Tolkien
07-19-2007, 01:45 PM
COUNTDOWN!
Our 10 Favorite CG Characters
From Casper to Gollum to King Kong, here are EW's favorite digital creations
10. Casper the Friendly Ghost, Casper (1995)
CHARACTER STUDY The Friendly Ghost of Harvey Comics fame is brought to life — well, to afterlife — along with his three mischievous and similarly spectral uncles in this live-action film, opposite fleshly costars Christina Ricci and Bill Pullman.
INNOVATION In Casper and his uncles, the film boasted the first all-digital characters ever integrated into a live-action feature. ''They had to be physically created by animators in [Industrial Light & Magic]'s computers,'' director Brad Silberling told EW. ''It was like cooking it up from scratch.'' Considering that he paved the way for more blatantly cartoonish CGI characters in live-action movies (Scooby-Doo, Jar Jar Binks), Casper is surprisingly subtle, a translucent, apparently 3D creation who seems both tactile and ethereal at once.
9. T-Rex, Jurassic Park (1993)
CHARACTER STUDY Prior to 1993, 2-D textbook illustrations and the prehistoric renderings of ''Land of the Lost'' dinosaurs left many an imagination dissatisfied. But then Industrial Light & Magic's computer generated T. Rex made prehistory into movie history, by snacking on lawyers, velociraptors, and the like.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Short of a trip back to the Jurassic era, this may be the closest thing to the real deal we'll ever see (one possible exception being the fetch-happy Rex in Night at the Museum). With lifelike skin, thoroughly convincing movement, a persuasive mouth full of saliva-covered chompers, Steven Spielberg's T. Rex is the standard for all scary movie dinos.
8. Sandman, Spider-Man 3 (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY Originally created as a Marvel Comics superhero, escaped convict Flint Marko (played here by Thomas Hayden Church) falls into a sand-filled particle accelerator, and discovers that he has the ability to shape-shift his newly granular body.
INNOVATION To create the Sandman, experiments were done using 12 different types of sand, and the results mimicked on a computer to create the trippy visual effects. In a scene where Spider-Man punches through Sandman's chest, professional kickboxer Baxter Humby — who was born without a right hand — took Spider-Man's place, helping to create the effect of punching straight through the Sandman's solar plexus. Oof!
7. Woody and Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story (1995)
CHARACTER STUDY Woody, a cowboy toy (voiced by Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear, a futuristic toy astronaut (voiced by Tim Allen) start out battling over ''favorite toy'' status in the eyes of their owner, Andy — only to become best buds when Woody rescues Buzz from the clutches of Sid, Andy's evil, toy-torturing neighbor.
INNOVATION The first all-CGI full-length feature. Pixar's first movie for Disney consists of a whopping 114,240 frames, 600 billion bytes (1,000 CD-ROMs held the film's data), 160 billion pixels, and 800,000 machine hours. Pixar's genius factor raised the bar for other studios to jump into the CGI animation with such successes as Ice Age and the Shrek movies.
6. T-1000, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
CHARACTER STUDY A liquid-metal improvement on the original Terminator, the T-1000 is sent from the future to kill John Connor (Edward Furlong) and battle Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-800. In his evildoing, this shape-shifter takes on the form of a coffee-sipping rent-a-cop, a linoleum floor, and his favorite disguise: an aviator-spectacled Los Angeles police officer (Robert Patrick). Scary.
WHY WE LOVE IT The relentless T-1000 combines a timeless fascination with shape shifting and the technical ability to finally do it right. To create the liquid-metal T-1000 cyborg, Industrial Light & Magic perfected a process in which the computer takes the ''before'' and ''after'' images and mathematically figures out the smoothest transition between them.
5. Yoda, Attack of the Clones (2002); Revenge of the Sith (2005)
CHARACTER STUDY After thrice appearing as a puppet (Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and The Phantom Menace), this backwards-speaking midget gets a well-deserved retooling in Attack of the Clones (pictured) and Revenge of the Sith as a youthful, high-flying CG Jedi. Freed from the restraints of strings and intrusive hands, Yoda seems even more real — and he continues to benefit from the versatile voice of Frank Oz, who previously spoke for The Muppets' Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear and Sesame Street's Grover and Cookie Monster.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Though the rest of the franchise went the way of the dark side, got cooler Yoda did. At least one Jedi's keepin' it real.
4. Bumblebee, Transformers (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY The smallest, friendliest, most ''down to earth'' of the alien Transformers, Bumblebee is the de facto spy for the heroic Autobots. He is assigned to guard hero Sam Witwicky (played by Shia LaBoeuf) from the evil Decepticons by posing as Sam's 1977 Chevy Camaro. He later ''upgrades'' to the 2008 Concept Camaro model.
WHY WE LOVE HIM The playful, lovable Bumblebee might be made of nuts and bolts, but he's got a human's tender heart: He encourages Sam, a lovelorn teen, to get the girl; he expresses himself through music (which he plays through his own radio); and he's so loyal to Sam that he decides to remain on Earth after the battle is over.
