This one's for Jessy.
So Thursday morning I woke up gave Laura a call, discovering that she was too sick to accompany us and our party would be limited to four people. Disappointing, but probably for the best since she hates crowds. I got up and got cleaned up just in time to be wearing something other than wet hair when Nick arrived, and we watched Batman Returns on cable until Joe and Jessy showed up. Joe hadn't slept at all after his stint at UPS, and was less than thrilled to find out we'd need to take his car to Indy since it was a tad bit over on mileage since its last oil change. After being defeated by two quick-lube places and just grabbing a bottle at the gas station, we began our trip only about an hour and a half late.
The drive went by pretty quickly with minimal traffic, and we got to the museum a little after one. Getting inside we were greeted by a line that was probably going to be about an hour wait, but I didn't even notice because I was totally geeking out over the two giant Argonath statues that flanked either side of the line. As I was gawking my sister ran up to me and said she and her friend Heather were currently at the counter buying tickets, so she picked ours up for us. Her Xmas present to me was the entrance ticket, and a sweet green hoodie from the gift shop. Unfortunately we had to pass on the giant pewter Aragorn statue that was half off and still 250 bucks. Our tickets didn't grant us admission until 3:15, so we went up to the cafe and grabbed chow. The guy at the register got the theme from Zelda stuck in his head when he saw my tshirt, and we wasted some time holding up the line talking about how great the Revolution was going to be when it came out. He also didn't charge me for my nachos. Never underestimate the power that Zelda holds over a fanboy's heart. Never.
After lunch we wandered the bottom two levels of the museum (the Indiana State Museum, btw), which included a bunch of historical memorabilia from Indiana and a large section on some Native American tribes, the Ice Age and a beaver skeleton that could've swallowed my dog whole. I was too psyched for the main event to take a whole lot from those two floors, and at three we got up to the third floor and jumped in line for the exhibit. Thanks go out to Joe and Jessy at this point for Episode III on the GBA, which occupied the last fifteen minutes I had to wait to get in.
The exhibit was awesome, though I apologize for the lack of images to accompany this text. We were not allowed to take photos of anything from the exhibit, I'm assuming due to copyright issues with New Line Cinema. I went in and tried to turn to the right toward a large Treebeard maquette, but most of the crowd had gone that way so I swung around down the other path and right off the bat got to take a look at Anduril, along with the rest of Aragorn's equipment and props. The perfect way to start the exhibit. There were a bunch of displays set up in a triangle pattern, each wall of the display giving information on a character or aspect of the filming. In the center of each wall was a tv that played relevant footage from the extended editions of the DVDs. Fortunately most of the crowds were clumped around the monitors, and since I've already partaken in that footage in the comfort of my own home (twice) I got to spend more time studying the props.
Anduril was one of my favorites, but Gil-Galad's shield and spear Aiglos looked awesome as well. There was a small display of Dwarven equipment that was only somewhere in the background of the movie, but getting a close look at one of their shields was pretty cool. For some reason I'm really hung up on shields lately. There was also a small room that had a column in the center with the One Ring suspended inside it, with flames around the wall and audio tracks playing various remarks and quotes about the ring from the movie. It took my about an hour and a half to work my way around the entire room, but I still felt rushed. It was the little things that were really cool to study, like all the knicks and dings in Glamdring from when they'd done fight scenes in the movie. There was so much detail that went into every prop and costume from these films that you can't even see, but the fact that it's there helps push the feeling of reality. There were a few "bigatures" there, like the run-down mill in Hobbiton that took six weeks or so to build, and it ended up on screen for two seconds. There was also a Barad-dur tower, and the Tower of Orthanc which is technically a miniature, but still stands about fifteen feet tall. That was one of the cooler experiences of the day; as I'm staring at the Orthanc tower I turn to the wall next to me, and I'm less than a foot away from an original Alan Lee sketch sheet of concept designs for Rohirrim arms and armor. Next to it is a similar drawing by John Howe.
