WIZARDS OF HOLLYWOOD: BILL WESTENHOFER

This is the fourth installment in our series "Wizards of Hollywood," where we shine a spotlight on the masters of movie magic, the effects specialists who can dazzle us with screen images of liquid robots, giants and goblins, ferocious dinosaurs or just a special human soul who ages in reverse. Today, guest contributor Liesl Bradner interviews Oscar-winner Bill Westenhofer.

Bill Westenhofer of Rhythm & Hues Studios in Los Angeles has worked on "Spawn," "Men in Black II," "Stuart Little," "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and last year he won an Academy Award for his labors on "The Golden Compass." Right now he's working on "Land of the Lost," the Will Ferrell special-effects comedy based on the old Krofft Brothers television show.

My most memorable scene on film is the opening scene of the Battle for Narnia (“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe”). It’s still my favorite.

It starts with a gryphon flying in over the fields, sweeping over a completely computer-generated army of 60 unique creature types from centaurs to fawns to various exotic cats and rhinos, all moving in different ways.

To create that army itself was an eight-month-plus endeavor of motion capture, creature development with a year and a half of prep work, taking character designs, figuring out how to implement them, working with the props department to realize what the practical versions of those would be, then flowing that into the CGI characters themselves.

It's a brand new day, here's the latest edition of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe...

COMIC BOOKS LOSING THEIR POWERS?: The American comic book has, in some ways, never been bigger in pop culture than today with the commercial blockbusters in Hollywood and the critical respect for graphic novels. But business reporter Tiffany Hsu writes that the core publishing business that has struggled in recent years is up against the wall in the current economy: "A high-stakes battle for survival is underway in the comic book universe, and superheroes such as Wonder Woman and Wolverine have been enlisted in the fight. Even President-elect Barack Obama -- and an impostor -- have been recruited to help Spider-Man. With mixed results, the nation's comic book publishers and hundreds of neighborhood shops are fighting off a deteriorating economy, online piracy, rising costs and changing consumer tastes. Comic book sales were down for most of 2008, even at behemoth publisher Marvel Comics. And many small comic stores are closing one by one. Just last week, Marvel released a special edition of Spider-Man in which the superhero notices two identical Obamas at today's presidential inauguration, uses basketball to weed out the phony and is thanked with a fist-bump from the new president himself. But times are stark, and it may take more than Obama and his illustrated posse to revive business, as the industry nervously trains its spider sense on the notoriously feeble January sales month. 'Because comics are an escape, they're a little more protected from the economy,' said Jonah Weiland, executive producer of website Comic Book Resources. 'But I wouldn't say they're recession-proof. Everyone is preparing for a slump.' There's still an appetite for fantasy -- experts said the comics market has been resilient, weathering the wilting economy better than other forms of media. At the Los Angeles Public Library, thrifty fans turned comics into a hot item at the checkout counter last summer. 'If you want to read a series, there could be anywhere from three titles to 50, so it could be a very expensive experience,' said Albert Johnson, a collection development manager at the library. 'That's a big reason why we're seeing more traffic.' But even after a year stuffed with blockbuster films based on comic books, growth in all sectors is stalling." [Los Angeles Times]

