"This quote from philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)... was omitted from the theatrical version ofthe film... because it was used on anotherfilm... released just prior to the release of The Abyss." "The main title animation was created by Ernest Farino and Paul Olson." "14-foot miniature sub shot in smoke on a motion-control stage." "The USS Montana, SSBN-741, is an Ohio-class ballistic missile sub on patrol." "There is no real sub with this name, butthe Ohio-class subs- all named after states- are quite real... and are still the top-of-the-line submarines forthe U.S. Navy." "Cavitation is the sound created by the movement ofwater over a propeller." "It is to be minimized in orderto avoid detection." "Cavitation sounds are particular to each sub and can be used... by Navy sonarmen to track and identify individual vessels." "U.S. Navy subs have, in fact, played chicken with Russian subs foryears... playing both tag and hide-and-seek in the world's oceans." "The idea was to show superiority by being able to sneak up... on the other sub without being detected." "To date, no naval sub disaster on either side... has been publicly proven to have been the resultof such dangerous games." "Sonarman Barnes is played by Michael Beach, now known for his role on "ER."" "The main sonar graphics were created by Video Image." "The futzing ofthe video was done by mixing the video signals together... using Radio Shack TVsignal boxes." "14-footminiature sub shot in smoke on a motion-control stage... with optical ripple enhancement." "As with many classic UFO reports, power systems tend to dim or shut down... in the presence of extraterrestrial technology." "40-footminiature sub shotat 40fps." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater... in the 1932 Olympic Swim Stadium nearthe Los Angeles Coliseum." "40-foot underwaterminiature shotat 40fps in a 55-foot deep tank." "Rear-screen projection of a miniature torpedo room behind live extras." "The sailorwith the fire extinguisher isJim Cameron's younger brother, Mike." "40-foot underwaterminiature shotat 40fps in a 55-foot deep tank." "The helmsman is played by Abyss art directorJoe Nemec... who had served on a nuclearmissile sub in the Navy." "Every Navy sub has a classified crush depth... belowwhich the sub will implode from the water pressure." "It is believed thatmost Navy subs have crush depths of 2,000 feet." "The buoy launch was shot in the main tank on a full-scale section of sub hull." "Optical composite ofthe full-scale buoy and underwaterminiature sub." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater." "Rear-screen projection of a flooding miniature engine room... behind live extras." "There were hoses just behind the door set piece." "Huge dump tanks were used to flood the set." "Once this scene was shot, the entire setwas submerged in a tank... for subsequent underwater scenes." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater... with tiny glass beads for scale bubbles... plus full-scale bubbles composited in atthe end." "The blinking lightwas added optically." "Live helicopters with optical rain added." "42-footminiature Benthic Explorer shotoffWestport, Washington... and composited with live helicopters and rain elements." "The Benthic Explorer never existed as anything buteither... a 10th-scale miniature or as limited interiors... such as the Benthic bridge set on stage." "Live helicopters shot in frontof a big gray backdrop... and a helipad set built on a pier/parking lot... in Long Beach, California." "These views from the bridge were achieved by shooting... through a piece ofwindow set on a tall scaffold above the helipad set." "Lindsey Brigman is played by Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio... who had garnered critical acclaim... in both Scarface and The Colorof Money." "Bendix' line was a sly reference to the main creature... inJim Cameron's previous film, Aliens." "Unlike mostfilms, all the video playback forthis film... was shotwithoutthe benefit of specialized 24fps video equipment." "A 144-degree shutterwas used on the camera to eliminate the roll-bars." "Since the Benthic bridge scenes were shot later in the schedule... itwas possible to use a lotof generic video ofthe Deepcore model... and underwater live action in the tanks as playback material." "Comedian Chris Elliot played the part of Bendix, the crew chief." "Known atthe time for his stint on David Letterman's show... he subsequently appeared in such films as Cabin Boy... and There's Something About Mary." "Matte painting by Dreamquestartist Bob Scifo... combined with live-action underwater