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ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE - ISSUE 5.03 - JUNE 2000
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A Chat With Don Bluth And Gary Goldman (Part I) LL: What were some of the challenges on the film? GG: I think the biggest challenge was the limited time on the picture. We had only 19 months to complete the whole thing. People who have seen the picture -- even the color timer at Disney -- have said that they can't believe that it was done in such a short time. LL: What were the most challenging aspects, artistically? GG: Well, originally we started out planning for about 40% CGI. With the time constraints and budget, there was just no way we were going to have a lot of CGI. But we ended up with far more CGI than we've had on any other film -- about 87% of the film is some form of CGI. LL: Was that something that happened throughout production? GG: They [Fox] just wanted more and more CGI as we went along. We actually contracted out to POVDE, which is David Paul Dozoretz's group that does George Lucas' animatics for him. They animated all of the Ice Crystal sequence from Don's storyboards. We used Blue Sky Studios for the creation of The New World sequence. Our guys here, twelve of them, did everything else. LL: From what I hear, you all weren't originally slated to direct Titan...when you were put on this picture you were developing something else at the time...Is that right?
GG: No, we had just finished Bartok [The Magnificent]. They didn't have a picture for us at the time. LL: But I thought you were in development on something else. GG: Titan, A.E.originally, was a live-action movie, and [Fox Filmed Entertainment Chairman and CEO] Bill Mechanic thought it might be good in CGI. So, we took a look at it, and the only thing we could think was...it was really science fiction...probably like something Moebius did...Most of the people who have looked at this, internationally, have asked the question: ‘Have you been influenced by anime?,’ and we weren't. I take that as a compliment because anime has become quite popular. I think they feel that the color, style, the look, the pacing, the subject matter, all feel like anime. It just kind of evolved. Originally, two other directors had started the project. Pre-production was completed, but Don and the folks in animation re-designed a lot of the film.
LL: The movie has a PG rating? GG: Yes, they are targeting young adult males, 12-17 years old. The accompanying music is rock ‘n roll. LL: Compared to films you've worked on in the past, Titan is "edgier?" GG: I'd say it's not a ‘mother friendly’ movie. Although we haven't left the mothers and children out. There is some swearing, some sexual innuendo, it's intense...there's a lot of violence. I don't think anybody under 8 years old should see this film. LL: What is happening in the studio now that Titan is finished? What about the lay-offs? GG: We've got four projects in pre-production and Fox is trying to decide which ones go forward. There have been a lot of lay-offs because the next project was not developed. The same circumstances occurred after Anastasia.Don came up with Bartok the Magnificent and they let us do it. It kept the studio alive for fourteen months until Titancame along. |
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