Iron Man 2 Jon Favreau talks IRON MAN 2 (plus other things)

[[A]]

2 part interview @ AICN--links at the bottom

Here's some highlights..

..on IMAX:

Yeah, I loved watching DARK KNIGHT in the IMAX format. It’s the first time I saw a movie in that format that wasn’t made just for IMAX. And a lot of it I think was very, I think it was very effective. The difficulty with our film is that our main character is CG a lot of the time. And when you start shooting in IMAX format… it’s a bit unwieldy on the set first of all and second of all, I’m not convinced yet that CGI is going to look…I’m more of a believer now after the experience on IRON MAN, but it was very painstaking to integrate him effectively and not have it be distracting.

And I think that IMAX, I’m warned, costs a lot more, it’s a lot harder to render because of the resolution and I’m not sure at that resolution CGI is convincing yet. So, there are a lot of drawbacks, but in meeting with them the blowups to IMAX format are as effective in many ways, so we’ll see where we land on it, but I doubt that we’re actually going to have IMAX cameras on the set. It becomes very difficult for processing and all of that.

I think it works well for DARK KNIGHT because a lot of that was just practical shots and helicopter shots or shots where there’s CGI in the background, set extensions things like that. But you didn’t have a CGI Batman running through the frame all the time

..on James Cameron's AVATAR:

And in watching the way that James Cameron is approaching AVATAR… he’s really pushing the boundaries on motion capture, he’s integrating live action with motion capture and CGI. It takes a painstaking and technical approach to that. And he really wants to make it a very visceral, emotional experience and he’s… he’s a bit of a P.T. Barnum in the sense that he likes to put on a big show.

He’s sort of tireless in how much he invests into it as far as his time and effort. You know, he doesn’t make a lot of movies, so a lot of thought and effort goes into each one. And I think that he’s trying to present this format in a way where it is a game-changer and in seeing it I think it’s the future. I don’t think it’s a flash in the pan. I think it’s going to open up a whole new door and I think more so than the glasses it becomes about how many screens could actually present it in its pristine form.

The amount of screens is just growing at a very, very fast rate in the states and I think in Europe as well and I think AVATAR is going to be the kind of movie that’s an event that you have to go see and you want to see again just to understand what you’re looking at. And then you still have his very effective storytelling. He really creates an adventure and draws you into it in the hero’s journey sense of storytelling, the Joseph Campbell sense of storytelling. I really liked the bits that I saw and I saw all the various stages of finished, but he’s a purist in the way he approaches things, and he’s very meticulous.

And a lot of what he’s using we’re exploring using similar techniques in IRON MAN 2 because it is a game-changer from a production standpoint certainly in the way he’s using motion capture and operating a camera within a volume and the way that the pipeline works now is… the line between animation and live action is blurring in many ways and I think that we could borrow a lot from what people have learned through animation as far as making a movie and not just storyboard, animatic, pre-viz, shoot plates, cut it together with post-viz, deliver it to the vendor and then hope you get the shot there in time for the movie’s release.

And you’re crossing your fingers all the way till the sound mix. The way that Jim’s doing it, it’s a much more organic process where post-production, production, and pre-production all sort of roll into one another and you’re moving back and forth between those media (...) Jon Favreau: You’re moving back and forth as far as what media you’re creating. You really value mentors and people you can learn from when you’re in my line of work. Because everybody’s breaking new ground and there aren’t that many people who are at the top of their field. Fortunately people like Jim are very generous with their time and with wanting to share what they’ve discovered with other filmmakers, so I learned a great deal about motion capture, a great deal about cgi, a great deal about 3-d and digital photography, from spending some time with him. And I also have learned a lot just from watching his movies. So I’m glad he does what he does and I’m glad that he’s been so generous with his time and knowledge.

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38907

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38906

 

[matrix_ghost]

2 part interview @ AICN--links at the bottom

Here's some highlights..

