Thursday, June 7, 2018 19 LIFE CHINA DAILY HONG KONG EDITION
HOPING FOR A MONSTER HIT The special effects team behind Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom has created a visual feast with the fifth installment of the dinosaurthemed franchise. Xu Fan reports.
n a dimly lit hall, the charm and humor to the Animatronic dinosaurs are across the jungle to escape stage is decorated like a world’s secondlargest movie robotic puppets that have peo hungry dinosaurs on high soontoerupt volcano. market. ple hiding inside the creatures’ heels, Howard reveals she will Suddenly, the roars and With his popularity stem bodies to manipulate their wear a pair of more comforta Igrowls of dinosaurs rattle the ming from Marvel’s Guardians movements, such as opening ble shoes in the sequel. floorboards. Then, under the of the Galaxy franchise, the their mouths or turning their But the Los Angeles native direction of Spanish filmmak star who only recently opened heads. also gives a convincing reason er J.A. Bayona, Chris Pratt and his Sina Weibo account “The Jurassic universe is for her choice of footwear. “If Bryce Dallas Howard began to already has more than 170,000 grounded. It’s not fantasy. The you wear high heels in real life, run, feigning outright panic. Chinese followers. franchise is special because it’s then you can run through the As one of the more interest Interestingly, taking place talking about our relationship jungle in high heels,” she ing moments of their recent within the same time span as with dinosaurs, and the inter explains. promotional tour in Shanghai, the offscreen world, the new action is more real than ever,” Speaking about her role, the stars were performing an story is set three years on from explains the 43yearold Howard says: “Usually, there is epic sequence from the where the 2015 film ends and director. just one moment or one event upcoming movie Jurassic pulls a thrilling conspiracy And besides, Bayona — who that completely changes a per World: Fallen Kingdom, much into the frame. is perhaps best known for his son’s life. For Claire, that is to the delight of the audience Since the demise of the 2007 horror film The Orphan Jurassic World. Now she is of screaming onlookers, which Jurassic World theme park, age — has plenty of tricks up someone who is dedicated to was mainly comprised of the island of Isla Nublar has his sleeve to make his actors ensuring these animals will domestic movie fans. been abandoned by humans appear genuinely terrified. have the protection like any With more dinosaurs than and overrun by surviving “We made an agreement other endangered species.” the past four films in the dinosaurs. When an active vol that I have permission to With so many action 25yearold Jurassic Park fran cano threatens to erupt, raptor Above: Chris Pratt shows off his scare them from time to time. sequences, the stars were chise combined, the fifth researcher Owen Grady and Mandarin by speaking such When I was on the set, I called on to perform some installment will open in Chi Claire Dearing, the former words as “dinosaur” and played sudden roaring deathdefying stunts, includ nese mainland cinemas on park manager, return to the “velociraptor” in a promotional sounds from my computer to ing an underwater escape June 15, a week earlier than its hazardous island and try to event in Shanghai. capture the actors’ reaction scene and a sequence shot on a debut in North America. rescue the prehistoric crea Left: Bryce Dallas Howard on camera. You should have specially built roller coaster to When the first installment tures from their second extinc meets Chinese fans at the seen the faces of these peo simulate a fall from a cliff. Jurassic World was released in tion. event. The upcoming movie, ple,” says the director, wear Recalling the experience, 2015, it became the first movie Speaking about his charac Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, ing a big smile. Pratt jokes: “We relied heavily to take in more than $500 mil ter Owen’s relationship with will open in Chinese mainland The lifelike props even on the brilliance of our direct lion at the global box office on Blue, a clever raptor that he cinemas on June 15. scared the stars’ children. or to keep us alive. We trusted its opening weekend, with a raised and trained from its PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY Howard recalls her daughter, him with our lives.” considerable haul coming infancy, Pratt describes it as a Beatrice, and Pratt’s son, But Howard believes these from China. fatherandchild connection. Jack, came to the film set one scenes help add a certain And this may help explain He believes it typifies the day, and were allowed to charm to the new film. the stars’ passion for promot way for humankind to harmo touch Blue. But Blue was so “Honestly, the truth is that ing the upcoming sequel here. niously coexist with other spe screen soundstages, where the ing environment. ate its visual feast. realistic that the young girl the more intense a scene is, the From speaking in