elements." "Live action underwaterwith the real actors on the full-scale Deepcore set... in the main filming tank, called "A-tank."" "Since the film takes place atabyssal depths... where no lightfrom the surface should penetrate... all ofthe underwaterfootage- both live-action and miniature- had to be shoteither at night or under heavily tented areas ofthe tanks." "Ed Harris is inside the one actual pressurized underwatermodule set... in A-tank, talking to actor Leo Burmester in his diving gear." "Bud Brigman is played by Ed Harris... who playedJohn Glenn in The Right Stuff... and would subsequently receive Oscar nominations for his work... in Apollo 13 and The Truman Show." "The drill room was builton a stage as one continuous set... to allowthese Steadicam shots to follow Bud from the drill room... all the way forward to the toolpusher's office set." "Hippy is played by Todd Graff, an actor/playwrightwho wenton... to write and produce "Used People," starring Shirley MacLaine." "Little Geek is a real working ROV- remotely operated vehicle- built by Benthos Engineering of Massachusetts." "Itwas operated on set byjim Cameron's brother, Mike." "Shot live underwater in A-tank... with actorsJ.C. Quinn and Kimberly Scott in Flatbed... and the full-scale Deepcore in the background." "The control module was shot on a dry, smoke-filled stage... to simulate being underwater." "One Night is played by Kimberly Scott... whose credits include Flatliners, The Client... the third and fourth Batman films and the TVseries The Commish." "The Sub Bay setwas built on the surface... ofthe secondary filming tank, "B-tank"... so the real submersibles could enter and exitthe moonpool perthe script." "Sonny is played byJ.C. Quinn, whose credits include..." "Primary Colors, Days of Thunder and Bastard Out ofCarolina." "Lew Finler is played by Capt. Kidd Brewer, Jr., a certified divemaster... who was a longtime Cameron friend and fellow diver." "Catfish is played by Leo Burmester, whose film credits include..." "Broadcast News, Lone Star and Devil's Advocate." "Commodore DeMarco (J. Kenneth Campbell)... was originally to be played by Cameron regular Lance Henriksen... but it didn't happen due to conflicting schedules." "Deepcore was conceived as an underwater oil-drilling platform... which had the advantage over other platforms... of being unaffected by surface weather." "This concept is technically feasible buteconomically prohibitive." "It's still cheaper to use surface platforms." "Lt. Hiram Coffey, head ofthe Navy SEAL team... is played by Cameron regular Michael Biehn... who grew a moustache forthe role to offset his boyish, good-guy looks." "Atoolpusher is the on-site crew supervisor on an oil rig." "This 11-foot Deepcore miniature and 14th-scale Flatbed model... were hung stationary and shot in smoke... while the camera and cliffface were dollied pastthe models... on a motion-control stage." "Shot in smoke on a stage, dollying towards a stationary set." "Rear projection ofthe quarter-scale underwater Flatbed miniature... on a screen outside ofthe command module window on stage." "Shot live, full-scale, in A-tank." "Underwaterminiature." "Large-scale miniature on the ocean with rain elements added on top." "Stationary seton stage with a rocking camera." "The storm was created using hoses, fans and a backdrop." "Live video cameras and monitors on two separate sets... were used to allow Mary Elizabeth and Ed Harris... to converse while both sides were being filmed." "This launchpad was builtfull-scale on a concrete pad nextto B-tank." "Forced-perspective shot with a quarter-scale Cab Three miniature... suspended over a watertank in the foreground... and full-scale people in the background." "Quarter-scale, radio-controlled miniature submersible... shot underwater in B-tank." "The RC subs were built by Walt Conti Productions... whose team was responsible for both the whales in Star Trek IV... and the sharks in Deep Blue Sea." "To create a proper sense of haze and blue murk... forthe underwaterminiature shots... blue food coloring and milk were fanned around in the water before each take." "To create scale particulate matter floating in the water... ground-up walnutshells were also stirred into the water." "Since the waterwas heated to about 85 degrees for diving semi-comfort... the filters had to work overtime... removing the semi-heated milk and walnut bits every day." "11-foot Deepcore miniature and 8th-scale Flatbed model... were hung sideways over a miniature ocean floor... and shot in smoke on a motion-control stage." "This is the Linda Ronstadtversion... ofthe greattruck-driving song, "Willing"... written