ENTERTAINMENT
Model cars

If you thought producers spent millions on James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5, which was put through a series of huge explosions and stunts during the filming of Skyfall, including one scene where the priceless vehicle exploded in flames — think again. Three replicas of the classic car were created using a large scale 3D printer for the filming of the latest installment from the spy series.

The models double for the now priceless original vehicle from the 1960s in the film's action scenes.

The models were made by British firm Propshop Modelmakers Ltd, which specialise in the production of film props, and used Voxeljet to print the cars, the Daily Mail reported. "Propshop commissioned us to build three plastic models of the Aston Martin DB5," voxeljet CEO Dr. Ingo Ederer, said. "We could have easily printed the legendary sports car in one piece at a scale of 1:3 using our high-end VX4000 printer, which can build moulds and models in dimensions of up to eight cubic metres," Ederer said.

But the British model builders were pursuing a different approach. "To ensure that the Aston Martin was as true to detail as possible, and for the purpose of integrating numerous functions into the film models, they decided on an assembly consisting of a total of 18 individual components," Ederer said. "The entire body is based on a steel frame, almost identical to how vehicles were assembled in the past. In addition to the automotive industry, foundries, designers and artists, the film industry represents an entirely new customer base for voxeljet.

"3D printing is on the cusp of a great future in the film industry. The technology offers fantastic opportunities, since it is usually much faster, more precise and more economical than classic model construction," Ederer added. After the finishing process, it is impossible to distinguish the Aston Martin models made with the voxeljet printer from the original, even in the close-up shots, the firm said.

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