FORMING A STRONG BOND WITH RACHAEL PENFOLD

By OLIVER WEBB

Images courtesy of Rachael Penfold, except where noted.

Rachael Penfold grew up in Ladbroke Grove in West London where she attended the local comprehensive school. “At the time, it was less of an institute for education and more like a social experiment,” Penfold reveals. “A symptom of the same problems we see today because of the lack of funding for state education. A small example, but it’s easy to see why diversity is a problem in the wider film industry.”

Penfold didn’t initially study to become a visual effects artist, instead she learned on the job. “I had the best apprenticeship really,” Penfold says. “It was at the Computer Film Company (CFC), a pioneering digital film VFX company. I think they may have been the first in the U.K. It was a sort of melting pot of scientists, engineers, filmmakers and artists. It was weird and fun and pretty unruly to be honest, but always and without compromise, it was about image quality. I obviously made a half-decent impression as a runner at CFC and was moved to production assistant. Either that or they simply needed bodies in production. So, in that sense, I caught a lucky break with my entry into the industry.”

Penfold’s lucky break came in 1997 with the British fantasy film Photographing Fairies, serving as Visual Effects Producer. This was followed by other CFC projects, which saw Penfold work as a Visual Effects Producer on acclaimed films such as Tomorrow Never Dies, Spice World, The Bone Collector, Mission: Impossible II, Chicken Run and Sexy Beast. Penfold’s last CFC project was the 2002 film Resident Evil for which she was Head of Production.

In 2004, Penfold co-founded London visual effects studio One of Us alongside Dominic Parker and Tom Debenham, where she currently serves as Company Director. Working across TV and film, One of Us currently has a capacity for over 300 artists, but is looking to expand across more exciting projects. One of Us also launched its Paris studio in 2021, which houses 70 artists. The company won Special, Visual & Graphics Effects at the 2022 BAFTA TV Awards for their work on Season 2, Episode 1 of The Witcher, and in 2022 they were also nominated for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature at the VES Awards for their work on The Matrix Revolutions. Some of their recent work includes Damsel, The Sandman, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and Bridgerton, Season 2.

Setting up the company was a very organic process for Penfold. “We set up a small team to deal with the visual development of a particular project,” Penfold says. “We kept ourselves small for quite a few years, always wanting to engage with more of the outsider work. It was great fun, lots of risk, and my two partners, Dominic Parker and Tom Debenham, are also two wonderful friends. We still work so closely together.”

Penfold’s first film as One of Us Visual Effects Producer was the 2007 film When Did You Last See Your Father? starring Jim Broadbent and Colin Firth. Since launching One of Us, Penfold has worked on an array of projects including The Tree of Life, Cloud Atlas, Under the Skin, Paddington, The Revenant and The Alienist. One of Us also served as the leading vendor on the Netflix original series The Crown. Their work for the show included digital set extensions, environments, crowd replication and recreating Buckingham Palace. They have also contributed to key scenes throughout the series, including Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s Royal Wedding of 1947, the funeral of King George VI and subsequent coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Penfold served as Visual Effects Executive Producer across 20 episodes. The company’s work on the show helped them gain more recognition after winning the BAFTA Craft Award in 2018 for their work on the show, as well as receiving an Emmy nomination in 2017 for Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role for their work on Season 1 of the show and again in 2018 for Season 2. The company ethos of One of Us is one of creative intelligence and the ability to select and adapt ways of approaching practical problems involved in bringing ideas to life. Since their launch in 2004, their work has truly reflected these values.

Choosing a favorite visual effect shot from her oeuvre, however, is an almost impossible task for Penfold. Boasting an impressive catalog of award-winning films and series, it’s easy to understand. “I definitely have favorite work, but not always because it’s the biggest or most ambitious. There’s so much that makes an experience great, not just the outcome, but the journey and who you go on that journey with,” Penfold explains. “But, from a professional pride perspective, Damsel is a huge achievement.”

Some of the impressive work that One of Us completed for the film included digi-doubles, burnt swallows, armor swords, dragon fire, melting and cracking ice, huge-scale cave environments and DMP set extensions. “Again, I can’t choose a favorite shot from the film,” Penfold explains. “There are so many massive shots in that film, but the shot where the dragon flattens the knight underfoot feels like the culmination of many years of hard work, growing One of Us to the point where it can take on the toughest challenges. From a simple aesthetic perspective, I love the work we did on Mirror Mirror – a perfectly told story in a beautifully designed world.”

Another recent project that Penfold is particularly proud of is The Zone of Interest, directed by her partner Jonathan Glazer. The film marks their third feature collaboration after Sexy Beast (2000) and Under the Skin (2013). The Zone of Interest follows Rudolf Höss, the commandant of Auschwitz, and his wife, Hedwig, as they strive to build a dream life for their family besides the extermination camp that Höss helped to create. “Sometimes you are proud to be associated with a project because it’s a great piece of filmmaking, even if our work is a relatively minor contribution,” Penfold remarks. “I’m very proud to have been a part of The Zone of Interest. I believe it is an important film. There are also 660 visual effects shots in it, and I’m delighted that no one knows that!”

On the experience of setting up a company in a male-dominated industry, Penfold explains that the important thing is to look after the work and look after the people and the rest should follow. “Parity/ equality is best served by looking after your people – and by looking after all people so you create an environment where everyone can thrive. Key roles for women, and a diverse team, will come through a genuine commitment to value everyone which, in turn, will enrich everything that we do,” Penfold states.

VFX tools and technology never stop developing, and there have been many advancements since the beginning of Penfold’s career. “Thinking back to the rudimentary tools we used to have – massive clunking hardware that seemed to constantly fall over or fail. The most basic software… we have come a really long way,” she notes. “Many of today’s tools are designed to improve long-established techniques. The craft is being reinvigorated by new technologies in better and more exciting ways. Some technologies are completely new, and we are learning how to use them. But, as consumers, we have an irrepressible desire to examine our own humanity, one way or another. I can’t see a world where human storytellers are not at the heart of creating and bringing to life our own stories.”

For Penfold, that humanity is key to her definition of success. “Without question, the thing that I enjoy most about my role is the absolutely wonderful people I work with. Whether that’s internally – our teams, or whether that’s part of the ‘film family’ – these endeavors are often hard and long and unknown. So, you really do form extremely strong bonds. Producing exciting imagery is thrilling; it’s a real buzz. So, to do that as part of a tight-knit team is rewarding in so many ways.”