Chinese cies on the planet, and actors usually have to use their And one of the key elements In the new movie, Bayona was too scared to approach funnier Chris becomes. I think using words like “dinosaur” demonstrates how that rela imaginations to picture the behind the enduring populari reveals that the specialeffects it, and she kept muttering, “I he lightened the mood on the and “velociraptor” to fictional tionship should not be built on aliens or monsters in mind. ty of the dinosaurdisaster artists made a lot of animat want to go”. set,” she says. izing an anecdote to tease fear or intimidation. But stars in Jurassic World 2 themed franchise is its blend ronic dinosaurs, which he Reprising her character of reporters, Pratt was happy to Nowadays, most scifi block have a much better, if not of physical effects and com believes were “very helpful to Claire, who sparked an online Contact the writer at show off his stylish blend of busters are shot on green slightly more terrifying, work putergenerated images to cre the actors”. controversy for running [email protected] Jackie Chan works to bring recognition to stunt performers
By XU FAN to do something for stunt per gangster comedy Mr Nice Guy their work, but without success. formers. They deserve the in Melbourne in 1996, Andre But Andreovski is optimis Jackie Chan has been a same recognition as actors in ovski attended an audition. tic, saying: “I hope purely on worldrenowned kung fu giant serious movies,” says Chan. And that launched his dec principle that the stuntman is for around four decades. But This is what’s behind Chan’s adeslong career as a stunt per acknowledged eventually as the 64yearold still remem move to create the Annual former. much as all the other depart bers his difficult early days. International Jackie Chan “A stuntman’s job is very ments in the film industry, At a news conference in Bei Action Movie Week, which dangerous and many injuries such as actors, directors and jing on June 1, the martial arts was launched in 2015. occur — even death on many wardrobe, and are rewarded star of more than 200 action In a change from the previ occasions. I’ve never met a accordingly.” films recalled his days as a ous three editions, which were stuntman who hasn’t had a Separately, the organizers of standin in the early 1970s. held in Shanghai during the close call or a hospital visit,” the Datong event say that “I did most of the deathde city’s top international film says Andreovski. some of Chan’s classic movies fying stunts then, and the star festival, the upcoming fourth Andreovski says Chan’s will be screened during the just needed to turn his head to event will be held in Datong, efforts will raise public aware program. have his face recognized. No Shanxi province, from July 18 ness about what stunt per Chan will also join hands one knows what I did,” he says. to 22. formers strive and bleed for. with around 10 top Chinese From his heyday in Hong Speaking about the event, “Jackie Chan is loved and stars, including Wu Jing, Li Kong’s martial arts movies to Chan says he is delighted to appreciated all over the world Bingbing, Chen Kun, Zhou his foray into Hollywood, see it is gaining recognition in Jackie Chan spends the Children’s Day with school children from Shanxi to unveil his upcoming event for all the films he has done, Xun, Yao Chen, Huang Xiaom Chan has seen a lot of the pain and outside China. honoring stunt work, and he also joins hands with other stars to launch a charity project on poverty but also for all the risks he has ing and Jing Tian, to launch a and sacrifice made by stunt “The Academy Awards is 90 alleviation. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY taken. It would be wrong to charity project on poverty alle performers, a community that years old. The Hong Kong acknowledge him only as an viation. frequently sees its members Film Award has been held for action actor. He is so much And as part of the project get injured, or even become 37 years ... I hope my awards ment and Chan’s firm, JC batics on the big screen, 8, and over the years has more,” says Andreovski. they will visit a town or village disabled. (for stunt performers) can still International, Chan intro founded in 1976. expanded his scope to more Over the past two decades, in poverty to use their star “They are nameless heroes,” exist after I pass away.” duced four members of his One of the members is Paul sports, including gymnastics, the stunt community in Holly power and knowledge to pub Chan says. At the Friday briefing jointly famous Jackie Chan Stunt Andreovski from Australia. judo, boxing, Olympic wres wood has strived to push the licize local products and con “Nowadays, I have some organized by the China Movie Team, the group behind most The stuntman began to tling and tae kwon do. Academy Awards to set up a vert footage from their visits influence, which I wish to use Channel, the Datong govern of Chan’s mindblowing acro learn martial arts when he was When Chan was making the prize category to recognize into a TV serial.