by Lowell George and firstmade famous by Little Feat." "Karaoke time:" "I've been warped by the rain" "Driven by the snow" "I'm drunk and dirty, don'tya know" "But I'm still" "Willing" "Out on the road late last night" "I've seen my pretty Alice in every headlight" "Alice" "Dallas Alice" " And I've been from Tucson to Tucumcari" " Flatbed miniature shot in smoke with film projected inside the bubble." "Tehachapi to Tonapah" "Driven every kind ofrig that's ever been made" "Driven the back roads so I wouldn't getweighed" "And ifyou give me" "Weed" "Whites and wine" "And you show me a sign" "Then I'll be willin'" "To be movin'" "Miniatures shotseparately in smoke and composited together." "Rear-projected miniature footage outside the window." "Mary Elizabeth in a full-scale submersible shot in the main tanks." "All ofthe tighter close-ups ofthe submersible interiors... were shoton stage." "Compression chamber seton stage." "In the film, the Deepcore team practices "saturation diving"... which means they are actually living and working atambient pressure... which, at 1,700 feet, is 57 atmospheres." "Lindsey and the SEAL team came down in Cab Three... atone atmosphere- the pressure atsea level- so they mustspend time slowly being pressurized to 57 atmospheres... before they can join the restofthe crew in Deepcore." "Saturation diving is real, butthe pressurizing process... would in reality take several days or even weeks... ratherthan the eight hours depicted in the film." "Also, some ofthe breathing mixtures in use today... contain a lotof inert helium gas... so everybody sounds like Donald Duck when saturation diving." "Obviously, itwas feltthatthis touch of realism would interfere... with the audience's ability to concentrate on the story... so itwas avoided." "High Pressure Nervous Syndrome (HPNS)... is a real disorder thatcan strike divers." "Formore information, check outa scientific journal... called "Underwater Biomedical Research" atyour local university library." "Note that Coffey says, "They're checked out."" "He never says he is." "The pointofthis scene is to introduce that Catfish... a former Marine, as evidenced by his arm tattoo... used to pack quite a punch as a fighter." "This factwill, of course, figure later on in the film... and is an example of building importantelements... into the writing ofthe script." "Cutfrom the film was a moment... where Lindsey casually toes open a latched Navy case... and sees a glimpse of a strange detonator-like device... before Coffey slams his foot down on the case... and says pleasantly, "Curiosity killed the cat."" "We had to shootthis scene a second time... afterwe realized we had left Flatbed in the moonpool during this scene." "Flatbed is supposed to be towing the rig right now!" "Uh-oh." "More rear projection outside the window." "All ofthese interior Deepcore sets were built... as connected rooms on a stage- a warehouse, actually- in South Carolina, to allow the actors and camera crew... to move throughoutthe set, even from one floorto another." "Note howthe shots show offthe set, while the set gives the actors... all sorts ofthings to do with their characters... even as they are delivering story exposition in their dialogue." "This scene was cutfortime from the theatrical version... but illuminates the status of Bud and Lindsey's marriage and separation." "Italso introduces Bud's wedding ring... which was specifically noted in the script... as being both a gift from Lindsey and made of high-grade titanium." "Believe itor not, folks who are interested in such a wedding ring... can find iton the Web at..." "Apparently, afterthe movie came out, enough people asked about it... thatsome enterprising jewelers actually started offering... an "Abyss- style" titanium wedding ring." "Since itwas only going to be seen in this one scene..." "Bud's quarters were a redressing of one ofthe other Deepcore module sets." "In the theatrical version ofthe film... this scene is the firsttime we see Bud's titanium wedding ring... and the factthat he does not, in fact, flush it... is important later on in the film." "This is another example ofthe screenwriter's art." "Italso meantthatwe had to make Ed Harris' right hand blue... for pretty much the restofthe film, in orderto maintain continuity." "Composite of an underwatertank shot ofthe 14th-scale miniature Deepcore... with an 8th-scale model of Flatbed shot dry in smoke on a stage." "These "underwater photos" were actually shots... ofthe 70-footmotion-control miniature thatwere outputon a video printer... and taped togetherto simulate the classic photomosaic look." "These are