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ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE - ISSUE 4.3 - JUNE 1999
Places
AFI And Disney Unleash Creatures Of Distinction. The American Film
Institute (AFI) and The Walt Disney Company have announced the opening of
a major new exhibit at the AFI Showcase at the Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando,
Florida. "Creatures of Distinction: Movie Miniatures, Models and Puppets"
fills the 7,000 square foot AFI Showcase with inanimate creations that bring
characters to life on screen, such as Arnold Schwarzeneggar's endoskeleton
from The Terminator -- created by Stan Winston -- and set pieces and
miniatures that help create the illusion of reality from films like Star
Wars and The Day The Earth Stood Still. The exhibit also features
a special focus on the genius of Ray Harryhausen and the late Jim Henson.
Harryhausen, the legendary innovator of stop motion animation, has loaned
four models to the AFI exhibit, including that of the iron giant Talos from
Jason And The Argonauts. The extraordinary talents of Jim Henson are
celebrated with several pieces from his landmark fantasy The Dark Crystal,
in which all the characters were puppets, as well as several characters from
The Muppet Christmas Carol, George Of The Jungle and Lost In Space.
AFI expects a family favorite to be the Bill Baird puppets featured in "The
Lonely Goatherd" number from The Sound Of Music. The AFI Showcase
opened its doors in October, 1996 and has entertained and educated millions
of visitors with displays that honor the 27 recipients of the AFI Life Achievement
Award, raise awareness of the need for film preservation, and showcase iconic
movie artifacts, like "Rosebud" from Citizen Kane and Moses'
robe and staff from Cecil B. DeMille's 1956 The Ten Commandments. AFI
is a national organization dedicated to advancing and preserving the arts
of the moving image.
Terminator 2: 3D Has Arrived. Universal Studios Hollywood's Terminator
2: 3D attraction recreates the dark foreboding futuristic world of the
Terminator films in a twelve minute long 3-D film. The attraction is a sequel
of sorts to James Cameron's Terminator 2, a multi-sensory "virtual
adventure." Up to 700 guests at a time can experience Terminator 2:
3D, which is projected by six 70mm Iwerks projectors onto three 23' by
50' screens. This all-new Terminator adventure features the original Terminator
2 cast including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong,
and Robert Patrick. Starting in the present, the story sends the Schwarzenegger
Terminator and John Connor (Edward Furlong) into the Los Angeles of 2029,
a world policed by cyborgs controlled by Skynet, a sentient corporate computer.
Their mission: destroy Skynet. But before they can do that, they must fight
Skynet's army of killing machines, including the all-new T-1,000,000 or T-Meg.
Terminator 2: 3D was produced by Digital Domain, Inc., the Venice,
California-based digital production house owned by James Cameron, Stan Winston,
Scott Ross, IBM, and Cox Enterprises (a media conglomerate). Cameron, Winston,
and John Bruno share the film's directorial credit, with Cameron providing
the overall vision and direction for the actors. Universal Studios Hollywood
is located between Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley in California, USA,
off the Hollywood Freeway (101) at either Universal Center Drive or Lankershim
Boulevard exits.
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| Left to right, directors Stan Winston and James Cameron, and visual effects consultant John Bruno on the Terminator 2: 3D set. Courtesy of and © 1999 Universal Studio, Inc. | Terminator 2: 3D is a 3-D virtual ride blending live-action and special effects. Courtesy of and © 1999 Universal Studio, Inc. |
Note: Readers may contact any Animation World Magazine contributor by sending an e-mail to editor@awn.com.