Vol 2 Chapter 664: Filming completed

Just after Christmas, Duke received feedback from icm, and Charlize Theron will adjust his schedule according to his needs in the future to participate in his new film.
The two parties just reached the initial intention, and the specific matters must be discussed. Duke is not in a hurry, after all, "Transformers" has not been filmed yet.
As the holiday ended, the crew assembled again. In the first week, Duke and Anna Prinz led a team to shoot some fragmentary shots in the studio of Warner Studios, and waited for the time to enter 2008. The entire crew Gathered together and came to the eastern part of Nevada.
There is a highway here that has just finished construction, and Duke took a fancy to one of its viaducts and plans to film a scene of car chase and King Kong battle.
Of course, the latter is to take good material, and then hand it over to the special effects production department to complete.
In order to obtain permission for shooting, Tina Fei’s two assistants had been in contact with each other two months ago. After paying enough money, the company responsible for road construction and related departments finally signed the contract.
Hundreds of vehicles were transported to the highway by tow trucks, many of which were minesweeping vehicles provided by the Pentagon. After Duke arrived, he immediately began to be busy, directing the crew to arrange the set.
"I♂, our purpose is very simple."
Standing on the lift truck, Duke said to Anna Prinz, "Destroy all the vehicles you brought."
On this highway, there will be a fierce battle between the Autobots protecting Sam and the Decepticons who are chasing them, and Optimus Prime will show off his might and kill several Decepticons.
Regarding Optimus Prime, live-action movies use many cartoon settings, such as combat effectiveness.
Compared to the sturdy Megatron, which has not yet rusted on the sea floor, Optimus Prime is indeed slightly inferior. But it is not completely without the power of confrontation, and when facing other Decepticons, Optimus Prime is like Megatron dealing with ordinary Autobots, not at the same level.
There are not many scenes of actors showing their faces in the shooting here. The most needed stuntmen are driving stuntmen. More than 30 stuntmen were hired by the crew. To complete this speeding war.
Shooting this kind of scene was Duke's specialty ten years ago. Today's cameras are more high-definition and zoomed out, coupled with the existence of high-speed capture cameras, enough to make the shots more visually impactful.
"Transformers" is a 3D movie. Like the previous shooting, James Cameron's improved 3D camera will inevitably appear in the main camera position.
This is one of the reasons why the film is so expensive.
Warner Bros. has reviewed and approved the plan for additional investment, and will invest another 20 million US dollars in the film, which will increase the production cost to a terrifying figure of 220 million.
The additional investment is basically spent on special effects production. Duke knows very well that the biggest selling point of "Transformers" is feelings and special effects, and everything else is imaginary.
For example, the plot of the film, his version of the story plot is simpler, as long as the basic logic is enough.
The total number of scenes on the highway does not exceed ten minutes, but it takes a week to shoot. This is also the last scene of the crew, after shooting this part. Duke can move to post-production.
As with all movies, the big scene is not a wide-angle lens. The others are composed of a combination of scenes. The shooting is naturally divided into countless fragments by Duke. A rollover and a collision are basically listed separately.
Such a shot will only last a few seconds, but it takes a long time to prepare, most of the crew's time. Also spent on preparation.
Collision, explosion, flame, car rollover...
These are the themes of the crew during the week of shooting. Although the safety measures are in place, there are still a few stunt actors who have received minor injuries. Fortunately, they are all skin injuries and there are no serious problems.
When the time is getting closer to mid-January. The shooting approached the end.
For Duke, "Transformers" represents the feelings of the past. He has special feelings for this series, so even he, who doesn't like guest appearances, decided to make a cameo in the film and act with Optimus Prime. A rival scene.
Under the viaduct, a Ford car was parked on the side of a shooting location arranged like a battlefield. Duke was sitting in the driving position, and a camera assistant erected a Steadicam, taking pictures of his facial expressions through a special car window.
"Cut!"
Anna Prinz's voice rang from the other side, "Duke, your expression is not in place."
Pushing the car door, Duke got out of the car and walked behind the director's monitor. Anna Prinz replayed the footage that he had just shot. After seeing it, he couldn't help holding his chest with one hand and pinching his chin with the other.
"You can only panic," Anna Prinz reminded, "and not surprised."
Duke plays the role of a passerby playing soy sauce. After seeing the fighting Optimus Prime and the noise, he will definitely panic, and at the same time will be surprised. How can there be such a existence on earth?
