In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the VFX team at Sony Pictures Imageworks was tasked with walking a fine line—honoring the franchise’s legacy while delivering environments and effects that meet today’s updated standards. Nowhere is that more evident than in the reconstruction of the New York Public Library, a key location that couldn’t be shot practically. Instead, the team relied on LIDAR scans, photogrammetry, and high-res reference imagery to build a digital version of the space, filling in gaps with extensive photo references and layering prop details to keep the environment authentic.

Rather than rely solely on traditional 3D-modeling for exterior city scenes, the team utilized projection techniques on actual street plates to preserve the natural movement of New York’s bustling city streets. Civilians were digitally removed frame by frame, allowing for clean plates that could be stylized to fit the supernatural tone. This background projection approach maintained the texture and unpredictability of the city.

Epic storm sequences also required atmospheric augmentation and digital matte enhancements to reflect the increasing chaos of the story. Streets were transformed with layers of ice and snow, and blended seamlessly with live-action elements. Animating ghost characters—including new entities and legacy figures like the green ghost and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man—meant evolving the design language without losing any of its original charm.

Frozen Empire is filled with nods to the past, but the VFX work shown here is entirely modern. A mix of digital reconstruction and ghoulishly good character animation—all executed to blend seamlessly into a film that depends on New York City feeling both real… yet haunted.

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Watch the full VFX breakdown:

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