The Summer-release sci-fi adventure flick with some of the most elaborate visuals of any film of late is still in post-production right now and several of the biggest entertainment sites out there got to visit the effects houses of the production in California's Van Nuys.

The lucky buggers got to see a whole bunch of footage and interview some of the key people involved. Here's just a glimpse at some of the stuff we can expect:

"The next scene we saw was truly one of the most spectacular - the attack on New York by an entire fleet of flying robots.  In the air, their arms are outstretched like the wings of a plane, but then they land and march like giant automatons to their destination (they seem to be after the city's electrical generators).  As Polly follows their movement and snaps photos, their eyes fire mighty lasers (temp-sound designed with the laser blast noises from The War of the Worlds) and the police can't do a thing to stop them.  They put out the call over the radio to "Sky Captain" and we even cut to a shot of a radio tower rising over a mock-up of the Earth (think: the old RKO logo) and watch as they beam out across the globe the call for Sky Captain...later this day, we saw another New York air battle that was even more spectacular - flapping bird-like robots [called "flying wings" by the production] - swooping after Sky Captain and Polly in his P-40 as they raced through the jungle of NYC skyscrapers - you have NO idea how cool it looked.  Just amazing...". (full footage review)

An interview with Producer Jon Avnet asked the question of this becoming a potential franchise. His answer? "You know, initially I thought we were going to do a series of these things and I believe it has a good chance to be successful.  Obviously if it is, there'll be a demand for it.  But I'm not certain at this very moment only because I'm tired.  I think I'm going to go and direct a movie after this.  It's taken a lot more time than I'd ever imagined". For more of that interview, check out Coming Soon.

An in-depth discussion of the visual effects techniques employed can be found ain Part Two of the report at CHUD.

Finally some cool talk about the production design is up at AICN with word on the all CG backgrounds - "From the intricate sculpting of a miniature elephant, to its integration in the finished scene, the process appears every bit as astonishing as those I’ve witnessed in other f/x houses. Even more impressive than the elephant, however, was the degree of detail in the actors’ surroundings. Given our step-by-step breakdown of the scene, I was acutely aware of the fact that this was shot against a bluescreen, but by the time we arrived at the finished sequence, there’s no way you could convince me that they weren’t on a fully constructed set. If nothing else, SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW boasts some of the most convincing virtual scenery to date".

"Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow" hits theatres on June 11th.

Thanks to 'Jeremy' & 'SJR'.