How Dennis Berardi Rebuilt Mr X for a New Era: Inside the Making of Frankenstein

When Dennis Berardi founded Mr. X 25 years ago, his goal was simple — to build a VFX house rooted in artistry, not just technology. Decades later, after the company was acquired and then reacquired under his leadership, Berardi finds himself back at the creative helm, steering the studio into a new era.

And his first project in this renaissance couldn’t be more fitting — Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein. For Berardi, it’s both a reunion and a statement of intent: a reassertion that visual effects, at their best, are acts of craftsmanship and emotion.

“It’s poetic,” Berardi said. “The first title under my renewed ownership of Mr. X is another collaboration with Guillermo — someone who’s always challenged us to find the heart behind every pixel.”

Reviving the Soul of Mr. X

Founded in Toronto, Mr. X has contributed to numerous high-profile films and series over the years, from The Shape of Water to The Cabinet of Curiosities. Once part of Technicolor, the company found itself in the corporate machinery of big studio pipelines.

When Berardi reacquired it, he aimed to return to a more personal, artist-driven vision.

“We wanted to bring the soul back,” he explained. “Visual effects should feel tangible — as if the artists left fingerprints on every frame.”

With Frankenstein, Mr. X found a project that aligned perfectly with this philosophy — an emotionally rich, period-driven film demanding a mix of digital precision and handcrafted authenticity.

Building the World of Frankenstein

In Guillermo del Toro’s interpretation of Mary Shelley’s classic, Mr X’s team created over 1,200 visual effects shots, spanning everything from wildlife and laboratory sequences to gothic explosions and self-healing monsters.

One of the most ambitious sequences — the explosion of Victor Frankenstein’s tower lab — blended practical sets, miniatures, and full-scale CGI.

VFX Challenge	Practical Elements	Digital Enhancements	Key Tools
Tower Explosion	Miniature base, in-camera pyrotechnics	Full digital collapse and environment simulation	Houdini, Nuke, Unreal Engine
Ice Escape Scene	Parking-lot shoot with partial sets	Ocean, icebergs, digital ships	Fluid and particle simulations
Creature Self-Healing	Practical lighting cues	Full-body CG replacement with anatomical detail	Maya, ZBrush
Wildlife Sequences	On-set animal reference footage	Digital fur and muscle simulations	Proprietary VFX pipeline

“We had to unify production design, visual effects, and miniatures,” said Berardi. “It was the best of every discipline coming together.”

The team built the base 20 feet of the tower on location, with the upper structure digitally extended using references from a rugged Scottish coastline near Seacliff.

“It’s an opera of disciplines,” Berardi reflected. “We wanted the digital work to breathe with the same life as Guillermo’s sets.”

The Color Language of Frankenstein

Del Toro’s filmmaking has always been as painterly as it is emotional — and Berardi’s VFX approach follows that logic closely.

“Color is the emotional backbone,” Berardi said. “For Frankenstein, greens symbolize Elizabeth — life and rebirth — while Victor carries more vibrant reds, symbolizing obsession and danger.”

This palette guided every decision in compositing and lighting. Before a single render, Berardi and his team would refine each shot’s composition and silhouette — what del Toro calls “the emotional geometry” of the frame.

“Guillermo doesn’t start with technology,” Berardi explained. “He starts with feeling.”

A Tactile Approach to the Digital World

While Mr. X is a visual effects powerhouse, Berardi insists on grounding all digital work in physical reality.

“I’m a big believer in reference,” he said. “If you can see the technique, you’re failing. The audience should never see the seams — only the story.”

Berardi’s philosophy meant integrating practical references for every major scene. Wolves, explosions, and even snow were first captured in-camera before being augmented digitally.

“We’re artists, not engineers,” Berardi added. “And we didn’t lean on AI for any creative process. Everything you see in Frankenstein was handcrafted by human hands.”

AI in Visual Effects: A Tool, Not a Replacement

Despite del Toro’s well-known criticism of artificial intelligence in filmmaking, Berardi takes a pragmatic view.

“AI is an undeniable force,” he acknowledged. “At its best, it can take some drudgery out of our work — like rotoscoping or match-moving — but creativity still needs humans.”

At Mr X, AI is being cautiously integrated for technical assistance, not artistic substitution.

Application	Use of AI	Artistic Input Required
Rotoscoping	Automates repetitive masking	Human refinements
Camera Match-Move	Faster scene tracking	Manual validation
Code Generation	Assists with pipeline scripting	Developer supervision
Concept Creation	Not used	Fully artist-driven

“We haven’t replaced any jobs,” Berardi emphasized. “The goal is to let artists spend less time on drudgery and more on what they love — crafting beauty.”

He also warned of the technology’s limits:

“AI results can be fast, but most are bad. The uncanny valley never goes away if there’s no soul guiding it.”

Crafting Reality Through Reference

In Frankenstein, the team’s realism-first approach shines through. Every digital creature, explosion, and snowfall began with a physical base.

For instance, the Creature’s (Jacob Elordi) self-detonation scene used a clever blend of practical and digital work:

• Elordi held a prop dynamite stick with an LED for lighting cues.
• Cinematographer Dan Laustsen used Vortex lights to simulate the blast.
• The effects team detonated a real, camera-matched explosion using a sauna tube filled with explosives.
• The final shot combined digital snow, fire, and in-camera debris for a seamless blend.

“We shot real elements for every digital moment,” Berardi said. “If we didn’t, it would’ve looked fake. Visual effects should start with something you can touch.”

Working with Guillermo del Toro: A Partnership Built on Trust

Berardi and del Toro’s collaboration stretches over 15 years, from The Shape of Water to The Cabinet of Curiosities. Their shared philosophy — balancing the mystical with the human — is what makes their partnership enduring.

“Guillermo has this tactile approach,” said Berardi. “Even in the digital world, he wants it to feel handmade.”

That attention to texture, composition, and emotion defines every frame of Frankenstein.

“It’s about creating emotion, not spectacle,” del Toro once told his team. “The monster’s heart must beat through the screen.”

Looking Ahead: The Future of Mr. X and Frankenstein’s Legacy

With Frankenstein positioned as one of Netflix’s most ambitious releases, Mr X stands as a symbol of artistic revival in an increasingly digital landscape.

“This isn’t about effects for their own sake,” Berardi said. “It’s about building worlds that feel alive.”

As for future collaborations, Berardi hints that del Toro has several projects in development, though nothing confirmed — including a possible return to The Cabinet of Curiosities.

“He’s always looking for something that scares him,” Berardi said with a smile. “That’s where the magic happens.”

Conclusion

Dennis Berardi’s Mr. X has always been about pushing the boundaries of digital storytelling — not by abandoning craftsmanship, but by reviving it. In Frankenstein, Berardi and del Toro resurrect more than a literary monster; they restore a lost balance between human artistry and technological innovation.

In a cinematic landscape increasingly dominated by automation, Frankenstein stands as proof that the heart of visual effects still beats strongest when guided by human hands.

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