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Ted Lasso is a show that feels so intimate, it can be easy to think that the production side of things is as unassuming as the main character, but that is very much not the case.

Executive producer Bill Lawrnece (Scrubs, Cougar Town) and members of the editorial team did a panel discussion at SXSW Tuesday about how the show’s editing helps tell the story, land the jokes, and stick the emotional landing.

The most surprising reveal was the explanation of just massive the visual effects work is on the series.

Ted Lasso is the story of an American football coach who gets recruited to coach a Premier League English football (aka soccer) team, despite knowing literally nothing about the sport. When he and Assistant Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) first show up at the fictional Nelson Road Stadium, they are very quickly yelled at and whisked off the field by kit man Nate (Nick Mohammed).

Nate’s freak-out wasn’t an overreaction. The English take their grass fields very seriously, to the point where the series used Selhurst Park, an actual Premier League field in London, as their filming location, but they were not allowed to step, let alone play, on the field.

That means that every scene featuring AFC Richmond practicing or competing was done outside of Selhurst, on a CGI field.

“Crystal Palace [the team that plays at Selhurst Park] was awesome, and they’re like, ‘Yes, you can shoot here!’ And that’s what we were planning to do,” Lawrence says. “And then we got there and this is a Premier League soccer team and their stadium is pristine.”

“We did shoot Jason and Brendan arriving there,” he says, “but then they’re like ‘Oh, you can’t ever put an actor on that field, nor can you ever, ever put cameras on that field that would touch the grass.”

So they filmed at the stadium but absolutely none of the actual game play was shot there. If you’re not a VFX expert, though, you probably never noticed.

“Look, as long as nobody realized–if they thought we were at Selhurst, then we did alright,” says supervising producer Kip Kroeger. “That was the idea. If you guessed we had about ten visual effects shots per episode, then we’re doing alright.”

In reality, there are so many more than ten. The team built the CGI stadium and made “little cartoons” of the actual games that they made before filming in London–sort of an extremely intense, in-depth moving storyboard. As editor A.J. Catoline says, that process “was like a chance for us as editors to be involved in the directing process.” It also allows all of the actors to look like legitimate Premier League athletes.

Earlier this year, Barnstorm Visual Effects released a video showing just how incredible the VFX work on the show is, turning that CGI field into a totally convincing home for Richmond (via Digg):

(image: Apple TV+)
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The concept of working hard to achieve your dreams is as American as apple pie. Every day, people get up at the crack of dawn only to return deep into the night with little to show for it. Ludi showcases that this American ideal has shaped people arriving into the country as well as those born here. However, is that a good thing? The drama, produced by Bantufy, follows Ludi as she battles with those around her and even herself to earn the rarely obtained American Dream. 

Directed by Edson Jean, the film begins with Ludi (Shein Mompremier) playing a cassette tape back home from her family in Haiti. The clear exhaustion hangs on her body like a weighted blanket as she tries to be a source of stability for them. She wants to go above and beyond in order to provide, sending more money than necessary and even gifts back to her home. However, she is sacrificing herself in order for those other than herself to thrive. The audio sent between Ludi and her family plays a major role in being utilized as a segue between scenes as well as background into who Ludi truly is. 

As imagery of citizens and homes of Miami’s Little Haiti community move across the screen in a blurry haze, Ludi tells stories about how she will be able to come home soon and see her family — knowing this will not happen. She describes her days as tiring but never going into too much detail about how she is doing in order not to panic them. It is obvious that despite her holding back, she feels like she is running as fast as she can towards her goals but not moving from her present position. Black women often have to work twice as hard to accomplish half of what their white counterparts have. For Ludi, a woman of color and an immigrant, the current standards of American society do not provide the privileges promised before arriving. 

While Ludi works hard at her nursing home position in order to provide for her family, her workaholic personality still shows. She takes overtime from all of her other employees, but is never seen as an enemy due to her inner joy and eagerness to do what she sees as the “American way.” Along with her extreme hard-working attitude, those from Little Haiti see her turning into a true American — this is not a compliment. In one of the standout scenes of the film, Ludi’s co-worker offers to pray for her to find another source of income. Ludi closes her eyes and begins to listen to the prayer that starts with referencing her overall being and then morphs into how she is turning into a typical American. She doesn’t remember the last time she went to church, she is chasing money instead of a husband, and she does not want kids. She is seen as the antithesis of Haiti’s standards for women. Nevertheless, Ludi likes who she is and feels that hard work surpasses all of those life goals for the other Haitian women around her.

No matter how much someone wants to work, at some point there must be rest. Without it, any work you do will be unfruitful or even worse be chock full of errors. Ludi never stopped to consider herself, even if it meant her body ached or her eyes were heavy from exhaustion. She continued to work because she felt that not only was it something that she had to do for her family, but it was something she was called to do by God. Despite her motivations, everyone hits a wall and realizes that there must be self-care incorporated. Ludi learns this lesson from an unlikely source, her patient George (Alan Myles Heyman). 

