MAKIN' WONDERLAND MAGIC!

Put on your explorer hats (courtesy of the Mad Hatter, natch) and get a sneak peek of the digital magic that went into the making of this movie!

Iracebeth, the Red Queen (played by Helena Bonham-Carter) is the tyrannical monarch of Underland. With her oversized noggin, fiery temper, and love for having other people’s heads chopped off, she rules her subjects through fear. Her younger sis, the White Queen, plans to take back the throne and crown that Iracebeth once stole from her. 

1. The Red Queen is filmed against a green-screen background that’s been dressed with green set pieces. The columns will make accurate shadows, and the wooden “stand-ins” for the frogs will act as the actress's "partners".

 2. Using tons of techniques that DON'T include actual cosmetic surgery, the Red Queen’s head is enlarged to twice its normal size, her waist is cinched, and her neck and chin are blended into the collar and shoulders of her body. 

3. Animators add in CG frogs and red knights, plus birds holding the chandelier and monkeys holding the candelabras. (Helpful critters, eh?) Human courtiers -- filmed in a separate green-screen shoot -- are placed to the right of the Queen. 

 4. The frogs are given accurate skin and properly moving costumes, and the birds receive their realistic plumage. 

5. In the final composite (a fancy film term for the stage when all the elements come together), all surfaces are lit and given textures, while the green-screen photography is awesome-ized with full color.

Wonderland Magic Maker: Ivan Dapul. Images © Disney. This web special originally appeared as a post in K-Zone's Ka-Blog