THE SECRET STORY OF NARNIA: So why exactly did Disney jump ship on the "Chronicles of Narnia" franchise after the first two grossed close to $1.2 billion worldwide for Disney and its partner in the project, Phil Anschutz's Walden Media? Patrick Goldstein has a long explaination of the economics, politics and personalities involved, here's an excerpt: "According to multiple sources, the once-close relationship between Disney and Walden began to unravel when, after the first 'Narnia' film cleaned up at the box office, Anschutz essentially put a gun to Disney's head and demanded that the studio renegotiate its deal with Walden. Anschutz insisted that Disney either gave back a sizable chunk of the studio's lucrative distribution fee or Anschutz would distribute the 'Narnia' series on his own. Believing the franchise was too good to give up, Disney reluctantly changed the terms of its Walden deal, but the renegotiation poisoned relations between the two behemoths. When the second film faltered, there was so little good will left over that Disney had far less qualms about cutting its ties with the franchise. To be fair, Walden wasn't all that happy with the way Disney handled the film. The first movie had been released at Christmas, which seemed a logical slot for a family-oriented picture. But when Disney saw that 'Prince Caspian' was an edgier, more youth-oriented film, it decided to go after teenagers as well as family filmgoers. That decision led to what, in hindsight, appears to be a huge blunder, releasing 'Prince Caspian' in May, at the start of summer. Sandwiched between 'Iron Man' and 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,' 'Prince Caspian' not only failed to attract many teenagers, but it lost a large piece of its family following, who were turned off by the edgier, not especially well-focused marketing materials. 'We felt that, for that film, we had to try to appeal to every audience,' says Disney studio chief Dick Cook. 'The movie was edgier and tougher and the marketing materials reflected that. Sometimes when you do that, you risk alienating the families and maybe that's what happened.' Cook defended the studio's decision to put the movie into the summer. 'Warners has always been able to move 'Harry Potter' back and forth, so we thought we had just as good a chance of doing well. Honestly, who knows -- it may have been a factor. In the summertime, you don't always get many second chances. But release dates are funny -- they never seem to effect a movie people really want to see.'" [The Big Picture]

GRIM STUDIO NEWS: Warner Bros. released the second-highest grossing film of all time last year with "The Dark Knight" and has "Watchmen" and a sixth "Harry Potter" film on tap for 2009. That doesn't mean everything is rosy at the Burbank lot. Here's the story by Claudia Eller:  "Warner Bros. Entertainment is eliminating 800 jobs, or about 10% of its global workforce, becoming the latest media company to take drastic cost-cutting measures amid a deepening recession. The move is expected to save the movie and television studio more than $50 million annually in costs. Walt Disney Co. is also shortly expected to make substantial cuts in its ABC television division. On Tuesday, radio broadcaster Clear Channel Communications slashed 1,850 jobs, or 9% of its employees. In recent months, others including Viacom Inc., NBC/Universal, video game giant Electronic Arts and Hollywood's largest independent studio Lionsgate have downsized their ranks as they struggle with the global economic crisis and market downturns of DVD revenue and advertising sales. Of the 800 positions being eliminated by Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros., about 600 people will be laid off across all divisions of the studio's operations. Another 200 open positions will not be filled. About 300 positions in management information systems, finance and accounting will be outsourced to India and Poland. In addition, about 155 people who work in 'back office' positions will be offered jobs with a third-party outsourcing company on the Burbank lot, according to a person familiar with the matter. The layoffs and outsourcing of jobs will begin immediately and continue over a period of time, the person said." [Los Angeles Times]

SUPERMAN MEETS SPIDER-MAN!: Ah, one of the great moments of my childhood was in 1976 when all the rules of physics seemed to stop and the impossible happened: Superman met Spider-Man. What happened? Well, they started punching each other, of course. The book had GREAT cover drawn by Ross Andru (based on a Carmine Infantino layout and tightened by Dick Giordano inks) and a fun story by Gerry Conway with Lex Luthor and Dr. Octopus as the bad guys. It was sold as one of those great oversized tabloid editions. I was thinking of that landmark DC-Marvel crossover this morning when I saw footage of Brandon Routh, the most recent Man of Steel on the silver screen, meeting the considerably shorter Tobey Maguire, who was pitch-perfect as Peter Parker in Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" films. If Warner Bros. brings Routh back as the last son of Krypton (that's no done deal, of course) perhaps we'll see a summer showdown between the two signature heroes of the top comic-book companies. That would be cool.  The two actors met at a charity event, here's the lowdown from MTV: "They were on hand at Abram Simon Elementary to perform some community service as part of the president-elect’s call to community action on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. But the momentous meeting was the kind that comic geeks salivate over. Maguire was hard at work with volunteers in a classroom at the school trying to figure out how to build the IKEA-style shelving units, when Routh walked by just behind him, but the superheroes-in-street-clothes barely acknowledged each other as they pitched in while wearing their civvies ... Though Maguire was kept busy screwing panels of the shelves together, a short time later, as Routh pulled books from boxes to stack them in the newly built cubbies, he happened across a — no joke — Spider-Man book, and walked it over to his super-brethren. 'I think this is yours,' he said, handing Maguire the book. The web-slinger laughed, and the actors shook hands and chatted for a few moments before Routh walked back across the room to shelve 'I Can Read: Spider-Man 3, Meet the Heroes and the Villains.' 'I think I can probably beat them all up,' Routh said. 'Just kidding.'" [MTV]

