The Rise Of Synthespians
He's spent 2-1/2 years being filmed, but Andy Serkis won't get any face time on screen.
Or foot or hand or torso time, for that matter.
Yet he's being talked about as a possible Oscar nominee for his role in "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers," the second in the fantasy film trilogy, which opens Wednesday.
Mr. Serkis is the human actor behind the computer-generated (CG) character Gollum, a wizened Hobbit who's part manlike, part evil beast. More than just giving voice to the character, Serkis provided all its movements and facial expressions, which were later "painted over" by animators.
Gollum, who plays a large role in the story, is torn by inner conflict and must express a range of emotions as he interacts with humans.
He's "a major achievement by anyone's standards" among CG characters, says Don Shay, the publisher of Cinefex, a magazine for movie special-effects fans.
As the skills of computer animators sharpen, and the cost of animation software and hardware plummets, "Synthespians" are coming to the screen more often and in more prominent roles.
Already this year has seen Yoda of "Star Wars" fame become a high-flying, lightsaber-wielding CG character who some viewers thought was the most "alive" member of the cast of "Episode II." And the second "Harry Potter" movie features "Dobby," the house elf, who was convincing enough that reviewers rarely singled him out for comment among the film's many special effects.
And coming movies such as "The Hulk" and "The Polar Express" may push the state of the art yet further. In "Polar Express," due out in 2004 or 2005, all the characters will be CG, though based on the work of real actors. Tom Hanks's character as a boy will combine elements of the adult Hanks morphed into how he might have looked as a child, according to published reports.
For years, Hollywood has debated the value of photo-realistic "synthespians," actors who wouldn't grow old, ask for a bigger trailer, or demand huge salaries. Last summer, the movie "Simone" took a mostly humorous look at the issue, with Al Pacino playing a producer trying to hide the fact that his beautiful new star exists only inside a computer.
Synthespian stars?
While some animators are excited about the prospect of creating "synthespians" who could pass for human actors, others are asking, "What's the point?" since real actors are already available. The spectacular failure of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within" in 2001, whose cast was entirely made up of human-looking CG characters, seems to have cooled Hollywood's interest in large roles for synthespians for the moment.
"Everyone knows what a human being looks like. It's very, very difficult to take a computer-generated character and duplicate that," Shays says. Photos of characters from "Final Fantasy" looked "staggeringly" real, he says. But setting them in motion means their behavior, lip synch, skin texture, hair, and every other subtle element has to be just right. The human eye can detect even the slightest flaw.
"It's very difficult to pull off," Shays says. "I'm sure it'll happen someday. It's just a matter of now it's extremely time-consuming and expensive."
While it is unclear if that will ever happen, observers point out that the use of CG images are already proliferating on movie screens in more subtle ways. One growing use of CG characters is in crowd scenes.
For the battle scenes in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, a digital effects program called "Massive" allows thousands of characters in the background to move about randomly based on a set of rules programmed into them (much like the characters in many video games), saving the need to hire and outfit thousands of extras.
"This is a medium still in its infancy," says Daniel Robichaud, the animation supervisor who designed the ill-fated digital extras in "Titanic," and "The Scorpion King." "You're going to see more and more ... digital animation in moviemaking."
While some animators will remain fascinated by the challenge of creating humanlike CG characters, Heather Kenyon, editor in chief of Animation World Network (www.awn.com), says the real potential of CG animation is to create new creatures, not imitate humans. "All these new digital films allow the artists, the directors, the writers, to tell the stories that they really want to tell."
Erasing memories of Jar Jar...
The character of Gollum is a far cry from the insipid CG character of Jar Jar Binks in the recent "Star Wars" films. Gollum's role has an almost Shakespearean complexity. The inner conflict between the innocent Hobbit named Sméagol that he once was, and the skeletal, unscrupulous fiend he has become through possession of a mystical and evil ring, infuses the performance with dramatic tension.
To create Gollum, each scene had to be shot three different ways. First Serkis played the role himself with the other live actors. Then the scene was shot again without him. Finally, he played the role alone, wearing a bodysuit covered with sensors. Twenty-five cameras recorded his movements from various angles, including his facial expressions, and fed them into a computer. His movements and expressions then became the basis for the digital Gollum, who was inserted into each scene.
