After signing the investment agreement between Stanton Studio and 20th Century Fox, Murphy devoted all his energy to preparing for "Dark City." He, Gal Gadot, and Helena Espla first went to New York to finalize a formal agreement for filming on location with the relevant New York authorities.
The entire film would be shot on location in New York, with some special effects and interior scenes continuing to be filmed at the warehouse studio near Venice. The warehouse studio once again became the base of operations for Murphy's preparations.
With the efforts of Kara Faith and Murphy, 20th Century Fox finally agreed to Murphy's IMAX filming plan. Over 60% of the film's shots would be filmed using IMAX cameras. Given Murphy's current status and his recent Oscar win for Best Director, IMAX also gave the project special attention. After the crew contacted IMAX's Los Angeles branch, they quickly dispatched two large, cumbersome IMAX cameras.
The two IMAX cameras were set up by Philip Lasher in the largest shooting area for testing. They were indeed massive, several times larger and heavier than the typical Hollywood cameras, with the added weight and size meaning they were more cumbersome and difficult to operate.
Standing next to an IMAX camera, Murphy tried operating it for a bit. After standing up, he said to Philip Lasher, "Some scenes we'll be shooting with the IMAX cameras need to be extremely impactful."
Circling the IMAX camera, Murphy continued, "For instance, the scene where Chris Dane is chasing on a motorcycle. I need to show the perspective from Chris Dane's point of view."
"We tried mounting the camera on the front of the vehicle last time," Philip Lasher said, frowning, "but the effect was mediocre. It lacked impact."
"Yeah," Murphy nodded, suggesting, "Philip, can we mount this big guy on the front of a plane and film during takeoff?"
Philip Lasher thought for a few seconds, then said, "It's not easy. The IMAX camera is too bulky. The plane's nose would need to be specially modified."
Murphy made a quick decision, "I've rented a business jet from Gulfstream. I'll have someone contact them to see if they can provide such modifications."
These were problems that could be solved with money.
"Wait, Philip, Murphy, hold on."
IMAX personnel had been watching them closely. Murphy and Philip Lasher's conversation was loud enough for Torby Martinez, IMAX's representative on set, to hear. He quickly came over, "I think your proposal is too risky. It could damage the equipment."
Murphy frowned slightly, "Torby, to showcase the advantages of IMAX technology, we need to create spectacular scenes."
Torby Martinez seemed to want to say more, but Murphy cut him off, "If the equipment gets damaged, the crew will cover the cost."
Torby Martinez opened his mouth, then closed it again. He clearly didn't carry enough weight to argue with Murphy.
Moreover, while IMAX cameras are expensive, they're not beyond the budget of a production with a $220 million investment.
Since IMAX only leased and didn't sell their cameras, Murphy didn't hesitate to use them extensively, despite the complications.
Murphy then left this set to discuss Chris Dane's custom motorcycle and other matters with the Mercedes-Benz representative.
Pre-production always uncovered many similar issues, and this was a phase for resolving them. The more problems encountered now, the fewer hassles during actual filming.
From equipment to props, from actors to costumes, from shooting plans to storyboards, Murphy was involved in and reviewed every aspect of pre-production, staying on top of the overall progress.
20th Century Fox also gave him maximum support. Except for necessary financial issues, they delegated most authority to producers Kara Faith and Gal Gadot.
After reviewing the design sketches from Mercedes-Benz and discussing them with the designer, Murphy visited the pyrotechnics team. He had hired a specialized pyrotechnics team for this film, and they were currently working on the explosion plans.
Unlike previous films, Murphy planned to feature extensive gunfights and explosions. To fit the film's style, all explosions had to be shot on location and couldn't be as exaggerated and unrestricted as Michael Bay's.
"I think we should avoid using explosives."
Murphy discussed the film's most important explosion scene with pyrotechnics team leader Michael Beltz, suggesting, "As the script says, use a few bullets and some gasoline to create explosions."
Michael Beltz, with one arm crossed and the other hand supporting his chin, said, "Using gasoline for explosions can be unpredictable if we're using models."
"We'll definitely use models," Murphy said concisely. "Weta Workshop is making the models. They'll coordinate with you later."
"Give me some time. Have Weta Workshop make a few more models," Michael Beltz said, frowning before relaxing. "I need to do some tests to ensure we achieve the best effect during filming."
"One more thing," Murphy said seriously to Michael Beltz, "figure out how to blow up a large hospital."
Having read the explosion scene in the script, Michael Beltz realized Murphy wanted to shoot it practically. He asked, "You really want to blow up a hospital?"
"Yes," Murphy explained briefly. "I've already sent people to find a suitable hospital scheduled for demolition, or a similar building."
To maintain the film's realism, he was putting in a lot of effort.
Murphy then checked on the actors, particularly James Franco, whose magician character was crucial.
Entering one set, Murphy saw James Franco in a sharp magician's suit, deeply engrossed in the script. Not wanting to disturb him, Murphy quietly left.
James Franco was contemplating the magician character.
Undoubtedly, Murphy had created a character that magnified human evil, forming a unique and striking logic, making the magician both insanely crazy and... dazzling!
"Only someone as twisted as Murphy..." James Franco shook his head, "could create such a twisted yet brilliant character."
Thinking this, James Franco looked down at the script, flipping through it again.
In this script, the magician's actions were mad, boundless madness. His evil was pure and untainted, not driven by money, lust, or any other goal. Creating and exercising evil was his sole pursuit.
The magician's evil was pure malevolence. Not for anything else, he just wanted to create "higher-grade evil" for the city. To James Franco, compared to the magician, even the crimes of John Doe in "Seven" were not "high-grade evil" because they had too many attachments beyond evil.
In some ways, the magician was like an evil puritan. In his eyes, committing crimes for money, power, lust, or any other reason was a desecration of "evil." Only in his hands was evil pure.
In the magician's hands, evil and chaos became an art. He wielded evil like a painter wields a brush or a musician a score. Throughout, regardless of his circumstances, he maintained a proud and self-satisfied demeanor as a demon.
The magician's actions seemed insane and chaotic at first glance, but James Franco could analyze that the character had a fervent ideology—breaking everyone's limits.
Faced with such a character, James Franco sometimes felt powerless, doubting his ability to reach the magician's level with his acting skills and state of mind.
"Successfully portraying this character is incredibly challenging!"
James Franco closed the script, stood up, and walked a few steps, sighing, "Murphy, you've dug such a deep pit for me to jump into!"
Standing there, he quietly thought for a while, realizing he needed to do more preparation for this role.
Then, James Franco left the rehearsal room and found Murphy in his office, making a direct request.
"Murphy," James Franco pulled a chair and sat down, speaking to his friend opposite him, "starting tomorrow, I won't be coming to the set."
"Not coming to the set?" Murphy asked curiously, "Why?"
"I think the magician is a very special character."
Discussing the character he would portray in front of the camera, James Franco dropped his usual playful demeanor and became extremely serious, "I want to find a quiet, completely undisturbed environment to study this character."
Hearing this, Murphy scrutinized James Franco. Franco's eyes showed the fervor of an actor encountering a character he genuinely loved.
Murphy thought for a moment, "Alright."
"See you in a while."
James Franco stood up to leave but was stopped by Murphy, "Wait, James."
"What's up?" James Franco asked.
"Something very important!" Murphy stood up and said.
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