Capturing carbon in 3D

Overview

Perenco wanted to create a short animation that would give people a high-level overview of the carbon capture and storage process. It needed to convey the general principles, clearly and effectively in just a few minutes. The challenge was set, and we didn’t disappoint – you can see the full animation half way down this page: About Carbon Capture & Storage – Perenco (perenco-ccs.com)

Who?

Founded 30 years ago, Perenco is an independent hydrocarbon producer involved in the entire lifecycle of projects, from exploration to decommissioning. The company has an onshore and offshore presence in 15 countries and produces 490,000 boepd (barrels of oil equivalent per day) through its drilling, development, and operations.

How?

Planning

Perenco wanted a highly visual, engaging, and accessible animated overview of how the company captures and stores carbon. Although it’s a complex process, we needed the representation to be clear and simple for people to understand.

In under three minutes, the video had to convey the overall flow of carbon from its initial phase at a CCGT power plant, through to its capture, transportation, and eventual storage several kilometres under the seabed.

We suggested a 3D style that would show selected key components isolated against a clean and minimal background – accurately conveying the process, without getting bogged down in complexity.

Perenco provided the initial script, which we used to make a clear storyboard. We wanted one seamless animation, so storyboarding helped ensure we understood the flow and transitions, not to mention the technical process, before animation began. We also tied down the colour palette to match the colour scheme of the wider project this animation would be a part of.

Production

Once Perenco was happy with the storyboard, we made a short demo of our proposed approach and rendered stills of the 3D equipment that would feature in the video. Collaborating with Perenco, we adjusted the equipment for correct representation before adding any movement.

We then created the movement in 3D, using Cinema4D software and Redshift GPU render engine. We wanted the camera to follow along with the flow of the process, moving in one smooth and dynamic shot.

Part of the challenge working with a clean graphic background was showing the flow moving underground, as the ground isn’t really visible in any detail in most of the animation. But showing a cut-away of the rock strata provided an effective solution.

Result

With the final voice over recorded, we then rendered out the 4,000 frames of 3D animation using Redshift. The final film was delivered as an MP4 movie, to be viewed on one of Perenco’s websites.