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Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

  • Visual development
  • Previs + Postvis
  • VP + Tech Labs
  • VFX Design
  • Graphics

PROJECT INFORMATION

Production Company

Bad Wolf

Executive Producer

Jane Tranter, Julie Gardner, Russel T Davis, Joel Collins and Phil Collinson

Production Designer

Phil Sims

Broadcaster

BBC/Disney

VFX Supervisor

Dan May

OVERVIEW

Following the success of BBC’s His Dark Materials, we leapt at the chance to collaborate once again with the talented team at Bad Wolf, delivering end-to-end design across the Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Specials. Working closely with Production Designer, Phil Sims, our holistic design approach faced a challenge—igniting a thrilling new chapter while paying homage to the rich visual legacy of this beloved series. From the earliest strokes of visual development to final pixel VFX, we helped breathe life into a menagerie of weird and wonderful creatures, sculpted expansive environments, and mapped out key story sequences. Across all three specials, we blended our two passions: the art of immersive world-building and technical problem-solving.

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

Visual Development

With a show brimming in imagination and flair, our Visual Development team were on hand to help Phil Sims with an expanse of concept work. This took the form of rough sketches, 2D storyboards, 3D modelling and stunning final concept art, all of which combined to help production visualise key components of Russell T Davies’ epic scripts.

The Star Beast re-introduced the public to the Meep and Wrarth soldiers. With early Vis-Dev work bridging the gap between art department and VFX, the team developed these classic iterations for the screen, contributing design work which was later developed in VFX by Untold Studios.

Wild Blue Yonder evoked both the surreal and the practical, with ‘Not Things’ doppelgangers inhabiting a Ghostship – along which stretches an ‘infinite corridor’. Take a look at the reel and view the expanse of design work which went into this incredible episode, from the ship design to the 3D modelling of the Not Things.

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

Previs + Postvis

An indication of a cohesive design process is how closely final VFX resembles early visualisation work. VFX Supervisor Dan May worked closely with Phil Sims and Automatik VFX to lock down the design of Unit Tower, building the set out in Unreal Engine and allowing for virtual exploration early on in the production process. Across The Giggle, we mapped out some of the key sequences using previs, including the epic helicopter arrival at Unit Tower, and the Doctor’s confrontation with the Galvanic Beam. The early design work allowed for an integrated VFX workflow, with Automatik delivering stunning final pixel shots.

Titles Previs x Final

It was a pleasure to contribute to the reimagining of the Doctor Who titles sequence – a staple of Saturday night television for the past 60 years. Dan May worked closely with Russell T Davies to design the look of the sequence, mapping out the Tardis’ ethereal journey through time and space before RealTime Studios completed the final VFX shots.

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

VP, R&D and Techvis

The ambition of the specials provided a platform on which to develop our technical pipelines and virtual production methodologies. With a history of virtual set production behind us, we built a host of Unreal Engine environments, allowing for directors and producers to explore sets such as the Tardis Interior and Unit Tower virtually in pre-production.

Our crowning achievement was our hybrid virtual production methodology in the creation of the ‘infinite corridor’. Dan May worked alongside RealTime studios, designing the look of the corridor in Unreal Engine, and providing on-set previs for Director Tom Kingsley. The level was taken on by RealTime, who developed the asset in final VFX before providing real time playback as a cost efficient alternative to traditional green screen and volume stage methodologies.

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

VFX Design

Our creative and technical limbs were stretched across the length of Wild Blue Yonder. We delivered final pixel VFX of the drone’s eerie journey along the Ghostship. The challenge was to find a way of lighting the ship’s exterior without the help of a distant star, whilst creating an atmosphere of total isolation on the edge of the observable Universe. Take a look at the final sequence for yourself.

Doctor Who: 60th Anniversary Specials

Graphics

With a brand-new sonic screwdriver in the Doctor’s pocket and specials featuring spaceships and touch screens, we were tasked with delivering graphics in keeping with a futuristic environment. Orchestrated by Graphics Art Director Erica McEwan, the sonic screen—introduced for the first time in ‘The Star Beast’—was designed to complement the sleek and modern look of the screwdriver. Similarly, the touch screens in the Unit Tower Ops Room were developed to match the high-tech specs of Unit base. We brought to life the cackling face of Stookie Bill—the catalyst of societal breakdown in The Giggle.

Related Work

  • Visual development
  • Previs + Postvis
  • VP + Tech Labs
  • VFX Design
  • Graphics
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His dark materials

  • Visual development
  • Previs + Postvis
  • VP + Tech Labs
  • VFX Design
  • Graphics

Black mirror