Rollercoaster Scene

[Malcolm Desoto]

Well, that sound pretty har dto match up well. Maybe you could shoot it against one of those seats that goes all the way up your back? Then you wouldn’t have to green screen at all. Just use some wind and light changes, add the sfx, keep the shot tight.

[Darby Edelen]

[Paul Trunkfield] “Also, is using the wiggle setting the best for simulating jerky movement or shall i try and rock their chairs whilst filming.”

Definitely rock the chairs. However, I honestly don’t think you can end up with anything convincing using the technique you’ve outlined (and I hate to be a pessimist). The actors will simply not look as though they’re riding on a rollercoaster. When you ride a rollercoaster your body is thrown to the side as you make a turn, the sense of gravity decreases when you are going into a quick drop and increases as you’re coming out of it, the ‘wind’ direction changes (as it’s really you moving through air, not air moving past you). Having your actors try to mimic these movements would be ill advised, when you’re on a roller coaster quickly turning to the right your body’s momentum pulls you left but you tighten your muscles and lean right, the actors would have to lean left and right at the same time!

I think your best chance using this technique (see, i’m not all criticism) would be to limit yourself to very brief shot-counter shot sets (instead of the head on approach you suggested). This way you can more readily match the actors’ actions (and wind direction) to what should be happening in the shot (i.e. turning left, going up, going down) without having to worry too much about timing it all properly for the background footage.

Darby Edelen
DVD Menu Artist
Left Coast Digital
Aptos, CA

[Mike Clasby]

How realistic are we talking? If you want “The Mask” (Jim Carrey)over the top plastic look you might try CC Bender or CC Bend it or another Distort Filter to whip those body top left and right. Just a thought.

Just wondering if there are trackable spots on the front of the roller coaster or the seats, so that you could track you green screen couple onto the coaster?

[Paul Trunkfield]

Great advice everyone – thanks.
To respond to Yikesmikes, it’s to play at a conference and the subjects are talking about the years highs and lows for their business area – hense doing it on a roller coaster. The conference is a yearly event and is normally light-hearted throughout the day so i don’t think it needs to be that realistic and a comedy touch will definately go down well.