dosimeter badges, used to detect levels of radiation... in case one ofthe warheads orthe sub's nuclear power plant... has been breached by the crash." "This brief moment between Bud and Coffey from the Special Edition... sets up the initial conflict between them... over Coffey's treatmentof Bud's crew." "All the divers carry cyalume sticks, which are plastic tubes containing... the same bioluminescentchemicals as fireflies use in their bodies." "You can buy these as emergency lights and road flares... in most hardware stores." "Fluid breathing is a real and tested concept... albeit notas of yet practical for human beings." "This scene- and the conceptofthe film- was inspired byjim Cameron seeing footage... of real-life experiments done with rats in the sixties... as well as a lecture by the one diver... who underwenta fluid breathing experiment in one of his lungs." "The basic idea is that the body does notcare... how it gets its oxygen in the lungs... as long as there is enough of it forthe body to function." "Water holds less oxygen than air, so fish compensate by having gills... which have more surface area... and can therefore drawmore oxygen from the water." "Mammals have lungs adapted to breathing air... so they cannotextract enough oxygen from water... to survive by breathing underwater." "The solution to this dilemma is to somehow increase... the amountof oxygen in the liquid you are breathing." "The firstexperiments were done in the 1950s and '60s... using an oxygenated saline solution." "Later, an oxygenated fluorocarbon was used... because itcould retain more oxygen under pressure." "These experiments were pioneered by Dr. Johannes Kylstra... and Dr. Peter Bennett of Duke University... who consulted on the film." "We really did this experiment on the set." "We had a representative from the Humane Society on the set... and we used real fluorocarbon liquid, which we saturated with oxygen." "We did six takes using live rats... and contrary to whatanimal rights activists have said... all ofthem survived the scene." "The only reason we did cutaways to the actors... was to disguise the factthat the rats were defecating in the liquid... since theywere freaking out about breathing it." "In fact, the production spent a great deal oftime and money... to insure the animals' safety in the scene." "Still, don'ttry this at home, kids." "The real fluorocarbon is clear... butwe wanted to distinguish it from regularwater... so we added a non-toxic, fluorocarbon-soluble dye to tint it pink." "The one practical drawback of breathing liquid... is thatthe fluid tends to wash out the mucus coating from your lungs... leaving you more vulnerable to pneumonia... and other respiratory infections." "As a result, we gave the rats antibiotics after doing the scene." "Mary Elizabeth in a full-scale submersible shot in A-tank." "Exceptforthe reallywide shots, these scenes were all shot... with the actors inside or atop the actual subs underwater." "The wide shots were done as miniature shots... using models and puppets on a dry, smoke-filled stage... with bubbles composited on top." "They are atthe edge ofthe Cayman Trench in the Caribbean... which is 21,000 feet deep at its lowest point." "The deepest place in the ocean is actually in the Marianas Trench... in the South Pacific, almostseven miles deep." "That's two miles deeper than Mount Everest is tall." "Only one submersible has ever gone down to the bottom ofthe Marianas Trench:" "The bathyscaphe Trieste, in 1960." "We exaggerated the scale ofthe Montana's propeller... properly called a screw, for effect as it looms outofthe darkness." "The screws on Navy subs are actually seven-bladed as depicted... buttheir specific designs are classified military secrets... because they are computer-designed to minimize noise (cavitation)... while maximizing speed." "Rear projection." "These wide shots ofthe subs moving overthe wreck ofthe Montana... were achieved by shooting three 8th-scale submersible models... suspended from a motion-control rig... over a 70-footminiature ofthe Navy sub wreck... all shot in smoke in multiple passes forthe lights." "Live footage of Lindsey, One Night and Hippywas rear-projected... into the front bubble ofthe 8th-scale miniature subs... via custom 35mm film projectors inside the models." "We builtonly one full-scale, underwater section... ofthe exterior ofthe Montana:" "A missile deck section with one hatch and six missile tube doors." "All ofthe shots done live in the big tank... had the actors in the submersibles... passing overthe same 60-foot piece of setover and over again." "This shotcombines live-action footage shot