All Articles by Hunter Daniels

VFX Men Aaron McBride and Ben Snow Talk PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES; Plus 15 Things I Learned on My Visit to ILM

Posted: October 27th, 2011 at 7:02 am

 

Recently, I was invited to visit the ILM Campus in the Bay Area to discuss the development of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and see some of the new Blu-ray features that Disney has developed for the disc. While touring the effects house, I got to talk to visual effects art director Aaron McBride and visual effects supervisor Ben Snow.

During the interviews, Snow and McBride told me about how pirate maps influence the design of the films, why they can’t reuse digital armatures, what it’s like to be nominated for an Oscar, how the director influences the effects work, and more.  Read on for the complete interviews and a list of the 15 things I learned.

Pee-Wee Herman, Sean Bean and James Wan & Leigh Whan Video Interviews from the Scream Awards

Posted: October 23rd, 2011 at 7:52 am

Last weekend Collider hit the red carpet at the Scream Awards. The event was held in a massive outdoor theater on the Universal back lot, right around the corner from the Bates Motel and just in front of the giant blue screen they used for the end of The Truman Show. If you’ve taken the studio tour, you probably know the place.

While on the red carpet, we got a chance to talk to Game of Thrones star Sean Bean, Pee-Wee Herman himself, Paul Reubens and Saw and Insidious creators James Wan and Leigh Whannel. The artists told us about returning from the dead on Thrones, the relation of LSD to Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, 3D remakes of Jaws, biopics of famous Demonologists and much more.  Hit the jump for the interviews.

Disney’s Second Screen Technology Takes Special Features off the Blu-ray

Posted: October 23rd, 2011 at 7:17 am

When DVD first hit the scene it was, to steal a phrase from Disney’s Aladdin, “A whole new world.” The bonus features let cinephiles behind the scenes for the first time and laid bare the often-arduous mechanics behind crafting a feature film. But, as the medium matured, many of these features became stagnant. Now, with the advent of Blu-ray and the connectivity opportunities offered by iPads, film studios are once again finding new ways to expand upon the medium of bonus features.

Disney is out ahead of the pack, using big-ticket releases like Bambi and now Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides to introduce new ways to interact with the film and encourage consumers to buy, rather than rent. Read on to hear about the new, “Second Screen” technology.

ILM Reveals Alternate Mermaids from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

Posted: October 19th, 2011 at 8:08 am

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was a very different film than its three predecessors. Whereas Gore Verbinski’s trilogy traded on the charm of Johnny Depp’s anti-hero swashbuckling his way through some of the biggest effects ever committed to film, this latest entry took a more intimate approach, focusing on the love story of a mermaid and a young missionary who fights to protect her.

Read on to find out why what became of the most extreme monsters.

Collider Visits ILM for PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES Blu-ray

Posted: October 18th, 2011 at 7:13 am

To promote the upcoming Blu-Ray release of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, hitting stores on October 18, Disney invited myself and a few other journalists up to the Bay Area to visit the Industrial Light and Magic campus and see how the film was made.

During my visit, I got to tour ILM, see concept art, some of which differs wildly from the finished product, and interview visual effects supervisor Ben Snow and visual effects director Aaron McBride. We’ll have write ups on the disc’s unique iPad-based interactive features as well as the interviews everyday this week, but today I just want to tell you about what it’s like to walk through the halls of ILM.  Hit the jump for the full story.

IN TIME Set Visit: Cinematographer Roger Deakins Switches to Digital

Posted: October 7th, 2011 at 4:00 pm

Earlier this year, I got to visit the set of In Time, the new sci-fi thriller from writer/director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca, The Truman Show). While it was exciting to be on a film set and watch stunt work and interview stars Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried, the real highlight of the day was seeing nine-time Oscar nominated cinematographer Roger Deakins working with digital for the first time.

Deakins used the Arriflex ALEXA camera system to shoot In Time, and camera’s capabilities seem almost as futuristic as the film’s settings.  Read on to learn about how a modern master is pushing the technological envelope.