Serkis says he'd be "extremely flattered" if he were nominated for an Oscar. The Academy Awards press office has confirmed that Serkis will be eligible for nomination, despite his physical absence from the screen.
"We kind of talk about it in terms of the performance John Hurt gave in 'Elephant Man,' " says Serkis. In the 1981 film, Hurt was nominated for Best Actor despite being unrecognizable beneath his makeup. "He gave [the character] a voice and a physicality but was completely disguised by the prosthetics. And this in many ways is similar."
Serkis, a respected British actor, will be seen in the third film of the series as Sméagol, the young Hobbit. "Sméagol looks like my 2-1/2-year-old son," Serkis says, "and Gollum looks like my dad, bless him."
Brian Heidik "Survives"
The soft-core porn stud turned used-car salesman closed the deal Thursday night, triumphing over his fellow Survivors.
Brian Heidik, the 34-year-old from Quartz Hill, California, survived rats, snakes, food-stealing monkeys, whipping monsoon rains and, oh yeah, his fellow castaways to win the series finale of Survivor: Thailand
The rugged blond, whom even host Jeff Probst described as a player, glad-handed his way through the 39 days, made alliances he didn't keep, and, in keeping with tradition, swept the finale's immunity challenges.
Then how did he manage to go home with a Chevy trailblazer, the $1 million prize money and the title of solve Survivor? In the end, as Ted Rogers put it, Brian was the lesser of two evils against crusty Clay Jordan, who badgered the jury before they picked a winner.
Heidik, who became the de facto leader of the Chuay Jai, is the fifth million-dollar winner on the popular CBS reality game show, this time set in Thailand's Tarutao Islands National Park, a chain of 51 pristine islands dotting the Indian Ocean some 600 miles south of Bangkok.
And his fellow castaways who spent five weeks in the tropical jungles of Koh Tarutao midway through monsoon season, probably weren't the only ones kicking themselves Thursday. Heidik recently separated from his wife, Charmaine, who was arrested for spousal abuse last week. (Maybe the busty bruiser got tired of being kept in the dark about the outcome?)
Here's a recap of the two-hour finale:
The evening began with a rat-like race between remaining Chuay Jai team members Heidik, Louisiana restaurateur Clay Jordan, Rhode Island Navy swim instructor Helen Glover and Florida teacher Jan Gentry. Each one raced to release the food pellet. And that's where the challenge took a nasty turn. The Thai delicacy the Survivors had to eat to win immunity was a large hairy black spider. Heidik won the contest--but at what price to his digestive system?
With the immunity necklace back in his possession Heidik and Clay approached Jan with a proposed alliance against Helen. It took the perky teacher all of a few minutes to agree to turn on her fellow female tribe member. Helen's torch was extinguished that night in tribal council.
The next day the remaining conspirators paddled down the river releasing floral tribute floats to the 13 other Survivors. Cue the sappy montage and melodramatic music.
Next up, the trio met Probst in a candlelit cave, home to the pirates who originally ruled the island. Instead of the lengthy hold-your-hand-on-the-idol endurance test, producers used treasure to test the contestants' willpower. The final three were forced to stand, knees bent, with their hands in brackets holding six gold coins apiece between their fingers.
Perhaps spurred by the thought of the four beers and pizza she planned to have at home, Jan was the first to fold, Clay soon followed and Brian got to keep the immunity necklace.
Brian chose to take Clay with him and the final tribal council snuffed Jan's torch.
And then there were two.
Speaking before the final jury Clay suffered from a case of foot-in-mouth ("I'm a lucky guy. I'm sitting here, I'm not sitting over there," he said gesturing to the jurors), while Brian patted himself on the back for having kept "food in our bellies" and making sure people were "warm at night".
Payback's a bitch, and the seven jurors got to air their beefs with the sneaky twosome. Ted scored the Susan Hawk angry-speech-of-the-evening award when he called Brian a great used-car salesman. "You sold me your friendship." A lemon. And then told Clay he was an ignorant Southern hillbilly who rode Brian's coattails to the end. It doesn't get any better.