in the tank... with motion-control miniatures shot in smoke... and a matte painting to bridge them together." "The Montana's interiorflooded before itsank to crush depth... so the sub did not implode." "Instead, the visible exterior damage... was caused by its collision with the rock wall... and its final impact at its resting place on the ledge." "Only two U.S. Navy nuclear submarines have actually been lostatsea." "In 1963,the USS Thresher suffered a mechanical failure... during a training mission and sank to crush depth... where it imploded violently... leaving virtually nothing buta debris field... on the floor ofthe Atlantic." "In 1968,the USS Scorpion suffered a likely torpedo malfunction... in the Atlantic during a routine patrol and sank offthe Azores... coming to rest in several large pieces." "There were no survivors in either case." "In fact, the missions and locations of Navy subs are so secretive... thatthey do not really carry emergency buoys or use beacons... since they cannotafford to be found and salvaged by "hostile" nations." "Because ofthis, itoften takes months oryears... to find a missing or sunken sub." "One of our unofficial naval consultants on the film..." "Don Walsh of International Maritime, Inc... was one ofthe Navy divers who searched the Thresher wreckage... ironically, using the bathyscaphe Trieste." "Because ofthe basic story premises of sinking a U.S. Missile sub... and having a Navy SEAL go psycho from HPNS... the production never approached the U.S. Navy... for official sanctioning or consultation on the film." "Cab One and Cab Three were one and the same real submersible... owned and operated by Can-Dive Services, of Canada." "The stern hatch shown on the cabs- and indeed its entire stern thruster assembly- was a cosmetic add-on to the real submersible Aquarius... which was about six feetshorter in real life." "In reality, the actors are sitting up front... in the observation area ofthe submersible... pretending to pilot it... while the real submersible pilots stood behind them... and controlled the craft from the top hatch viewports." "Since there was only one functioning submersible... it had to be painted alternately... red and white for Cab One and yellowfor Cab Three... as needed forthe production schedule." "There was also a full-size hollowfiberglass mock-up... thatwas used for any scene requiring an operable stern hatch." "These full-scale underwater sets were built pre-destroyed... and lowered into the smallerfilming tank, B-tank... which was still 120 feet long by 50 feetwide by 22 feet deep." "The interior Montana search scenes were some ofthe firstto be filmed... with half a dozen actors in custom diving gear... maneuvering through a twisted, enclosed set 20 feet underwater." "Then things got harder." "Since the waterto fill the tanks was pumped in from a nearby lake... the filled tanks were then treated with heavy doses of chlorine... to kill off any algae or bacteria." "Ittook a while to getthe balance of chemicals right." "Forthe firstfew days, we erred on the side oftoo much chlorine... which bleached the swimsuits (and hair!" ") of some ofthe crew divers." "We had worked so successfully to keep the water clearfor camera visibility... thatourfirstset of underwater dailies... hardly looked underwater atall." "As a result, from then on we made sure always to have paper and debris... floating in every underwater Montana scene... to emphasize the fact thateverything was really underwater." "All ofthe actors' diving gear was real... and was custom-designed and builtforthe film... by Western Space and Marine in Santa Barbara." "The WSM folks also supplied the manipulator arm forthe submersibles... and were on set for all ofthe underwaterwork." "The helmets were designed to show offthe actual actors' faces... as well as to be safe and fully functional gear." "Underthe water, the helmets were neutrally buoyant." "Outofthe water, theyweighed 25-40 pounds each." "All ofthe dead bodies you see floating in the various scenes... are the real actors and stuntmen... holding their breaths underwater, pretending to be dead." "Safety divers with scuba gear... are positioned everywhere justoutof camera range... ready to swim in to each ofthem with air between takes." "Coffey takes the missile-arming key from the body ofthe captain." "His primary mission is to retrieve, destroy or otherwise secure... all ofthe classified material from the sub." "For dialogue scenes in the helmets... a lotof sound editing and looping had to be done... to minimize the intrusive sound ofthe automatic regulators." "All ofthe sunken Montana sets were tilted ata 