Sneak Peak: The Smurfs set visit

Of all the nostalgia and young memories New York has to offer, for movie goers and movie lovers, Kauffman Studios is probably at the top of their list. No matter what location a movie is filmed at in New York, nothing says filmmaking like Kauffman Astoria Studios. So of course, in true escapist tradition, The Smurfs choose none other than Kauffman to invade as their and our window to the true blue adventure:

On the last day of filming, back in 2010, we were invited to join cast and crew on the sets of The Smurfs. One E train ride later I was standing in the front of historic Kauffman and about to partake on another “underground” journey.

The press trickles into the atrium of the studio and we all begin to wonder at the pictures and pros of past films around us. We are then greeted and escorted through a corridor on the left and upstairs through a set of cubicles, into which we shamelessly peer in for glimpses of what we are about to see and magic of filmmaking. We make it over to open space lined with chairs facing a stool in the front and center of the room.

As we sit idling checking our phones and tape recorders we start to piece together our memories of the Smurfs as we knew them, when we are greeted by the actor who, now, probably knows them best: Neil Patrick Harris (NPH).

Neil Patrick Harris (NPH): “I am done. My work wrapped yesterday. I came here to talk for a bit, watch a little dance.”

Press: Was it all done here, in New York?

NPH: “We were here. HERE, here for most of it. There was a chunk in the middle where we went to FAO Swartz, and Central Park a lot, Prospect Park… but most of it was here.

Press: Are you singing and dancing?

NPH: “None for me.”

Press: Aww…

NPH: “I am very average husband and father.”

Press: How tricky was it dealing with the Green Screen aspect of it?

NPH: “I thought there would be more Green Screen. I thought it was going to be… I was really looking forward to that. I have always really wanted to do one of those things where you stare at the tennis ball as much as much the sticks that chase you around; but this was not that. The technology now, it’s in actual sets. You rehearse it with sort of these gelatinous, like jelly mold, Smurfs that are on stands. So that when you are rehearsing it they set them up in various positions, so you know exactly were they would be, you know the exact height they are supposed to be, and then you rehearse it that way with voice over people. And then they just move them away right before you shoot, and you look at, sort of, were the eyes would be. So no, only Hank [Azaria] really did the Green Screen stuff, because of Smurf Village.

Press: Can you talk about the sensibility of the movie.

NPH: “This is a family movie, but skewed an awful lot towards the core audience of people that watched the Smurfs growing up. They go from happy, happy Smurf Village to Central Park, New York City, so there is a lot of juxtaposition between angry New Yorkers. So you will see them trying to make everyone pleased.

Our conversation digresses there into Neil Patrick Harris’ other projects and then back around to the Smurf Design. For which, we are told to consult with Jordan Kerner (Jordon), and then escorted to another conference room lined with artwork and storyboard. In front of us there is a TV, but the artwork around us takes center stage in our curious minds. After a short wait we are joined by Jordon Kerner, who talks us through the design and the technical aspects of the film.

Jordon: “I apologies we are in the midst of the very last, last scene of the movie. As you guys come down you’ll see, it’s Gargamel’s dream at the end of the movie, he sees himself in his own music video. Glen Boward and Dave Stewart wrote the song. Glen is actually downstairs with us right now. We are recording forty dancers. It’s really cool, so you’ll see it when you come down.”

He then proceeds to direct us through the artwork on the walls, of the East Side apartment, where Clumsy Smurf is first discovered, the Smurf Village, Gargamel’s Castle, Gargamel’s map, and an important* Cavern. Without giving away too much of the movie here, let’s just say that these very detailed and captivating pieces of artwork outline where the story begins to when they are discovered in NYC, and some little gems about Patrick (Neil Patrick Harris) and Grace’s (Jayma Mays) journey to come.

Jordon: “What you see here is what you will see in a moment, Belvedere Castle. We built an exact replica of Belvedere, virtually to scale. It’s scaled in certain ways in length, but not in width because we had a certain amount of limitation on us by the size of the stage. But this very large closet area in Belvedere is a lot of concrete, so it didn’t really look that great when we saw it so we built in it a grate that you’ll see being used when you come downstairs. We did two little inserts that are here on either side. These are usually flat walls in Belvedere, but we have added these in for architectural interest. The reason we did all that, we built this whole set because you have an excellent conservancy in New York. With the park they wouldn’t let us put anything on a tripod and we couldn’t use a dolly, or any of that stuff. We could much further away, and we could get our wide shots but we couldn’t really shoot in this area. So we had to build the castle, because we loved the idea of Gargamel taking over the Belvedere castle.

He then proceeds to explain the procedure and nature of the scene, which we will be viewing shortly. Jordon then introduces to the prop of interest, which I will introduce to again below when we head down towards the set and props. But before we get there we are introduced to some of the animation and “photo-real” CG techniques used to bring The Smurfs and Gargamel to life.

