Marvel's new series, Wonder Man, lands on Disney+ with a meta-cinematographic approach that follows Simon Williams and Trevor Slattery. Created by Destin Daniel Cretton and Andrew Guest, its eight episodes present a technical challenge: the protagonist's powers must remain hidden within the plot, coordinating visual effects with on-screen action, such as an explosion in a recording studio.
Base FX and the Challenge of Hiding the Invisible 🎬
Supervised by John Haley, the visual effects primarily fall to Base FX. The team faced the task of developing Simon's latent abilities that cannot be fully revealed. This involved synchronizing digital animations with the dynamics of the scenes, avoiding visual cues that would give away the secret. The explosion in the recording studio required particle work and physical simulation that reacted to the actors, maintaining the illusion that something bigger is about to happen without fully showing it.
Spoilers: Not Even the Effects Know What They're Doing 😂
The funniest part is that while the Base FX team was sweating to hide Simon's powers, the writers had probably already leaked them in some filler scene. Because, of course, in Marvel, the best-kept secret is the one no one understands until the next episode's trailer. Good thing the digital explosives don't have mouths, because if they talked, they'd ruin the surprise.