Despite Brian's sleazy motivational speaker shtick before the jurors, the "player" from California got the required four votes to win the game.
The reunion episode in front of a live studio audience at CBS Television City in Hollywood was tame in comparison to last year's live reunion party in Central Park. Gone were the tunes and last year's host Rosie O'Donnell. Instead, Jeff Probst emceed the subdued affair that recapped the season, including the most memorable moment: Ted's early-morning grope-fest of Ghandia Johnson.
Viewers who managed to stay tuned through the two hour series finale and the snooze-inducing post Survivor: Reunion party were able to catch all 16 Survivors presenting a special Top 10 list on the Late Show with David Letterman, alongside Academy Award winner Tom Hanks and rock band Phish.
In the meantime, anyone thinking Survivor has run its course can think again. CBS recently confirmed the next installment would take place in the Amazon early next year. Host Jeff Probst promised more twists and warned contestants that they would encounter the most beautiful and the most dangerous animals in the world in the South American jungle, including the deadly Anaconda. Let the games begin.
Disney Bid Seen for Muppet-Maker Henson
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mickey Mouse and Kermit the Frog could soon be new best friends.
Walt Disney Co. is preparing to offer about $135 million for Jim Henson Co., a bid that likely would position it to win the assets of the renowned Muppet maker more than a decade after it walked away from the chance, according to people familiar with the situation.
Although Disney's bid would be a steep discount from the $680 million German children's programming giant EM.TV paid for Henson in March 2000, it is still far too rich a price, people familiar with Henson's assets said. They put the value at no more than $80 million.
Four other suitors also are considering bids for the creators of such famed puppet characters as Miss Piggy and Big Bird, but none is likely to pay as much as Burbank, California-based Disney, sources say.
They said the other parties mulling bids are London-based Entertainment Rights Plc ; privately held Classic Media; billionaire investor Haim Saban; and Dean Valentine, the former chief executive of United Paramount Network.
"EM.TV is in parallel talks with several parties and this means more than two," said an EM.TV spokesman in Munich who declined to comment about specific bidders. A Henson spokesman in New York also declined to comment.
A Disney spokesman said that as a matter of policy the company does not comment on speculation regarding acquisitions, while a spokesman for Entertainment Rights, which develops and licenses children's programming, declined to comment. None of the other potential bidders could be reached.
Disney shares fell 33 cents, or 2 percent, to close at $16.20 on the New York Stock Exchange Thursday.
MUPPETS, SPECIAL EFFECTS, PROGRAMMING
Henson's business includes the rights to its world renowned Muppets characters, the Creature Shop that creates special effects for movies, and about 650 hours of programming.
Under EM.TV's ownership Henson divested its stake in Crown Media Holdings Inc. for $100 million and sold the Sesame Street Muppets characters to the Sesame Workshop for $180 million.
Sesame Workshop still owes about $70 million on the deal, which is to be paid over time, giving Henson a steady cash flow stream, people familiar with that agreement said. However, some of the licensing arrangements at Henson are messy, the company's staff is bloated and it needs an infusion of capital to restore the brand to its former glory, sources said.
Critics say Disney pays too high a premium on its acquisitions. While that idea can be debated, the company is widely seen by analysts to have overpaid for Fox Family Worldwide last year, on which it spent $5.2 billion, including $2.2 billion of debt. Earlier this year, Disney cut about half the work force at renamed ABC Family.
Disney, which already has some partnership arrangements with Henson, was set to buy the company in 1990, but when namesake Jim Henson died suddenly, it pulled out of the deal. Henson's son, Brian, took over the empire founded in 1958.
EM.TV, which has been shopping Henson for more than a year, had been looking to close a deal soon to cover a 64 million euro ($66 million) loan due at year's end.
The company could, however, get an extension from its lenders, who are being apprised of the Henson auction, and push the sale into the first quarter of 2003, sources said.
Privately owned Classic Media, which holds the rights to children's characters including Casper the Friendly Ghost, only wants to buy a half stake in Henson's character licenses and programming, sources said.
