Black Lightning
Short description
Dima Maikov, a student in Moscow, receives an old Volga-21 from his father and discovers the vehicle has the ability to fly. Initially using the car for leisure, he eventually transforms into a masked vigilante known as Black Lightning to protect his loved ones and fight crime. This path puts him in direct conflict with a ruthless criminal who seeks to seize the flying automobile for himself.
The film was co-directed by Dmitry Kiselev and Alexander Voitinsky, marking the first project for both directors in the provided records. The cast features Grigoriy Dobrygin as Dima and Ekaterina Vilkova as Nastya, with supporting roles played by Viktor Verzhbitskiy, Yekaterina Vasilyeva, Juozas Budraitis, and Ivan Zhidkov. Produced by Focus Features, Bazelevs Production, and Tabbak, the project had a budget of 8 million USD and earned 22 million USD at the worldwide box office.
Audience reception is mixed, with a rating of 5.6/10 on IMDb based on 5,800 votes and a slightly higher score of 6.3/10 on TMDB from 220 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- Flights over Moscow were filmed using a radio-controlled camera that traveled along a cable stretched between two massive cranes.
- Most of the computer graphics shots were made based on footage filmed with stunt performers. For example, a real cannon was built to film a car crashing through a wall, firing cars weighing 700 kg at a muzzle velocity of 90 km/h.
- The finished 'Black Lightning' weighs four tons, accelerates to 300 km/h, and can hover in the air.
- Even at the beginning of the film, when the main character and his "friend" are driving in the friend's Mercedes, shots from the side of the car show that the vehicle's automatic transmission is in "P" (parking), which naturally prevents the car from moving. Nevertheless, they are driving at a fairly good speed.
- After consulting with aviation experts and industrial designers, the animators settled on a Volga-21 with retractable flaps and retractable wheels. A total of 100 models of the car were made. To ensure it flew according to the laws of aerodynamics, a special aviation simulator was developed.
- Moscow was filmed from high-rise locations using specialized filming equipment. Missing fragments of the image were then supplemented with computer graphics based on photographs.
- According to Dmitry Tokoyakov, VFX supervisor at Bazelevs VFX, 700 frames of complex computer graphics were created in five months, 70 of which were drawn from scratch.
- A hydraulic "Gimbal" system allowed them to simulate flight in a car. It rattled around inside like a rollercoaster. Grigory Dobrygin and Viktor Verzhbitsky spent over a week on the "Gimbal."
- The stunt 'Volga GAZ-21' accelerates to 100 km/h in 6 seconds. It was equipped with an upgraded engine.
- In the scene where "Black Lightning" knocks down an icicle falling on Nastya, a bouquet of roses falls out of the car. At the same time, the car's windows and doors are closed both before and after the collision with the ice.
- 150 people worked on the graphics for the film 'Black Lightning'. In addition to Bazelevs VFX specialists, employees from 14 large computer graphics studios were involved in creating individual scenes.
- In the scene where Dima's family is decorating the chandelier in the living room, a clip from episode 127 of the series "Daddy's Daughters" (2007-2013) can be seen in the background.
- The filming lasted 44 shooting days, the first of which was December 31, 2008.
- The studio filming of the movie took place in Pavilion No. 9 of Mosfilm. Its area is 1306.4 square meters. It is the second largest pavilion at the studio.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
