10 Amazing Practical Movie Effects Shots Everybody Assumed Were CGI

Blade Runner 2049 is one of the most visually breathtaking films of the last decade, and though Denis Villeneuve clearly delivered as much as he could practically, the film still contains a staggering 1,190 VFX shots.

The gorgeous, towering cityscapes of Los Angeles featured throughout the film are easily accepted as entirely digital, given that big-budget Hollywood productions have increasingly shied away from practical miniatures, which in addition to being more time-consuming are often now more expensive than CGI.

But in order to remain stylistically consistent with Ridley Scott's original film, Villeneuve hired Weta Workshop to create absurdly intricate miniature cityscapes.

Though some of the city shots received CGI embellishments - for spaceships, signs, and so on - the buildings themselves and accompanying lighting were largely all achieved in-camera.

As miniature work becomes more scarce in blockbuster films with each passing year, sublime work of this scale and quality becomes ever-more precious. Bravo.