The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures and Aliens

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New book digs into the creation of Marvel Studios’ 100 biggest heroes and villains

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Comics & Books, Movies, Superheroes — Leave a comment

April 29, 2019

Review by C.J. Bunce

Following up on its successful look behind the entire Star Wars saga in The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures and Aliens (reviewed earlier here at borg), Abrams Books is bringing home the characters of Avengers: Endgame and the Marvel Studios long journey to get there in its new release The Moviemaking Magic of Marvel Studios: Heroes and Villains. Incorporating its trademark interactive Cinemagic features, including booklets, interactive flaps, and accordion fold-out images of the concept art behind every major Marvel Studios superhero, Abrams has nicely timed this book for fans of the franchise who can’t get enough of the latest MCU film. Full of color photographs and interviews with the producers, directors, art designers, costume and prop makers, and special effects magic makers behind the 21 films leading up to Avengers: Endgame, writer Eleni Roussos (The Art of Black Panther, The Art of Thor: Ragnarok) has pulled together behind the scenes insights that offer something new for even the most diehard fan.

Which characters wore practical, real-life costumes and armor, and which required motion capture and/or CGI effects? What was the key element included in Marvel’s Avengers that Joss Whedon required to be added before he agreed to direct the film? What do the contributors agree was the smartest strategic decision made for the Marvel films? How did each artist convert the character from the comic book page to the finally constructed costume that appeared on the big screen? What effects were the most challenging for each film?

Altogether The Moviemaking Magic of Marvel Studios: Heroes and Villains spotlights more than 100 individual superheroes, on-screen support crew, and the most colorful and memorable villains from the series, with significant creative and visionary contributions from Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, directors Anthony Russo, Joss Whedon, and Peyton Reed, visual development executive Ryan Meinerding and artist Andy Park, and costume designers Rebecca Gregg, Laura Jean Shannon, Mayes Rubeo, Alexandra Byrne, Anna B. Sheppard, Judianna Makovsky, Sheldon Differ, Louise Frogley, and Ruth Carter.

Take a look at this giant preview of The Moviemaking Magic of Marvel Studios: Heroes and Villains below, courtesy of Abrams Books:

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Tags: Aaron McBride, Aaron Simms, Abrams Books, Abrams Books for Young Readers, Adi Granov, Alan Taylor, Alexandra Byrne, Andy Park, Anna B. Sheppard, Anthony Francisco, Anthony Russo, Barry Gibbs, Brad Winderbaum, Charlie Wen, Charlie Wood, Chris Rosewarne, Chris Swift, Chris Townsend, Cinemagic, Constantine Sekeris, Craig Kyle, Dan Deleeuw, Danielle Costa, David Grant, David Krentz, David White, Diana Giorgiutti, Edward Norton, Eleni Roussos, Eric Carroll, Fernando Castro, filmmaking, Gale Anne Hurd, Graham Churchyard, Greg Smith, Iain McCaig, Ian Joyner, Industrial Light & Magic, Ivo Coveney, Jack Dudman, Jack Kirby, Jackson Sze, Jake Morrison, James Chinlund, James Gunn, Jeffrey Ford, Jen Underahl, Jerad Marantz, Jeremy Latcham, Joe Russo, John Blake, John Nelson, Jon Favreau, Jonathan Schwartz, Jonay Bacallado, Josh Herman, Josh Nizzi, Joss Whedon, Judianna Makovsky, Justin Sweet, Kan Muftic, Karla Ortiz, Keith Christensen, Kent Seki, Kevin Feige, Laura Jean Shannon, Letitia Wright, Liv Tyler, Louis D'Esposito, Louis Leterrier, Louise Frogley, Mariano A. Diaz, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios, Mayes Rubeo, Michael Grillo, Nancy Campbell, Nate Moore, Nathan Schroeder, Peyton Reed, Phil Keller, Phil Saunders, production process, Ra Vincent, Rebecca Gregg, Rodney Fuentebella, Ruth Carter, Ryan Meinerding, Scott Derrickson, Shane Mahan, Sheldon Differ, SMUFX, Stan Winston, Stephane Ceretti, Stephen Broussard, Stephen Schirle, Steve Jung, The Moviemaking Magic of Marvel Studios Heroes and Villains, The Moviemaking Magic of Marvel Studios: Heroes and Villains book review, The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures & Aliens, The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures and Aliens, Tom Hiddleston, Trinh Tran, Tully Summers, Vance Kovacs, Victoria Alonso