Jordon: “Can we hit the lights?”

When we make down the maze of studio corridors and elevators, we are greeted by props lining the walls and a tall back stage, from the corner of which we can here the scored music video that is currently filming and will air at the end of the film. A small area is set for us to sit between props and watch the AV feed as cuts are recorded and re-shot. It is reel Hollywood in its real setting. Two by two as we were instructed, upstairs, we each get to go behind the curtain and into the staged Belvedere Castle to view what only the Cast and Crew get to otherwise see. And it is the splendor of detailed design, a regulated choreography, and of course the fun of the misstep and the perfect shot.

For some native New Yorker seeing a shoot on location is like taking a morning stroll, but to be in the studio redesigned and refitted to New York is not the same thing. In the large closet within Belvedere Castle, there are multiple monitors set up and an angled view for the crew to keep watchful eye of what gets captured. Outside Belvedere Castle about forty dancers walk in sync to Gargamel’s dreams of capturing the Smurfs. Once your ten minutes of fame are up, we walk back around the curtain and curious eye the props, until the dreamer Gargamel, or Hank Azaria (Hank) arrives:

Hank: “Yeah he’s Gargamel, what else can you say about him. He hates Smurfs and wants to conquer the world. Don’t know what else there is to say. He’s a Virgo. Loves water sports…”

As Hank gets called to set, we engage ourselves, for the last time, with the Smurfalator.

Jordon: “The Smufalator is very important because as a notion Gargamel, when he sang, or when he talked about the Smurfs he often talked about them with the notion of eat, ‘I want to roost them and roost them, I want to eat them, I want to turn them into gold or Smurf soup.’ SO rather than taking that literally, we tried to take it allegorically because Gargamel is a really smart guy even though he isn’t a smart sorcerer. Then if he ate all the Smurfs and boiled them that would be the end of it and his magic would only increase for a moment and they are magical creatures which is why he wants to eat them and get them but it would only last for a limited period of time and the power would be gone. Instead we thought, slightly more deviously, that he is going to harvest them. What that means is that he is going to capture them, he is going to shave papa’s beard, he is going to cut Smurfete’s hair, he’s going to make them sweat and gather the sweat, he is going to make them cry and gather the tears. And you will see how the Smurfalator works with that. There is a conveyer belt and chair goes right in there and the doors close. You can see steam coming out and going into the system makes it into a Frankenstein’s lab.”

A prop’s crewmember showed us the Smurfalator in action, and then walked us through Gargamel’s lab props, while the tail end press invited watched the final scenes of the filming completed. And another E train ride later, the Queens studio seemed to be another young memory of New York movie magic.

My Sneak Peak at Pixar Studios

As a member of the press you may attend many press junkets over the course of your career. Some you will remember because the film was good, others because the staff was rude; your first just because it was your first. However if your first happens to be at Pixar you will be hard pressed to find a better experience; Pixar Animation Studios is simply unforgettable.

Late Thursday afternoon I got a voicemail from Jack proclaiming an exceptional opportunity has presented itself and he would like for me to get back to him as soon as possible. Now just so you all know I am not much for the leash that is a smart-phone, so we continued to play phone tag into the late hours of the night. Eventually I received an email that went something like this:

“Hey Namreta,

Thanks.”

At this point I was just ecstatic to go see Toy Story, San Francisco was just going to be icing on the cake. Boy, was I wrong. Watching Toy Story 3 was just the tip of the iceberg.

As we pull up to Pixar Animation Studios for the first time, I begin to realize that Jack just gave me the opportunity of a lifetime, newbie or veteran. It is around six-thirty pm as we all walk toward the front entrance. Outside is a huge replica of the iconic Pixar desk spotlight, Luxo, and the classic toy ball, at the door is the Sunnyside Daycare Welcome sign we are all going to soon add to our repertoire.

As we walk into this warehouse turned studio/office of modern filmmaking at its best there stands a monument of Pixar’s perfection: a life size replica of Ken’s Dollhouse with every detail intact, even a working elevator. We all sign in to our right. Behind the sign-in desk is a case of all the well-deserved awards Pixar has amassed, down to what looks like the Piston Cup itself.

The first night at Pixar we are already being treated to a very special screening in their very own screening room. Being from the New York City area, all the screening rooms I am accustomed to come through floors of elevators to the renovated side of a building. They are spectacular experiences to be had, but they are not The Pixar Screening Room:

We all file into a traditional theatre, red velvet on oak paneled seats with a beautiful curtain to cover the screen. As the house lights turn off, the constellations above reveal themselves. Yes I said constellations, Pixar has re-created stars for the ceiling of the screening room. Complete with shooting stars, Orion’s Belt, The Big Dipper etc. And the film starts with the classic short, another success in Pixar’s case. As Toy Story 3’s credits come to a close I am still glued to my seat. The desk lamp jumps across the screen for the last shot and its beam of light brings on the house lights.

