How Aquaman transformed underwater filmmaking through thousands of complex digital visual effects shots
In short: Bringing the underwater kingdom of Atlantis to life required more than just water tanks. To capture the fluid movement of hair and the scale of an oceanic empire, the production team utilized over 2,300 visual effects shots, relying on digital doubles and custom software to simulate life beneath the waves.
Released in 2018, Aquaman stands as the highest-grossing film within the DC Extended Universe, earning $1.152 billion worldwide. Directed by James Wan, the project underwent a lengthy development process that began in 2004 but only gained significant momentum following the 2013 release of Man of Steel. The film follows Arthur Curry, a half-human, half-Atlantean hero who must prevent his half-brother, King Orm, from uniting the seven underwater kingdoms to wage war on the surface world.
The technical demands of the production were immense. Because filming underwater is notoriously difficult, the team employed a dry-for-wet technique, placing actors on specialized tuning fork rigs to simulate aquatic movement before replacing their bodies with digital doubles in post-production. A major hurdle was hair simulation; standard software proved inadequate for the unique way hair flows underwater. Industrial Light & Magic had to develop new methods to simulate individual strands, a process that required heavy computation for approximately 700 shots.
The world-building was equally ambitious. ILM’s environment team constructed over 200 signature buildings for Atlantis, populating districts that covered nearly 600 square miles. Other studios contributed specialized work: Weta Digital handled digital de-aging for flashback sequences, while Method Studios managed the complex Sicily fight sequence and the encounter with the mythical Karathen. By the time production concluded in October 2017, the film had utilized a vast array of global locations and visual effects expertise to realize its vision of the deep sea.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Aquaman (film)
- Also: Wikidata — Aquaman · CC0
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