Improved image and visual effects certainly don’t have much effect on Universal’s benefits. This star-studded musical only gets $ 40 million globally, a comparison with a fantastic budget of $ 100 million, not to mention marketing costs.
Cats visual effect problems
Problems were seen even before the film released the controversial trailer. Production begins in December 2018 and ends in April. Time 5 months in the post-production schedule is fairly tight for films that rely on a lot of visual effects and complex. Not to mention that every character must get a digital touch based on a combination of stage sets and CGI. Complicated.
When the Cats’ first trailer aired on July 18, 2019, a barrage of attacks came. Hollywood Reporter reports that there are some redesigns. Including the character of Bustopher Jones, played by James Corden, gets a more comedy look with a long mustache and fur.
When the film was released, sources revealed to the THR that the work on the visual effects was late, the sound processing was reported to have also been delayed. Hooper himself admitted that the film was completed less than 48 hours before the premiere in London.
The THR report said Hooper continued to adjust the visual effects of the material, although it did not change the content. “I don’t think there has been any change in content,” the source explained. “Improving, mostly small details. … Improve the performance of the actors you see, improve lighting, perfect integration. ”
Even though the studio that handles Cats’ visual effects is not canned. The work is done by two VFX houses owned by Technicolor; MPC and Mill Film. Both were assisted by other studios, including those in India and the recently closed MPC Vancouver.
Despite all the criticism, Cats was included in the list of options for consideration of the Nominated Visual Effects nomination at Oscar 2020. But after bombing at the box office and getting a poor C + review from CinemaScore Universal pulled the film from the website page “For Your Consideration”.
But Cats will still be part of the Golden Globes on January 5 where the song “Beautiful Ghost: by Lloyd Webber and Taylor Swift was nominated as the Best Original Soundtrack. Cat also received a nomination for the Motion Picture Sound Editors category at the January 19 Golden Reel Award.