These guys have been illustrating Tolkein most of their lives, and it was largely their knowledge of the story and ability to apply it to our reality that made this movie possible. Half of the stuff Jackson envisioned for the movie was inspired by these guys' works. Megan started looking at it and said I could draw that well, and while part of me was proud of the compliment the other part wanted to backhand her upside the head. Sure, I could replicate this stuff given no time limit and proper supplies, but it wouldn't have the same feel to it. Looking at their work, you can just see how it all flows out of their minds on to the paper. The way the lines are traced down makes it look like they don't even think about it. Their talent is amazing, and it was really cool to get within inches of these drawings of things that I spend so much time sketching during class.
I can't procede without mentioning three special interactive displays they had set up that showed people how some of the visual effects were achieved. The first was a motion capture booth, where you were given a foam sword and a small shield stud and were instructed to swing them around. Cameras in the booth captured your movements and applied them in real time to computer models that were displayed on a screen in front of you. Essentially, you could become a fighting Uruk-hai, Elven soldier or Knight of Gondor. Another booth was equipped with a laser scanner that would scan your face, then digitally reconstruct it in the computer. The third was also the last part of my Xmas gift from Megan. We climbed up into a green screen booth that contained two different sized halves of the cart bench on which Frodo and Gandalf ride in the beginning of FotR. After throwing on a sweatshirt so my green-clad torso didn't disappear into the background (I got to be a technical effects glitch, w00t!), we bought a photo of the two of us sitting on the cart, one of us appearing to be Hobbit scale and the other human scale.
After the photo shoot I got to see two of the coolest setups in the exhibit. The first was a full-size Cave Troll statue bursting through the doors of Balin's tomb, complete with a Moria orc scrambling down the wall next to him. This thing was friggin huge. It's head was bigger than me if I curled up into the fetal position, and I think the hammer was even bigger than that. I still think I can take him, but Joe disagreed. We did both agree that we're hung better than Cave Trolls though, as was evidenced by the smaller maquette on display which was laser scanned into a computer and used to create the model for the digital monster. They all go in nekkid folks. I even saw a naked Gollum statue once. Creepy stuff, and fortunately that one wasn't on display. But I digress.
As things were wrapping up and I thought time was almost out (we were told the museum closed at five, though they were admitting a fresh wave of people at that point) I got to a room that had a line of twelved different suits of armor on display. The Elven, Gondorian and Numenorian have to be my favorite, and I got to see a full size Gondorian shield that I had pre-ordered a few months back. The thing will probably cover me from my eyes to my knees, and I can't wait to get it now. I wanted to take a closer look at the plate mail on a few of the suits, but there was a line building up behind me because three jackasses were right in front of me holding us up, only one of them actually looking at the armor. The other two were just leaning against the guard rail facing the other direction. Fucking Hollister frat boy dicks. You shouldn't piss off a bunch of LotR geeks in a fucking armory. The wear and tear on these weapons is evidence that they're combat ready, and no way were the two security guards I saw gonna be enough to stop a horde of angry Ringers. Anyway, the armor was awesome, and I thought it was a fitting end to the exhibit.
Then I walked into the next room and was crushed. First of all, I didn't know there was another room. Secondly, this one was filled with concept art by Lee, Howe, and a number of other artists. I could have spent hours in this room, probably on one wall alone, and we were down to the last ten minutes of the exhibit. I checked out what I could, mainly the Moria and Dwarven sketches and some cool concept pieces for Helm's Deep, but the others seemed to be getting tired and I figured I should leave while I was still on a high and had the energy to drive back. So Joe and Jessy didn't have to drag me out, though he did get pissed every time I ran back down another path to look at more sketches. But I got my consolation hug as we walked out the exit. Sadly, Nick and I were unable to obtain any of this artwork. I'm pretty sure we could've gotten away with it, but I respect the artists too much to go snatching all their work. And I knew Joe would be too tired to drive the others home if I was incarcerated.
The drive home was quiet. All of us were drowsy, but we made it back in good time and good form. The trip went above my expectations, and it was really enjoyable to see all of this stuff up close and get to study the work and detail that went into it. I'm glad I had the company I did, though I'm pretty sure I got more out of it than them. So there ya go Jessy. It's not a mile long, but it's an hour's worth. I'd like to say more, but it's kind of hard to convey a lot of the thoughts I had about the whole thing. And for anyone who made it this far, I wouldn't take advantage of them by geeking out further and making their heads explode. Though I guess they probably already know what a colossal geek I am. But whatever. It was awesome, and I'm tired, and now I want some lunch, so have a happy New Year's everybody, and don't do anything I wouldn't do. But get pics of everything else.
