoming projects?
Yateesh:We have recently signed Bollywood’s legend Amitabh Bachchan for a leading role in a feature film.From the co-production front, we have signed a new Hollywood movie with Abbas Alizada, famously known as the ‘Afghan Bruce Lee’. We have formed tie ups and will do a movie with them next year. Since we can do co-productions, the scripts we receive from different countries needs to suit Indian and global markets.
We have many Kannada-oriented movies which many countries find it apt to buy the dubbing rights. That is one of the main reasons that we want to pitch the movies we are producing. Some of the upcoming movies we have, can establish international contacts before we release them.
Any new technologies you’re eyeing upon?
Yateesh: At MIPCOM 2017, I witnessed a couple of technologies such as 8K resolution pictures. These are certain things that are coming up and must be implemented in our Indian entertainment industry.New technologies are 8K resolution pictures. Before getting them, I should get to know more about it, stay prepared and ready to accept it later. Although there’s no point implementing it now, we must be geared up for future. We need to concentrate on upgrading our exhibition side to showcase the 8K technology.
Do you have plans to open a new VFX studio?
Yateesh: We are planning to build an in-house team so that we could monitor our own quality, whether we are achieving it the way we want it. Yes, we are planning to having our own VFX studio very soon.
Do you stick to a particular genre?Could you mention some of the genres you’ve worked on?
Yateesh: There’s no particular genre that we stick to, we are open for all kind of films. Right now, we have done mostly action based movies or those films that connect with the masses. We also focus more on multi-starrer movies, getting all the good actors onboard together . We want families to be able to connect with our films.
That was Yateesh Venkatesh for you. Rockline group is indeed going great guns! The 3D camera technology will definitely shorten the period of time for creating a 3D film and is a new revolution indeed! Stay updated with us for more news on Munirathna Kuruskshetra and Rockline Group.
