Special Effects, Part 2

Founded in 1918, St. Petersburg's only film studio still has the look and feel of a Soviet era institution. The entrance is tucked amidst the beautiful urban buildings of the city's active center.


Inside a decaying, cluttered courtyard is a weedy lot off of which are small soundstages and production offices. We made our way to a building at the back.


With over 250 visual effects shots being created within five weeks, careful, constant monitoring is everything. There often isn't time to fix something if it isn't designed correctly from the beginning. So into the Algous Studio offices, a pleasant apartment whose rooms are cluttered with workstations...


...and onto a rapid survey of ongoing work.


Soon it was time to scamper back to the St. Petersburg train station and jump on the midnight train back to Moscow. We stepped into our car as the first clunk of motion shook the train.

I'd been wearing the same clothes for over 30 hours but that didn't stop me from settling onto my bunk and falling immediately asleep.


Seven and a half hours later we pulled back into Moscow. While we were gone it snowed. And as we returned, we were just preceding trains of commuters flowing into the city as dawn broke overhead.