👋 Your watchlist just got better.

• 🎥 The Phoenician Scheme | 6.6

• 🎥 Wick: Ballerina | 6.6

• 🎥 The Life of Chuck | 6.6

Read time: 3 minutes | 629 words

TRENDING

• 🎭 New trailers for Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, Adam Sandler’s Happy Gilmore 2, Rian Johnson’s Knives Out 3, and Black Phone 2.

• 🎬 New behind-the-scenes video reveals how filmmakers created twin effects for Michael B. Jordan in Sinners (includes this wild halo rig).

• 🎥 Simon Pegg teases 4th Edgar Wright collaboration after "Running Man," jokes Nick Frost's Hagrid casting complicates reunion.

• 🎨 Artist Nuno Sarnadas showcases fan art poster designs for Sinners, The Wild Robot, and Weapons — no AI used.

• 🦇 Mike Flanagan confirms "Clayface" script inspired by "Feat of Clay" Batman animated series episodes (watch the episode here).

TOGETHER WITH BUZZTOWN - JUNE 6th

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FEATURE

📸 How They Shot the “Eulogy” Episode of Black Mirror

No green screen? Minimal CGI? Paul Giamatti and Creator Charlie Brooker explain:

The latest season of Black Mirror delivered one of its most technically ambitious episodes with "Eulogy," starring Paul Giamatti (full interview here) as a man who uses groundbreaking technology to step inside old photographs.

What viewers might assume was achieved through extensive CGI and green screen work was actually accomplished through an ingenious practical approach that impressed both the star and creator.

The production team's innovative solution involved casting dancers and mimes to portray the frozen figures within the photographs. These performers had to remain completely motionless for the duration of each take, creating an eerily authentic experience.

"They were mostly dancers and mimes. So they were frozen for the length of the take," Giamatti explained. "And it was uncanny to be around them. They were remarkable."

Creator Charlie Brooker (full interview here) confirmed this unconventional approach stemmed from both practical and artistic considerations. "It's often the old ways are the best," Brooker noted. "All those people are there, and predominantly what you're seeing is people who are just really good at staying, standing bloody still and hardly ever blinking."

The attention to detail was extraordinary. "Some of them had like little metal supports, because we had people who were like holding a bottle of beer, or they're in a particular pose, and then you've got like bits of fabric or whatever with wiring to keep it looking like a freeze frame," Brooker explained.

The decision to use practical effects over digital manipulation proved crucial for the episode's emotional impact. The tactile reality of being surrounded by motionless human figures enhanced the unsettling atmosphere that Black Mirror is known for.

"It was creepier because there were people around me. And they weren't blinking and stuff," Giamatti noted, emphasizing how the practical approach elevated his performance. "It meant that he was able to walk around, it felt like a real and tactile space."

While some post-production enhancement was added—atmospheric smoke and pixelation effects—the core illusion remained grounded in reality, demonstrating Black Mirror's commitment to creating authentic experiences that resonate beyond mere visual spectacle.

PUNCHLINES

…and Shanghai Dawn (Shanghai Noon 3).