France’s The Yard VFX has released a visual effects breakdown showreel showcasing their work on Paramount+’s Halo season 2.
The official synopsis of the show is as follows:
Master Chief John-117 (Pablo Schreiber) leads his team of elite Spartans against the alien threat known as the Covenant. In the wake of a shocking event on a desolate planet, John cannot shake the feeling that his war is about to change and risks everything to prove what no one else will believe – that the Covenant is preparing to attack humanity’s greatest stronghold. With the galaxy on the brink, John embarks on a journey to find the key to humankind’s salvation, or its extinction: the Halo.
The Yard VFX team worked closely with VFX supervisor Wojciech Zielinski, to craft the environments and action sequences of Halo – Season 2. The team worked on over 380 VFX shots that included expanding asteroid-based space docks, designing the Forerunner City, and recreating the legendary Halo ring.
Below are a few key highlights from the sequences featured in the breakdown video:
- Docking Bay Escape: The team digitally extended a practical set into a 400-meter space dock, using procedural designs for scaffolds and machinery, and adding digital actors for a bustling spaceport scene.
- Onyx Valley and Camp Currahee: The team crafted a detailed alien landscape with elements inspired by the Causeway Coast, upgrading game assets and adding animated Spartan crowds and dynamic Condor ships.
- Forerunner City: Yard VFX designed a sprawling metropolis, highlighted by the creation and animation of a CG light bridge, seamlessly integrating practical effects to enhance realism.
- Halo Environment: Filmed at Italy’s Predil Lake, the team digitally enhanced the landscape and added the iconic Halo ring, a crashed Covenant ship, and a towering Forerunner structure.
The show is adapted from the well-known Xbox exclusive video game series known as Halo. The series began with the first game Halo: Combat Evolved which was released in 2001 developed by Bungie and Gearbox Software and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It has six mainline entries with the latest one being 2021’s Halo: Infinite which was developed by US-based 343 Industries and published by Xbox Game Studios.
Halo Season 2 is now available to stream on Paramount+.