45-degree angle... to create disorientation." "Apart from the exterior of Deepcore itself... the Missile Bay setwas the largest underwater set builtforthe film... featuring eight huge tubes spanning two stories offilmable decking." "The sailorwith the crabs in his mouth isJim Cameron's brother, Mike." "Mike is also an experienced diver and designed and built... the DPV (diver-propulsion vehicle)- based camera platform... used on the production." "Jammer is played byJohn Bedford Lloyd... who wenton to play Tom Hanks' brother in Philadelphia." "Jammer's underwater POVs through his helmetwere achieved... by shooting an underwater shot ofthe action and projecting it... on a screen in frontof an oversized faceplate prop... placed in frontofthe camera on a stage." "Coffey retrieves the Navy secretcode books." "We omitted a scene where he also plants thermite grenades... to destroy sensitive equipment." "The fraying-rope close-ups were shot... in a smallertank in Long Beach, California... afterthe South Carolina main underwater shootwas completed." "The lights ofthe NTI being underthe decking was achieved... by rotating colorwheels in frontof bright underwater lights." "The reflection ofthe NTI being was composited ontoJammer's helmet... as the NTIs had not been completed... atthe time ofthe main underwaterfilming." "Under high-ambient-pressure conditions... pure oxygen is toxic to the human body... so the divers in the story must breathe... a carefully balanced mixture of gases in orderto survive." "The NTI Scoutship shots were motion-control miniature composites... with all ofthe light passes shotseparately in smoke... for greater control." "Quarter-scale underwater miniatures of Cab One... and the Montana's sail, shot in B-tank." "The exposition here aboutJammer's coma... sets up his eventual return to consciousness... atan opportune moment later in the film." "This scene shows Maintenance Room B- identified by the suction-cup Garfield in the window- doubling as a darkroom." "Itwill later be used by the SEALs to work on the warhead." "Unlike many by-the-book military performances..." "DeMarco is seen here reluctantly resigned to going to Phase Two... ratherthan being a more stereotypical warmongerer." "All ofthe military characters atthis point in the film... realize the enormity ofthe task- hopefully a more realistic portrayal of military personnel." "The crew of Deepcore are able to watch broadcasttelevision... via a feed sent down the umbilical from the Benthic Explorer." "ActorJoe Farago as the news anchor." "All ofthe newsroom segments... were shot in preproduction in Los Angeles for playback on the set... and edited together later in Charlotte, North Carolina." "This is a shotofthe miniature Benthic Explorer and destroyer... being rear-projected behind a small ship-railing set piece... and rephotographed directly on video." "The windblown news reporter is played... by longtime Cameron friend and writing partner BillWisher." "Bill can also be seen in both Terminator films... and was Cameron's writing partner on T2." "Paranoid characters like Hippy are always a greatway... to narratively introduce ideas and tensions in a story." "It gives Bud and the other characters something to play off... and can seta mood or suspicion in the audience by implication." "Note the continuous Steadicam shot from the corridor into Sub Bay... which notonly reinforces the near-documentary style ofthe filmmaking... butalso makes the most ofthe contiguous sets." "Rear-screen projection of real ocean waves projected behind the set... with fire hoses, huge fans and a rocking camera... providing the restofthe hurricane." "All the actors on the bridge set had to move in sync with the camera... in orderto maintain the illusion ofthe ship in the storm." "Note the little bits of character business:" "Kirkhill is seasick while DeMarco is nonchalantly eating a sandwich." "Composite of a matte painting on the left..." "Composite of a matte painting on the left... with a live-action underwater plate shot in A-tank." "The SEALs are removing what is called a "frangible diaphragm"... from one ofthe missile tubes." "The cover is designed to keep water outofthe tube priorto launch... butto shatter easily as the missile goes through it." "Mostofthese newscasts were edited out ofthe theatrical version ofthe film... in orderto remove the brink-of-World-War-Three tension... in the original story." "This material features stock footage from various sources... including the Falkland Islands War of 1982... and was compiled by video editor Ed Marsh." "This missile recovery sequence was shot... on the same 60-footfull-scale