Frankenstein (left, played by Shuler Hensley) and Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) are two members of Universal’s monster hall of fame who go up against Van Helsing. All images © 2004 Universal Studios. All rights reserved. Credits: ILM (left) and Frank Masi (right).

If ever there was a “creature feature,” Universal Pictures’ Van Helsing is it. Universal’s monster hall of fame is on full display in this phantasmagorical adventure — Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Dracula and his flying vampire brides and Dr. Jekyll’s evil alter ego, Mr. Hyde. Writer-director Stephen Sommers, who scored big for Universal with The Mummy and The Mummy Returns, took full advantage of the franchise characters in the studio’s vaults to fashion his take on the legendary monster-hunter Van Helsing. To bring those creatures to life, he also tapped some of the best in the businesses of makeup design, stunt work and visual effects, including the talents at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM).

ILM’s visual supervisor Daniel Jeannette and the art department worked hard to present new ideas of what the monsters should look like.

ILM animation supervisor Daniel Jeannette was a key collaborator on this film, having previously worked with Summers on both Mummy movies. “Stephen always wants to push the limits of what can be done, practically as well as digitally,” says Jeannette. “That’s always been the case, and it was even more so on this project.”

While the story of Van Helsing had been tackled previously by others, Sommers steered clear of those influences. “At the inception,” recalls Jeannette, “Stephen asked us to help him visualize the way the characters would look. He challenged us to come up with something different, rather than echoing what had been done before. ILM’s art department came up with tons of concepts until Stephen recognized what he wanted.”

Real vs. Virtual
The film’s monster menagerie fell largely into ILM’s domain, except for Frankenstein, which was designed by creature concept artist Patrick Tatopolous and makeup designer Greg Cannom and performed by actor Shuler Hensley. Of course, there had to be a point where Frankenstein’s skull popped open to reveal the inner workings of his brain, and ILM’s animators were happy to oblige. But Jeannette says, “Most the work we did on Frankenstein was digital stunts — things that wouldn’t be viable for anybody in a suit to do.”

Hugh Jackman was cyberscanned for this action scene with a runaway coach over a canyon. ILM used a digital double of Jackman and created his clothes for the stunt. Credit: ILM.