Saban, who made his fortune selling his stake in Fox Family to Disney, bid about $128 million for Henson with Evercore Partners Inc. in October. His partner dropped out, but Saban remains interested, these people said.
Valentine is seeking partners, they added, but his financial backing remains unclear at this point.
'Chicago' Dazzles, 'Hours' Strikes at Globes
BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - Movie musical "Chicago" put some early razzle dazzle in Hollywood's award season on Thursday, earning eight Golden Globe nominations including best musical, followed by somber drama "The Hours" with seven.
With show-stopping tunes like "All That Jazz," the Broadway musical-turned-movie earned nominations for Renee Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones in the best actress in a musical or comedy group and Richard Gere as best actor in a musical or comedy.
Director Rob Marshall, screenwriter Bill Condon, supporting actor John C. Reilly and supporting actress Queen Latifah, all scored nominations in their respective categories, too.
While 2001's acclaimed art house musical "Moulin Rouge" paved the way for "Chicago," executive producer Craig Zadan said "Chicago" has what "Rouge" lacked -- mainstream appeal.
"This show is different. It is the return of the American musical to the cinema, and it reinvents the form," he said.
The Golden Globe nominations, which are handed out by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, mark the U.S. film industry's first major showcase leading up to the Oscars, and a nomination puts a movie on center stage during Awards season.
Like "Chicago," "The Hours" strikes out on a bold path for moviemaking in the drama category with its three-pronged story of women dealing with issues of life and death.
PINCH ME
Nicole Kidman portrays writer Virginia Woolf, and Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore portray a modern woman and 1950s housewife, respectively, who all relate to the Mrs. Dalloway character created by Woolf.
"These are all three actresses who are absolutely at the top of their game," said director Stephen Daldry.
It earned nominations for best dramatic film, best actress in a drama for both Kidman and Streep -- Moore was nominated in the same category for her "Far From Heaven" -- best screenplay for David Hare and best director for Daldry.
"Adaptation" won six nominations to put it third on the list of most nominated films, including one for best comedy or musical and for Nicolas Cage as best actor in a comedy or musical.
It tells of a screenwriter struggling to adapt a novel into a film and comes from the same filmmakers as 1999's "Being John Malkovich," writer Charlie Kaufman and director Spike Jonze.
Joining "Chicago" and "Adaptation on the list of nominated musicals and comedies was the coming-of-age comedy "About A Boy" with Hugh Grant, "Nicholas Nickleby" and the smash hit independent film "My Big Fat Greek Wedding."
"Every day I wake up and think this can't be happening, then I pinch myself, and I'm like 'Oh, yeah!'," said its star and writer/creator Nia Vardalos.
Also with "The Hours" in the best dramatic film category were "About Schmidt," which earned Jack Nicholson a nomination for best dramatic actor, Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York," Holocaust drama "The Pianist" from director Roman Polanski and the action picture "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers."
"About Schmidt," in which Nicholson plays a 66 year-old retiree contemplating his life and his future, and "Gangs," about the gang wars in Civil War-era New York, each earned five nominations to round out the five most-nominated movies.
SCORSESE SLEEPS SOUNDLY
Scorsese called the movie among the most difficult he's made, but said it was also among the most rewarding. He said he had been awake and working until 3:30 a.m. this morning, then got a call telling him of the nominations just after 5:30 a.m.
"I went comfortably back to sleep," he joked.
Two big surprises were the lack of any nominations for Denzel Washington's first directorial effort, the drama "Antwone Fisher," which has been a critics' favorite so far.
Also, "Far From Heaven" failed to be nominated in the best dramatic film category, although it did pick up the nominations for Moore and three others including for Dennis Quaid as best supporting actor and for Todd Haynes with best screenplay.
Rounding out nominees for best dramatic actress were Diane Lane in "Unfaithful," about a woman's extra-marital affair, and Salma Hayek in "Frida," about Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
Lane's performance has been hailed as one of the best of the year, but because the movie was released in the summer its chances in awards season were diminished. Generally, Hollywood waits until this time of year to release its award titles.
"It doubles my reward, seeing as how the film was not a year-end a release," said Lane.