..on IMAX:



..on James Cameron's AVATAR:



http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38907

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38906

He has a point about his IMAX "fears". In TDK the VFX vendors had a difficult time rendering al the VFX shots. I have to get the CInefex article out but the basic idea was that the IMAX resolution is very high and even the best CG renders don't come close to that .

http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/currentissue/9703.html

To support the IMAX scenes, the studios could not work in full IMAX resolution, which is theoretically 18K; instead, the target resolution was approximately 8K, the maximum resolution for scanned film. Even that was difficult. “A single 8K frame requires 200 MB of data,” Franklin says. “So we had to upgrade our whole infrastructure. We needed faster network speeds to move data around, massively beefed up servers, and — the most important thing — a new compositing solution.”

 

[Chewy]

Reading through part 2..... at this point I've got to say I'd be pretty surprised if Crimson Dynamo didn't show up. Favs seems to hint at it every time he talks about Iron Man 2.

 

[Sawyer]

A little more...
http://splashpage.mtv.com/2008/10/2...murai-jack-form-one-two-punch-for-iron-man-2/

Jon Favreau & Genndy Tartakovsky Of ‘Samurai Jack’ Form One-Two Punch For ‘Iron Man 2′
Published by Casey Seijas on Wednesday, October 29, 2008 at 10:54 am.
Now that director Jon Favreau has officially “Made his Marvel” after yesterday’s announcement from the studio, saying that he has signed up for both “Iron Man 2″ in addition to taking on executive producer duties on 2011’s “The Avengers,” expect even more news out of the Marvel Studios camp in the coming weeks pertaining to these films.

This morning, AintItCoolNews.com posted the first part of a two-part, extensive interview with the writer/director/producer, where he addressed the current status of “Iron Man 2″ and also broke news that will no doubt get fanboys worked up into a tizzy — specifically that “Samurai Jack” creator Genndy Tartakovsky will be joining the production and working with Favreau, collaborating on fight sequences in the highly anticipated sequel.

“I’ve always liked ‘Samurai Jack’ and I loved his ‘Clone Wars’ vignettes that he did,” Favreau is quoted in the AICN.com interview. “Now clearly his stuff is a bit broad for a live-action film but I love his rhythm and his attention to detail. It has a real comic booky feel but yet it feels cinematic and not gimmicky and even his cartoons feel… there’s an elegance to them. So in this process as we’re storyboarding and designing sequences he and his team have come in and I’m working with them and they’re working on collaborating with us on the project and that’s a new wrinkle and it allows me… I feel like I’m really learning a lot from collaborating with this guy.”

Favreau also gave anxious fans a status update on the production, saying, “[Screenwriter] Justin [Theroux]’s almost done with the first draft of the script. And we’re boarding and been creating animatics for the action sequences. We’re starting to do some location scouting and designing some sets and figuring out how much of it we want to… you know, what techniques we’re going to use.”

Lastly, Favreau also makes mention of the possibility of filming “Iron Man 2″ for IMAX, hoping that the film’s budget will permit an IMAX release a la “The Dark Knight.”

WTF? Genndy Tartakovsky?

 

[TheVileOne]

Favreau should fund Genndy's animated Samurai Jack movie so they can finally freaking finish the story.

 

[[A]]

Reading through part 2..... at this point I've got to say I'd be pretty surprised if Crimson Dynamo didn't show up. Favs seems to hint at it every time he talks about Iron Man 2.

Agreed!

 

[Iron_Stark]

Jon Favreau: We’re definitely going to use alcohol, but alcohol isn’t a shadow, I don’t think. I think addiction is something you use to anesthetize yourself when you’re dealing with something deeper. And if you look at twelve step programs, that are probably the most effective way of dealing with an addiction, you’ll see that they spend very little time dealing with the actual thing you’re addicted to: substance. Most of the steps become about dealing with your spiritual health and delving deeper into what’s underneath the addiction.

That's encouraging to hear, I don't want 2/3 of the movie of Tony being drunk and passed out or something and not being in the armor until the final act, where we see him in the armor for about 5 minutes.

Screw that, we had enough of that in the first one, I want more Red and Gold action.

 

[Ironfan72]

I'm with you, while the Demon in the Bottle story is very important to the history of Iron man, you can't use it to take 2/3 of the film, you will loose your audience, most want to see Iron man fight it out with say Crimson Dynamo, but it curtainly should be a part of the films undertone.

