David Seager first shared insights with us in 2021 about ILM’s visual effects on Loki. He went on to work on Marvel and Star Wars projects including Eternals, The Book of Boba Fett, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Andor.
Jeff Capogreco’s VFX journey spans more than two decades. He began his career at Mr. X, later moved to Weta FX, and has been part of ILM’s talented teams since 2014. Among his many credits are Avatar, The Hobbit trilogy, Avengers: Infinity War, and the hit series The Mandalorian.
Vincent Papaix joined us in 2024 to talk about ILM’s work on Deadpool & Wolverine. 15 years after Tron: Legacy, he returns to the Grid to share insights on the visual effects behind Tron: Ares.
How / when did you get involved on this film?
David Seager (DS): The very first time Tron: Ares crossed my desk was an earlier version of the script in January of 2021. The production returned in late 2022 with a new script, and I started preproduction full-time as the overall production VFX supervisor in January of 2023. I was on the show full-time for the next 32 months, finishing shortly before the theatrical release.
Jeff Capgreco (JC): I became involved with the film in late 2023. During initial discussions with David, he provided a comprehensive overview of the upcoming work. At that stage, the focus was on receiving assets and preliminary development shots to begin key creative components.
Vincent Papaix (VP): I joined in September 2024, right after wrapping Deadpool & Wolverine.
What was your feeling to enter the Tron universe?
DS: Like many other sci-fi-loving kids growing up in the 80s, my mind was blown away when I saw the original TRON. I was your stereotypical computer-loving and video gaming-playing geeky kid, and TRON captured my imagination that there could be another world inside our computers. Little 9-year-old Dave could not have ever imagined that one day he would get paid to play with light cycles and light walls. Needless to say, I was very excited to be given the opportunity to join the production team of TRON: Ares and help bring the grid to the real world.
JC: Being part of the TRON universe is a childhood dream come true.The first movie I ever saw on VHS was the original TRON, as a kid, I was mesmerized by its dazzling world of light and shapes. Now, building on TRON: Legacy and pushing the visuals even further with TRON: Ares is thrilling—and a little intimidating.
VP: Back in 2010, I was working at Digital Domain while they were working on TRON: Legacy and I was so amazed by the design and VFX work. I was a young compositor back then. I opened NukeScript and learnt a ton from the talented team. Fast forward 15 years, and having the opportunity to bring the Lightcycle and Recognizer into the real world is truly a dream come true.
How was the collaboration with Director Joachim Rønning?
DS: Joachim was an amazing leader for TRON: Ares and was extremely collaborative. He was our North Star when it came to anchoring elements from the Grid into the real world via traditional, practical shooting methodologies. He wanted to keep the language of the Tron distinct between our scenes in the Grid and those in the real world. He has a great eye for compositing and camera work that proved invaluable in post-production, and you could always count on him to respond well to good designs and cool ideas.
How did you organize the work with your VFX Producer and split the work amongst the VFX Studios?
DS: My production VFX producer, Walter Garcia, and I divided the work among several vendors. ILM shouldered the lion’s share of the work with over 1400 shots spread between the real world, the Dillinger Grid, and the Encom Grid. Distillery VFX tackled the 1982 Grid, and Image Engine took on the Civic driving scene along with a variety of other work. GMUNK was heavily involved in designing the graphic elements of the film and handled the heads-up displays and many of the holograms. Lola and OPSIS helped with the cosmetic work and 2D-only compositing shots. Lastly, Prologue and Imaginary Forces tag-teamed to create the opening prologue for the film.
JC: At ILM, we strategically split the work so each site handled both grid and real-world shots. Vancouver took on the ENCOM grid, key city builds for the Recognizer finale, and scenes from the original grid. Sydney focused on the Dillinger facility, the Flynn Museum fight, and the mountain test site where Eve prints the orange tree, along with the Dillinger grid and its interiors. This balanced division let both teams work independently while keeping a unified look. Shared assets—like light walls, characters, and vehicles—flowed seamlessly between sites, helping us move fast and avoid production bottlenecks.
How did you and the filmmakers approach the design language of the three different Grids — Encom, Dillinger, and Flynn’s 1980s world — to make each feel distinct yet part of the same digital universe?
DS: Darren Gillford returned as production designer and was the driving force behind the design of the grids. The Dillinger Grid, or the “Red Grid”, is a modern Grid that carries much of the design language from Tron Legacy. It’s very utilitarian and is meant to reflect the industrial and militaristic nature of the Dillinger corporation. Seen from a distance, the Dillinger Grid is designed to look similar to modern graphics cards. Conversely, the Encom Grid, or the” Blue Grid”, was intentionally designed to have common DNA with that of TRON: Legacy, but also feel brighter and more hopeful. The light lines of the Encom Grid incorporate more curves, while the Dillinger Grid is more angular.
The look of the 1982 Grid, or the “Flynn Grid”, was designed to look like a modern take on the original film. A great deal of research was done to try and interpret the characteristics that defined the look of the original film. The result of that research was then applied to the scenes and auditioned for the filmmakers. In many cases, the modern capabilities of current rendering tools needed to be reduced or turned off entirely. Skin tones were heavily desaturated, copious amounts of film grain were added, motion blur was turned off, and various types of flicker were added. In the end, we wanted the 1982 Grid to feel immediately familiar to fans of the series, but also to include subtle look improvements so that it was not jarring to audience members unfamiliar with the original.
