The Making Of Predators (2010) Movie

Robert Rodriguez presents a bold new chapter in the Predator universe, PREDATORS, shot on location under Rodriguez’s creative auspices at the filmmaker’s Austin-based Troublemaker Studios, directed by Nimrod Antal. The film stars Oscar(R)-winner Adrien Brody (“The Pianist) as Royce, a mercenary who reluctantly leads a group of elite warriors who come to realize they’ve been brought together on an alien planet… as prey. With the exception of a disgraced physician, they are all cold-blooded killers – mercenaries, Yakuza, convicts, death squad members – human “predators that are now being systemically hunted and eliminated by a new breed of alien Predators.

In addition to Brody, PREDATORS stars award-winning actor and filmmaker Laurence Fishburne (“The Matrix movies), Topher Grace (“Spider-Man 3), Alice Braga (“I Am Legend) and Walton Goggins (“The Shield). Also taking on key roles are Rodriguez stalwart Danny Trejo, who recently completed a starring role in Rodriguez’s upcoming “Machete, plus UFC champion Oleg Taktarov (“National Treasure), Mahershalalhashbaz Ali (“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and Louis Ozawa Changchien (“Fair Game).

In 1987, “Predator introduced one of the most enduring and popular characters in sci-fi film history – an invisibility-cloaked extra-terrestrial warrior who wreaked havoc in the jungle. Audiences embraced the film’s rich mythology and a sequel followed a few years later. Looking to refresh the “Predator world in 1994, Twentieth Century Fox invited Robert Rodriguez, a maverick young filmmaker fresh from his stunning directorial debut “El Mariachi, to write a script revolving around the beloved and feared Predator character.
The filmmakers wanted PREDATORS to be a new science fiction-action-thriller that captures the magic of “Predator. “I was attracted to the idea of bringing in characters from different parts of the world, who are dropped on this planet and have to use their skills to stay alive, comments Rodriguez. “That would give us a very international cast of anti-heroes. I wanted the title to have a double meaning, where you believe the people in this movie have so much tension amongst them that they would easily kill each other off before they ever met one of the creatures. So, we wanted to have those uneasy alliances within the group. They are all predators.

In the story, a man plummets through the void at terminal velocity, his parachute deploying only seconds before certain death. Oscar(R) winner Adrien Brody was cast as ex-military man Royce, the reluctant leader of the humans, who begins the movie with no idea of where he is or the circumstances that brought him there.Inevitable comparisons to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Dutch role in “Predator surfaced almost the moment Brody was cast as the black-ops mercenary Royce.“We had no intentions of replicating Arnold’s character [in PREDATORS], says Antal. “I think we would have been doing the film and the audience a disservice. Royce is an impressive role for Adrien. I think people are going to be very happy with his work in the film.

Another central figure among this unholy alliance of killers is the group’s sole female, Isabelle, a sniper in the Israeli Defense Force. “I’ve never played this type of character before, says Alice Braga, who starred opposite Will Smith in “I Am Legend. “Isabelle is really a tough woman, but isn’t harsh with everyone. I think she has some things in her life that make her stronger, but at the same time she’s soft and is just trying to survive. She’s figuring out a lot about herself in this situation.

Walton Goggins was cast as tattoo-covered, feral Walter Stans, a serial killer who thinks of himself as a rock star. “Walt has an energy that allows him to be funny in one moment, terrifying in the next, says Antal. “You’re laughing with him and then you’re afraid of him.Yet another kind of human predator catapulted into this alien world is drug gang enforcer Cuchillo, portrayed by Danny Trejo. “I actually didn’t want Danny to be in this movie, reveals Rodriguez. “They wrote in the PREDATORS script ‘a Danny Trejo type’ and I said that you can’t put ‘a Danny Trejo type.’ There is no other Danny Trejo. Anybody else we get is going to be a disappointment.

Another celebrated actor, Laurence Fishburne, portrays Noland, a recluse human found surviving on the planet. His hidden cave contains numerous artifacts and weapons.Noland’s very existence on the alien planet provides hints of a rich off-world history of the Predators. “Once you’ve set up this planet, there’s a lot that can happen there, and once you’ve seen characters like Noland, you know there’s a lot of potential stories to tell, says Rodriguez.

A character very out of place among the heavy-hitters of death who have been hurtled onto this strange world is Edwin, a doctor with a mysterious past. “You need to have a character that doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the team, so that character can become the eyes of the audience. The audience would not be able to identify with the other characters because they’re professional killers, explains Rodriguez.

“The character of Edwin was the last one that was cast, because it was really hard, comments Avellán. “You have to find an actor who can sell that you don’t know why he’s here on this planet. Topher Grace is that all-American boy. He’s a really great choice because audiences don’t see him as a threat.

