‘Oppenheimer’ Got Creative to Simulate a Nuclear Explosion Without a Nuke for Christopher Nolan Movie
One of the most talked about aspects of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer released recently is the use of an IMAX camera throughout the film. The director has shared his intention to give his audience the best possible viewing experience that could help them get immersed in the story.
With that in mind, even the atomic bomb explosion was carried out without the use of any VFX editing. But sure enough, imitating such a degree of explosion without special effects was one of the most difficult parts of the filmmaking process. Despite that, Nolan and his team were able to create a scene that seemed authentic.
How Christopher Nolan and His Oppenheimer Team Simulated an Atomic Bomb Explosion
It was undoubtedly a very difficult task to recreate or imitate an atomic bomb explosion on set for Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Taking into consideration the fact that Nolan wanted no VFX work involved in the scene just goes to show the hard work they put into the whole thing.
Cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema opened up with Variety about the trick they used to film the 10-minute-long explosion scene on the set. He shared,
“We created science experiments. We built aquariums with power in them. We dropped silver particles in it. We had molded metallic balloons which were lit up from the inside”
Reportedly, Nolan and his team went to this length as they were against the idea of losing the high-quality IMAX resolution that the use of VFX tends to do. Surely enough, the scene was carried out successfully on camera.
This is not the first time the director has carried out such an expensive and big-scale film scene. One example would be the scene in Tenet (2020) where a real 747 was blown up. This shows that Nolan does not cut corners when it comes to his craft.
More on Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer
Without a doubt, Oppenheimer is one of the most talked about films of 2023 as of yet. The film directed by highly regarded Christopher Nolan is as the title suggests based on the real-life physicist Robert J. Oppenheimer. He had a huge role to play in the Manhattan Project which aimed to develop the first Atomic Bomb in the world.
The character is played by Cillian Murphy, another reason why so many people were excited to see the film. Other cast members include big names such as Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, and Emily Blunt.
The film was released on the 21st of July clashing with another Well-known director Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.
Source: Variety