And so at this late hour I still find myself wide-awake, and I am working on NY time. We step outside and realize our sneaking suspicion of the desk lamp outside being turned on for passersby(s) of night is true. The outdoors picnic tables of the entrance are lit by non-other than Luxo.

The following afternoon we return to the site for lunch and our third treat: A tour of The Pixar Animation Studios! More than a tour it is an intimate look at the studios and the movie-making process. Much like the movies themselves the studios are built entirely by Pixar, every last detail. Steve Jobs policy is just that and every screw in the studio has been hand turned to make the studio as much a home as Pixar’s family.

That is the first fact our tour guide pervades us with as we walk through the skylight atrium towards Pixar’s very own café. Even though the food there is good the average employee diet consists mostly of cereal, any and every kind of cereal you can imagine. The places I have worked have had coffee bars and health bars, but Pixar’s kitchens (they have a few spread out through the floors) have cereal bars that the employee’s love to indulge in. If you are worried that too much cereal isn’t going to be healthy (enough) don’t worry they have bicycles that go from building to building for meetings, when they actually have to stop working because we know they never want to, and they have yoga classes for staff in the atrium. But enough about employee perks, how and where the magic happens: In one sentence, it is approximately a four-year process, one and half for story and the following for development.

Screenwriters rejoice, Pixar is a proponent of excellent story-telling due to massive amounts of research, attention to detail, outlining, and constant story boarding. We begin our tour here, with the storyboards that line the upstairs corner in the far left of the studios. On display today are the much-edited original storyboards of “Finding Nemo,” specifically when the shark swallows Marlin and Dory. Just so we are all on the same page, I say much edited because it is almost like looking at an outline of a storyboard. As each character is developed and each plot line explored the whole staff strips each and every possible world before handing over this completed leg of Pixar magic. The story is airtight because this work, much like the next steps, has its in house critics and critiques.

From here we walk along the corridor to the upstairs front left corner. Along the wall are frames of step-by-step artwork that is rotated throughout the year to showcase Pixar’s talent hobbies and talent. In this very corner we begin to discuss the one question that is on all our minds: How can I have your job at Pixar? The straight and narrow is this Pixar is a family. To work for Pixar is not a project-by-project resume building experience. So with a little perseverance and good timing you can fit the mold of the next employee, just remember to reapply on the website approximately every six months, and when you get the first call for an interview remember there can possibly be thirty-eight more to go. Yes we spoke with an engineer who got her job after thirty-nine interviews; of course she would go through them again considering the development of every strand of Violet’s hair is more than worth it.

Which brings us to the point of the tour when we cross the bridge to the right side of the upstairs studio and meet one of the Art Directors. Across the wall is a very colorful storyboard of Toy Story 3 (at least all the major points). Here we learn in great detail, how much detail is in every scene. For those of us who are not almost OCD, as I am, about color schemes and detailed palettes let me be the first to tell you that they can totally change the way you appreciate any Pixar movie, especially after you get a look at this wall. What is highlighted here is how color affects the viewer. So as not to give anything form the film away (mostly because I liked it and I don’t want to ruin it for anyone), let me just says this, the color of Andy’s clothes are not accidental, the serene lighting on Bonnie is supposed to make you think of her pure and innocent character, the eerie unsaturated grey’s are supposed to make you apprehensive, and as red always is it is a sign of danger. But Art Direction is not just color it is about the entire setting and much like Pixar is a family project, we learned that the paintings of all our favorite characters in Toy Story were drawn by non-other than Lee Unkrich’s children.

And so from the detailed model’s and another line up of highly organized artwork we are led back to the far right corner of the upstairs, from where we head to the very special software animation room. This room is perhaps one of the best parts of the tour, as they say save the best for last. So imagine a home theatre system, a relatively smaller room than screening rooms, with couches that rise to the back so everyone has the perfect view and comfort. In the center of the room is a set up of computers and engineering software. This is where every frame’s every detail is examined and cross-examined.

What I was privileged enough to see as an example was how Woody was updated to match the modern day animation engineering. Toy Story was the first computer animated film of it’s kind, but ten years later that original computer cannot stand up to its new competition so Woody was masterfully recreated from scratch. As we were told numerous times on our tour, think of each element, especially the characters, as software programs. When writing these programs there are a million different options, so how does Pixar know what to chose and where to draw the line. Simple, once a character is simulated everyone gets together, in groups, and they sift through acceptable changes and unacceptable changes.

As with everything Pixar, all of this work is done in house. So as everyone thanks Pixar for a great show and readies themselves for the interviews with the stars I take a moment to digest this surreal moment before the next.