3. Gollum, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
CHARACTER STUDY Of somewhat human origin (he's actually a hobbit beneath that oily skin), Gollum has become a detestable, slithering slug. Possessed by the One Ring, he lurks in the shadows, following hobbits Frodo and Samwise on their journey to Mount Doom. He's The Goonies' Sloth, The Twilight Zone's airplane gremlin, and Saved by the Bell's Screech all rolled into one — simultaneously twisted, frightening, and dramatically annoying. Furthermore, he's got a wicked mullet that would make Billy Ray Cyrus blush.
INNOVATION Motion-capture performance. For the character of Gollum, director Peter Jackson and his team used motion sensors to record actor Andy Serkis' movements, and then digitally superimposed the creature's frame and facial expressions.
2. Davy Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY Captain of the ghost ship The Flying Dutchman, ruthless villain Davy Jones has a claw for a hand, a tentacled face, and an endless hunger to capture more souls (including those of Captain Jack Sparrow and Co.) to serve him.
INNOVATION Yet another amazing achievement in motion capture, Davy was based on the performance of delectably droll Brit actor Bill Nighy, who actually worked alongside the other actors on location, instead of in postproduction using green screen — meaning his costars had a real presence to play against. (Read more about how Davy Jones was brought to life.)
1. King Kong, King Kong (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY This Kong, of course, is an update of the giant ape from the 1933 black-and-white classic, the movie Peter Jackson says inspired him to become a filmmaker at age 9.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Never before has an animated character looked so reach-out-and-touch-him real — and expressed so much without saying a word. Rage, tenderness, confusion, fear... all cross the beast's face at various points of Jackson's epic, making us adore and worry for him right along with his beloved Ann Darrow.
10. Casper the Friendly Ghost, Casper (1995)
9. T-Rex, Jurassic Park (1993)
8. Sandman, Spider-Man 3 (2007)
7. Woody and Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story (1995)
6. T-1000, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
5. Yoda, Revenge of the Sith (2005)
4. Bumblebee, Transformers (2007)
3. Gollum, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
2. Davy Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
1. King Kong, King Kong (2007)
So I made this poll/thread in honor of the Entertainment Weekly article on their website listing their personal favorites for the best CG characters ever created. I wanted to post it here to find which of these characters would each of YOU had voted on if you had to choose. Go on, vote!
Our 10 Favorite CG Characters
From Casper to Gollum to King Kong, here are EW's favorite digital creations
10. Casper the Friendly Ghost, Casper (1995)
CHARACTER STUDY The Friendly Ghost of Harvey Comics fame is brought to life — well, to afterlife — along with his three mischievous and similarly spectral uncles in this live-action film, opposite fleshly costars Christina Ricci and Bill Pullman.
INNOVATION In Casper and his uncles, the film boasted the first all-digital characters ever integrated into a live-action feature. ''They had to be physically created by animators in [Industrial Light & Magic]'s computers,'' director Brad Silberling told EW. ''It was like cooking it up from scratch.'' Considering that he paved the way for more blatantly cartoonish CGI characters in live-action movies (Scooby-Doo, Jar Jar Binks), Casper is surprisingly subtle, a translucent, apparently 3D creation who seems both tactile and ethereal at once.
9. T-Rex, Jurassic Park (1993)
CHARACTER STUDY Prior to 1993, 2-D textbook illustrations and the prehistoric renderings of ''Land of the Lost'' dinosaurs left many an imagination dissatisfied. But then Industrial Light & Magic's computer generated T. Rex made prehistory into movie history, by snacking on lawyers, velociraptors, and the like.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Short of a trip back to the Jurassic era, this may be the closest thing to the real deal we'll ever see (one possible exception being the fetch-happy Rex in Night at the Museum). With lifelike skin, thoroughly convincing movement, a persuasive mouth full of saliva-covered chompers, Steven Spielberg's T. Rex is the standard for all scary movie dinos.
8. Sandman, Spider-Man 3 (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY Originally created as a Marvel Comics superhero, escaped convict Flint Marko (played here by Thomas Hayden Church) falls into a sand-filled particle accelerator, and discovers that he has the ability to shape-shift his newly granular body.
INNOVATION To create the Sandman, experiments were done using 12 different types of sand, and the results mimicked on a computer to create the trippy visual effects. In a scene where Spider-Man punches through Sandman's chest, professional kickboxer Baxter Humby — who was born without a right hand — took Spider-Man's place, helping to create the effect of punching straight through the Sandman's solar plexus. Oof!
7. Woody and Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story (1995)
CHARACTER STUDY Woody, a cowboy toy (voiced by Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear, a futuristic toy astronaut (voiced by Tim Allen) start out battling over ''favorite toy'' status in the eyes of their owner, Andy — only to become best buds when Woody rescues Buzz from the clutches of Sid, Andy's evil, toy-torturing neighbor.
