Set Extensions: What Are They, and Why Don't More Indie Filmmakers Take Advantage of Them?

Enter the search term "green screen" into YouTube and you'll be inundated with hundreds upon hundreds of goofy, 45-second "test" clips created by what seems like every twelve-year-old, ever. To look at the number of green screen examples on YouTube, one would think everyone was using green screen in their productions. They're not. And it's a shame. The use of green screen doesn't have to be the sole purview of twelve-year-olds and Sci Fi nerds. Used subtly, techniques such as green screen composting, motion tracking, or just a simple matte/plate used as a set extension can open up a new world of possibilities for creative visual storytellers. Below, is a quick example of a set extension technique, completed in After Effects.



Of course techniques such as these may be used to place characters in fantasy worlds with castles, warlocks, and other realms full of "beings" who have never dated actual girls before. For the purposes of this blog, however, I'm talking about using simple techniques, like static mattes, used by Hollywood filmmakers throughout film history, to place characters into cityscapes, desolate vistas, or even to reproduce other historical time periods. If used sparingly, good effects done right can pass completely unnoticed, yet plunge an audience completely into the story without even a trace of disbelief. Oddly enough, recent television shows such as Ugly Betty, or CHUCK have made stunning use of special effects to create east coast locations and other, more foreign and exotic, locals on sound stages in Los Angeles.





As one can see in the above effects demo reels, film effects don't always have to be used for bringing to life worlds like that of Harry Potter. They can be used instead to make your actors appear, for example, to be inside an airplane hanger when, in reality, they're simply standing in a two-car garage. And although these types of effects, done on a Hollywood scale, can be quite expensive, its inspiring to think of the vast array of other visual storytelling possibilities that can be achieved on a smaller scale for next to nothing.



The above clip is a great example of a simple set extension technique. With some creativity, a technique like this could be used very effectively in your next, non-Sci Fi, non-fantasy indie film.