The Mirage

The Matrix Mirage is a Film Short that intended to utilise visual effects to express a narrative. This was achieved through a pipeline that consisted of practical filming, Unreal Engine animation and After Effects post processing. After an initial ideation phase, as well as pre task special effects warm-ups, I created the idea for a short form narrative to show the negative side effects that Virtual Reality can have on society, through people using it now and in the future as escapism from the bland mundane attributes of everyday life. After refining the concept, I used a variety of visual effects in the practical portion of the video inclusive of colour grading, motion tracking and transitional effects. I then utilised unreal engine and camera rig rails to push the user into the scene before gaining a first person view upon a rigged and animation blended character. This work resulted in the output of a video that successfully tells the intended narrative as well as taught me further skills in the realm of special effects and compositing.