ILM’s Pablo Helman on Oscar-
nominated VFX for The Irishman
By Karen Moltenbrey

When a film stars Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Al Pacino, well, expectations are high. These are no ordinary actors, and Martin Scorsese is no ordinary director. These are movie legends. And their latest project, Netflix’s The Irishman, is no ordinary film. It features cutting-edge de-aging technology from visual effects studio Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and earned the film’s VFX supervisor, Pablo Helman, an Oscar nomination.

The Irishman, adapted from the book “I Heard You Paint Houses,” tells the story of an elderly Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran (De Niro), whose life is nearing the end, as he looks back on his earlier years as a truck driver-turned-mob hitman for Russell Bufalino (Pesci) and family. While reminiscing, he recalls the role he played in the disappearance of his longtime friend, Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino), former president of the Teamsters, who famously disappeared in 1975 at the age of 62, and whose body has never been found.

The film contains 1,750 visual effects shots, most of which involve the de-aging of the three actors. In the film, the actors are depicted at various stages of their lives — mostly younger than their present age. Pacino is the least aged of the three actors, since he enters the story about a third of the way through — from the 1940s to his disappearance three decades later. He was 78 at the time of filming, and he plays Hoffa at various ages, from age 44 to 62. De Niro, who was 76 at the time of filming, plays Sheeran at certain points from age 20 to 80. The 76-year-old Pesci plays Bufalino between age 53 and 83.

When the significantly older Sheeran talks to the camera about his past, makeup was used. Making the younger versions of all three actors, however, was much more difficult. Indeed, current technology makes it possible to create believable younger digital doubles. But it typically requires actors to perform alone on a soundstage wearing facial markers and helmet cameras, or requires artists to enhance or create performances with CG animation. That simply would not do for this film. Neither the actors nor Scorsese wanted the tech to interfere with the acting process in any way. Recreating their performances was also off the table.

“They wanted a technology that was non-intrusive and one that would be completely separate from the performances. They didn’t want markers on their faces, they did not want to wear helmet cams, and they did not want to wear the gray [markered] pajamas that we normally use,” says VFX supervisor Helman. “They also wanted to be on set with theatrical lighting, and there wasn’t going to be any kind of re-shoots of performances outside the set.”

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