Model Plane - smoke, fire, explosion

[tariqari]

Hi. I want to shoot down a model plane(maybe with an AA gun?), have it catch fire on the middle of one of the wings (maybe near the spoiler), and towards the end of the film, fall out of the sky and crash into the ground in a fiery explosion. I want use as much physical effects as possible.

First on my list is the smoke. Is there any sort of smoke bomb that would create a pillowing, as black as can be, smoke that I could somehow mount on the wing of the plane?

2nd, is there a way that I could create a a controlled fire that would not spread too much outward on the wing? I don't want it just catch the whole model on fire before I begin...I was thinking of using cleaning alcohol with a paint brush to make a circle on the wing that could then be lit with a match. Not sure if this would light well or not...

3rd, what would be the most effective way to create the crash?

Lastly, what would be a good way to suspend the model? I'm thinking of going with a WWII era fighter so it would be pretty small. I also have to account for the hopefully controlled fire interfering with any suspensions.

Ideas?

 

[Michael Carter]

Your issue with all of this stuff is going to be the size of the model - the bigger the better for realism.

For the smoke, nothing will billow and look massive and "real" like a good particle system in, say, AE. Even flames will likely look cheesy.

Without a big CGI budget, I'd look at:

Biggest model possible;
Distress the model adequately for realism - even undamaged planes have soot/exhaust stains and the seams and panels are imperfect compared to a model;
Shoot 60p and slowdown to 24p (hollywood model destruction is often shot at 100fps or faster);
Make a rig that holds the model with a thin rod, a rig that can twist the plane on its axis; that way light reflections will change, etc and the movements will look more real (kill the support rod in post);
For the fire: try sticky model glue - it will still look fake I imagine (do this outdoors, burning plastic and glue is toxic as hell);
Have a fire extinguisher handy (we're talking a very small amount of fire/flame, but still...)
Use compressed air to make the flame seem like it's in a fast air stream;
Augment the fire and smoke with Trapcode Particular (or find someone good with trapcode who'll do it cheap or free, there are plenty of forums).

When the plane is hit, create some plates of flying debris (use compressed air maybe?) and comp those in;
Add some more shake for the hit.

Add some shake and blur to the scenes - it will mask things and "glue" elements together;
Try to make the scene be in clouds/mist/rain - it will hide problems and give you an air of realism. it's very easy to have smoke/mist/rain elements that are blurred streaks and puffs and still look real - blur means speed, and blur is your friend.

 

[clang]

Yup, scale is your biggest problem. i wouldn't even consider doing it practically unless you can get a really big model, e.g. at least a couple of feet across. Hmm, maybe some radio-control plane flyer enthusiasts could help? - as the plane wouldn't have to actually fly, you might be able to get one relatively cheap.

Everything Michael said, plus:
- consider filming the plane against a greenscreen, so you can composite in sky etc later. But be aware that greenscreen (and compositing in general) can be a nightmare if you haven't done it before
- watch some ancient WW2 movies for tips on shot selection, e.g. cutting between close-ups and wide shots. They had the advantage of real planes, but otherwise very primitive film/SFX technology

CGI is likely to be useful for the landing explosion at least.