A group of VFX artists discuss the special effects behind the magical duels in the genre-defining Harry Potter movies. Starting in 2001 with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and wrapping up with the two-part adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2010-2011), the cinematic franchise impressively adapted J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World with various engaging effects and designs.
The style of the action also evolved substantially across the movies: While the first two installments featured slower, more theatrical spell-casting, by the time of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), the actors were performing very rapid duels. This is in addition to the magical transport and creature effects happening throughout to bring to life everything from Quidditch to hippogriffs.
The VFX artists at Corridor Crew reacted to the CGI surrounding the characters using magic wands in the Harry Potter movies in a recent episode, primarily concerning the last few installments. Wren and Jordan speak with Sheldon Stopsack, visual effects supervisor at Wētā FX, who worked on the last three Harry Potter movies (Half-Blood Prince, Deathly Hallows Part 1 and Part 2).
After some comments on the hilarity of seeing behind-the-scenes clips from Harry Potter — “[…] where everyone is fighting with wands, but there’s absolutely nothing going on on set […] and obviously sans all effects it just looks absolutely hilarious.” — and it being said that “The effects are actually like these particle systems […] and those particle systems are the things that are actually emitting the light,” Stopsack is asked about the specifics.
Aberforth Dumbledore in the Battle of Hogwarts protecting Ginny, Katie, and Kingsley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
“Is the lighting directly tethered to the effects that we’re seeing or do you kind of just freestyle it?” Stopsack responds that it depends on what kind of spells the wizards are using to fight at that moment: “Where it’s just like these sort of short bursts and flicking moments, you get away with an awful to of just glow treatment and like you buy it, right?“
However, for instance, during scenes where there is a duel going on “between Harry and Voldemort and there’s this sort of ongoing stream of plasma and it meets in the middle and it creates this big event […] you kind of have to come up with some more advanced solutions to that and allow for the effects passes to go through lighting to some extent in some shape or form and create these sort of additional helper passes to integrate,” says Stopsack.
Michael Gambon as Dumbledore fights Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
The VFX artist is also asked: “Out of all the Harry Potter movies you worked on, what was your favorite sequence?” While Stopsack says that he “[appreciates] the Harry Potter movies wholesale, like the whole series,” he ultimately concludes: “If I had to pick one, I would probably pick the Quidditch game out of Half-Blood Prince.“ He also points on some of the shots he worked on during this scene.
The Harry Potter movies developed a unique style of action and combat, as high-speed sequences of a sport being played on broomsticks or opponents firing a variety of spells at each other were new to cinema. As the battles got faster, the VFX team learned where they could rely on shortcuts, but still poured their efforts into the climactic scenes that drive the plot.
Cast
Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Alan Rickman, Matthew Lewis, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch, Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Richard Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Alfred Enoch, Harry Melling, Gary Oldman, Robert Pattinson, Warwick Davis, Oliver Phelps, James Phelps, David Bradley, David Thewlis, Katie Leung, Jason Isaacs, Imelda Staunton, David Tennant, Jamie Campbell Bower, Timothy Spall, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Johnny Depp, Mads Mikkelsen
Movie(s)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
