Rising to the Challenge

The Last Champion

Directed by Glenn Withrow

Overview:

John Wright (played by Cole Hauser) was a hometown hero – the powerful star of his high school wrestling team and a promising Olympian. He could have had it all but one bad decision destroyed his dreams and forced him to leave under a cloud of scandal that has haunted him ever since. Twenty years later, John returns to his small town after his mother’s death, hoping to save his family home from foreclosure. His icy reception proves his former friends and neighbors still haven’t forgiven him for letting them down. Unexpectedly, John gets the opportunity to turn everything around – by coaching his high school’s wrestling team. There he meets Michael, a talented underdog with a troubled homelife, facing a vicious opponent out to destroy him both on and off the mat. Can John become the leader the team and Michael needs, or will he lose himself to the dark demons of his past? The Last Champion is an inspirational family sports drama that will have you believing in second chances.

The film marks the premiere presence of the production company, Redburn Street Pictures, so they commissioned Some Guy in Anaheim to create a new branding visual identity. The company’s namesake drew inspiration from a real-life location in the UK with sentimental relevance to Glenn Withrow and his family. Some Guy in Anaheim pulled from historical sources to create a 2.5D environment that paid homage to a vintage era of the street view.

After creating the company’s branding identity, Some Guy in Anaheim stepped in to help VFX Supervisor Richard Swindell complete a number of remaining shots for the film.  Digital dust, duplicated cattle, and the painting out of distracting elements, among other VFX tasks, helped put the final polish on the film, allowing its emotional core to shine through.

Then later in post-production, the filmmakers concluded a new opening sequence was needed in order to quickly and properly convey a backstory for context. Working closely with Director Glenn Withrow, Some Guy in Anaheim designed and assembled a series of compositions featuring trophies, news articles and medals, commemorating John’s prestigious wrestling record leading up to the present day. To pull off the shots, they teamed up with renowned Director of Photography George Adams (of Digital Cutting Room).

Ultimately, Some Guy in Anaheim had the pleasure and honor of contributing to several dozen shots for the film.

VFX Tasks:

• Produced additional “2nd Unit” Photography with renowned D.P. George Adams (Digital Cutting Room)
• 2D & 3D matchmoving
• Rotoscoping & Compositing
• Digital touch up of environments
• Digital duplication and compositing
• Design & Animation of Redburn Street Pictures branding