20 Things to Know About IN TIME from Our Set Visit Plus a Detailed Report and New Images

Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 12:02 am

A massive Brinks truck careens around a corner in LA’s fashion district, destroying the quiet of the mid-January afternoon. The armored car accelerates to full speed, blasting through a floor-to-ceiling sheet glass window and into the center of a bank. Wood, plaster and shards of glass spray across the floor. As the dust settles, writer/director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca, Lord of War) yells, “Cut!” Later in the afternoon, Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried pull open the bank’s vault and pass out strange silver rectangles embedded with digital clocks to a swarming crowd of extras. Timberlake yells, encouraging the mob to act quickly, but take as much time as they need. Welcome to the world of In Time.

While visiting the set of the film, which hits theaters October 28, I got to participate in group interviews with Niccol, producer Eric Newman, Timberlake and Seyfried, learn about the film’s unique high-concept, and watch nine-time Oscar nominated cinematographer, Roger Deakins, as he shot his first film on digital.  Read on for a write up of the set visit and the 20 things to know about the film.

Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried On Set Interview IN TIME

Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 12:01 am

Earlier this year I was invited to the set of In Time, the new sci-fi thriller from high-concept auteur Andrew Niccol.  In the film, which comes out October 28, Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried play a pair of Bonnie and Clyde style bandits on the run in a future world where aging has been eliminated and time has become money.

While on the set, I got to participate in a group interview with Timberlake and Seyfried to discuss their roles in the film, their approach to acting, what it’s like to feel old when you’re still under 30, why hostage-taking is a great way to get to know someone, why being a movie star is harder than going on a world tour with N’Sync, possible titles for a prequel that both stars promise will never happen, and much more.  Hit the jump for the full interview.

Director Andrew Niccol and Producer Eric Newman On Set Interview IN TIME

Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 12:00 am

Earlier this year I was invited to the set of Andrew Niccol’s (Gattaca, The Truman Show) new Sci-Fi thriller, In Time. The film, which details the lives of a pair of Bonnie and Clyde style bandits in a world where time literally is money, stars Justin Timberlake (The Social Network) and Amanda Seyfried (Mean Girls) and hits theaters October 28.

While visiting the set I got to chat with Niccol and producer Eric Newman about how the film began life as part of Gattaca, how the technology of the future world works, the look of the film, casting Justin Timberlake, the philosophy of the film, and much more.  Read on for the full interview.

APOLLO 18 Review

Posted: September 2nd, 2011 at 5:54 am

I don’t like found footage movies. With the exception of the [REC] franchise, Man Bites Dog, and perhaps Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer I cannot think of any that really worked for me. They most often begin with 20-25 minutes of filler, ‘developing’ the annoying protagonists who betray the set-up by making increasingly poor decisions that no real human being would ever make. It’s terrible. And then the money shot is what? A door opening slightly? Please.

Apollo 18 immediately differentiates itself from the current crop by launched into space less than five minutes into the first reel. And then kept going, building an intriguing and unique plot through the rest of its’ running time.  Hit the jump for the full review.

Emily Mortimer Talks OUR IDIOT BROTHER and Martin Scorsese’s HUGO

Posted: August 26th, 2011 at 12:20 pm

It’s the end of summer and that means it’s finally time to see the films that everyone was talking about in Park City. Our Idiot Brother,  the first of the big sale items from the Sundance Film Festival, hits theaters this Friday from the newly reinvigorated Weinstein Company.  Unlike many Sundance offerings, this is an audience-friendly comedy starring Paul Rudd as the idiot sibling in question with Emily Mortimer, Rashida Jones, Zooey Deschanel and Elizabeth Banks playing the women he unintentionally tortures with his naiveté.

Recently, I sat down with Mortimer to discuss her role in the film. During our interview she told me about family dynamics, the film’s title change, her own idiot family members and teased her upcoming 3D Scorsese film, Hugo.  Hit the jump to watch.