TRIVIA QUESTION: "Superman Vs. Spider-Man" was the second comic book published by DC and Marvel partnering together to produce a "publishing event" moment. What was the first? The cover is at the bottom of this post.

ON THIS DATE: Happy birthday today to Mr. David Lynch, one of the great oddballs of cinema history and a truly singular spirit as a filmmaker. Lynch was born in Missoula, Mont., on this day in 1946, and reached the rank of Eagle Scout at age 15 and served as an usher at the inauguration of John F. Kennedy, a bit of random bio data that I thought you would appreciate on this day. Lynch would give us the television masterpiece that is the first two seasons of "Twin Peaks" and unforgettable films such as "Mulholland Drive," "Blue Velvet" and "Eraserhead." To celebrate his day, let's all get some damn fine coffee ... but only after checking to make sure there isn't a fish in the percolator. To see some video memories of Lynch moments, keep reading ... 

Welcome to the holiday hangover edition of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe. Today is Dec. 26. 2008, and, like the egg nog you find in your fridge in March, there's nothing but sourness in today's update....

FIRST WE TAKE MANHATTAN: Just when you thought the long, strange odyssey of the "Watchmen" film adaptation had settled into a steady stroll toward a March release date, a California courtroom decision looks at the Rorschach test and sees something completely different. Now the release date of the film may actually be pushed back. An old friend, Michael Cieply, has the story: "In a surprise ruling, a federal judge in Los Angeles said he intended to grant 20th Century Fox’s claim that it owns a copyright interest in the 'Watchmen,' a movie shot by Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures and set for release in March. The decision was disclosed in a five-page written order issued on Wednesday. Gary A. Feess, a judge in the United States District Court for Central California, said he would provide a more detailed order soon. Fox has been seeking to prevent Warner from releasing the film. The superhero adventure, based on the 'Watchmen' graphic novel, is being directed by Zack Snyder (who also directed '300') and has shaped up as one of most eagerly anticipated releases for next year. A Warner spokesman, Scott Rowe, declined to comment on the ruling and the studio’s plans. At an earlier hearing, the judge said he believed that issues in the case could be settled only at a trial, which was scheduled for late January. On Wednesday, however, Judge Feess said he had reconsidered and concluded that Fox should prevail on crucial issues. 'Fox owns a copyright interest consisting of, at the very least, the right to distribute the "Watchmen" motion picture,' the ruling said. Fox acquired rights to the 'Watchmen' graphic novel in the late 1980s for the producer Lawrence Gordon, but eventually dropped its own plan to make a movie from its story, about the underside of life for superbeings." [New York Times]

EARTHA ANGEL: Entertainer Eartha Kitt died on Christmas Day at age 81. Kitt replaced Julie Newmar as Catwoman on the old "Batman" television series starring Adam West, and she was also nominated for an Emmy for her work on "I Spy." She also gave a delightful edge to "The Emperor's New Groove" as the villain of the 2001 animated hit. The best Kitt obituary I've seen was on the BBC website and here's an excerpt: "Once described by Orson Welles as the most exciting woman in the world, Kitt's smouldering, feline drawl in memorable hits, such as Santa Baby, Old Fashioned Millionaire and I Wanna Be Evil conveyed a wealth of innuendo. Ostracized at an early age for her mixed race heritage, international star Kitt defied criticism of her illegitimate past and conquered the entertainment world with finesse. Born in 1927, she endured a tough childhood. Kitt's mother, who worked on a cotton plantation, was just 14 when she gave birth, the white father thought to have been the son of the plantation owner. Kitt's features, neither black nor white, led to her being accepted by neither community. She was given away by her mother at the age of eight to live with an aunt in Harlem, New York City. Little did she know that this would be the start of a long showbiz career. With a flair for the dramatic, Kitt, aged 15, auditioned for the famed Katherine Dunham Dance Troupe and won a spot as a featured dancer. The work took her worldwide, and her unique style was enhanced as she became fluent in French during the European tour. It was during a performance in Paris that she caught a certain director's eye, and was cast as Helen of Troy in Orson Welles' production of 'Dr Faust'." [BBC]

