Transformers Set Report
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
We crash Michael Bay's Los Angeles smash-fest and emerge with new movie details.
One by one, the dreams of '80s youth are coming true. In the past few years, motion picture technology has progressed to the point where superhero films are not only possible but beautiful, and live action treatments of things that were once inconceivable are making their way to the Cineplex.
Such is the case with Transformers, a movie that seeks to capture the imaginations of the nostalgic throngs who ran home to watch an animated series about transmogrifying robots locked in an epic clash of good versus evil… or collected the accompanying toys, transforming plastic into fantasy. These same boys and girls are now (in the immortal words of T from Swingers) "all growns up," and their childhood dreams are set to be played out onscreen through a combination of live action and CG. Lauded action director Michael Bay is at the helm, and we got a chance to crash his set in downtown LA this weekend.
If you have never been on the set of a big-budget action movie, the only way it can be described is as "delicately orchestrated chaos." The production shut down a block of our busy city, and in addition to the hundreds who crowded barriers at the ends of the block, random folks would wander onto set, through the production, somehow oblivious to the fact that people were running screaming from invisible robots.
The scene being filmed was one near the end of the movie as the battle between Autobots and Decepticons rages in the streets of Los Angeles. The specific shots we saw were of mayhem and terror—extras running through smoke, the military folk reacting to the carnage, and the Autobots—in vehicle form—ostensibly getting in position for combat.
Several matte black dune buggies armed with chain guns and full of Section 7 (a branch of the government who deals with the Decepticon threat) military men were parked on the street, and at various points, the heavily-armed soldiers piled out of them and rushed on, presumably to battle the coming Decepticons.
Before each take, foul-smelling green smoke (think a concentrated version of the Fourth of July fuse smell) was blasted on the set, partially obscuring the set and adding another layer of confusion and mayhem to the proceedings.
At one end of the street, the set was being built for the next day of shooting. Huge chunks of asphalt were brought in to make it look like the street was completely torn apart, cars were lying crumpled on their backs, and a large fire-spewing hole was opened up in the center of the road. On the other end of the block, a giant box truck emblazoned with the Furby logo was being raised on hydraulics. The truck was slated for explosion, but sadly we did not get to see the blast; only test-runs of the hydraulics.
Four Autobots were on-set: Bumblebee, Ironhide, Ratchet and Jazz. Bumblebee is in fact the yellow and black Camaro we have been seeing on the Internet. Ironhide is a huge GMC 4X4 truck, complete with enormous exhaust pipes and an Autobots logo stamped into the tailgate. Ratchet is a rescue vehicle, looking less like an ambulance and more like a modified Humvee. A sticker on the vehicle bears the traditional Autobots logo. Jazz is a curvy silver coupe, the latest Pontiac Solstice. It seemed like one guy's entire job was to buff the car and make sure it remained shiny during the carnage.
The scene we saw filmed serves to bring all of the divergent storylines together, so plenty of cast members were on-set, including Shia LeBeauf, Tyrese Gibson, Megan Fox and Josh Duhamel. We got a chance to interview all of them, and will bring each interview to you as we progress toward the July 4th, 2007 release.
All of them were unified in their excitement for the project and the involvement of Michael Bay, whose own enthusiasm was apparent throughout the shoot. Wearing a "Giant F***ing Robots Are Coming" T-shirt (with an Autobots logo on the back), Bay was joking with actors between takes, and was able to take some time during the shoot to speak with journalists. A full interview will be featured on the site in the coming months.
In addition to Bay, we were able to chat with several producers, including Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Don Murphy, Tom De Santo and Ian Bryce. They spoke about story structure, Transformers designs, key elements from the series that must be preserved, and whether there are already sequel plans. Mild spoilers follow.
Don Murphy was the most forthcoming with information, describing the structure of the film as a disaster movie where five separate storylines converge at the end of the movie into one epic battle. The street scene we witnessed was integral to the final confrontation. He also stated that the "transforming sound" is likely to make it into the film, and that although the timing does not yet call for it, they are definitely looking into getting Frank Welker to voice Megatron. At Comic-Con 2006, the studio announced that the fan favorite and original actor who did Optimus Prime will be voicing the Autobot leader in the film. Murphy went on to say that Soundwave is being saved for a possible sequel, and he will play a large role in the proceedings.
posted by Evil @ 6:45 AM,
