The Hive animate Tyrannosaurus Rex for ‘Horizon’

Soho effects and animation studio The Hive has meticulously animated Tyrannosaurus rex in X-ray form for a forthcoming episode of BBC2’s Horizon, which shows how new research is casting the fearsome dinosaur in a brand new light.
Ever since its discovery in 1902, T-Rex has been assumed to be the most ferocious predator ever to have roamed the earth. However, the latest investigative research by Jack Horner, curator of Museum of the Rockies, Montana, reveals that rather than being a brutal killer, T-Rex was more likely to have been a giant scavenger; the Cretaceous Era’s equivalent of a hyena.
Entitled ‘T-Rex: Warrior or Wimp?’, the 50-minute programme was directed and produced by Johanna Gibbon at BBC’s Science Department. The Hive won a competitive pitch to create stylised graphics that would support a modern, forensic examination of the dinosaur’s anatomy.
These were based on an initial idea by 2D designer Faye Greenwood, later developed in 3D by animation director Nathan Laud, of a three-dimensional blueprint of T-Rex.
Working in collaboration with Gibbon and assistant producer Penny Palmer throughout the project, The Hive’s 2D design and 3D animation teams evolved the blueprint idea into a series of high-quality, X-ray-style animations – the chief feature being a walk cycle that incorporates separate zooms into his jaws and teeth, arm bones, brain and optic nerves. Each sequence is overlaid with informational graphics and data about the beast.
Greenwood was responsible for the overall look of the piece, and the design of the information graphics. Separate passes of T-Rex’s solid skeleton and transparent skin were animated by Julie Goacher using Lightwave, followed by multi-layer compositing and colour grading in After Effects by Greenwood.
Along with the X-ray sequences, The Hive’s animator Jamie Franks also produced a series of additional dinosaur sketches, which were used to further elaborate on the evidence of T-Rex being a forager.
Johanna Gibbon said: “We wanted a completely fresh approach to dinosaur 3D to reflect the fact that palaeontology is changing from a science dependent on old-fashioned tools and methods, to one embracing new technology. We also wanted to bring T-Rex to life. The walking cycle gave the creatives at The Hive the scope to inject a sense of how the animal behaved. As well as convey the science, they've managed to inject a sense of humour too.”
(GB)