Follows Lucy and Desi as they face a crisis that could end their careers — and another that could end their marriage.
Future Associate's work on Being the Ricardos centred on invisible post-production problem solving: the kind of VFX work that exists entirely in service of the edit, with no visual signature of its own.
/ Take Selection & Morph Compositing
Across the majority of our shot count, the core task was morph compositing between selected takes of the same actor. Where the director and editor had identified the best elements across two or three separate takes — a preferred performance in one, a better moment in another — Future Associate blended them into a seamless continuous shot.
Each shot was split into segments: the chosen take running for a portion of the shot, a four-frame morph transition, then the second take carrying through to the end. Many shots also carried a 110% speed adjustment across both segments, an editorial decision to tighten the pacing of the action. Matching the speed ramp across the morph boundary while keeping the blend invisible was the primary technical challenge of this work.
Several shots required three-way morphs — blending through take A, take B, and take C within a single continuous shot. The same approach applied: clean transitions at each join, consistent speed treatment throughout.
/ Split Screens & Transitions
A number of shots required split screen compositing, combining elements shot separately into a single frame — figures on opposite sides of shot, smoke elements, and foreground action composited against background plates. One scene required a series of transition shots: lamp wipes, closing sequences, and a freeze frame tied to a door slam — all technical fixes to land editorial cuts cleanly.
This is the work that rarely gets discussed — the invisible layer of post that makes a cut work, a performance land, or an editorial decision possible that wouldn't otherwise be. Being the Ricardos was a reminder that a significant portion of any VFX slate is exactly this: precise, unobtrusive, and entirely in service of the story.