2012 Updates - Photos Coming Soon...

Lots of stuff coming soon, and that means more photos and maybe even a new kit project or two. ;)

The Dark Knight Rises, OZ, Pacific Rim

I'll post some info and pictures here when I can (as things are released). These three movies have occupied the better part of my last year and a half.

Dark Knight Rises:
My third outing with Chris Nolan. More good stuff and info coming very soon.

OZ:
Sam Raimi's take on the story. Gotta wait till next year for this one.

Pacific Rim:
Hands down one of the best show experiences I've ever had. 8 months of prep and filming as Creature FX Co-Supervisor, with an amazing crew and working hand in hand with director Guillermo Del Toro on a daily basis. I can honestly say he's a gift to our industry and genuinely one of the nicest directors I've ever worked with. I'd previously done Blade 2 with him in 2000, but we never met at the time. To interact with him daily on PR was a treat. Can't wait till next year when this can be talked about.

Falling Skies

With 4 more seasons outlined, I can't give away too much here either. Was thrilled to spend nearly 6 months on set as the Prosthetic Supervisor and a puppeteer. Got to make some fun little Skitter gags as well to enhance an earlier build done by Todd Masters.

The Thing (2011)

We did some great work at ADI on this one. I spent 3 months in LA on prep followed by 2 1/2 more in Toronto filming, partially for ADI, partially as a puppeteer and for the production directly. I'd love to post photos, but don't really know what's allowed to be released considering how much of the story changed in post. There may still be secrets. ;) Honestly, I don't think there's anything to secretive still, but there were a million changes and a lot of movie has not been shown. Here's a video link though to some of our ADI work: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBzpT7VmSaU

Inception

Another great Chris Nolan experience. Had a great time on two of the Dark Knight films and had the privilege of contributing to "Inception" as well with the hospital collapse sequence. Again built through NDS in the later half of 2009. We built an extremely large, hydraulically actuated model which could collapse on cue. Pics can do the talking.

Plaque for Tomb Raider Kit

We whipped up a plaque for the TR kit. If you're interested in it for our kit or any TR kit, please inquire. Measures 4.25" by 2.25".

3D Render by Scott S.

$10.00 shipped in the US

fxkits@yahoo.com

Tomb Raider Kit

We've finally got this one ready to go. Sean did a build up of a copy of it and here's the pics. Final price is $190 (plus shipping). Again, she stands at nearly 20" tall (1/4 scale).

fxkits@yahoo.com

The Dark Knight - The Miniatures

We did a number of things for The Dark Knight at New Deal Studios over the course of a 3 month build and 2 months of setup and shooting. The main sequence we put together was a 1/3 scale miniature/mechanical effect of the Tumbler (Batmobile) colliding with a garbage truck and then turning a 180 degree turn. We built 5 garbage trucks and 2 Tumblers (one cable pulled, one radio-controlled) all at 1/3 scale. Along with the vehicles, we built the entire surrounding environment to match the live action footage shot on Lower Wacker Drive in Chicago. This was a BIG miniature to say the least...

I acted as a key model maker and concurrently as the Lead of the production Staff Shop where we produced parts in the 1000s...

Anyway, here's a few low-res pics... better ones coming soon...






A scene not used in the final film called for the garbage truck to turn over and come apart with pieces smashing through the surrounding walls/pillars/etc... The truck can be seen on its side in the background of the following picture. The 'compactor' part of the truck was made to 'disengage' as part of the damage.







BEFORE:




AFTER:

Iron Man - Arc Reactor

The movie is out now so these aren't quite so secret any more.

A group of us spent about a month building the ARC REACTOR miniature at New Deal Studios for the explosive finale of Iron Man. Iron Monger took a spill down the shaft to meet his end... we also built 1/4 scale sections to be blown up / destroyed as CG elements.



Making the 1/4 scale arc "horseshoe" that Iron Monger crashes through on the way down the shaft...

Believe...

The "Believe" commercials were part of the Halo 3 marketing release campaign. I worked with New Deal Studios as one of the lead model makers to create the explosions, rocket plumes, muck puddles, landscapes, buildings, etc. The aproximately 700 McFarlane scale figures were created by Stan Winston Studio. The entire diorama measured 40 feet by 30 feet and stood about 12-14 feet high.





Prepping a tank for an explosion...

Yippie Ki-Yay...

A few pics of the 1/5 scale F-35s we built at NDS for "Live Free or Die Hard" (Die Hard 4). A small group of us built 5 of these from the ground up in under a month. It's about 12 feet long. All of the doors and hatches worked off of stepper motors as well as the jet engine in the rear which would move from the rear to hover position. I was a lead model maker on the job.

Get Away From Her You...!

The 'Aliens' Power Loader - 1/4 scale

Building the Queen inspired this piece as a companion. It stands aproximately 27" tall and represents over 2 years of research and reverse engineering. It's nearly finished... finally...

Designed in Rhino 3D with my good friend Minieffects and then prototyped on a 3D printer (thanks Ian, Matt, and Shannon). Scott (aka Minieffects) is amazing at this stuff...

It's Coming... Eventually...


A HUGE WORK IN PROGRESS...

Her 'Majesty' in 1/4 Scale

This was a commision piece done about 3 years ago for a collector based on the Queen Alien in the movie 'Aliens'. She's 1/4 scale and stands nearly 42 inches tall.