The drive went by pretty quickly with minimal traffic, and we got to the museum a little after one. Getting inside we were greeted by a line that was probably going to be about an hour wait, but I didn't even notice because I was totally geeking out over the two giant Argonath statues that flanked either side of the line. As I was gawking my sister ran up to me and said she and her friend Heather were currently at the counter buying tickets, so she picked ours up for us. Her Xmas present to me was the entrance ticket, and a sweet green hoodie from the gift shop. Unfortunately we had to pass on the giant pewter Aragorn statue that was half off and still 250 bucks. Our tickets didn't grant us admission until 3:15, so we went up to the cafe and grabbed chow. The guy at the register got the theme from Zelda stuck in his head when he saw my tshirt, and we wasted some time holding up the line talking about how great the Revolution was going to be when it came out. He also didn't charge me for my nachos. Never underestimate the power that Zelda holds over a fanboy's heart. Never.
After lunch we wandered the bottom two levels of the museum (the Indiana State Museum, btw), which included a bunch of historical memorabilia from Indiana and a large section on some Native American tribes, the Ice Age and a beaver skeleton that could've swallowed my dog whole. I was too psyched for the main event to take a whole lot from those two floors, and at three we got up to the third floor and jumped in line for the exhibit. Thanks go out to Joe and Jessy at this point for Episode III on the GBA, which occupied the last fifteen minutes I had to wait to get in.
The exhibit was awesome, though I apologize for the lack of images to accompany this text. We were not allowed to take photos of anything from the exhibit, I'm assuming due to copyright issues with New Line Cinema. I went in and tried to turn to the right toward a large Treebeard maquette, but most of the crowd had gone that way so I swung around down the other path and right off the bat got to take a look at Anduril, along with the rest of Aragorn's equipment and props. The perfect way to start the exhibit. There were a bunch of displays set up in a triangle pattern, each wall of the display giving information on a character or aspect of the filming. In the center of each wall was a tv that played relevant footage from the extended editions of the DVDs. Fortunately most of the crowds were clumped around the monitors, and since I've already partaken in that footage in the comfort of my own home (twice) I got to spend more time studying the props.
Anduril was one of my favorites, but Gil-Galad's shield and spear Aiglos looked awesome as well. There was a small display of Dwarven equipment that was only somewhere in the background of the movie, but getting a close look at one of their shields was pretty cool. For some reason I'm really hung up on shields lately. There was also a small room that had a column in the center with the One Ring suspended inside it, with flames around the wall and audio tracks playing various remarks and quotes about the ring from the movie. It took my about an hour and a half to work my way around the entire room, but I still felt rushed. It was the little things that were really cool to study, like all the knicks and dings in Glamdring from when they'd done fight scenes in the movie. There was so much detail that went into every prop and costume from these films that you can't even see, but the fact that it's there helps push the feeling of reality. There were a few "bigatures" there, like the run-down mill in Hobbiton that took six weeks or so to build, and it ended up on screen for two seconds. There was also a Barad-dur tower, and the Tower of Orthanc which is technically a miniature, but still stands about fifteen feet tall. That was one of the cooler experiences of the day; as I'm staring at the Orthanc tower I turn to the wall next to me, and I'm less than a foot away from an original Alan Lee sketch sheet of concept designs for Rohirrim arms and armor. Next to it is a similar drawing by John Howe.
These guys have been illustrating Tolkein most of their lives, and it was largely their knowledge of the story and ability to apply it to our reality that made this movie possible. Half of the stuff Jackson envisioned for the movie was inspired by these guys' works. Megan started looking at it and said I could draw that well, and while part of me was proud of the compliment the other part wanted to backhand her upside the head. Sure, I could replicate this stuff given no time limit and proper supplies, but it wouldn't have the same feel to it. Looking at their work, you can just see how it all flows out of their minds on to the paper. The way the lines are traced down makes it look like they don't even think about it. Their talent is amazing, and it was really cool to get within inches of these drawings of things that I spend so much time sketching during class.
