Green Screen & CGI make ABC’s “Once Upon a Time” ‘s Fairytale Settings Seem Real

Jim Hill

13 years ago

So are you watching “Once Upon a Time” yet?

For Mouse House fans, half the fun of watching this acclaimed ABC Studios production is its funhouse mirror take on so many of Disney’s animated classics. Take – for example – tonight’s episode, “Fruit of the Poisonous Tree.” Which introduced the Genie from “Aladdin” as well as some serpents from Agrabah that Jafar would have been proud of.

Or – better yet – “Skin Deep,” the episode of “Once Upon a Time” which will air on February 12^th. Which will brings Belle from “Beauty and the Beast ” to the canvas. Emilie de Ravin of “Lost” fame has been hired to play this particular Disney princess …

Emilie de Ravin dons that famous yellow dress in a special Valentine’s Day episode of “Once Upon a Time.” Photo by Jack Rowand.

… and you can expect Maurice, Gaston and the Beast to show up as part of “Skin Deep” as well. But not in ways that you’ve ever seen these Disney characters before.

Which brings me to the other fun aspect of “Once Upon a Time.” This hour-long drama’s rich production design. Some of which comes about because this show is shot in Metro Vancouver. Which gives the production team relatively easy access to the sorts of deep dark forests that are supposedly found in the fairytale realm.

Not to mention the picturesque fishing village of Steveston, British Columbia. Which is where “Once Upon a Time” ‘s Storybrooke, ME scenes have mostly been shot.

Jennifer Morrison, Raphael Sbarge and Pongo during a last-night shoot in Steveston. Photo by Jack Rowand.

But when it comes to some of the more elaborate fairytale settings that you see on this show … Well, that’s where the visual effects wizards at Zoic Studios step in. They take the sets & props that set decorator Mark Lane has placed on the green screen stage at Bridge Studios in Burnaby, B.C. …

The Good King (Richard Schiff) accepts birthday greetings from his daughter, Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin). Photo by Jack Rowand.

… And then using their Environmental Unification System (Z.E.U.S.) , Zoic marries “Once Upon a Time” production designer Michael Joy‘s ideas for the overall look of this set with real time camera tracking.

The finished version of the above green screen stage shot with the virtual environment now in place.

The end result is feature- film quality visual effects delivered on a television budget and schedule. What’s more, Z.E.U.S. gives the cast and crew unprecedented creative flexibility while working on a green screen stage. Take – for example – how the director of photography can tailor the lighting for this virtual environment to create a specific mood in the scene being shot.

Emilie de Ravin on set for “Once Upon a Time” ‘s “Skin Deep” episode.

Mind you, it’s sometimes a challenge striking just the right balance between “Once Upon a Time” ‘s practical and virtual sets. Figuring out just how many pieces of furniture & props to place on the green screen stage so that the actors then have a better sense for the virtual space that they’re performing in.

Richard Schiff in the Good King’s very green royal bed chambers. Photo by Jack Rowand.

Just so you know, Zoic Studios has been working the same sort of magic on ABC‘s “Pan Am.” Using CGI and a green screen stage to create a replica of a New York City airplane terminal from the 1960s.

(L to R) Karine Vanasse, Michael Mosley, Margot Robbie, Mike Vogel, Christina Ricci and Kelli Garner from “Pan Am.” Photo by Bob D’Amico.

Of course, delivering feature-film quality visual effects on a weekly television budget (not to mention its super-compressed production schedule) can get to be pretty stressful & pricey. But given how well this ABC Studios production has been doing in the ratings (EX: When “Once Upon a Time” returned from its holiday break, its already-impressive ratings actually went up by 11%), at this point, this serialized drama is now a virtual shoo-in for renewal for ABC’s 2012 – 2013 television season.

So given that it’s rumored that Robin Hood and Aladdin himself will soon be appearing in this twisted fairytale, what other characters from Disney’s animated classics would you like to show up in Storybrooke, ME?

Your thoughts?