Snowpiercer – Cinematic Colour Grading Project

The Cinematic Colour Grading Project is a digital art project exploring the fascinating world of cinematic colour palettes. I will discuss how strong colour grading, lighting and environmental effects are used to convey mood in key scenes from iconic movies. These techniques will then be applied to photographs of abandoned buildings, to produce a digital art piece.

Welcome to the fourth instalment of my Cinematic Colour Grading Project. This digital art project explores the interesting world of movie colour schemes. I am a bit of a horror and sci-fi film buff, and this project offers me a chance to talk about some of my favourite movies. For an added twist, I will be apply these colour schemes to my own photographs.

Without further delay, I will delve into one of my recent Netflix binges, Snowpiercer.

Other Cinematic Colour Grading entries include : Alien (1979), Bladerunner and Mad Max : Fury Road.

Plot synopsis of Snowpiercer

The movie (2013) and Netflix (2020) series Snowpiercer is based on the French graphic novel, Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob.

The world’s global warming reached a crisis point. Scientists and government attempted to halt global warming with a new climate engineering solution. It works, a little too well. Instead of a warming world, the Earth is plunged into a new ice age. As temperatures plummet a reclusive transport billionaire, Willbur, begins work on his plan to “save” humanity. He builds the Snowpiercer, a train 1001 cars long which has a perpetual motion engine. The train will circumnavigate the globe on an immense track. As long as the train is moving, the lights and heating stay on, and those inside can live safely and comfortably.

The wealthy and elite secured tickets on board, but before the train could depart there was a uprising. Those too poor to buy tickets stormed and occupied the rear of the train in a last ditch attempt to escape the cold. Once the uprising subsided, and the train was in motion, an uneasy truce was reached. The poor segregated to the back to live in poverty, and the well-to-do in the front of the train living in luxury.

This class divide leads to a powder key with the two factions forced to cohabit in such close proximity. The story follows the struggle of the lower classes, called “tailies”, as they devise and implement plans to seek a better life “uptrain”. Wilbur rules Snowpiercer with an iron fist, and failed attempts at insurrection always come with terrible consequences.

A world of ice and snow, and the engine eternal

For this project, I will use one of the online promotional posters for the 2020 Netflix series. The colours and textures of this one appealed to me.

For me, the key features of the colour palette and color grading are;

• Washed-out colour palette, with high-contrast. This enforces the feelings of a bleek and harsh post-apocalyptic world
• Gritty textures, to emphasise frost clinging to every surface
• Pale blue colour cast, an obvious reference to the cold icy world
• Ice textures on the background
• Snow spray from the train, to emphasise the ever-forward movement of the engine eternal

Photoshop colour grading of an abandoned Hungarian Steam Train

My first step was to select a train photograph from my portfolio; we can’t recreate Snowpiercer without this! I picked the Red Star Train from Hungary. Perhaps it stuck in my mind, as the red star logo on the front ties in with the WIlbur “W” on the front of Snowpiercer (at least to me!)

Comparison – from rusting Soviet steam train to speeding snowpiercer

I thoroughly enjoyed creating this piece, as it is something I have thought about for a while. I even hid a little Easter Egg for those of you who want to take a closer look. Good hunting!

Suggest a movie (or video game) for my Cinematic Colour Grading Project

I thoroughly enjoyed this project. In addition, I have many inspirational movie colour palettes I would like to explore.

If you have any suggestions, please leave a comment below or Contact Me. I would love to hear your ideas!