Elizabeth Banks Talks OUR IDIOT BROTHER, THE HUNGER GAMES, and Her Short Film, MIDDLE SCHOOL DATE Starring Chloe Moretz

Posted: August 25th, 2011 at 12:04 pm

It’s the end of summer and that means it’s finally time to see the films that everyone was talking about in Park City. Our Idiot Brother,  the first of the big sale items from the Sundance Film Festival, hits theaters this Friday from the newly reinvigorated Weinstein Company.  Unlike many Sundance offerings, this is an audience-friendly comedy starring Paul Rudd as the idiot sibling in question with Emily Mortimer, Rashida Jones, Zooey Deschanel and Elizabeth Banks playing the women he unintentionally tortures with his naiveté.

Recently, I sat down with Banks to discuss the film.  During our interview, Banks talked about this film’s non-connection to W., improv on set, what it’s like to have Paul Rudd as a stalker, being the ‘it’ girl in Hollywood and growing up a black sheep.  Banks also spilled a few beans on Middle School Date, a short film she directed starring Chloe Moretz, Jimmy Bennett and Christopher Mintz-Plasse and discussed what fans can expect from The Hunger Games.  Hit the jump to watch.

Paul Rudd Talks OUR IDIOT BROTHER and THIS IS FORTY

Posted: August 24th, 2011 at 9:31 pm

It’s the end of summer and that means it’s finally time to see the films that everyone was talking about in Park City.  Our Idiot Brother, the first of the big sale items from the Sundance Film Festival, hits theaters this Friday from the newly reinvigorated Weinstein Company.  Unlike many Sundance offerings, this is an audience-friendly comedy starring Paul Rudd as the idiot sibling in question with Emily Mortimer, Rashida Jones, Zooey Deschanel and Elizabeth Banks playing the women he unintentionally tortures with his naiveté.

Recently, I sat down with Rudd to discuss the film.  During our interview he told me about what it’s like to not age, how he’s preparing to begin doing nude scenes, how he manages to switch between mainstream and indie films and a bit about his upcoming film with Judd Apatow, tentatively titled, This is Forty.  Hit the jump to watch.

Collider Attends the SCARFACE Blu-Ray Party

Posted: August 24th, 2011 at 7:21 am

Mega Producer Robert Evans likes to tell stories about Hollywood parties with mountains of white powder spread across mirrored coffee tables. Tuesday night at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles, I finally saw one myself. Except this mountain of powder was just sugar, part of the set dressing for a Q&A celebrating the 25^th anniversary Blu-Ray of Brian De Palma’s 1983 gangster opus, Scarface.

The Q&A, with Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Robert Loggia, F. Murray Abraham and producer Martin Bregman covered the whole of the film’s history, ranging from discussion of the original 1932 Howard Hawks film, to the poor critical reception upon release, through to the film’s rebirth as required viewing for hip-hop heads everywhere.  Read on for a description of the night and key quotes.  The new Blu-ray of Scarface hits stores on September 6th.

Rashida Jones Talks OUR IDIOT BROTHER, THE MUPPETS, and PARKS AND RECREATION

Posted: August 23rd, 2011 at 9:04 pm

It’s the end of summer and that means that it’s finally time to see the films that everyone was talking about in Park City.  Our Idiot Brother, the first of the big sale items from the Sundance Film Festival hits theaters this Friday from the newly reinvigorated Weinstein Company.  Unlike many Sundance offerings, this is an audience-friendly comedy starring Paul Rudd as a stoner that means well.  The film also stars Emily Mortimer, Rashida Jones, Zooey Deschanel and Elizabeth Banks.

Recently, I sat down with Jones to discuss the film. During our interview she told me about her straight-laced upbringing, her rebellious sister, the excitement of mainstream success, how she doesn’t sing or dance in The Muppets, how Rudd is a different kind of idiot than Fozzie Bear, the origins of Parks and Recreation and how winking at the camera is different from playing it straight.  Hit the jump to watch.

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