Redesigning an Iconic Monster for New Era

After stealing the show at the VFX Oscar bake-off on January 13 at the Academy Museum, “Godzilla Minus One” has gone from sleeper to potential frontrunner. Director and VFX supervisor Takashi Yamazaki effectively emphasized how his small team of 35 artists completed 610 shots on a minuscule budget (reportedly $15 million for the entire production). He wowed the branch members with his demo reel of Godzilla’s fierce destruction, his creative ability to overcome his limitations, his graciousness toward his artists, and his dry wit.

Indeed, by outmaneuvering the other studio Goliaths with his underdog “Godzilla,” Yamazaki earned the biggest applause and now has momentum going into the nominations on January 23. His film has already grabbed more than $50 million at the U.S. box office, with a grittier black-and-white theatrical version set for January 26. No wonder one of the competing VFX supervisors proclaimed it the frontrunner after the bake-off.

For Yamazaki, “Godzilla Minus One” (from Toho Studios and Rocket Communications) was an opportunity to reimagine the legendary kaiju franchise with a more badass monster attacking 1947 post-war Japan. Little did the director realize just how timely it was, with coastal Japan rocked by the New Year’s Day earthquake following the coastal quake last May.

“I think it was a good decision to choose that era, with the almost apocalyptic state of Tokyo at the time,” Yamazaki told IndieWire. “Plus,…