Don´t find an appropriate thread, so i put it here, because it might concern Bond 22 ,too.
Chris Corbould
This is the man who —along with his team of magicians— brought us the spunky little Q-Boat in The World Is Not Enough, the ice chase between Bond and Zao in Die Another Day, the sinking Venetian House in Casino Royale and (if I may turn heathen and mention something non-Bond for a moment) Batman’s latest front-axle-free tank of a Batmobile.
He’s the man to whom directors turn when they want the technically impossible made possible: when that bike needs to be adapted to fire lasers and shoot grenades, or that car has to transform into a giant pair of knockers and back again at the flick of a switch.
Nobody’s been doing it better than him (sorry) for over two decades, and last month CommanderBond.net had the honour of talking to award-winning Special Effects Co-ordinator Chris Corbould about his career and his time and experiences as a well-respected member of the Bond family.
What were the highlights of special effects that you and your team accomplished for Casino Royale?
The biggest highlight was the sinking room sequence. It was a sequence that I was concerned would look phoney if we didn’t get it right. The hydraulic interior set was enormous and highly complex with each movement controlled by computer. The set weighed in at over 100 tons and was 4 storeys high and loosely based on the Hotel Danielli in Venice, courtesy of Peter Lamont, the Production Designer. The script read that it was a sinking house but it turned into more of a sinking mansion. The whole rig lowered 19 feet into a twenty foot deep tank of water and also tilted through fifteen degrees on every axis. The water was turned into a bubbling cauldron using a bank of sixteen huge road compressors. In addition to this rig, we were responsible for building a third scale miniature of the exterior of the house which also had to sink into an exterior tank to match the interior. We spent many hours testing how each individual item of the exterior would collapse such as chimneys, balconies and even a third scale crane barge moored against the house.
What will your involvement be in Bond 22? How does it differ from your role on Casino Royale?
My hope is that I will be doing the Special Effects and Miniature Effects again after I finish on the sequel to Batman Begins. The role I might have would be dependent on the Director they choose and his requirements from me. Fingers crossed.
Where do you think James Bond can go from here?
Bond has entered a whole new era where the characters are the main ingredient and the action is meaningful rather than being gratuitous. I also believe that Daniel has a huge amount to offer in exploring this new path. He is not only a wonderful actor but puts real effort into getting the most from our efforts. Casino Royale is a hard act to follow but I am confident the next film will surpass it.
The top notch acting in the Weisz/Craig/Spall 'Betrayal' is emotionally true, often v funny and its beautifully staged with filmic qualities..
I think it's going to be hard to follow CR. Everyone was wondering how DC would do and he surpassed most expectations. Next time expectations will likely be higher making it harder to exceed them. I think they have their work cut out for them!!! I have faith, though.....
sigl
"For the ones who had a notion
A notion deep inside
That it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive!"
I think it's going to be hard to follow CR. Everyone was wondering how DC would do and he surpassed most expectations. Next time expectations will likely be higher making it harder to exceed them. I think they have their work cut out for them!!! I have faith, though.....
sigl
"For the ones who had a notion
A notion deep inside
That it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive!"
sigl wrote:I think it's going to be hard to follow CR. Everyone was wondering how DC would do and he surpassed most expectations. Next time expectations will likely be higher making it harder to exceed them. I think they have their work cut out for them!!! I have faith, though.....
He´s said like: Great, we have a successful film, shit, the next one needs to be better.
I think being as good as CR is one hard act to follow already.
I have faith, though.....
Me too, they have some good ingredients already on board
The top notch acting in the Weisz/Craig/Spall 'Betrayal' is emotionally true, often v funny and its beautifully staged with filmic qualities..
