TITANIC, FIFTH ELEMENT, DANTES PEAK miniature effects. Evan Jacobs talks about Vision Crew´s miniature effects work for the films. New segment from my Sense of Scale documentary. Photos: Evan Jacobs, Vision Crew Unlimited, Digital Domain
Doug Miller sent me to this video. We work together now. I wish I could of seen that Dante's Peak set. Incredible. Far more interesting than an Avengers blue screen soundstage.
Yeah, I was thinking about that the other day. I really miss the old Cinefex issues and the movies that were covered. So, you're right, this is sort of my way of continuing that information with videos rather than print.
@@piercefilm Well, your efforts are much appreciated. To see this, watch these videos, is not only informative, but nostalgic for those like me who remember going to the cinema and watching the films and marveling at the craftsmanship of the miniature effects teams.
I cannot believe the talent these miniature model makers have. Not just the ability to make the small look real, but how to design the innards and framing to make them capable of holding up to the rigors of filming while also being able to be moved to the sets. Love this series of videos!
Never watched Dante's Peak - now I need to... Link to the bridge scene on RU-vid - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-S1EsCWrUY84.html&ab_channel=Movieclips
...i just saw that bridge scene for the first time! That looked real!!!! Would have never guessed they used miniatures. Whats funny was they snuck in a star wars stormtrooper scream when the guy guy got flooded away!
@@ModelAviationStation and terrible one at that. Don't know if it's lack of talent or pushing deadlines too much, but you can clearly see it by comparing for example the first Jurassic Park movie with the latest. The original mastered the transition between CGI and models to the point it's still seamless to this day. While the latter looks like a PlayStation 2 cinematic the whole way through...
I worked for DD on “Dante’s Peak” there at the old naval station in ’96. Later worked on “Supernova” at the DD main shop where they were doing some “Fifth Element” stuff. Saw the Titanic model as well. Though no one could imagine what a huge hit that would be! The damn-break effects on "Dante's Peak" were pretty nuts! This was all right before CGI took over. I’m guessing most people watching those flicks today would just assume none of it was real. It was REAL!
Amazing, and credit to you for a job well done. I just re-watched the bridge scene and despite seeing the miniatures and knowing how it was filmed, it still looks real to me, as if there were real Humvees driving across a real bridge. Speaking of disbelief, I still can't believe Titanic was such a big hit either...
@@andrewstamford1988 I have a hard time believing the sequel to Avatar will be a hit. The trailer for sequel makes it look like exactly the same movie. The effects look exactly the same.
@@Bringos76 I'm with you on that. OK, I only have a very small idea of the plot, but what made the original were the big battle scenes and the (then) spectacular scenery. Not only has time moved on a bit too long, what story can be told here that won't be... boring, dare I say? With 4 sequels planned, where can the story line go? It was ground breaking at the time and I'm sure it will make money, but as you said, the effects look the same and all that. But we will see how it goes down with audiences.
@@andrewstamford1988 I agree. Maybe Cameron knows what audiences want and it will work. I wish he had went onto some other movie though or worked on the blu rays for The Abyss or True Lies
@@Bringos76 You really got me thinking about Avatar now. Still searching for plots but the apparent titles suggest it's going to be about the Navi and their stories and a total departure from the original. If that's the case, then seems to me it's going to be more for the niche crowd with only die hard fans willing to go the distance, along the lines of Lord of the Rings where you have this fantasy world and all that goes along with that. I watched them all, but not having read the books or been into it so much, I got lost with a lot of it and by the last film was becoming bored too. Sure, Star Wars was all fantasy worlds and the like, but you had space battles and big booms to keep the average audience amused and interested. I can't that with a bunch of blue giants chasing flowers with bows and arrows. And the time element. That's going against it. Yeah, Top Gun II came out what... 35 years later? But... boom, bang, fighter jets zooming around, with a lot of shoot em up scenes, not barefoot, blue hippies skipping through the forest. I know I am dumping on it before I've seen it, but I still think it will only appeal to the serious fans especially as they haven't capitalized on the initial energy surrounding it.
I can't believe the complexity involved is there anything like this today? Detail, craftsmanship, 'love' put into this is inspiring but makes me sad somehow too
Lol liturally as he says starwars stuff, close up of the side greebles... and low and behold, millennium falcon parts :D Also loved that battleship model. Been meaning to make a CG model of it for a LONG time.
The original Battlestar Galactica had WWII armor model kits and cabover tractor kits on it. They're easy to spot. Somewhere on line is a complete list of the model kits used on it.
The Fifth Element blew me away back then. It was the first movie I bought on dvd....no telling how many times I have watched it. Still love it to this day. Amazing models! And...that Titanic is bigger than a real boat I had once...lol.
amazing and detailed work.......the end effect is just awesome. Nicely documented! EDIT: ok, so all of these movies were realeased in one year...and those Humvees look fantastic
Not quite...CG was applied on all of these movies, just not as much as today. At that time most of the digital work was in compositing, with some models and creatures.
I just did and I still think they're real. So well done. In case you haven't looked for it yet... ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FzMT-D0XOyc.html
RIGHT!!! I figured that .... there is Just NO WAY, that those three (3) vehicles were The Real Deal AND break that bridge.........It HAD to be model building, but they were Just BIG models!!! And after watching that clip again, HAHA those "models" were taking a BEATING!!
Thank you for this story. I could listen to that for hours. Awesome job. Please check the new Lego Titanic is coming out next month. Keep up the good work.
that was a very well done bridge scene in dantes peak, but why did they make paul die? that was to sad. and the flooding scene and lava scenes and fire inthe truck make me want to run away from the tv. so what did they do with the titanic model when the movie was done? put in a museum?
The Titanic model is being restored at the moment. It now belongs to Disney and they are putting a film miniatures exhibition together so it might show up there.
I KNEW IT!!! As a model builder myself, small scale 1/700 ships, I was thinking that those Humvees and van from 'Dante's Peak' were models!!! SUPERIOR Work gentlemen/women!!! Seen all three (3) films, Extraordinary Work..... I can't imagine the set of the dam-busting scene in 'DP', using 'SW' parts for the '5th Element' and Really (??!!??) a rivet-counter on 'Titanic' ......... W O W !!!
Having grown up on Gerry Anderson productions and the work of Derek Meddings, I’ve always respected good miniature work and even the best CG has this feeling to me of an object not being “real”. Of course the best CG is the stuff you don’t notice. Case in point, Mad Max. All the surrounding scenery.
Naturally, Marschall gets the noteriety for his contributions toward Titanic. He and Cameron are old friends from the first Terminator film. K.M. is world-famous, revered as the famous artist for his maritime paintings ... but, the digital age is now upon us, and there are many experts out there that are bringing the grand ship to life with innovative CGI techniques... For everything there is a time and purpose... the future steadily approaches... and certain things are fated to return to their beginnings...
When you work on a film it's a job. It's part of "show business." Some people say "picture" as in motion picture. It's all about being employed in the film industry.
