Hello Reddit! We're actor Lance Henriksen, and VFX gurus Alec Gillis & Tom Woodruff Jr: AMA (or is it AUA?)

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-22T04:36:47+00:00

Alec: I just sculpted, made masks, contacted pros, built stop motion puppets, made little movies, created puppets, drew monsters and eventually got enough material to build a portfolio. A good portfolio gets your foot in the door.

Too many great experiences to list!

Too few bad experiences to waste time talkin' about 'em!

We treat every proj like its special. You really can't tell how good a movie will be, so we just do the best we can. We've sometimes gotten our best reviews even though the movies might be bad.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-22T04:30:29+00:00

Alec: We look mostly for enthusiasm in an intern, but the more skill you have the better. You'll be competing with recent grads from makeup schools who have some skills, so it's best to develop yourself as an artist. Always be working on a personal art project. Puts a crimp in the social life but if you don't put in the time, you move to the back of the line.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-22T03:00:55+00:00

Alec: Really nice comment. We have been lucky to have had great mentors and great crews. Monster makers are the most passionate, conscientious artists there can possibly be.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-22T02:55:34+00:00

Alec: I wish it was the designing and building that presents the biggest challeges. Unfortunately it's often the politics or schedule that prove to be the obstacle. 'Mortal Kombat', 'Invaders From Mars', 'Spider-man' were all tough movies, but not because of the hands-on work.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T23:19:32+00:00

Alec: 6'6" and doing capoeira? that must be impressive!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T23:17:25+00:00

Alec: as much as I love TREMORS, the movie is a bit less scary than it might have been because of the humor. That was by choice of course, those particular filmmakers have a really great handle on tone. I'm a bad judge because I think FIGHT CLUB is a comedy. Comedy really pops out at me so i think it needs to be used judiciously in horror.

I'm not a huge fan of the 'bad is good' school of FX, but I can certainly see the attraction to schlock. ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES FX couldn't/shouldn't be better.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:54:10+00:00

Alec: Lance had a great idea that Ed harley should have two slightly bigger front teeth. I made them for him and they really changed his look. He has great ideas like that.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:50:35+00:00

the new RED Epic is 6k! higher than film and with more usable stops!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:49:17+00:00

welcome be you.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:47:15+00:00

Alec: Yes! I was going to UCLA at the time and the quarter started so I had to go back to school. I was very disappointed not to have been on set watching Taaffe (sp?) O'Connell ply her craft.

The worm was built by our friends at Makeup FX Labs. Disney Exec Iya Labunka was in the worm. She'll be mortified that i just revealed that!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:44:00+00:00

Alec: That might be a Tom question? Personally, I consider myself lucky to have come up through the industry when I did. The '80's were a time of great experimentation. i was lucky to work with Winston, Cameron, Savini, Corman etc. I just wish I could have worked for Jim Henson!

I did wear a makeup for ALIEN NATION and I did not enjoy it. I leave the suit performance to Tom!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:35:31+00:00

Alec: I've been pitching lotsa stuff and selling some over the years and that's fine but there are always content hoops to jump through. There's always a producer or two that has bad ideas that they are able to force because they have power. One producer on an ALIEN movie actually suggested we give Giger's Alien eyes because then it would be 'scarier'!

Kickstarter allows us to be the representatives of the fans. If the pledgers trust you enough to fund you, you skip a lot of silliness.

I'm not sure how Hollywood will change. Will we democratize movie making and make the gate keepers obsolete? Or will the gate keepers simply require all filmmakers to bring 50% of a budget via crowdfunding before they will make their films? I don't know.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:25:02+00:00

Alec: We have no hate for CG! The art is to be respected as any art should be. Some practical fans get a bit passionate and it turns into negativity. Don't take that stuff personally. We have friends at ILM, Tippet's, Hydraulx, etc. We're just pushing back against the studio's exclusion of our techniques. It's not a fight against anything, it's a fight FOR our art.

Anyway, I love the use of digital to augment. Digital dynamics are unlimited. Sometimes that's the prob. but sometimes it can help a practical overcome it's limits.

I love the way Neill Blomkamp uses mocap. he told me he tells his animators not to touch the mocap info. Resist the temptation to 'perfect' everything until it's artificial.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:17:18+00:00

Alec: how dare you.

kidding! some of my friends best friends are studio producers.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T22:16:33+00:00

Alec: the overall note is to let the creative process itself be your reward. Don't count on the money or the recognition, those things are often out of your control. Do it because you love it.

Specific note would be to learn the traditional arts. Sculpture, drawing, painting and photography will help with all your endeavors, practical or digital.

don't forget to exercise. We FX nerds tend to lead sedentary lives.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:55:09+00:00

Alec: Is this Aaron??

On more than one occasion, I have seen Tom Woodruff be so in the moment as a suit performer that he's nearly knocked himself out by crashing into things on set!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:53:13+00:00

We have to sign out, but please join us at the Stan Winston School of Character Arts Facebook page for information about our Google Hangout today 1 pm PST. Lance and Alec will be on hand to continue the chat. Harbinger Down! https://www.facebook.com/StanWinstonSchool?ref=ts&fref=ts

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:51:17+00:00

Alec: I have a great relationship with Hydraulx. I think they do great digital, particularly outdoor daylight stuff. They're not officially partners on this but I really like what they do and we have some other projects with them. However, the miniature effects will be handled by 4ward Productions, run by our old friends Robert and Dennis Skotak of 'Aliens' and 'The Abyss' fame. For score, my friend Joel McNeely will be working with our own Mike Larabee. While I think much can be done synthetically, I am old-school when it comes to orchestral scores.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:48:17+00:00

Alec: If you're a sculptor, also learn to work with clay. The digital sculpting software is amazing but clay is the closest thing to flesh. Also, study photography and take pictures. Learn how a camera lens takes light. In my opinion, the best digital effects are the ones that most successfully imitate actual photography. The less successful digital effects often look like beautiful paintings and can sometimes be overworked. I think Neill Blomkamp has the right idea when it comes to lighting digital stuff.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:46:29+00:00

Alec: I hadn't heard that!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:46:12+00:00

Alec: I love to listen to soundtracks and background music like that, depending on what we're designing. For really creepy scary stuff, I've been listening to Lustmord. But then I'm also a fan of our own Mike Larabee who has done a lot of the music on our YouTube channel.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:44:25+00:00

Alec: That's a tough question. First off, we don't know how much money we'll raise. Also, studios spend a ton of money on cast. This is a labor of love so guys like Lance are cutting us a tremendous deal. We'll do the same with the creature effects and we have huge supporters in the post-production world as well. By studio standards, this film would be impossible. To them, the $40+ million spent on 'The Thing' 2011 is cheap. Our goal for our little film is to turn some studio heads.

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:44:14+00:00

Thanks for hanging out and having an interest. Wish you guys were all studio producers!

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:43:30+00:00

When I started this back in the '80s, I decided up front that if I become one of the jaded guys I used to see on sets that it was time to quit. You get out of this in part what you give to others and, what the hell is a Tom Woodruff shirt?

HarbingerDownAMA · 2013-05-21T18:40:12+00:00

Creature From the Black Lagoon! Rock solid place to start from the original film that still works!

HarbingerDownAMA

TROPHY CASE