Here's a report from PRANKSTER, and he's sending in a report from SIGGRAPH down in Orlando. That's a gathering of Computer Graphics Professionals out to show off and attract new talent. It's also where you get to see tons of cool shit way early. So here's what's been presented so far. I'm dying to hear more from other people attending, so write me if you will!! Thanks a lot!
I'm the Prankster. Perhaps you remember me from the forum. Anyway, I'm down here in Florida for SIGGRAPH '98. I thought I'd weigh in with a short but sweet report (since you're bound to get others....right?)
NON-ANIMATED STUFF
Saw previews for BEOWULF and VIRUS. Beowulf looks more "mideivel" than "futuristic", except for a few background shots of techno-fortresses...even though the VO clearly states "In the far future..." There are a lot more half-dressed women than I remember from the original poem. BTW, the producer is the same guy who produced Mortal Kombat.
VIRUS looks actually kinda cool. Jamie Lee, Gail Anne Hurd, and Stan Winston can't be a bad combination. Still, it does look kinda derivative of ALIENS. Looks like the Virus comes in from outer space, shoots through the Mir station, and is transmitted to a boat, which is where the fun starts.
ANIMATED STUFF
PRINCE OF EGYPT: My anticipation level for this keeps going up and down. The shots I saw looked stunning--It seems like there's hardly a frame that isn't full of moving objects, crowds, flocks of birds, with epic backgrounds. But on the other hand, the style is a little too close to Disney's for my liking. Not as bad as Quest for Camelot or Anastasia, but still. And it does sound like there are going to be songs...whether they're sung by the characters or just background stuff, I couldn't tell. BTW, the marketing for this flick is SOOOO Disney-ish...the poster, especially, looks like a photocopy of something Diz would do (It shows the chariot race, with Moses and Ramses smiling like idiots, and the colours are bright and childlike...doesn't look like they're aiming for the adult crowd.)
ANTZ: There are lots of clips of ANTZ playing around here...and no sign of A BUG'S LIFE. Interesting. Anyway, they showed a clip of the Antz preparing to march off to war, with Z standing next to Danny Glover's character. First the general (Gene Hackman) gives a speech, then they march off to fight the termites, who are reportedly "eight times our size". Z suggests a subtler approach "like influencing their political systems through campaign contributions or something." Then the rows of Ants approach the termite mound (it looks great) and Z is pushed screaming into the fray. The textures, lighting, etc. are everything you've heard, but IMHO the animation is a little stiff compared to what we saw in Toy Story. Just a little. Oh yeah, the words "Hell" and "Ass" are uttered, assuring this will be PG-13 and not just for the kiddies. The poster shows Z standing on an anthill with a city skyline in the distance, and the tag: "Every Ant has his day."
THE ROAD TO EL DORADO: Some very nice production art for this...kinda reminded me of The Curse of Monkey Island. One of the heroes, Miguel, looks VERY disney-ish...in fact, he looks like John Smith with a beard. The rest of the characters look like a cross between Disney and Monkey Island. The other hero, Tulio, looks a lot like Kevin Kline. There's also a VERY cute Aztec (Maya? Incan?) girl named Chel, who doesn't wear a whole lot of clothing and always looks grumpy. The backgrounds for the Aztec (or Maya, or Incan) city impressed me more than anything else at the Dreamworks booth. Not panaramic like POE, but VERY moody and detailed. I'd be looking forward to this if, again, there wasn't such a strong whiff of Disney (including songs by Elton John...whoopee...)
Something called SPIRIT looked interesting. It looked kinda like the story of a horse in the "Black Beauty" style, or maybe as an old west folktale. Production sketches looked nothing like anything we've seen before...very "impressionistic".
The above were all Dreamworks/PDI, who were giving out the most info. They were also the coolest to talk to.
SONY is planning to start animating something called THE HOLLOW MAN in november...don't know if it's animated or otherwise. (HARRY NOTE: THIS IS A LIVE ACTION FILM WRITTEN BY ANDREW MARLOWE AND DIRECTED BY PAUL VERHOEVEN, ANY EXTRA INFO WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED!!)
A company called Rainbow productions is working on a fully CG film called BLUE PLANET. "No cute toys, no cute bugs," promises the poster. Instead it's a straight SF film about a future in which Earth is invaded by water-dwelling aliens. Some impressive planes and shots of landscapes, but no characters.