borg’s Best of 2018–The Best in Print

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Comics & Books, Con Culture, Fantasy Realms, Movies, Retro Fix, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes, TV — Leave a comment

December 29, 2018

Our borg Best of 2018 list continues today with the Best in Print. If you missed them, check out our review of the Best Movies of 2018 here, the Kick-Ass Heroines of 2018 here, and the Best in Television 2018 here.

So let’s get going. Here are our selections for this year’s Best in Print:

Best Read, Best Sci-fi Read – The Synapse Sequence by Daniel Godfrey (Titan Books). The Synapse Sequence is one of those standout reads that reflects why we all flock to the latest new book in the first place. The detective mystery, the future mind travel tech, the twists, and the successful use of multiple perspectives made this one of the most engaging sci-fi reads since Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park. Honorable mention: Solo: A Star Wars Story novelization by Mur Lafferty (Del Rey).

Best Retro Read – Killing Town by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins (Hard Case Crime). The lost, first Mike Hammer novel released for the 100th anniversary of Mickey Spillane’s birth was gold for noir crime fans. This first Hammer story introduced an origin for a character that had never been released, in fact never finished, but Spillane’s late career partner on his work made a seamless read. This was the event of the year for the genre, and a fun ride for his famous character. Honorable mention: Help, I Am Being Held Prisoner, by Donald E. Westlake.

Best Tie-In Book – Solo: A Star Wars Story–Expanded Edition novelization by Mur Lafferty (Del Rey). Not since Donald Glut’s novelization of The Empire Strikes Back had we encountered a Star Wars story as engaging as this one. Lafferty took the final film version and Lawrence and Jon Kasdan’s script to weave together something fuller than the film on-screen. Surprises and details moviegoers may have overlooked were revealed, and characters were introduced that didn’t make the final film cut. Better yet, the writing itself was exciting. We read more franchise tie-ins than ever before this year, and many were great reads, but this book had it all. Honorable Mention: Big Damn Hero by James Lovegrove (Titan).

Best Genre Non-fiction – Hitchcock’s Heroines by Caroline Young (Insight Editions). A compelling look at the director and his relationship with the leading women in his films, this new work on Hitchcock was filled with information diehard fans of Hitchcock will not have seen before. Young incorporated behind-the-scenes images, costume sketches, and a detailed history of the circumstances behind key films of the master of suspense and his work with some of Hollywood’s finest performers.

