UI (film)

UI is an upcoming Indian Kannada-language surrealist action thriller film written and directed by Upendra, who also stars in the lead role, alongside Reeshma Nanaiah, Murali Sharma, Sunny Leone, Nidhi Subbaiah, Sadhu Kokila, Murali Krishna and Indrajit Lankesh feature in supporting roles. The film is produced by Lahari Films and Venus Enterrtainers.

UI was announced in June 2022. The music is composed by B. Ajaneesh Loknath.

Development
Upendra conceived the story for UI in the mid-2000s. This was his eleventh film as a director and first since Uppi 2 (2015). The theme and storyline of the film was not revealed by the makers to the media even during the final filming stages of UI; they maintained that it was an "entertaining subject yet it tackles a significant global issue." In an interview to Bangalore Times in June 2023, Upendra mentioned that "With UI, I want to build a totally different world visually. It will be 'surrealistic'". A report stated that the film was reportedly made at a budget of ₹100 crore.

Cast and crew
The film was launched on 3 June 2022, and the makers revealed the meaning of the title UI to be the mark worn on forehead. G. Manoharan's Lahari Films and K. P. Sreekanth's Venus Enterrtainers were reported to produce the film. It was also reported that, alongside Kannada, the film would be released in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam. Actor Murali Sharma was reported to be a part of the film's cast when the film was announced in June 2022. A month later, actress Nidhi Subbaiah's signing was reported. However, until November 2022, no other members of the cast were officially confirmed by the makers. However, it was speculated that Sunny Leone was a part of the cast. Reeshma Nanaiah's role too was speculated, and was a confirmed a few months later.

A May 2023 report revealed that Leone and Nanaiah had been cast, alongside Murali Krishna and Indrajit Lankesh, and that B. Ajaneesh Loknath would compose the film's music. Shivakumar, who had previously worked in KGF film series and Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire, was hired as art director for the film. Deepu S. Kumar served as the film's editor, and Prajwal as the cinematographer. In June, it was reported that actress Veena Ponnappa, who previously appeared in Vedha (2022), was cast.

Filming and post-production
A co-producer of the film, Naveen Manohar, who contributed also on the technical front in the film's making, stated that the film features an entire city set, spanning 10 acres in area, complemented by extensive visual effects set extensions. He further elaborated on the visual effects, revealing that the team had created a unique world within the film, comprising over 1,400 VFX shots, and that the film incorporated various cutting-edge technologies, such as VR-Mocobot. He added that 3D scanning of Upendra was made using a setup of more than 200 DSLR cameras to create his CGI double. It was reportedly the first Asian film to use this technology. Manohar also revealed that an entire sequence was shot using a virtual reality pipeline. Creation technology of Industrial Light & Magic, which was previously employed in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), was also used in the film. Filming locations included Bengaluru, Mysore and Hyderabad.

Filming for UI completed in early August 2023, with a song sequence left pending to be shot in October that year. It was reported that Upendra also assisted in editing, which would take a month's time, before the dubbing process. Dubbing began in late August with Upendra voicing for the film's Kannada and Telugu versions.

Marketing
A concept poster of the film was released by the makers on 3 June 2022. It featured a horse-like animal and other caricatures. On 2 January 2023, a 32-second BTS footage was released by the makers. On 1 May, another BTS footage of the making with the caption, "It is only through these hard workers and their hard work that we achieve great things" was released, to mark the International Workers' Day. A teaser was released on 18 September, on the occasion of Upendra's birthday. Cinema Express reported that it was "an audio-only teaser... with Upendra's voice shrouded in mystery and darkness, unveiling tantalizing sounds that hint at dripping water, thunderous gunshots, and a skilled man evading danger." The voice poses a question: "How does one escape from it?" before adding that if ones catches a glimpse of light and listens carefully, it imparts the wisdom of composure, concentration and the intricacies of weaponry. The teaser concluded with a woman's voice proclaiming, "This is not 'AI,' this is 'UI', Use your Intelligence." A double exposure picture with the character of Upendra's face on that of a horse was used as thumbnail of the teaser. It had four million views on YouTube in 24 hours.

Soundtrack
The music was composed by B. Ajaneesh Loknath.