Watch an exclusive, in-depth BTS featurette about Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” analyzing the cinematography, VFX, lighting, and cloud-based workflow of a key sequence of season one: the eruption of Mount Doom. “The Rings of Power” was captured in large format with ARRI’s ALEXA Mini LF and ALEXA LF cameras combined with DNA LF and Signature Prime lenses supplied to the New Zealand-based production by ARRI Rental Munich.
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The aftermath of the eruption was filmed in a sound stage with hundreds of ARRI SkyPanel S60 and S360 LED fixtures behind muslin screens around and above the village set, allowing the crew to fine tune the red color and create soft backlight in every direction. With multiple units shooting simultaneously and the pandemic restricting travel, the producers set up a sophisticated cloud-based workflow that depended on metadata supplied by the cameras and lenses. For this behind the scenes look at a pivotal moment of season one, cinematographer Alex Disenhof ASC, senior visual effects supervisor Jason Smith, producer Ron Ames, and visual effects producer Jesse Kobayashi all sat down with ARRI to discuss their work on episodes six and seven of the show.