 

[Iron_Stark]

Demon in a bottle is an important time in Stark's life, but they should spend a miniscule amount of time on it, I'd rather Tony be doing heroics, saving lives fighting baddies, than being a drunk.

Have him kick the habit early in the first act of the sequal.

 

[[A]]

Good think we don't have to wait that much to see it..

 

[Chris B]

I think putting an end to Stark's alcoholism by the end of the first act would be shortchanging that storyline. I don't think they need to have Stark hang up the armor in order to deal with it, but it should remain the central storyline of IM2.

 

[[A]]

They really should show Stark (as Iron Man) screwing up something while being drunk

 

[Iron_Stark]

The only shortchanging we'll be getting is if they keep RDJ/Tony out of the armor for most of the movie while "recovering from alcohlism".

In the upcoming sequel, he needs to enjoy his new status as a superhero.

I mean jeez, he was in the Mark III armor for a whole 10 minutes (maybe less) with very average action sequences, now people want him out of the armor in the sequel.

 

[FaT_tONle]

I think the third installment should be where Iron Man takes a break for a while, that is if Iron Man has to take a break at some point. Considering RDJ is getting old and he can't be doing action in that suit forever... you want him to suit up the most in the second installment as opposed to the third. Plus it is cliche for superheros to have their doubts in the second part and give up the gig for a while. We got that with SM2 already. I don't care about the alcoholism angle... that's already been done before and should not be rehashed.

 

[marcvader]

I wonder if Favreau will do the question and answer type thing he did frequently before Iron Man. That was really cool about him.

 

[Iron_Stark]

I think the third installment should be where Iron Man takes a break for a while, that is if Iron Man has to take a break at some point. Considering RDJ is getting old and he can't be doing action in that suit forever... you want him to suit up the most in the second installment as opposed to the third. Plus it is cliche for superheros to have their doubts in the second part and give up the gig for a while. We got that with SM2 already. I don't care about the alcoholism angle... that's already been done before and should not be rehashed.

I fully agree.

 

[Chris B]

The only shortchanging we'll be getting is if they keep RDJ/Tony out of the armor for most of the movie while "recovering from alcohlism".

In the upcoming sequel, he needs to enjoy his new status as a superhero.

I mean jeez, he was in the Mark III armor for a whole 10 minutes (maybe less) with very average action sequences, now people want him out of the armor in the sequel.

I just don't like the idea of a storyline that could distinguish Iron Man from other comic book franchises being quickly dealt with and forgotten. And as I said in my earlier post, they could still have Stark dealing with his addiction while still being Iron Man through out the film.

 

[Chris B]

Anyway, what I really want to know is what Favreau is thinking regarding villians if he plans on saving the Mandarin for IM3. I know he's dropped hints regarding a possible Crimson Dynamo appearance, but with him mentioning using the Russian political situation as inspiration, maybe the Titanium Man and the Black Widow before she reforms as well?

 

[Double Down]

I was watching the show Iconoclasts on the Sundance Channel the other day with Jon Favreau and Tony Hawk.
Favreau said making a superhero movie is "sort of a backward process."
When he made Swingers, the movie manifested itself naturally. He wrote it, got the funding, put together a cast, filmed it, cut it, sold it, then came up with a marketing strategy. "We came up with a poster, a release date and it went out. With a superhero movie, it's the opposite."
He said after the first one was successful, it was: "Iron Man 2. 2010. April 30. 'What's the movie about?' It's April 30. So now the clock's ticking. And the last thing you do is get the script right. And oftentimes, the clock runs out before that happens."
He said they have to do a lot of rewriting on the set.
Because of the lead time, he said, they basically have to come up with set pieces and almost weave the story around those, and "if you don't prioritize things properly, you end up doing just that."
He said he is scared because he only has two years to get it all done and he wants to make sure it's as good as possible because he cares so much about it.
At the end, he said "it's amazing [superhero] movies ever come out good."

 

[Ironfan72]

I like where is head is, he understands that a movie can't be rushed which Marvel seems to be doing, I appreciate that he wants to tell a good story and give the audience a film worth paying to see.