While the human stars bonded during the early weeks of shooting in Hawaii, the cast of Predators and other creatures were prepared by an extensive team of artists and technicians for shooting in Austin. Longtime Rodriguez collaborators Greg Nicotero and his partner Howard Berger, partners in KNB Effects Group, Inc. – were charged with creating the alien creatures and the special make-up effects. “This is a really exciting show for us. We’re actually creating the title characters of the film, and multiples of them, comments Nicotero.

The surviving humans make the stunning discovery that the “original Predator has fallen victim to this new “upgrade, whom they realize is out to be the supreme hunter… and the ultimate Predator. So, in addition to bringing back the affectionately-called “Classic Predator, KNB created three new Berserker Predators – Dog Handler, Falconer, and Mr. Black. These represent bigger, longer, leaner, and deadlier versions of the species that audiences remember from previous films. Other creatures that expand the Predators mythology – including the alien Ram Runner and the Predators’ Hunting Dogs – were also devised.

Rodney J. Brunet, Chris Olivia, and Alex Toader of Troublemaker Digital (TMS Digital), plus conceptual artist Joe Pepe, began early drawings that were fine-tuned by the designers at KNB. A team of sixty-two people at KNB – designers, artists, sculptors, mold-makers, and painters – worked for approximately 13 weeks at their 25,000 square foot facility in Los Angeles.

The classic and new Predators are humanoid aliens who were created largely by practical state-ofthe-art creature suits. “Being able to see the original Predator in our story had a nostalgia factor, because you hadn’t really seen him like that since the first movie, comments Rodriguez. “We just wanted it to feel like it evolved – to bring back the original, plus a new updated, nastier, meaner breed.

While many of the Predator effects were practical, the film’s visual effects team provided key enhancements, including muzzle flashes, set extensions, a digital space ship, elements of the opening freefall and parachute sequence, as well as the iconic cloaking effects. “We’re taking a new riff on the cloaking – we’ve made it a digital effect and it’s more pristine than it was in the original film, says onset visual effects supervisor Jabbar Raisani. “It’s as if their technology’s been updated now in the future. So it’s a more invisible effect in this film.

Because the Predator characters would be performing stunts, Nicotero worked with stunt coordinator Jeff Dashnaw to cast the performers who would wear the Predator suits. Dashnaw also gave Nicotero some feedback on the designs to keep the performers safe. “The plasma gun and blades and such stick out from the suits, which could be dangerous during the fight performances, says Dashnaw. “So, Greg designed them so they could come off the suits when necessary and visual effects adds them back in during post.

The filmmakers had only ten weeks of prep to ready a massive production that encompassed an ensemble cast and multiple creature characters in a stunt-filled, action-packed story; challenging locations in two states; and considerable site prep and elaborate sets construction. Making things no less difficult was their intent to do many of the effects practically or in-camera – everything from smoke to creatures to stunts to explosions. The visual effects team would take up the slack in post-production.

Producer Elizabeth Avellán attributes Troublemaker Studios’ ability to produce a quality movie for a reasonable price to the talent and attitude of their regular collaborators. “We took most of our regular crew at Troublemaker to Hawaii because they’re amazing. We just have a working environment that’s comparable to none. Fox has been so impressed with the working process that we have here.
Since the story takes place in the jungle, the greens department began their work months before most of the crew. In July, they began gathering plant material in the Texas heat and worked through the dead of winter, caring for everything from small plants to big trees in every extreme. Local Austin landscape designers and nurseries helped the production source the living greens. Three fifty-two foot truckloads of approximately 4,000 tropical and exotic plants were initially shipped in from Florida, including 1,200 five-gallon pots of grasses.

Because it was winter, the greens department also used thousands of pounds of silks, some were mounted on portable bases. “We ended up stapling about 1.5 million leaves to the fake big trees, explains greens designer Richard Bell. “One of the first things we focused on was the main hunting camp. For about a month and a half, I had a crew of ten guys going out and harvesting material all over Texas that would later be used as dressing. Before shooting, we had about a week to dress the actual hunting camp part of the jungle after the construction crew had finished with all their elements. We had all kinds of burnt cedars and burnt oak trees and dead logs.

Weaponry is a big part of the “Predator universe, defining both the human and alien hunters. Royce carries a machete that is almost identical to the one wielded by Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch in the first movie – it’s even made by the same knife maker, Jack Crane. The weapons team also produced skin-pullers, spears, axes, traps, armor, and a shiv for Stans. Says Joyner: “Predators are about their hunting skill. They test their ability against other species. So, it’s not about overpowering a species with better weapons or better technology. They’re purists. We’re trying to stay true to the legacy of the original film.

Source :  Twentieth Century Fox. All rights reserved  ( Compiled and Edited by Artooz-Team )

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