I can't procede without mentioning three special interactive displays they had set up that showed people how some of the visual effects were achieved. The first was a motion capture booth, where you were given a foam sword and a small shield stud and were instructed to swing them around. Cameras in the booth captured your movements and applied them in real time to computer models that were displayed on a screen in front of you. Essentially, you could become a fighting Uruk-hai, Elven soldier or Knight of Gondor. Another booth was equipped with a laser scanner that would scan your face, then digitally reconstruct it in the computer. The third was also the last part of my Xmas gift from Megan. We climbed up into a green screen booth that contained two different sized halves of the cart bench on which Frodo and Gandalf ride in the beginning of FotR. After throwing on a sweatshirt so my green-clad torso didn't disappear into the background (I got to be a technical effects glitch, w00t!), we bought a photo of the two of us sitting on the cart, one of us appearing to be Hobbit scale and the other human scale.
After the photo shoot I got to see two of the coolest setups in the exhibit. The first was a full-size Cave Troll statue bursting through the doors of Balin's tomb, complete with a Moria orc scrambling down the wall next to him. This thing was friggin huge. It's head was bigger than me if I curled up into the fetal position, and I think the hammer was even bigger than that. I still think I can take him, but Joe disagreed. We did both agree that we're hung better than Cave Trolls though, as was evidenced by the smaller maquette on display which was laser scanned into a computer and used to create the model for the digital monster. They all go in nekkid folks. I even saw a naked Gollum statue once. Creepy stuff, and fortunately that one wasn't on display. But I digress.
As things were wrapping up and I thought time was almost out (we were told the museum closed at five, though they were admitting a fresh wave of people at that point) I got to a room that had a line of twelved different suits of armor on display. The Elven, Gondorian and Numenorian have to be my favorite, and I got to see a full size Gondorian shield that I had pre-ordered a few months back. The thing will probably cover me from my eyes to my knees, and I can't wait to get it now. I wanted to take a closer look at the plate mail on a few of the suits, but there was a line building up behind me because three jackasses were right in front of me holding us up, only one of them actually looking at the armor. The other two were just leaning against the guard rail facing the other direction. Fucking Hollister frat boy dicks. You shouldn't piss off a bunch of LotR geeks in a fucking armory. The wear and tear on these weapons is evidence that they're combat ready, and no way were the two security guards I saw gonna be enough to stop a horde of angry Ringers. Anyway, the armor was awesome, and I thought it was a fitting end to the exhibit.
Then I walked into the next room and was crushed. First of all, I didn't know there was another room. Secondly, this one was filled with concept art by Lee, Howe, and a number of other artists. I could have spent hours in this room, probably on one wall alone, and we were down to the last ten minutes of the exhibit. I checked out what I could, mainly the Moria and Dwarven sketches and some cool concept pieces for Helm's Deep, but the others seemed to be getting tired and I figured I should leave while I was still on a high and had the energy to drive back. So Joe and Jessy didn't have to drag me out, though he did get pissed every time I ran back down another path to look at more sketches. But I got my consolation hug as we walked out the exit. Sadly, Nick and I were unable to obtain any of this artwork. I'm pretty sure we could've gotten away with it, but I respect the artists too much to go snatching all their work. And I knew Joe would be too tired to drive the others home if I was incarcerated.
The drive home was quiet. All of us were drowsy, but we made it back in good time and good form. The trip went above my expectations, and it was really enjoyable to see all of this stuff up close and get to study the work and detail that went into it. I'm glad I had the company I did, though I'm pretty sure I got more out of it than them. So there ya go Jessy. It's not a mile long, but it's an hour's worth. I'd like to say more, but it's kind of hard to convey a lot of the thoughts I had about the whole thing. And for anyone who made it this far, I wouldn't take advantage of them by geeking out further and making their heads explode. Though I guess they probably already know what a colossal geek I am. But whatever. It was awesome, and I'm tired, and now I want some lunch, so have a happy New Year's everybody, and don't do anything I wouldn't do. But get pics of everything else.