Minimum CGI and VFX: Malayalam film industry’s all-time hit 2018 is a result of pure teamwork

However, a lingering question remained in the minds of the audience: how did the filmmakers achieve such a precise recreation of the disaster? Were these segments accomplished through the utilisation of computer-generated imagery (CGI) or visual effects (VFX)? If so, how?

But what if we told you the use of VFX was very minimal in 2018 and that most of the scenes in it were made possible with the help of manually built sets, and that almost all the props, including the chopper, were made?

Believe it or not, it’s true!

“To recreate floodwaters using graphics and ensure high quality would have cost a bomb. Malayalam cinema can’t afford it even now. So, we decided to use real water. The scenes wherein actors wade through floodwaters are, hence, real. The scene showing a flooded Aluva river was actually shot in August 2022, when it swelled again. The entire film was made with an approximate budget of 30 crore. The airlift scene was shot over a span of eight nights,” director Jude Anthany Joseph told Matinee Live in a recent interview.

‘Everything was artificially created’

Elaborating on the film’s making process, 2018’s production designer Mohandas, who has been a part of the movie since Day 1, said, “Everything from houses and intersections to dams was artificially created.”

“The flood was artificially created in a tank built on a two-acre land,” Mohandas told Manorama Online. “The first time I met Jude, he showed me the script and asked how we could recreate the flood. He had approached several art directors for this film before me. I pitched an idea to Jude, and he liked it very much. That’s how this movie happened.”

“While planning the movie, I met Priyadarshan sir and narrated my plan and asked him if he had any advice. ‘Find a place with a water catchment area in the backdrop, that is of utmost importance,’ he said. So, we decided to find a place where water availability won’t be a concern. But one main concern here was about releasing the water back into the river after using it. We can’t pollute it. So, we understood that we needed at least 25 acres of land while keeping in mind that no one would lay such a huge plot vacant,” he recalled.

’14 houses were built in total and they were later converted into…’

“We found a plot in Vaikkom. Then we started discussing budget, tank, size of the tank, how to build houses and other things. There was no cameraman at this time. After corona, Venu Kunnappilly stepped in as a co-producer. Venu sir has a construction business. It was with the help of his engineers that we decided on how to make the tank. They made a tank that could be filled with water. The township, intersection and houses were all built within it. All items were detachable and could be changed into something else. 14 houses were built in total and they were later converted into various types of houses and used as per need. Items such as electric posts, plants and trees were all made out of water-resistant material,” Mohandas mentioned.

Would you believe that even the sequence showing the sea was shot on this set?

“The real sea was shown only twice — once in a scene involving Asif Ali and another time when the boat was approaching the shore. Only the ship was generated via CGI. The rest was filmed with artificial lighting on the set itself,” he asserted.

“We made three tanks for this film. Water can be loaded through a tank at the junction. It was not done so strongly. The main tank was pretty strong. It did not crack or move. It was eventually demolished from there. A JCB was brought and the plot was levelled… a road roller was brought to make it strong and the entire bottom was concreted… the tank was built on top of it. It took 12 to 15 hours to fill up this tank. The trees, electric posts, and trees were all planted by us. The sea and the waves were all done within the set. For us, the set was like Ramoji Film City. After the shoot, the whole place was restored.”

Behind the airlift scene

“We ourselves made the helicopter for the airlift scene. It cost us about Rs 14 lakh. By also taking reference from the internet, we made a helicopter, hung it on a crane and put the propeller and raft on another crane,” Mohandas told Manorama Online.

“That’s how the scene was done. The helicopter shot was the most difficult. When it was done, everyone was happy. The shoot was set in June-July as I wanted the ambience of rain and wind in the background so that everything would seem natural.” Mohandas added that even the shot showing the Idukki dam was created using a set.

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