VFX · Hallmark TV Movie · 2024
The Challenge
Integrating a new AI scanning tool into a live production pipeline — producing a CGI intro sequence that had to match the film’s visual tone and narrative, while filming in winter and simulating spring — was a genuinely complex undertaking.
Add to that the delivery of custom bug animations and managing a location shoot under some of the most relentlessly wet conditions our team has ever faced, and you have a project that demanded adaptability at every stage.
The Solution
We used Luma AI to generate and refine the fully CGI opening sequence, then layered in the bug animation work using Unreal Engine to create a tulip flower patch that simulated at least a hectare of spring in full bloom.
Despite the weather pressures on set, our post-production pipeline absorbed the complexity and delivered 37 VFX shots across four weeks. An Easter Bloom proved that new tools, boldly applied, open doors that didn’t exist before.
Our Write-up
An Easter Bloom gave us a rare and genuinely thrilling opportunity to push our technology boundaries. This Hallmark romance marked one of the first times we integrated Luma AI into our production pipeline — using it to craft a fully CGI opening sequence that set a distinctly cinematic tone and a very specific creature-animated narrative for the film.
On top of that, we designed custom bug animations that needed to feel believable and charming in equal measure — think the iconic Men in Black opening sequence as a creative north star. Oh — and we did all of this on one of the wettest shoot days our team has ever experienced on location. 37 VFX shots, four weeks, and a genuine technological milestone for us.