INNOVATION The first all-CGI full-length feature. Pixar's first movie for Disney consists of a whopping 114,240 frames, 600 billion bytes (1,000 CD-ROMs held the film's data), 160 billion pixels, and 800,000 machine hours. Pixar's genius factor raised the bar for other studios to jump into the CGI animation with such successes as Ice Age and the Shrek movies.
6. T-1000, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
CHARACTER STUDY A liquid-metal improvement on the original Terminator, the T-1000 is sent from the future to kill John Connor (Edward Furlong) and battle Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-800. In his evildoing, this shape-shifter takes on the form of a coffee-sipping rent-a-cop, a linoleum floor, and his favorite disguise: an aviator-spectacled Los Angeles police officer (Robert Patrick). Scary.
WHY WE LOVE IT The relentless T-1000 combines a timeless fascination with shape shifting and the technical ability to finally do it right. To create the liquid-metal T-1000 cyborg, Industrial Light & Magic perfected a process in which the computer takes the ''before'' and ''after'' images and mathematically figures out the smoothest transition between them.
5. Yoda, Attack of the Clones (2002); Revenge of the Sith (2005)
CHARACTER STUDY After thrice appearing as a puppet (Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and The Phantom Menace), this backwards-speaking midget gets a well-deserved retooling in Attack of the Clones (pictured) and Revenge of the Sith as a youthful, high-flying CG Jedi. Freed from the restraints of strings and intrusive hands, Yoda seems even more real — and he continues to benefit from the versatile voice of Frank Oz, who previously spoke for The Muppets' Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear and Sesame Street's Grover and Cookie Monster.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Though the rest of the franchise went the way of the dark side, got cooler Yoda did. At least one Jedi's keepin' it real.
4. Bumblebee, Transformers (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY The smallest, friendliest, most ''down to earth'' of the alien Transformers, Bumblebee is the de facto spy for the heroic Autobots. He is assigned to guard hero Sam Witwicky (played by Shia LaBoeuf) from the evil Decepticons by posing as Sam's 1977 Chevy Camaro. He later ''upgrades'' to the 2008 Concept Camaro model.
WHY WE LOVE HIM The playful, lovable Bumblebee might be made of nuts and bolts, but he's got a human's tender heart: He encourages Sam, a lovelorn teen, to get the girl; he expresses himself through music (which he plays through his own radio); and he's so loyal to Sam that he decides to remain on Earth after the battle is over.
3. Gollum, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
CHARACTER STUDY Of somewhat human origin (he's actually a hobbit beneath that oily skin), Gollum has become a detestable, slithering slug. Possessed by the One Ring, he lurks in the shadows, following hobbits Frodo and Samwise on their journey to Mount Doom. He's The Goonies' Sloth, The Twilight Zone's airplane gremlin, and Saved by the Bell's Screech all rolled into one — simultaneously twisted, frightening, and dramatically annoying. Furthermore, he's got a wicked mullet that would make Billy Ray Cyrus blush.
INNOVATION Motion-capture performance. For the character of Gollum, director Peter Jackson and his team used motion sensors to record actor Andy Serkis' movements, and then digitally superimposed the creature's frame and facial expressions.
2. Davy Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY Captain of the ghost ship The Flying Dutchman, ruthless villain Davy Jones has a claw for a hand, a tentacled face, and an endless hunger to capture more souls (including those of Captain Jack Sparrow and Co.) to serve him.
INNOVATION Yet another amazing achievement in motion capture, Davy was based on the performance of delectably droll Brit actor Bill Nighy, who actually worked alongside the other actors on location, instead of in postproduction using green screen — meaning his costars had a real presence to play against. (Read more about how Davy Jones was brought to life.)
1. King Kong, King Kong (2007)
CHARACTER STUDY This Kong, of course, is an update of the giant ape from the 1933 black-and-white classic, the movie Peter Jackson says inspired him to become a filmmaker at age 9.
WHY WE LOVE HIM Never before has an animated character looked so reach-out-and-touch-him real — and expressed so much without saying a word. Rage, tenderness, confusion, fear... all cross the beast's face at various points of Jackson's epic, making us adore and worry for him right along with his beloved Ann Darrow.
10. Casper the Friendly Ghost, Casper (1995)
9. T-Rex, Jurassic Park (1993)
8. Sandman, Spider-Man 3 (2007)
7. Woody and Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story (1995)
6. T-1000, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
5. Yoda, Revenge of the Sith (2005)
4. Bumblebee, Transformers (2007)
3. Gollum, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
2. Davy Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
1. King Kong, King Kong (2007)
So I made this poll/thread in honor of the Entertainment Weekly article on their website listing their personal favorites for the best CG characters ever created. I wanted to post it here to find which of these characters would each of YOU had voted on if you had to choose. Go on, vote!