This was a great piece of work - well considered in its approach, shot perfectly and of course, it gave us to saddle up and collaborate with the talented teams from Red Bee and Flynn. 

The grade by our Colourist James Bamford set the tonal quality for the piece with an instantly recognizable tone and feel, whilst Senior Smoke Artist, John Thornton, supported by a Nuke team from the Mill Studio composited the Vic, accentuating the burned building following its recent incineration at the hands of Phil Mitchell, as well as replacing the sky, adding dust and other atmospheric enhancements to complete the look.

Director Bertie explains how they achieved the ad's authentic look, "Sometimes all the high-end equipment in the world matters naught unless the right people are operating it.  We came to The Mill because authenticity to the genre and elegance in execution are king for us.  We shot true to Leone-style on 35mm 2 perf and colourist James fully understood what we wanted to achieve in the grade.  Not an easy task when you're asking him to burn a dusty sun-scorched Spanish desert across an autumnal, rainy Bridge Street in Walford, E20.

"Our second challenge was to rebuild The Queen Vic;  EastEnders shoot 6 weeks ahead of air date, so the burnt out Vic pub had already been refurbished by the time we filmed.  For us, the build had to be totally invisible, as we understand the critical eyes of the devoted EastEnders' audience.  We're ecstatic with the results and are touched to be invited by our Op, John, to become members of their Cloud Appreciation Society...what an honour!

"Leone would have been proud."