We had the distinct honor of learning from the extensive portfolio of Czech Republic’s top Special Effects (SFX) supervisor, Pavel Ságner. This lecture and demonstration was a part of our ongoing Masterclass series. 

“Sometimes you work for days, weeks, months… and the scene is only a few seconds.” 

Special Effects in Foreign Productions

Prague is known for being a desirable shooting location for many big-budget foreign productions. For these productions, it is absolutely essential to have a local supervisor of the SFX department. This is where Mr. Ságner has built his career. He has worked on such productions as Nosferatu, Carnival Row, Casino Royale, Extraction II, Snowpiercer, and many more. 

Snowsticks

At the end of his masterclass, Mr. Ságner demonstrated the use of a snowstick, a tool which can be burned slowly to create floating particles resembling snow. The result was truly magical!