George to Ludi is everything she hates about Americans — rude, hard-headed and unwilling to accept help. However, the irony in their situation is that aspects of George are reflected in Ludi herself. They are both hard-headed, unwilling to accept help, and can attack when someone threatens their way of life. Ludi essentially puts up a fight with herself in the form of an older man and realizes how toxic living this way truly is. In a fit of rage, Ludi screams that she is suffocating from working so hard for little to nothing in return. After Ludi sends packages to her family, there is nothing left for her. She sacrifices herself in order to give a better life for her family. However, she does not work to create a better life for herself and herself alone. 

In one of the last audio messages in the film, Ludi, while telling her family she cannot come home, again states, “Once this country has its hands on you, it never lets you go.” She is correct. America has a way of taking the most ordinary person and making them the superstar they always wanted to be or someone who they never wanted to become. It holds out a promise on a contract stating that you can have it all if you work hard and do what Americans do. The fine print, however, makes it very clear that who it favors are those whiter in complexion with money already in their lives. Nevertheless, there are those who broke the rules and succeeded. For Ludi, the rule she needed to break first was simple — working herself to the bone was not going to cut it anymore. Through self-care and being kind to herself, the American Dream that Ludi always wanted now includes her, too.

The film Ludi premiered at the SXSW Festival Tuesday March 16th.

Writer: Vita Ayala / Artist: Bernard Chang / Marvel

We open up with a powerful full page of action featuring youngins that look eerily similar to a few mutants you may have heard of! Beatrice Bartholomew aka Buddy seems to be the commander, which tracks with the Cyclops inspired visor on her head. Marvel Guy has the makings of a Rogue and Juggernaut offspring. The little teleporting cowboy with the tail is giving off clear Nightcrawler vibes and… HOL UP! Is that a new young black girl magic character in the corner looking like Gambit and Storm had a love affair?! Vita Ayala and Bernard Chang really set the tone right there.

We find out the black girl’s name is Gimmick, Scott’s maybe offspring’s name is Cyclops-Lass….and I don’t know if I can’t even handle all that. Marvel Guy already got name dropped and the tag team flyers are Cherub and Daycrawler. Looking back, this opening page was perfectly done. Each character gets a 1 liner that encompasses who they are.  The writing following that page should have kept that hype going but the weak ass, old mutant jokes were a bore. Luckily, there was some good artwork in those opening pages to keep my attention.

Now I gotta say, after the “first team mission” portion of this book, Ayala does an amazing job of being a magician with the pen an giving us the answers that are obviously kicking around in everyone’s head, while never revealing all of her cards. We find out why these kids are fighting crime out in the streets, if Krakoa still home to all mutants. We also learn how long it’s been since Krakoa first welcomed mutants to its shores and more. We get a little insight into thoughts of our OG X-Men, which was a treat.

I wanted to love Bernard Chang’s artwork but too many close up shots fell flat in the first half of the book. There were some standout panels that proved the opening page wasn’t a fluke and nearly every scene of the kids in school was beautifully done. A bit disappointing that the mundane artwork is crispier than the action.

While I didn’t love the hero vs. villain smack talk in the beginning of this book, Ayala finished really strong. The cliffhanger you’re hit with forces you to happily backtrack and think about everything you just read in a completely new way and that is impressive writing, no matter which way you slice it. 

7 “Never Meet Your Heroes” out of 10

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Writer: Kieron Gillen / Artist: Esad Ribic / Marvel

So it seems Gillen has set us up with a super powered, murder mystery: and I’m here for it! The pacing that Gillen establishes is so well done that you don’t realize things are escalating so much moment by moment. Of course, when an issue is devoid of action it’s easy to breeze through. These first 3 issues of Eternals, however, feel like they’re building to something bigger, while the immediate threat of Thanos, a murderer and perhaps the mad titan, assuming both of those roles looms overhead.

We get the intro, crash course and exposé on Thena from start to finish. Her story was enlightening. Seeing someone so driven and guided by love that they could be blinded by the actual deviants standing before their eyes was insightful. Her strengths, her weaknesses, her heart, and her flaws are all on full display as a distinctly unique character.

Sersi is a stark contrast to Thena’s openness. She seems to be as straight laced as the Eternals come and brimming with pride. Sersi and Thena have been at this war of words and loyalty for millennia and this issue continues this accusatory cycle.

Esan Ribic has created some gorgeous worlds, landscapes, laboratories and hells to look at. Some of the faces of his characters may be a bit off putting but everything else is downright righteous.

Heart. Love. Not terms you often hear in the manner they’re used by Gillen. Impressive how he weaponized those words while maintaining their delicacy and tenderness. Sprite continues to be a bright spot dam near every panel she’s in. I love the Ikaris side mission, because it stays true to his nature as an arrow. Another book, another cliffhanger to keep readers intrigued! I came to get some knowledge on the Eternals before the movie premieres, but I’m staying for this exciting game of Carnage Clue.

8 “Dining Among Animals” out of 10

Enjoying Eternals? Check out BNP’s other reviews here.

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The post Eternal #3 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.