"Power of the Dark Crystal" feature production launches in Australia

[frogboy4]

I wish they would film in my area.I would love to be involved as an Extra.But they will probably film in Sydney.

The first DC didn't involve any human people, only puppeteers and trained technicians in puppeted costumes so there won't likely be any extras. However, they did have a "little person" for a few key wide shots. I believe that Farscape was shot in Sydney and POTC is reportedly using the same team so that would be my guess too. I suppose you could apply for an internship or production assistant. I’m not certain how that works in Australia or if it requires guild ties. I have a feeling that this is going to have a very lean crew of people working in controlled environments.

 

[Drtooth]

I'm kinda surprised at the big push of 3-D all of a sudden. We've had it since the '50s at least - it's nothing new. But some movies are better suited for it than others. But I don't really care so much about that- in the case of "The Power of the Dark Crystal" it will probably be pretty cool. As long as it gets made already- and hopefully with a blend of puppetry and CGI.

I just hope there's puppetry in it. There no doubt would be CGI. There's no way Holl-o-wood has the patience and vision to have things done exactly like the first film, building all that stuff they had to. It really is a shame, since the less CGI, the more realistic things look. No matter how advanced technology gets.

 

[frogboy4]

I just hope there's puppetry in it. There no doubt would be CGI. There's no way Holl-o-wood has the patience and vision to have things done exactly like the first film, building all that stuff they had to. It really is a shame, since the less CGI, the more realistic things look. No matter how advanced technology gets.

That recent interview Brian Henson gave about Stuffed and Unstrung seems to reflect more of a connection with traditional puppetry. H'e been such a supporter of performance capture puppetry in the past. Rygel was always a practical effect in Farscape so I'm expecting some traditional methods in POTDC. Let's hope.

 

[muppetperson]

The first DC didn't involve any human people, only puppeteers and trained technicians in puppeted costumes so there won't likely be any extras. However, they did have a "little person" for a few key wide shots. I believe that Farscape was shot in Sydney and POTC is reportedly using the same team so that would be my guess too. I suppose you could apply for an internship or production assistant. I’m not certain how that works in Australia or if it requires guild ties. I have a feeling that this is going to have a very lean crew of people working in controlled environments.

I suppose I could be a puppeteer extra.

 

[Starchamberfall]

Ray Harryhausen tells it like it is...though you have to wait to the end for his comments on CGI:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4K4I59jUTs

When something is real / not-real, like a puppet or a miniature, something clicks inside the viewer, and we are engaged; CGI tries to bypass all this but, so far, seems to fail.

Or maybe at 44 I am already too old?

 

[frogboy4]

Ray Harryhausen tells it like it is...though you have to wait to the end for his comments on CGI:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4K4I59jUTs

When something is real / not-real, like a puppet or a miniature, something clicks inside the viewer, and we are engaged; CGI tries to bypass all this but, so far, seems to fail.

Or maybe at 44 I am already too old?

I agree with you. However, it's been expressed several times by the Jim Henson Company that the Dark Crystal sequel won't be a CGI film in the traditional sense. They plan to use performance capture puppetry, not motion capture performance or computer animation. These are all very different artforms. I still prefer practical puppets whenever possible. Disney understands this with the Muppets. A big part of their appeal is their physical presence and sharp improv techniques. Stop motion will always look better to me than than CG. Last year's "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and "Coraline" were far better and far more beautiful films to me than even Oscar winner "Up!" Disney, again, has shown their appreciation for the stop-motion artform in signing Henry Selick to an exclusive deal with them.

Let's hope that POTC is truly a blending of different technologies along with classic craftsmanship and puppetry - the way I believe Jim Henson would be making films today.

 

[Laszlo]

I love the stop motion FX in WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH.
However I also love the CGI work in AVATAR. I think both forms can be very exciting.

 

[Drtooth]

I don't mind CGI as long as it's done RIGHT. And it's rare to see it done right. I of course mean effects. The only qualms I have with full feature CGI is that too many studios have the wanna be Pixar/Dreamworks (more so Dreamworks) attitude and make such terrible side features... It's a medium. It all depends on the story for me. But if CGI creatures are poorly pasted on a frame (or bounce around with less wooden acting than the human actors) it makes the whole thing seem fake to me. If I can ever think of a good example of a good CGI character on a live action movie, I'd mention it. But other than that... all I can think about is how the CGI effect characters in the Star Wars prequels kinda ruined the aspects.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

That's what was funny about the Star Wars prequels: The newer Yoda puppet was horrible; but, they did CGI and he looked more like Yoda should. However, a lot of other things weren't good enough and were just weird looking. I now look at it, though, as humans in a cartoon world and that helps me accept it better.

Muppets in CGI: For effects, good. As a crowd shot, walking down the street together as seen from afar then that would be a good effect. Performance--Where's W.A.L.D.O.? He's the only one I can accept that way.

 

[dwmckim]

As a Farscape fan, i'm not too concerned about the use of CGI replacing puppetry as i'm sure POTDC would employ the same ideology used with Farscape (series and movie) - with the CGI used sparingly to enhance the "real" effects.

88 episodes, four seasons, and a 183 minute miniseries and i believe a CGI version of Rygel (or his species) was used less than ten times.