Dinotopia - Mini Series

"Dinotopia is special-effects perfection, a visual treat with meticulous attention to style and atmosphere." Variety, 9th May 2002

 

Dinotopia premiered in the US in May 2002, in the UK on SKY1 in September 2002 and was shown on UK terrestrial TV on Channel 4 over Christmas 2002. Nominated for 7 Emmy awards, including 'Outstanding Special Visual Effects' and 'Outstanding Mini-series', it is the largest project of its kind ever undertaken. Dinotopia draws on an unprecedented range of resources - human and computer - and marks Framestore’s most ambitious foray yet into televised creature animation. For the first time, the company has brought its proven skills and artistry to bear on three 90-minute episodes of an epic fantasy mini-series.

 

Dinotopia showcases a huge variety of the very latest in computer special effects. From creature animation to digital set construction and landscape creation; from state of the art motion rigs to flawless blue screen work.

 

Dinotopia was over 2 years in the making, including 8 months' continuous shooting supervised by a Framestore visual effects team, and a further 10 months of post-production.

 

Dinotopia incorporates a staggering total of 1800 visual effects shots, over 1200 of which contain computer generated elements, created by a team of 130 CG and compositing artists.

 

Dinotopia introduces Framestore's unique M-Rig - a computer controlled device designed to ensure that the live action cast ride the CG dinosaurs with a sense of realism never before possible.

 

Zipeau, a talking dinosaur who plays one of the lead roles in Dinotopia, is entirely computer generated and features on screen for 32 minutes of the 6-hour mini-series, courtesy of a 14-strong dedicated team of character animators.

 

Computer generated sets created by Framestore for Dinotopia include Waterfall City, the opulent capital city of the dinosaur kingdom, and Canyon City, spectacular home of the flying reptiles.