Universal has unveiled a bounty of goodies from director Joseph Kosinski’s upcoming sci-fi pic Oblivion.  The featurettes focus on Kosinski’s desire to do as many of the film’s visual effects in camera as possible, and it’s absolutely fascinating to see how he pulled off some of these tricks.  For scenes in the film’s skytower, instead of using a blue screen to fill out the sky background, Kosinski actually projected footage of the real sky (which he shot in Maui) 360 degrees around the set, so everything the audience sees in the background is practical.  The other featurette focuses on the creation of the pic’s “bubble ship,” and it’s another interesting look into Kosinski’s strong flair for design.

Hit the jump to take a look at the featurettes and TV spots.  The film also stars The film also stars Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, and Morgan Freeman.  Oblivion opens in traditional and IMAX theaters on April 19th.

Here’s the official synopsis for Oblivion:

Tom Cruise stars in Oblivion, an original and groundbreaking cinematic event from the director of TRON: Legacy and the producer of Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  On a spectacular future Earth that has evolved beyond recognition, one man’s confrontation with the past will lead him on a journey of redemption and discovery as he battles to save mankind.

Jack Harper (Cruise) is one of the last few drone repairmen stationed on Earth.  Part of a massive operation to extract vital resources after decades of war with a terrifying threat known as the Scavs, Jack’s mission is nearly complete.

Living in and patrolling the breathtaking skies from thousands of feet above, his soaring existence is brought crashing down when he rescues a beautiful stranger from a downed spacecraft.  Her arrival triggers a chain of events that forces him to question everything he knows and puts the fate of humanity in his hands.

Oblivion was shot in stunning digital 4K resolution on location across the United States and Iceland.