"Do it again." Duke returned to the car.
This scene is not difficult, but with his acting skills, acting against the air is still somewhat difficult.
When it comes to acting, Duke knows that his talents are extremely average, and he rarely made guest appearances in films in the past, and this guest appearance was just a flash.
"Start!"
Hearing Anna Prinz's voice, Duke immediately entered the state. He made a sudden brake action, then turned his head and looked out the window. He seemed to see something incredible, and his face showed panic and surprise. Emoji.
Looking at the picture on the monitor, Anna Prinz shook her head slightly, confirming that her boss was not a good material for acting at all, but Duke's performance was enough for such a background shot of the Transformers War.
"Cut!" Anna Prinz called out, "This one is over!"
With the passage of the last one, the crew members who had been tortured for a week showed a relaxed look on their faces, and finally another long vacation was about to come.
As usual, there is no excitement, no celebration ceremony, some heavy work and ease after being relieved from huge pressure. Even if the whole team has cooperated for many years, the shooting process still cannot be sloppy.
This is a masterpiece with an investment of more than 200 million US dollars, not a niche independent film.
"We have one afternoon to go to Las Vegas."
Duke is very clear about the combination of work and rest. He picked up the loudspeaker and shouted, "I have asked Tina to take over the MGM Hotel. Next is a carnival night."
Las Vegas is undoubtedly a good place to relax and revel.
Of course, the crew could not take the entire MGM Hotel down. They just booked the largest private room and invited dozens of strippers into the private room to perform. This kind of carnival party is naturally indispensable for hemp and cocaine. Touch these things, but never interfere with the rest of the crew.
This is the norm in the circle.
Not only actors and celebrities, but also occupations such as videographers and makeup artists, drug use is also a common phenomenon.
Duke did not stay too much in the private room. He and several core members of the team passed the stage of infinite carnival early. As soon as the crazy carnival began, they left the private room and entered the hotel casino. After redeeming $10,000 in chips, Walking back and forth between the gaming tables, constantly trying their luck.
For Duke, this kind of gambling is a skill that Duke is totally unwilling to, and he is also the first time he has entered a casino. He is more curious, but his luck in this area is really average, winning less and losing much. .
Duke lost interest only after a few laps between the tables.
"How much did you win?"
Tina Fei walked over to the resting place just aside, "Isn't it all lost?"
"A lot more?" Duke showed her the bargaining chips in his hand. "Unlucky, I lost more than half."
He asked again, "How about you?"
Tina Fei shrugged slightly, "My luck is worse than you, and I lost all ten thousand dollars."
Looking at the gamblers who were staring at the table, Duke became less interested, shook his head, and said, "Let's go."
After receiving the chips in Duke's hand, Tina Fei exchanged it, and then followed Duke to leave the casino. The two did not return to the private room, and went directly to the room upstairs, ready to rest early, so that they could return to Los Angeles early tomorrow morning. .
Back in Los Angeles, Duke only took a two-day rest, and then began the post-production of the film. Of course, Mike Dawson and his editing team were the best choice in editing. It took more than ten days. Duke and Mike Dawson completed the rough cut, but the cut version not only did not add any special effects, it was also more than six hours in length.
Although the film was only shot for less than three months, Duke still produced nearly 100 hours of material.
The editing of the entire film has returned to Duke's original style. Just like the film he just entered into Hollywood shooting, "Transformers" is a pure popcorn, and sharp and fast editing is undoubtedly a very wise choice.
The most time-consuming thing is undoubtedly the special effects production of the film. From the beginning of preparation to the present, the two special effects groups of Industrial Light and Magic have only completed special effects for a small part of the scene. Fortunately, the most time-consuming modeling work has been completed. The progress will increase.
Industrial Light & Magic also guarantees that all special effects will not be completed beyond the beginning of May. The two sides have cooperated for more than ten years. Duke also has enough confidence in Industrial Light & Magic.
Throughout January, Duke spent the entire month of busy post-production, and cut out a 30-second commercial, which appeared in the Super Bowl midfield commercial as before, but was limited by the fact that the special effects were not completed. There are not many Transformers scenes, and the scenes of Bumblebee, Optimus Prime and Megatron are all in a flash.
When the time entered early February, the new Oscar nominees luncheon was held on time. (To be continued...)
ps: Ask for monthly and recommended tickets!