USA – Blackmagic Design today announced that DaVinci Resolve Studio was used throughout the digital intermediate (DI) pipeline, including the grade, online and finishing, on the Norwegian SciFi thriller “Kraken.” Lensed by Cinematographer Sjur Aarthun FNF, the film was graded by Senior Colorist Dylan Hopkin at Nordisk Film Shortcut Oslo.
When Hopkin took on the film, he faced the unique challenge of balancing intimate human drama with visceral creature horror, all set against the dramatic backdrop of Norway’s Sognefjord. “’Kraken’ embraces all of the good qualities of what an exciting character driven SciFi thriller should have,” Hopkin explained. “There’s human suspense, gritty aesthetics, jump scares, fast paced action and creepy but poetic creatures.”
Hopkin and Co Director / Cinematographer Sjur Aarthun FNF worked together to develop a show LUT with creamy blacks pushed slightly colder, a subtle punch in the highlights toward green yellow, and deep saturated hues. “The overarching theme was defining a timeless cinematic look that paid homage to modern Hollywood blockbusters but with a visceral Scandinavian twist,” he said.
The diverse locations presented significant challenges. The show LUT needed to work across panoramic fjord vistas, industrial fish farm environments and murky underwater sequences. Hopkin graded the project’s teasers and trailer first. “That process was extremely useful. It allowed us to refine the look, but also to understand where the trailer aesthetics diverged from the needs of a full length narrative,” he explained.
Hopkin worked in DaVinci Resolve Studio on macOS using a DaVinci Resolve Advanced Panel with digital cinema projection for theatrical monitoring. He maintained consistency through a fixed node tree used across the project, with Group Post Clip nodes allowing scene wide adjustments while preserving continuity.
DaVinci Resolve Studio’s AI powered tools became central to the workflow. “It’s all about being able to get good results in an effective manner, without compromising image quality and that’s what the AI tools in Resolve deliver,” said Hopkin.
The Magic Mask has also transformed his approach to complex selections. “Tasks that used to involve complicated tracked windows or rotoscoping can now be solved much more intuitively,” he explained. “I used it extensively for relighting faces, isolating creatures and excluding actors from background manipulations.”
DaVinci Resolve Studio’s Cinematic Haze OFX helped maintain atmosphere and continuity, particularly when VFX resources were stretched. After successfully testing it on shots lacking VFX added fog, Hopkin presented the results to the filmmakers. “They were enthusiastic straight away. It helped marry the whole scene together and led to me handling more shots directly in the grade,” he explained.
The integrated toolset also enabled Hopkin to handle clean up tasks that would typically return to VFX, including removing moiré from LED volume backgrounds and object removal through node sizing embedded in compound nodes. “Solving these issues in the grade is far quicker than exporting plates back to VFX,” he noted.
“Kraken” is the first Scandinavian feature graded and mastered in Dolby Vision for theatrical release, with the grade completed at Dolby’s Barnes Theatre in London. “The image quality was extraordinary,” said Hopkin. “Rich color, refined highlights, deep blacks and near black detail I’d never experienced in a cinema before.”
To achieve that, Hopkin relied on DaVinci Resolve Studio’s HDR Grade tools during the Dolby Vision grade. “They allowed for more precise control of micro contrast and saturation across custom tonal zones, making the transition between versions far more predictable,” he stated.
For him, DaVinci Resolve’s continued development is unlocking more opportunities every day. “It’s clear the development team is focused on putting practical, powerful tools into the hands of colorists. That commitment makes ambitious projects like this possible,” Hopkin concluded.
