2016-12-27

【Aiden in English】

        The movie industry in L.A. is something special. With Hollywood just around the corner, Universal Studios hanging about, the films and shows made here are broadcasted all over the world. But the films have to be taken somewhere, and that somewhere is Warner Brothers.

        To movie producers, the Warner Bros Studio is paradise. With multiple sets and an infinite supply of props, there's nothing money can't buy. The day is all about Warner's filming stages and scenes, plus props and some effects behind-the-scenes stuff. Just going to say, if you are a fan of comics or superhero movies, then this place is for you.

        So the day started with a video about all the best movies shot on the Warner Bros. Studio. Within the half-second clips from famous actors saying lines that may as well as have gone into the record books, I saw many popular movies, from the Harry Potter series (2001-2016) to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005). Nearly all the famous actors and actresses had come through Warner studios at some movies in their lives. Today was going to be a day about discovering the gears shifting behind the final cinematic production, even if it meant seeing some off-limit areas to the public.

        It all began with the background of the scene. Warner Bros Studio put together in Burbank where it was featured in many shows and movies. The TV shows like Friends (1994-2004), Full House (1987-1995), and Gilmore Girls (2000-2007) were filmed around the small town, providing the backdrop for nearly all of their seasons. Some houses were fit for specific purposes, and some even have two different faces. Literally, if a person was to walk through a particular house, he would see that the two sides were actually two different fronts for two different houses. Thus, it saves room for filming scenes. The studio also included towns, streets looking as if in the early 1900s, where multiple shoots added more and more flavor to the scenery. Each time a movie was shot, some items were left behind, and they usually would stay permanently. That's why the studio in parts looked the way it does now. 

        Some of the more hit movies got a special section, like the Dark Knight Trilogy (2005-2012). In a very dark Picture Car Vault, nearly all of Batman's special vehicles were parked, some of which had the power to drive up to 200 mph. Each one cost over 250 thousand dollars since most of the cars had regular car bases. The Archives Building was also sectioned off for Harry Potter (2001), showing certain props and costumes of characters.

        There was a lot more to see, but the lone subject that stood out was the editing. Behind each scene, a team of experts edited and glued together the scenes to create the movie that we all loved. To start, there was motion editing, or motion capture (Mocap for short). This involved having the actor wear a special suit with dots, and later edited to a different look. Such characters like the dragon Smaug of The Hobbit (2012) used this technique, which revolutionized the movie industry. We also went through the Art of Sound, briefly explaining the sound editing done. The movie "Gravity" (2014) used an orchestra, the actor's voices, and a special sound pulse learned from an astrophysicist who has something to do with listening through the body. So, when watching the clip about the main character swinging into space on a piece of debris, each revolution of the broken ship brought a strong "wwwwrrrrooooommmmmppppp" shaking through the audience. Spoiler alert, the main character made it back to Earth.

        So what's in L.A?

        There's Warner Bros. Studio, which makes most of Hollywood's movies. Not to depress anyone, but most of your favorite Warner Brothers movies are probably not shot on the actual scene. Have you ever wondered why the people never waved at the tens of flying cameras? Exactly.

        So, L.A has a lot of things.

        Now I know.

【紅霞譯文】

        對於電影製片人來說，華納兄弟工作室堪稱人間天堂，多種多樣的布景配置和無窮無盡的的道具組合，絕非有錢就能買到。今天參觀的對象無一不與華納攝影棚配景相關，包括服裝道具及其幕後合成等環節，順便提示一句，假如你愛好喜劇或者超級英雄之類的電影，那麼這個地方正是你想光顧的。

        參觀伊始大家先來欣賞華納兄弟工作室製作的最佳電影，不大工夫成串載入史冊的著名演員出現在眼前，從《哈利·波特》系列（2001—2016）到《查理巧克力工廠》（2005年）我看過其中很多電影，想必幾乎所有知名男女演員在有生之年都先後來此試鏡，今天有幸探尋平常難得在公眾場合見識的後期製作。

        一切還得從拍攝場景說起。華納兄弟工作室位於伯班克市，許多電影電視節目均從本地出品，像電視劇《老友記》（1994—2004）、《歡樂滿屋》（1987—1995年）和《吉爾莫女孩》（2000—2007年）整季製作差不多都在這裡的攝影棚完成。一些房子專門為劇情而設；另一些房子前後建成不同式樣的門臉，確切地說，如果有人來某個特定住宅串門，那麼他所看到的前後牆實際上是由兩棟不同房子正面部分組成，這樣可以節省拍攝場地。電影棚建有城鎮街道，看上去仿佛回到上個世紀初期。隨着拍攝工作不斷進行，越來越多情節迥異的場景被添加進去，而每次拍攝完畢，一些東西並未拆除，往往會一直保存下來，這也是為什麼攝影棚中有的部分頗具現代氣息。

        一些比較熱門的電影受到特殊對待。就拿《黑暗騎士三部曲》（2005—2012）來說，在烏漆麻黑的電影汽車大廳里，蝙蝠俠使用過的全套跑車依次排列，其中有的馬力強悍，時速高達200英里／322公里，每輛價值至少25萬美元，而且多數車輛均由常規汽車改裝而成。《哈利·波特》（2001年）也特設專區，展示一些服裝和人物造型。

        後面還有很多東西可看，但重點卻偏偏落到剪輯過程，每個鏡頭背後都有一幫專家將攝製場景拼接成我們喜愛的電影。從動作捕捉做起，先讓演員身穿布滿點點的特殊套裝，然後再加工改編成不同模樣，《哈比人歷險記》（2012年）中巨龍史矛革就是採用這種技術，結果給電影業帶來了革命性改變。接下來我們在欣賞“聲音藝術”的同時，簡單了解音效剪輯。《地心引力》（2014年）將管弦樂、人聲以及從專業天體物理學家那裡學到的特殊脈衝融合在一起，因此當看到電影主人公解開身上攔截索從碎片墜入太空時，破碎的太空船急速旋轉並發出“嗡…嗡…嗡…嗡…嗡”轟鳴聲，讓觀眾切身感受到逼真效果。劇透警告：主人公返回地球。

        洛杉磯究竟有啥好玩？

        這裡有盛產好萊塢影片的華納兄弟工作室，咱毫無破壞他人情緒之心，但多數華納兄弟出品的電影大都不是從實地拍攝而來，你有沒有想過為何數十架空中攝像頭裡從來看不到見過路人揮舞手臂呢？事實就是這樣。

        由此而言，洛杉磯有很多好玩的事情。

        現在我心中有數。

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