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diversions:
Johnston shines
in Hollywood
By Alex Roman
On-line Forty-Niner
As everyone seems
to be in such a rush to find themselves and make their mark
on the world, they sometimes limit themselves and their vision
of the future.
Director Joe Johnston
has gone from an industrial design major at Cal State Long
Beach, to visual effects art director, to director of award-winning
films and family blockbusters like his new film, "Jurassic
Park III."
Yes, just when
you thought the dinosaurs had eaten everybody, and all the
Michael Crichton books had already been used, those giant
reptiles are back to wreak havoc on a beautiful island off
Costa Rica.
"I always
felt like the third film should be a little darker, for lack
of a better description. It should be a little more desperate
and a little bit more grim," Johnston said about the
content of "JP3," during the film's press junket
on the Universal Studios lot.
"The whole
idea about parents trying to save their kids from dinosaurs
is pretty grim - it doesn't get much grimmer than that."
Johnston left CSULB
without graduating in 1975, soon after receiving a job as
a product designer in Malibu, which would lead to a bigger
opportunity.
"I was living
in Long Beach and commuting to Malibu. It was a 90-minute
drive. I did this for three weeks and thought it was just
ridiculous," Johnston said.
"I saw an
ad on the bulletin board that said they were looking for artists,
designers and creative illustrators for a space movie. So
I went and interviewed for it, and I got the job. I realized
that it was only an hour commute instead of 90 minutes, so
I decided it was a hell of a lot better deal."
Johnston said he
has not returned to CSULB in about 15 years and probably would
not even recognize it.
Since leaving CSULB,
Johnston studied filmmaking at USC, and worked as visual effects
art director for two of the most famous filmmakers of the
20th century, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.
Johnston's visual
effects art director credits include classics such as "Raiders
of the Lost Ark" and "Star Wars," as well as
the sequels for both series of films.
Johnston shared
an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for "Raiders"
and is credited with the original design for the "Star
Wars" character Yoda, as well as concepts for some of
the film's weapons and vehicles.
Johnston's previous
directing credits include "Honey I Shrunk the Kids,"
"Jumanji" and "October Sky."
In what may be
his greatest challenge, Johnston steps in the rather large
shoes of Spielberg, another former CSULB student and one of
his mentors, to direct "JP3."
"He never
gave me any arbitrary direction and told me you should do
this or you should do that," said Johnston of Spielberg's
influence on his direction of the film.
"He kept reminding
me that he hired me to make my own film, and that I should
forget that he did the other two, and just make the best movie
I could."
The film opens
June 18 and stars William H. Macy, Téa Leoni and Sam
Neill, who reprises his role as Dr. Alan Grant.
In fact Neill is
one of only a few actors who have had the chance to work with
both Spielberg and Johnston, but he is very cautious in making
comparisons.
"Comparisons
are very odious, and that would be very injudicious,"
Neill said. "But I think it was a good idea to have a
new director, because we wanted to make a new movie that stood
alone. I believe this to be the best of the three films."
Neill's comments
could very well be shared by viewers of all three films, especially
those who notice the advances in technology between the 1993
"Jurassic Park" and this year's "JP3."
"The technology,
which is a big part of these films, tends to sort of reinvent
itself every couple of years," said Johnston. "The
technology has been reinvented since the first one, so much
that there's almost no comparison."
In fact, Johnston's
background in visual effects really helped him in the making
of "JP3."
"What it does
more than anything, is that it helps me to understand what
is possible and what is not possible, and what you can do
effectively and cheaply," said Johnston. "When I
was involved in special effects, it was sort of old school,
where you had to actually build something, put it in front
of a blue screen and photograph it. Those days are gone."
The "Jurassic
Park," franchise has been very successful, grossing more
than $1.5 billion worldwide. In fact, it could be possible
that this is not the last you will see of these ever-so-hungry
dinosaurs.
"I always
want it to be perceived as the third installment in the series,"
Johnston said. "Steven has an idea for the fourth one
that is really great. In a way, I wish it were for the third
one and not the fourth one, because someone else is going
to get to have all the fun with it. But it wasn't intended
to set up a sequel at all."
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