Projector model tracking predigital effects - links? ala Die Hard 1?

[yoda313]

Ok I'm not sure how to look for this. I was watching my Die Hard 1 bluray the other day and had the commentary track with Richard Edlund who had worked on the original Star Wars.

He was talking about the predigital way to do tracking for special effects. It involved using a projected image of the film on top of a model to get the tracking right.

I am not sure I am describing it exactly right. It sounds really cool.

It almost sounds like how they shot matte paintings with a projected image from behind it and then shot the front of it as a new combined image.

I only have the standalone Die Hard bluray. I don't have the bluray collection that was recently released. My bluray disc has a 2007 copyright on it (the newest copyright date at the time of printing that is).

So if there are "new" featurettes on the actual creation of the special effects please let me know. I might seek out the bonus disc on ebay if there was a separate specials disc that was released.

If anyone has a link on this technique please share it.

Or if you have a better search term I should use please let me know. I love watching how they make movies.

Thanks.

Also I might be misinterpreting what was said. Please clarify it if I have this wrong. I'd still like to see how they did that building explosion stuff (he was talking about blowing up the third floor when they weren't allowed to touch the real building for that part of it).

[Brad]

IMDB says "When the bomb in the elevator shaft blows out the side of the building, the effect was accomplished by (a) collecting virtually every camera flashbulb of a particularly powerful type in the Los Angeles area and wiring them on the outside of the actual building to simulate the flash, and (b) by superimposing a shot of an actual explosive blowing a hole in the wall of an all-black miniature of the building at the appropriate location."

The Ultimate Collection DVD set had a 7:22 making of featurette that wasn't ported to the Blu-ray, but I have no recollection of whether it covered that scene.

[yoda313]

Thanks vaperon. It might be on YouTube. I'll try to check it out.

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[yoda313]

Thanks vapoeron. It might be on YouTube. I'll try to check it out.

Sent from my Prism II using Tapatalk

Sent from my Prism II using Tapatalk