There’s much more of our selections for 2018’s Best in Print to go…

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Tags: Abrams Young Readers, Alan Gordon, Alex Ross, Andrew Hennessy, Aquaman and Jabberjaw, Art & Arcana: A Visual History, artist Hydro74, Batman Issue 50 variants, Caroline Young, Catwoman, Cavan Scott, Curt McAloney, Cynthia Von Buhler, Dan Abnett, Daniel Godfrey, David Tilotta, DC Comics, Del Rey, Doctor Who Who-ology: Regenerated Edition, Donald E. Westlake, Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana: A Visual History, Ed Piskor, Eduardo Lima, Firefly Encyclopedia, Firefly: Big Damn Hero, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Hanna Barbera, Hard Case Crime, Harper Design, Help I Am Being Held Prisoner, Hitchcock's Heroines, Insight Editions, James Lovegrove, Jon Peterson, Juann Cabal, Killing Town, Kyle Newman, Mariko Tamaki, Mark Salisbury, Mark Wright, Marvel Comics, Max Allan Collins, Michael Witwer, Mickey Spillane, Mickey Spillane Centenary 2018, MinaLima, Minky Woodcock, Minky Woodcock: The Girl Who Handcuffed Houdini, Miraphora Mina, Monica Valentinelli, Mur Lafferty, Nolan Woodard, Paul Pelletier, Rain Beredo, Sam Witwer, Signe Bergstrom, Solo: A Star Wars Story Expanded Edition, Solo: A Star Wars Story novelization, Star Trek: Lost Scenes, Stuart Craig, The Amazing Spider-man Issue 800, The Archive of Magic - The Film Wizardry of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, The Art of Harry Potter, The Fantastic Four: Behold... Galactus!, The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures and Aliens, The Once and Future Tarzan, The Secret Garden, The Synapse Sequence, Thomas Yeates, Titan Books, Titan Comics, Wizards of the Coast, X-23, X-23 series, X-Men: Genesis, X-Men: Grand Design Second Genesis

New volume spotlights the cinema magic behind the aliens and creatures of all ten Star Wars films

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Comics & Books, Fantasy Realms, Movies, Retro Fix, Sci-Fi Café — Leave a comment

June 25, 2018

Review by C.J. Bunce

At long last Star Wars fans have a single volume of behind-the-scenes gold that includes more than the original trilogy and the prequels. Writer Mark Salisbury returns with his next pop culture book, The Moviemaking Magic of Star Wars: Creatures & Aliens. This is the first book to include coverage of all ten Star Wars films, and it’s the first book that digs into the creature makers and makeup artistry of all the Star Wars movies–a creature effects companion to those comprehensive books reviewed previously here at borg.com chronicling the costume and prop sides of Star Wars productions: Dressing a Galaxy, Sculpting a Galaxy, and Star Wars Costumes.

How many movie franchises can claim visual effects over four decades incorporating all levels of monster making: animatronics, puppetry, practical effects, costuming, CGI, sculpts, animal actors, prosthetics and makeups, stop-motion animation, and motion capture creations–sometimes all in a single film? The book spans it all: Jawas, Tauntauns, Jabba the Hutt, Yoda, Chewbacca, the Rancor, Ewoks, Watto, Jar Jar, Darth Maul, Rathtars, Maz Kanata, Porgs, Crystal Foxes, Proxima, Rio Durrant, and so many background aliens from the Tatooine cantina, Jabba’s palace, Maz’s castle, the Pod Race, Kamino, Geonosia, and Scarif. More complex characters from the franchise get the most coverage, with less coverage from Revenge of the Sith and Solo.

Readers will learn about and meet a variety of artists and creators of these creatures and aliens, with interviews and examples of the work of Stuart Freeborn, Rick Baker, Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Jon Berg, Ben Burtt, Fred Pearl, Frank Oz, Kathryn Mullen, Lorne Peterson, Nick Dudman, Rob Coleman, John Coppinger, Tom St. Amand, Richard Edlund, Ken Ralston, Kit West, Nilo Rodis-Jamero, Doug Chiang, Dave Elsey, Neal Scanlan, Luke Fisher, Ben Morris, Darek Arnold, some of the actors who performed costumes characters, and visionaries George Lucas, J.J. Abrams, and Gareth Edwards. Select concept art is included from Ralph McQuarrie, John Mollo, Iain McCaig, Terryl Whitlatch, Jake Lunt Davies, and others, and readers will learn Doug Chiang’s five rules of concept design.

Keeping with the fun new trend of incorporating three-dimensional, interactive elements into non-fiction books, Abrams has included foldout flaps, accordion pages, and color tipped-in booklets of sketches, photographs, and stages of the creative process. The book comes from Abrams’ Young Readers imprint, however, the in-depth information and rare or never-before-published photographs and sketches will appeal to all ages of Star Wars fans.