Among the seven strong Oscar nominations picked up by Ridley Scott‘s "The Martian" is the nod the film’s VFX team rightfully received for their work. Not only was Matt Damon shouldered with the task of anchoring a good chunk of the movie by himself, but the red planet around him had to be believable, and this reel from VFC studio MPC shows how the magic was made.
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Running four minutes long, the video demonstrates how computer magic made Damon’s character Mark Watney’s doings on Mars seem pretty damn real. And it’s a good reminder that actors, in addition to delivering realistic performances, also have to pretend that a lot of stuff that won’t be added until post-production is actually there. Check out the video below and see how "The Martian" fares at the Oscars on February 28th.