Harbinger Down (a return to practical effects)

[crows]

In the spirit of sci-fi/horror classics, Alien and The Thing, Harbinger Down is a tense, claustrophobic full-length creature film that will feature only practical Animatronic and Makeup Effects.

Harbinger Down is an upcoming American independent science-fiction monster horror film written and directed by Alec Gillis and produced by Tom Woodruff, Jr the founders of the special effects studio Amalgamated Dynamics (ADI). The plot of the film follows a group of graduate students aboard the titular fishing trawler Harbinger, who are studying the effects of global warming on a pod of Orcas in the Bering Sea. When the ship's crew discover the wreckage of Soviet era spacecraft, they are attacked by shapeshifting alien monsters.

https://harbingerdown.com/
https://www.facebook.com/harbingerdown

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[crows]

Re: Harbinger Down (return to practical effects)

 

[TheOwl]

This looks very promising. Nothing like some good old practical effects.

 

[greygoose]

AVTT: Alien vs. The Thing

 

[crows]

AVTT: Alien vs. The Thing

well those guys worked on the effects from AVP Alien 4 and The Thing movie so, yeah

 

[greygoose]

well those guys worked on the effects from AVP Alien 4 and The Thing movie so, yeah

I know. Practical effects are great and all that but the film looks totally unoriginal.

 

[Boba Ben]

It does look like The Thing in the water. I'm looking forward to the practical effects, though.

 

[crows]

I know. Practical effects are great and all that but the film looks totally unoriginal.

well there is a story of why this was made in the first place and why it looks like that....
It is kind of supposed to be the real sequel to the Thing :

In 2010, Amalgamated Dynamics was hired by Universal Studios to create the practical special effects for the 2011 The Thing prequel. However before the film was released, the majority of ADI's effects work on the film was digitally replaced in post production by CGI.
This decision was upsetting to the crew of Amalgamated Dynamics, as this was not the first film of theirs where they had found their work replaced.

After the release of The Thing, in response to fan queries about what became of ADI's effects for the film, Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff, Jr. uploaded a behind-the-scenes video to Youtube which showcased their original practical effects prior to their replacement.
According to Gillis and Woodruff, the video received such an overwhelmingly positive response that it inspired them to create a Youtube Channel which would feature their archived videos of creature effects from throughout their career.

These videos not only went on to receive similar praise, but promote requests for Amalgamated Dynamics to launch a Kickstarter campaign to create fund their own independent horror film. Gillis said, "Honestly, we were resistant to it at first, so it wasn’t until I looked around my shop and saw an empty facility that I realized we were actually at the mercy of studios that didn’t actually care about our techniques anymore. They view it as a commodity and a product, and they’ve corporatised the structure of creating art and in the end it all becomes disposable. That’s not how the fans see our work."

On May 8, 2013, Alec Gillis began a Kickstarter drive for Harbinger Down, advertising the film as being a monster horror film that was, "in the spirit of two of the greatest sci-fi/horror films of all time, ALIEN and THE THING",[5] and that would feature only practical techniques to create the films monsters, including the use of animatronics, prosthetic makeup, stop motion and miniature effects.

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[JorReno]

I think I'll stick with The Thing.

 

[Scareb]

I'm hoping they put a blu Ray version up for sale. I pitched in for the kickstarter but didn't think to bump it up to get a Blu Ray.

 

[uscmhicks]

I remember meaning to donate to the Kickstarter also and remember they were offering to have your name in the credits if you did so. I think I ended up forgetting though. The film looks like it might be fun.

 

[Mad Old Lu]

Very cool. It's such a shame how practical effects have fallen out of favor. But I can't blame it all on just the filmmakers and major studios (although they are a big part of it). If audiences REALLY preferred practical effects over digital, Hollywood would take note. Unfortunately the majority of movie goers probably couldn't tell the difference, or would even think practical effects look fake compared to digital. Just the sad world we live in.

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

Very cool. It's such a shame how practical effects have fallen out of favor. But I can't blame it all on just the filmmakers and major studios (although they are a big part of it). If audiences REALLY preferred practical effects over digital, Hollywood would take note. Unfortunately the majority of movie goers probably couldn't tell the difference, or would even think practical effects look fake compared to digital. Just the sad world we live in.

While that's true to an extent, I don't really agree entirely.

People just want to be entertained - sure, but they also can see that a computer image is never going to be as convincing as something that's actually physically present & on screen. CGI's main redeeming factor really, is that it's far more cost effective to use, so it's a no brainer that they'll go with that nine times outta ten.

A well lit, wonderfully detailed animatronic puppet / appliance etc, will always get a deeper visceral reaction, than something that's not really there.

 

[crows]

While that's true to an extent, I don't really agree entirely.

People just want to be entertained - sure, but they also can see that a computer image is never going to be as convincing as something that's actually physically present & on screen. CGI's main redeeming factor really, is that it's far more cost effective to use, so it's a no brainer that they'll go with that nine times outta ten.

A well lit, wonderfully detailed animatronic puppet / appliance etc, will always get a deeper visceral reaction, than something that's not really there.

NO WAY!!!!!

cgi usually costs 2 to 3 times what practical costs. it is way more expensive than make up and puppets

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

Maybe in your little bubble.

 

[Mad Old Lu]

I think CGI is a little more expensive, but it allows filmmakers endless flexibility. With practical effects, you have to commit early on since you can't make extensive changes on the fly or even during post if the director or whomever changes their mind or comes up with something different. With digital, they can change their mind about the look, the angle, the lighting, the design, everything, up until the very last minute. Filmmakers will gladly pay the extra for that luxury. But that also means that filmmakers can tinker with shots ad nauseam. See: George Lucas.

 

[crows]

Maybe in your little bubble.

CGI Does cost more. shows how little you know....

 

[Kibagami]

CGI Does cost more. shows how little you know....

But it is faster to produce. Personally, I would like a mix of practical and CG. Also, practical can look better too; movement and performance look more organic especially with creatures.

 

[crows]

But it is faster to produce. Personally, I would like a mix of practical and CG. Also, practical can look better too; movement and performance look more organic especially with creatures.

Not always. Yeah CGI is great if the studio wants to fix or change something, but it is not always faster. Not if you want the CGI to look good

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

CGI Does cost more. shows how little you know....

Wake up to yourself.. I was being cheeky - & intentionally short, because of your naively blanket comment.

In context, an old school production team - likely consisting of multiple units at least, working with various mediums & techniques, is a long drawn out, time consuming, labour intensive process. That equates to a lot of man hours, & potentially - money, comparatively speaking.

Compare that set of circumstances, to nowadays what typically what consists of a generally modest team of highly skilled animators & associated crew, those that do render work etc, & the folks that oversee those relatively small units - COUPLED with industry standard tools / software etc (that many independent projects have the opportunity to use now as tech gets more compact & cheaper), that have made the whole nature of the business FAR more accessible, practical, & COST EFFECTIVE.

If you don't understand that.. then enjoy having you head up your clacker.