In the category for best dramatic actor, Nicholson faces stiff competition from Daniel Day-Lewis for "Gangs of New York," Michael Caine for "The Quiet American," Adrien Brody in "The Pianist" and Leonardo DiCaprio in "Catch Me If You Can."
Brody said the nomination "was a nice way to wake up in the morning. I set my alarm for a normal hour hoping I would be awaken at 5:30 a.m. and I was."
ROUNDING OUT THE LISTS
Joining Zellweger and Zeta-Jones in the category for best actress in a musical or comedy were Goldie Hawn in "The Banger Sisters," Vardalos in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," and newcomer Maggie Gyllenhaal for "Secretary."
Among the other surprises was Kieran Culkin's nomination for best actor in a musical or comedy for "Igby Goes Down." Joining him, Cage and Gere in that grouping were Hugh Grant for "About a Boy," Adam Sandler for "Punch-Drunk Love"
Along with Jonze, Daldry and Marshall, director nominees were Scorsese and Alexander Payne for "About Schmidt."
While Quaid and Reilly top the best supporting actor category, they, too, will face stiff competition from Ed Harris in "The Hours," Chris Cooper for "Adaptation," and movie legend Paul Newman for "Road to Perdition."
Supporting actress nominees were Kathy Bates for "About Schmidt," Cameron Diaz for "Gangs," Queen Latifah in "Chicago," Susan Sarandon in "Igby Goes Down" and Meryl Streep earned a second nomination for "Adaptation."
Foreign language film nominees were Spanish director Pedro Almodovar's "Talk to Her," French film "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress," Mexico's controversial "The Crime of Father Amaro," China's "Hero," and Germany's "Nowhere in Africa."
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association also names winners in TV categories, but the film categories are the most widely watched leading up to the Oscars. The Golden Globe ceremony will be televised from Beverly Hills on January 19.
'Rings' Sequel Conjures Record Box Office Opening
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - J.R.R. Tolkien's diminutive hobbits are box office giants all over again, as the second installment in the "Lord of the Rings" movie trilogy set a record December one-day gross of $26 million in U.S. theaters.
The debut of "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" shattered the previous all-time box office benchmark for a single day in December, set last year by its precursor, "The Fellowship of the Ring," at $18.2 million, distributor New Line Cinema said on Thursday.
The "Two Towers" tally also marks the second biggest Wednesday movie opening ever behind the $28.5 million first-day gross of "Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace" in May of 1999.
"This is really the 'Star Wars,' of today's generation," Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracking service Exhibitor Relations Inc., said the "Rings" phenomenon.
"Two Towers" grossed an additional $16 million from its debut in Tolkien's native South Africa and 13 European countries on Wednesday, up 45 percent from last year's opening-day overseas performance of "Fellowship of the Ring."
New Line, a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc., said "Two Towers" marked the highest opening day ever in 10 out of 14 foreign countries.
The film stars Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins, the hobbit who leads a quest to destroy the Dark Lord Sauron's ring of power and save Middle-earth.
"We're astounded at these numbers," said Rolf Mittweg, president for worldwide distribution and marketing at New Line. "For a three-hour film that is central in a trilogy to open this way is energizing and tremendously exciting."
If the success of "Fellowship of the Ring" is any indication, "Two Towers" is on its way to blockbuster status. The first film in the trilogy based on Tolkien's novels went on to gross $66 million through its first weekend and more than $313 million in the United States alone.
By comparison, superhero adventure "Spider-Man" holds the record for biggest single day ever at the U.S. box office, grossing $43.6 million in its second day of release in May of this year and nearly $115 million through its first three days. It grossed a total of $403.7 million domestically and twice that worldwide.
"Fellowship of the Ring" proved to be more potent internationally, ultimately grossing $860.2 million around the globe.
"Two Towers" was benefiting from glowing reviews and a built-in base of devoted Tolkien readers, as well as a new generation of fans drawn to the epic fantasy by Peter Jackson's big-screen adaptation. It also was helped by its super-sized roll-out, opening in 3,622 theaters around the country.
"These films have really captured the imagination of moviegoers," Dergarabedian said. "The first film brilliantly set up the necessity to see the second film, thus ensuring its success."