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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Was the alien at the end of Signs CG or real?

Discussion in 'Lucasfilm Ltd. In-Depth Discussion' started by Vonn, Aug 18, 2002.

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  1. dolphin

    dolphin Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 5, 1999
    It was CG. Shyamalan said so....I read it on aintitcoolnews.com
     
  2. CaptainRex24

    CaptainRex24 Jedi Youngling star 1

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2002
    So you've all seen Signs?!

    I feel behind. :(
     
  3. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    One of the reason you won't find photos of the alien is because the film has probably not opened everywhere. Also studios have publicity strategies and the way this film was promoted was to keep most of it secret and mysterious. There are millions at stake for the studio, and they are sometimes weird about these things. I'm sure also Shymalan didn't also want to have the alien leaked.

    And yes it was CG (at least for the most part). As I mentioned Rob Coleman mentioned he worked on it late July before the film was released. You can see the ILM credits at the end.
     
  4. Vonn

    Vonn Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 3, 2000
    Yeah, I read that on aintitcool.com. I guess that puts the debate to rest.
     
  5. RogueTrader

    RogueTrader Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Feb 7, 2002
    Could someone post or pm me a pic of this alien?
     
  6. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    There are no pictures available of the alien, the studio and production want to kep it secret. So no pics on magazines, publications, etc. Probably not until the film has long come and gone in the theatres. Unless someone sneaks around and captures a picture.
     
  7. JoeSunrider

    JoeSunrider Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Jul 6, 2002
    The question is, can we get someone to do that for us? ;)

    I just saw "The Ring" last night, so I'm staying away from scary movies for a while.
     
  8. AWB1989

    AWB1989 Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2002
    They had a person standing there when it was filmed, holding the kid. Then they added a CG creature over the person. That's what they did in the phantom menace with jar jar also.
     
  9. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    Actually they didn't do that in Phantom Menace. They had Ahmed Best in costume for the rehearsals and run throughs, but the actual shots used were clean plates with the actors but not Ahmed Best. Jar Jar was completely CG, except for 2 or 3 shots of bodyparts here and there.

    From what I was just told, in the American Cinematographer article, it says ILM constructed some limbs for the film and they were used, but for the most part the alien is CG.
     
  10. citizen-tom

    citizen-tom Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    May 20, 2002
    Wow, ILM must be better than I thought! I would have never guessed in a million years it was CG. Does anybody have a picture of it?
     
  11. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    It'll be almost impossible to get a picture because how the studio handled publicity. On the other hand I think the DVD comes out in January. I think it'll have an FX featuretter which is ioncredible since there is actually less than 40 VFX shots. Many FX ladden films today only have like 20 min. featurettes, even if that.
     
  12. Fluke_Groundrunner

    Fluke_Groundrunner Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 1, 2001
    Shyamalan said that he wanted an alien that didn't take a human form, but the CG guys couldn't get it right, so they just make the one we saw on screen.
     
  13. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    You know that Shyamalan was joking right?

    Anyway for those who wonder how it looked like is was kinda similar to the alien of the X-Files movie.
     
  14. CloneTrooper_Lt-St

    CloneTrooper_Lt-St Jedi Youngling

    Registered:
    Dec 14, 2002
    Dude's I need that pic the KGB are on our track aaaaaaaaaa..... Master whAT DO I DO...
     
  15. StormTrooper_Com

    StormTrooper_Com Jedi Youngling

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2002
    May be thay thort it might be tooooo offencive for ourr freind E.T.... HayHay...
     
  16. malducin

    malducin Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2001
    Ah ho humm, well you just wait. The Signs DVD will be out in less than a month.
     
  17. AWB1989

    AWB1989 Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2002
    The way the alien swayed back and forth wasnt fluent enough to merit human animation. This is what made the alien cool though. He didnt move like a human.

    Wrong!

    They had a human wearing a blue costume. They then keyed him out and got the black and white matte. They used the original bluescreen footage in the 3d animation program for realistic looking animation. They then inverted the black and white matte and applied it to the footage with a clean background with the kid there so it would look like the alien was holding the kid the whole time. But the hand was real...although I'm sure they added color correction or something to the hand. :)
     
  18. Master Salty

    Master Salty Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 18, 1999
    That's exactly what they showed during the supplementals.
     
  19. Darthkarma

    Darthkarma Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2000


    What blew me away about the alien was the camoflauging effects!

    His skin was always mimic-ing his background so he would blend in! If you look at some of the close-up shots in the final scene where the alien is holding the boy, you can see Mel Gibson's face appearing on the alien's wrist, as you can see Mel standing in the distance. That's quite an effect!

    It amazed me when I first saw it!
     
  20. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    Practical hands and feet were used for a handful of shots while the full-body shots were CG.

    The shot where the alien's hand shoots out from under the doorway was a insert-hand and arm practical. The subsequent shot of Gibson cutting his fingers off was CG.

    The shot of the hand going over the boys face in the basement against the vent was the practical insert.

    The quick glimpse of the foot in the cornfield by Gibson at night was an insert animatronic leg.

    The other shot using practical insets was the before mentioned hand holding the boy. That shot used a combination practical hand-CG full-body as the camera goes from wide.

    This shot was done by shooting the boy and an stand-in holding the boy using the insert hand, then compositing the boy, hand, and CG alien into the shots. Great, great stuff.

    The ILM puppeteering team was:

    Danny Wagner, Mark Walas, Michael Steffe, Erik Jensen, and Rodney Morgan.
     
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