CHOW SAYS CIAO TO "HORNET": I'm playing a bit of catch-up on news that was reported in the days leading up to Christmas, such as this item in the trades by Michael Fleming about some turbulence with "The Green Hornet," a film that started as an action movie and then became a comedy and now appears to be losing some of its star power: "There's been another change in the 'Hornet' nest: Stephen Chow has dropped out as director of 'The Green Hornet' but will still play Kato in Columbia Pictures' latest bid to get the crimefighter to the bigscreen. The studio and producer Neal Moritz are in the process of setting a new director to keep the picture on track to begin production by spring. The character began on radio in the 1930s and is best known from the '60s TV version. But a bigscreen translation is having a long gestation, going through many incarnations, including as a proposed George Clooney vehicle. Chow, who directed and starred in 'Kung Fu Hustle' and 'Shaolin Soccer,' signed in September to direct the film and play the role originated in the TV series by Bruce Lee. He stepped out as director over creative differences. The film was scripted by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and Rogen is starring as the masked crime fighter. The script will likely be polished, and a director could be in place by year's end." [Variety]...BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE: A few days later the AP then reported that Chow might skip on the acting role in Hornet as well to free up his schedule to work on a Jack Black superhero comedy, which we can only pray will be half as funny as this Tenacious D music video for Wonderboy.

THE LION AND THE MOUSE: You know the economy is rough when the Walt Disney Co. walks away from a proven franchise because they don't want to ante up the investment. Veteran Hollywood reporter Claudia Eller has the lowdown on Disney's decision to bow out of the "Chronicles of Narnia" series, which is poised for it third installment, "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader": "A Disney spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday that the Burbank studio decided not to exercise its option to co- finance the third movie in the franchise based on C.S. Lewis' classic children's books because of 'budgetary considerations.' Though the budget of the movie came in significantly below the $200-million cost of 'Prince Caspian,' the second film in the 'Narnia' series, it could still escalate during production, and that made Disney wary, according to a person close to the movie. Disney was partners with Walden Media, which owns the rights to the books, on the first two 'Narnia' films. Disney's decision not to proceed with 'Dawn Treader' shows how it is being more selective in the number of pictures it releases. Studios are scrutinizing costs more carefully and in many instances passing on expensive pictures that until recently might have been given an automatic green light. Disney was also uneasy that the budget of 'Dawn Treader' was subject to other uncontrollable factors, such as uncertainty about the tax breaks and rebates, a weak U.S. dollar and the high cost of visual effects. One person close to the matter said there were also 'creative' differences between Disney and Walden, and that the two disagreed on when to release the film in 2010. Walden said Wednesday that it hoped to find a new financial partner and proceed with plans to shoot the film in the first quarter of next year with director Michael Apted." [Los Angeles Times]

ON THIS DATE: Character actor Vincent Schiavelli died on this day in 2005 in Sicily at the age of 57 after a battle with lung cancer. The Brooklyn native enjoyed a long career built around comic timing and his world-weary eyes. Most people will remember him in the films "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest," "Better Off Dead" and "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," but fanboys will also recall him in the great cult classic "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension," "Batman Returns" and "Tomorrow Never Dies," as well as his television in work in "Star Trek: The Next Generation," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "The X-Files," just to name a few. In his honor today, let's all say "big-boo-TAY" over and over and giggle when people stare at us.

(P.S.: If you want to see the trailer for "Buckaroo," it is at the bottom of this post...)