GMC Envoy - The car builds itself.
The following is a step by step look through the process of creating a car factory set in a disused warehouse for the GMC Envoy SUV. The finished commercial required one single tracking shot that would show the car building itself. This was achieved by a sequence of stop frame animation on a motion control rig. The sequence was shot in reverse to simplify matters, as it meant we could start with a known end frame of the pristine car, and it would be faster to dismantle it than to assemble it. To visualize the exact parameters of the set elements that would be required I first took a sequence of photos of the location with and without the car (rows 1 & 2) I took these measurements and built a mock up set in a 3D program (Bryce) and animated a sequence with a camera shot and lens similar to what we would use on the shoot. I have shown 3 key frames of that animation in row 3. From this I could determine how much set was required to service the shot, thereby reducing unnecessary building and dressing expenses. Rows 4 & 5 show similar frames of the actual built set with and without the car. Post production work added some more dynamic elements of various car parts in motion.