JC: The goal with the Dillinger Grid was to create a world that feels like the dark reflection of the Encom Grid. Encom is sleek, elegant, and defined by cool blues—Dillinger is the opposite: aggressive, industrial, and intense. We’re talking hot reds and oranges, harsh lighting, and heavy, imposing geometry. It’s a world built for conflict, not beauty. The filmmakers wanted it to feel like a digital war machine, so we really leaned into that sense of power and pressure. Throughout the shots, you see violent flashes of lightning and an industrial atmosphere. We pulled inspiration from real-world shipping ports, refineries, and military infrastructure, and even looked at CPU and GPU schematics to shape the layout of the island tops. The end result is a place that still feels part of the TRON universe—but with a completely different emotional temperature: angry, oppressive, and industrial.
Can you tell us more about the creative and technical challenges of recreating the aesthetic of the 1980s Grid while ensuring it feels fresh and visually coherent with today’s cinematic standards?
DS: Creating the 1982 Grid was one of the biggest artistic challenges on the show. However, it was not a challenge marred by technical complexities. We often referred to the task as if it were VFX haiku. Trying to simplify and remove design elements to achieve the final look. A perfect example of this is the use of motion blur. It is common for modern renderers to be able to accurately recreate photographic motion blur. However, when this is applied to renders in the 1982 Grid, the look rapidly lost the feel of the original film. As a result, we decided to greatly reduce and remove motion blur selectively. Conversely we found that the original film did not apply depth of field to the environments in the Grid, but when this idea was applied to our scene it felt as though it was breaking some of the shots. Making them feel unnaturally unbalanced. Therefore, we decided to apply depth of field as dictated by the photography of the actors. Numerous tests were conducted to determine the optimal level of reflections and raytracing. We ultimately settled on incorporating subtle hints of these advanced rendering techniques.
What kind of visual references or inspirations did you draw upon to pay homage to the original Tron while modernizing the visual language for Ares?
DS: Much of the design and FX language within the Dillinger & Encom Grid draws heavily from TRON: Legacy. This includes the materials, light lines, atmospherics, effects, and camera opticals. Additionally, the deresolution of the programs as they are destroyed is meant to feel like a more graphic version of the same effect in Tron Legacy. The programs still break down into voxels, but our goal was to introduce more macro destruction as you see body parts separate before breaking apart.
JC: During the light skimmer chase through the Dillinger Grid, we hinted at the first film’s idea that programs draw energy from water. Here, when programs interact with the water, it lights up with a glowing, bioluminescent energy—paying homage to the classic visuals while adding a fresh, striking twist. We also tried to pay homage to the original materialization of the orange tree sequence and referenced the original work on Tron to try to pull in some of the key design aspects to give it that retro vibe.
The light cycle chase is one of the franchise’s most iconic sequences. How did you reinvent it for Tron: Ares, especially since part of it takes place in the real world?
DS: Starting with vehicle design, the light cycles featured in Tron: Ares needed to feel as though it was feasible to build in the near future. This includes the use of familiar materials, panel lines, bolts, joints, and a lot of thought going into the construction and operation of the light cycle. After being printed into the real world it was important that the light cycle just feel like a very advanced vehicle. There was no use of more traditional Tron language to form the light cycle out of light lines.
When it came to shooting the scene, it was decided to shoot as much of the scene as possible using more traditional method on location. Shooting the scene practically formed a foundation based in reality, and was then supplemented with VFX. In order to achieve this goal we built proxy versions of the light cycles out of Harley-Davidson Livewire electric motorcycles. The wheel base was modified to match the design of the light cycle, and lights were attached to the bikes and the riders to enhance interactive lighting and reflections. From that point, we shot the scene as if it were a more traditional motorcycle chase scene, and then replaced the proxy bikes in post production with the light cycles and light walls.
We also built camera ready versions of the light cycles that we were able to mount off the back of a truck on a cantilever beam to drive through the streets of Vancouver with a stunt performer in the final costume. The same camera-ready light cycle was mounted to sleds for a blue screen shoot, where we were able to shoot close-up shots of our performers safely.
Can you walk us through the animation and destruction of the Recognizer in the final sequence — how did you find the right balance between visual spectacle and physical plausibility?
VP: To find the right balance between visual spectacle and physical plausibility, we anchored our approach in real-world physics. We studied real demolition references alongside cinematic examples like the massive destruction sequence in Transformers: Dark of the Moon. While aiming for spectacle, the Director’s mandate was always to stay grounded and photoreal. All our destruction simulations—from the catastrophic electrical explosions to the debris like flying office chairs and desks—were driven by accurate physical parameters. We also maintained strict continuity, meticulously tracking the cumulative damage on both the Recognizer and the surrounding building across every shot to ensure the destruction felt sequential and believable.
Looking back on the project, what aspects of the visual effects are you most proud of?
DS: I’m equal parts proud of the level of realism that we achieved with bringing TRON into the real world, as well as providing the visuals that fans of the series expect inside the grid.
JC: Things I’m most proud of in the show include the various printing/materialization FX developed for going both in and out of the real world and the creation or spawning of programs into the grid. The biggest highlight, though, was creating the complex and detailed environment and FX work that went into the Dillinger Grid. It was a whacky, fun, unique, and very challenging sequence.
VP: We had a fantastic time bringing the Lightcycles and Recognizer to the real world. I’m especially proud of the high-quality integration and how well the team pushed the quality to new heights. The online praise for the visuals is a great testament to our work.
How long have you worked on this show?
DS: 32 months.
JC: Approximately 1 year 7 months.
VP: Around 11 months.
What’s the VFX shots count?
DS: There were 2,123 total VFX shots in the final edit.
VP: Around 1400 for ILM alone.
What is your next project?
DS: I’m taking a little time off before my next project.
JC: I am currently working on Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian and Grogu.
VP: I will be joining the team on Shawn Levy’s upcoming Star Wars feature Starfighter very soon.
A big thanks for your time.
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
ILM: Dedicated page about Tron: Ares on ILM website.
© Vincent Frei – The Art of VFX – 2025
