Visual Computing Labs (VCL), a division of TATA ELXSI Ek Tha Tiger

Visual Computing Labs (VCL), a division of TATA ELXSI, located in Mumbai has delivered 1300 VFX shots for YRF blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger which released last month. The Vfx was delivered using a customized pipeline designed for the complexity of these shots. Up to 60 skilled technical artists were deployed by VCL for this project, which was completed in a record six and a half month period. The entire duration of CG/VFX in the film spans over a 30 minute duration.
Presiding over the team were the Creative Director of VCL, Pankaj Khandpur and Vishal Anand, Visual Effects Supervisor at Visual Computing Labs (VCL).
Ek Tha Tiger is a romantic action thriller directed by Kabir Khan and produced by Aditya Chopra , Yash Raj Films. The movie stars Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in the lead roles and Ranvir Shorey, Girish Karnad, Roshan Seth and Gavie Chahal in supporting roles. The movie marks the third collaboration of Kabir Khan with Yash Raj Films . This film also marks VCL’s 24th collaboration with Yash Raj Films.
Talking to AnimationXpress Ishpreet Chandock, about his experience working on Ek Tha Tiger, Pankaj Khandpur – Creative Director, VCL said,   “We started working on the movie 7-8 months before the actual shoot started, where we did a pré viz of all the sequences as it was going to be an action packed film. There is alot of action sequences in the story shot across countries, such as  Ireland, Turkey, Cuba and of course the last bit we have shot in Thailand which was supposed to be Cuba, so as it was a action oriented movie we were brought on very earlier into the scene.”
Kabir Khan, the director of the film wanted to pre viz all the action sequences before the movie went into production. So based on the director and action director’s brief we worked on the previs which was done shot by shot, sequence by sequence. We also had reference pictures of the locations it was supposed to be shot in, which  gave us a very clear and detailed idea , and helped usmake iterations with clarity.
However we had to compensate for the certain things we hadn’t thought of, for instance for the dublin shoot , for the tram sequences, we had to create a CG tram , a lot of background in CG and all the sequences around the tram as the crew were not permitted to shoot certain shots, also, the shots on top of the tram are all simulated by various ways in CG just to make the sequence look larger than life.”
“The sequences at Cuba had a simple narration compared to Dublin, but we had to work on a lot of effects on the action sequences especially the climax, for the plane sequence, a CG plane had to be  created , a lot of action also had to be simulated. So, in a nutshell we did around 1300 shots, which for such a feature film should have been around 2000 shots but we curbed it down with using a lot of CG work. Personally, this is arguably the biggest indian film which we have done so far.”
‘Ek Tha Tiger’ also marks VCL’s 24th collaboration with Yash Raj Films including films like ‘Dhoom 2’, ‘Hum Tum’,’Rab Ne Bana De Jodi’, ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ and the count just continues.
Sharing his thoughts about this long collaboration and his experience throughout these films, Pankaj Khandpur said” It has been a wonderful experience working with Yash Raj, the 24 films done by vcl just symbolize the same. We  hope we create more magic together in the upcoming projects.”

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20 Clever Uses of Stickers in Advertising

Everybody loves stickers, right? You might not think about it often, but those cute little pieces of sticky paper that often feature an amusing message or supportive slogan are always a lot of fun. We love getting free stickers in magazines, in goody bags, or even at parties and events, but stickers can also mean serious business. Advertisers and brands are constantly thinking up original and creative ways to use stickers as part of their marketing campaigns, and a well-placed sticker can be some of the most powerful and effective forms of advertising out there. If they’re doing it right, you won’t even realise it’s an ad. So, with that in mind, we’ve done the leg work of trawling through the deepest and darkest depths of the internet to find the smartest use of stickers you will ever see. Join us on this most sticker-licious marathon!

Lays, or Walkers to us British folk, stuck a sticker on the ceiling of a subway, which gave the impression that potatoes were growing above commuter’s heads. This was to emphasise that the ingredients used are home grown as opposed to being outsourced on the cheap.

Kleenes – Got Flu?

During a flu epidemic, Kleenex added some rather off-putting stickers to soap dispensers in public bathrooms. Their aim was to highlight the fact that Kleenex tissues are a great way catch and kill the snot inducing virus.

Pedigree – Cat Food

Pedigree launched an advertising campaign that involved placing scented stickers on the floor outside of pet shops and supermarkets, to entice dogs and encourage their owners to purchase their dog food.

Batman Begins

To promote the launch of Batman Begins, stickers were place on the ground lights outside of cinema theatres, projecting his signal when the lights came on at night.

Tatto – Stickers on the Mirror

Thinking about getting a tattoo but hesitant to take the plunge? A New Zealand tattoo parlour stuck stickers on mirrors in rest and changing rooms so people can try before they buy.

Indavideo

Indavideó, Hungary’s equivalent to YouTube, partnered with Vodafone to advertise the launch of mobile internet. They placed stickers over bus windows, giving the impression that passengers were watching a video as the outside world passed them by.

Irish Pub – Hot Wings

Le Cactus restaurant and bar wanted to advertise their “Monday Hot Wings” on a shoe string budget, and came up with this ingenious vinyl to stick over the rear brake light.

Superman Movie

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Nope, it’s an awesome advertising stunt to promote the Super Man movie using vinyl stickers. This is sure to brighten up anyone’s morning on their way to work.

Jobs in Town

As part of their advertising campaign, a German job website added clever stickers to the side of coffee machines, ATM’s, laundry machines and juke boxes to emphasise the fact that life’s too short for the wrong job. The campaign was a huge success and drove vast amounts of traffic to their website.

Canon – Waterproof Camera

Canon promoted their waterproof camera by placing stickers over sink drains in shopping centres, restaurants and gyms. Smile!

Safe Driving

On a more serious note, these stickers were placed on parked car’s wing mirrors to portray how important it is to check them before pulling out into the road.

Ambient – Entel Connector

Telecom Technology Company Entel NGN placed connector stickers on the side of buildings, ships and trucks to encourage companies to use their networking solutions.

Demolition Magazine

Surfs up dude! This extreme sports magazine added surf board stickers to elevators for commuters to stand on. Gnarly!

Pro Skates Skateboard

Keeping with the theme, PRO SKATE placed removable vinyl stickers onto crosswalk signs near schools and skate parks.

Adidas

This cleverly placed sticker puts a mundane and overlooked object in a completely differently light.

Specsavers

This fantastic Specsavers vinyl gives the impression that the driver has backed into a sign, featuring their world famous tag line.