The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

CG Leather Map Creation

We were bestowed the challenge of faithfully crafting the map of Arda, to be used throughout the series to guide the audience from place to place throughout Middle Earth, and across the Sundering Seas. From the earliest discussions with VFX supervisor Jason Smith and producer Ron Ames, our stylistic direction quickly narrowed into focus with an aim to create a largescale leather map created entirely in CG, utilizing hand drawn features by artist Daniel Reeve. We set out to create a map so real you could almost touch it, follow the contours of the carved linework, feel the bumps and imperfections, and brush dust from the aged patina of its surface.

As a VFX house brimming with LOTR nerds, Cantina was ready for the adventure as we dutifully set foot beyond the Shire with Rings of Power, the epic series created by Amazon Studios. Our task was a very special one, something near and dear to the hearts of many Tolkien fans. The original maps, drawings, and sketches made by J.R.R. and son Christopher Tolkien set the standard of style and imagination that would be used to inspire fantasy worlds from that point on.

And so it begins...

Our journey began at a leathercraft shop in the San Fernando Valley, where master leather craftsman Wayne Christensen showed us the various stages of working with leather and the techniques used for carving. We gathered hundreds of macro photography reference images, making sure to capture the age, shine, and texture of various carved tanned leather pieces.

Reference

Macro Leather Image

“I admire all who can see into the mystery of things, who can divine from the plainness of what is, the beauty of what could be”

- Lord Celebrimbor

Back in the studio…

We started to build our CG leather shader from the ground up using Cinema 4D and Arnold, following a similar process to a leather worker. Starting with a material shader of vegetable tanned carving leather, we then experimented with displacing (or carving) the leather, simulating the behavior of steel stamps and edge tools.

After coating the CG leather in a clear coat and mild colored lacquer, we gave the leather an aged look to reveal a unique patina, telling a story of time as if the map was effected by sun, oils, and dust over the years. For the artistry of the map's primary linework and location titles, we were provided high resolution hand-drawn elements from legendary illustrator Daniel Reeve, creator of the maps for the original film trilogy and Hobbit films. We used these images as a base for the carved displacement of our CG leather, mixing in additional areas of displacement, weathering, bumps and scratches. Wherever possible throughout the creation of the map, we used raster images and handmade painting and drawing tools, to avoid computer generated algorithms in order to preserve the handmade artistry and feel of the map.

While developing the look, we simultaneously began setting up camera moves and staging the transitional scenes that would be needed for the Rings of Power series. We started by using a motion capture system, recording camera movements over a lifesize representation of the map. This helped ensure that the camera moves felt genuine, and naturally imperfect. From these recorded takes, we could modify and refine as the individual shots required.