Last night saw a special ‘fan screening’* of Transformers 3 at the BFI IMAX at Waterloo.
As usual, HeyUGuys were on the press line snatching a few moments from some of the people involved (and one high-profile fan of the series). Below are some of the more interesting conversations we had.
Michael Bay – Director
On filming in 3D:
You rely on the stereographer because they’re the one that’s controlling the knob, but I tell them where we’re focusing, what robots go where. He’s got to imagine with me where I want the focus to be. Jim Cameron was the one that really pushed me to do this. He said he’s been a little disappointed that people are using 3D as an afterthought, not a forethought. He knew I’d do it right.
So I spent a lot of time. 3D’s a pain in the ass. It is great when it’s done well, but it’s a pain in the ass because there are a lot of technical things. It’s still an emerging system. It takes a lot of people to do it. You can’t just shoot it and it comes out perfect, there’s a lot of aligning, there’s a lot of stuff that would really bore your audience. It’s a nightmare, but it’s great when it works.
On making a ‘Threequel’:
A lot of guys come in here and just take a cheque. I knew on movie two it was a tough go. We’d hired a thousand people, and we’d started prepping, and all of a sudden the writers go on strike, and we are “f’ed”. What am I going to do, fire a thousand people that I’ve just hired? It was a tough go. Normally a movie like this would take eight months to write, these writers had three. I always knew on movie two we were a little short of the mark, so movie three we really got the script right, I think the audiences are really going to enjoy this one.
Nigel Phelps & Jennifer Williams – Production Designer and Set Decorator
On working in 3D:
NP: It’s exactly the same, you just need more foreground stuff. It really doesn’t overcomplicate it. It’s much more about how it’s photographed. Michael embraced it quite nicely… . You still need to design everything in the same way. It’s just that with 3D it’s more effective in giving depth to foreground and mid-ground stuff. We tend to do that [take that into account] anyway, the way we design the set
On working with Bay
JF: One of the things that people don’t know about Michael Bay is that he shoots everything practically as far as humanly possible. So he’ll push the envelope, and we’ll do everything for real.
NP: A lot of the stuff you’re seeing is physical.
JF: It’s a physical production.
NP: It also needs conceiving. You’re trying to make as much physically for real as you can.
On filming in Chicago
NP: The city gave us unprecedented access to move around. We filled up three car parks in the city full of carnival floats, full of buildings.
JF:We shot five weekends in a row, and at eight o clock they would close the roads, and in come the carnival floats, and we start dressing, and we work all night long, and at six thirty everyone else turns up, and they say, ‘oh, fantastic’.
NP: We have all these cars, and all the scenery, and we spray it all with ash.
Dakota Blue Richards – Fan of the series, Actress in The Golden Compass, Skins
HUG: I take it you’re a fan of the Transformers movies.
DBR: These films are definitely special in terms of how well made they are, and it really just plays on that childhood fantasy of, I would love to live in a world of robots and crazy fight scenes that destroy cities. It’s kind of what you dream about as a kid while you sit there with your plastic models.
HUG: This coming from a girl who used to play with a talking polar bear.
DBR: I think that also plays into my response, because I know how difficult it must have been to work with that much CGI. It’s definitely a challenging experience.
HUG: So you’re interested in the process for the actors and crew, or am I reading too much into that?
DBR: I kind of always like that. In some ways being in films has kind of ruined films. You see a scene in the middle of winter and think, ‘It’s not really snowing’. But what’s great about these is that you actually kind of believe it. As bizarre as the concept is, you want to believe that there are robots with guns on their arms.
HUG: Are you trying to tell me that Optimus Prime isn’t real?
DBR: No, he is, he is. So’s Santa.
HUG: So, you’re currently in Skins, but are you thinking of returning to film?
DBR: I get asked this question a lot. I’m not planning on doing anything in particular, I’m just going to wait and see what comes along, and if a part comes along which is really good, I’ll take it if it’s TV or film. I never aspired to be a movie star, I never actually aspired to be an actress, I just had a really deep love for Lyra, the first character I played, and for all the characters I’ve played since. I don’t think I’d do a job if I didn’t have a connection to either the storyline or the role. I don’t want to push myself in any particular direction, I just want to do things I love to do.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon is out in UK on the 29th of July. Our review will be on the site shortly.
*Like a premiere, but with Z-list hangers on edged out by real fans, who actually want to see the film
