Monday, June 25, 2018

Behind the Scenes: Mass Effect 2

After having his films dragged into the feud between writer James Morgan and critic Jeff Stockton, writer Seth Overton has decided to give a bit of insight into the Mass Effect series in this exclusive piece from the writer himself.....
 
 
"In light of the recent controversy regarding criticism against the Mass Effect series and blockbuster films in general, I feel compelled to share some thoughts as well as some behind the scenes moments from the set of Mass Effect 2.

A lot of work is being put into the making of these films, especially by our actors. Motion caption performances can be very challenging because it is harder for audiences to empathize with digital characters and there is a high risk they might come off as lifeless. Fortunately, it is a challenge that I feel our cast managed to overcome. I couldn't be more proud of their performances and how they bring a newfound depth to these characters. In the film, they are physically unrecognizable, and yet I honestly couldn't picture anyone else playing them, which is again a testament to their great acting skill.

The criticism from fellow screenwriter James Morgan reminded me of an encounter I had with with a fan of the series after the first Mass Effect film was announced by the studio. For the sake of the argument, let's say his name was Tom. Tom simply told me : "please don't fuck it up." According to him, things were not looking good. I was a newcomer to the scene, with no experience save for a couple of short films. Rian Johnson was coming off directing The Last Jedi which was lauded by critics, but had a divisive response among fans. Right after Henry Cavill was involved in that whole Superman "CGI moustache removal" story, we cast him as the leading actor in another CGI-heavy franchise. Add to that the fact that most video game adaptations up to that point had been considered subpar.

It was a pretty stressful period leading up to the premiere, especially for me since I had not worked on a production of that scope before. When I saw the first cut, I was at least confident it was the film I wanted it to be. But I still didn't know what others would think. There was still some self-doubt and second guessing going on in the back of my head. Which is weird because I am usually not as bothered about critical reception. I guess the fact that it was a movie based on a franchise with a considerably large pre-existing fanbase meant there was a bigger potential to disappoint a lot more people.

Fortunately, my instinct regarding the first cut of the film was correct. It was well-received, with critics lauding the performances of the cast, and people in my Twitter mentions were mostly saying the movie was great (there were some that outright hated it and thought it was the worst film ever made, but that is the nature of Twitter I guess). I kept thinking about Tom, the fan I had encountered before and wondered if the film had met his expectations. He messaged me a few days after, telling me he watched it with a big grin on his face the entire time and that he is looking forward to the sequel. He even invited me to his wedding which he told me was Mass Effect themed, but I unfortunately couldn't attend since I was working on the Cerberus spin-off at that time.

A year later, I wanted to make it up to him, so I invited Tom and his wife Lena to visit the set for the first day of filming Mass Effect 2. I think it's a great opportunity to show you some of the things they've seen in order to showcase the work that goes into making this type of film.

We first checked on Henry Cavill who was once again shaving his head for the role of Commander Shepard.


We then met with Alicia Vikander who was training in preparation for an action scene. (Spoiler: the scene with the krogan extremists on Taetrus)


Tom and Lena also got to see Lupita N'yongo as Tali, filming a scene in her motion capture suit.


Finally, since Tom told me that Thane was his favorite character from the series, we could not end the day without meeting up with Mads Mikkelsen who was also doing some motion capture tests.


In the end, I realize that some people might suffer from blockbuster fatigue or might simply not like the sci-fi spectacle that Mass Effect stands for. And that's fine. What I find kind of irksome is dismissing the performances of a talented cast as as lesser just because they involve motion capture work. 

Finally, speaking of blockbuster fatigue, I would also like to announce that we have officially begun work on another Mass Effect spin-off involving a certain fan's favorite character, Thane Krios. This is for you, Tom. Hope we don't fuck it up."
 
- Seth Overton

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