section ofthe Montana... seen repeatedly in the exterior search sequence." "Each Tridentmissile carries eight MIRVs in its nose." "MIRVstands for Multiple Independently-targeted Re-entry Vehicles." "They are designed to separate and strike multiple targets... as the missile comes down." "As Coffey notes earlier... each ofthe eight nuclearwarheads is five times more powerful... than the one that destroyed Hiroshima." "The danger of using topical stories and public figures to lend authenticity... is, of course, thatthey can date the film." "The woman with the baby in the "man in the street" interviews... is Polly Cross, a longtime associate of Gale Anne Hurd." "She also played one ofthe "dead" Sarah Connors... in police photos seen in the first Terminator film." "Here's howto getthe most outof your set... by choreographing the action of both camera and actors... for dynamic composition and smooth transition between characters." "Adding a light haze of smoke into a scene... in orderto get these kinds of lightshafts... is one ofthe tricks ofthe cinematography trade." "Miniature ofthe Benthic Explorer shoton calm waters at dusk... on the Salton Sea by Fantasy II Film Effects." "Fire hoses, jetskis, airplane fans and people with rowboats and oars... were used to create the storm... while a crane lifted and dropped the stern ofthe model repeatedly... to create a sense ofthe ship rocking on the high seas." "This device is called a heave compensator and is used to counteract... the forces on a drill string caused by the up-and-down motion... of a ship on the surface." "Motion-control composite... ofthe miniature Flatbed and Deepcore A-frame shoton a stage in smoke... with the big manipulator arm of Flatbed stop-motion-animated." "In these Benthic bridge shots in the storm... some ofthe exteriorwaves are created via rear projection... while otherwindows just have heavy rain hitting them... to obscure the outside ofthe set." "A large wooden cutoutofthe crane was placed... in the far background outone ofthe rearwindows." "The crane and launch well shots were shotat 120 frames per second... using tenth-scale miniatures over an insert tank." "A big stretch of black plastic served as a horizon line in the background... and was tilted side to side in sync with the camera motion... to simulate the rolling ofthe ship." "Underwaterminiature shot ofthe radio-controlled Flatbed model... being hit by the Deepcore A-frame section." "The Deepcore dragging shots were all shot underwaterwith the miniature... in orderto getthe skids stirring up the seafloor silt." "These push-ins were shot by dollying the camera... towards the stationary stage set... with lightsmoke simulating the underwater haze." "The collapse ofthe crane was shot by 4-Ward Productions... with multiple high-speed cameras." "The actual shooting lasted abouttwo seconds in real time." "This cab was the only full-scale set piece forthe crane." "The tilting ofthe crane cab was done by raising and counter-tilting... the camera only;" "the cab itselfwas stationary." "All ofthe underwater falling crane shots... were filmed in either A-or B-tank... by the production's wet-for-wetminiature unit... led by underwater photographer Pete Romano... whose company, Hydro Image, also provided... many ofthe underwater cameras and lights used on the film." "Another kinetic Steadicam shot running through the corridors." "Acamera operator and a focus-pulling camera assistant... had to chase the actors through the set... changing directions and trying to avoid causing visible shadows." "The jutting pipes and valves in the halls caused a lotof bruises." "To give itthe appropriate weight when shooting at high speed... the umbilical miniature tubing was filled with lead shot... and dropped underwater onto both the miniature Deepcore... and the sand-covered seafloor set piece." "Motion-control composite ofthe miniature Flatbed and Deepcore... shoton a stage in smoke... with the rigid falling cables programmed... to fall precisely the same way in each pass." "All ofthe miniature falling crane and umbilical footage was shot... in the 8-perfVistaVision format... and rear-projected outside the control module window." "This allowed more freedom of movement... than would have been possible using bluescreen- and itwas all in-camera." "In the original story, itwas the heavy umbilical itself... which fell and caused the damage to Deepcore... but in development itwas decided... thatthe audience might not get enough of a sense ofthreat... from a falling cable." "Hence, it became the entire crane thatfalls." "Again, all ofthe apparentmovement ofthe Deepcore set... was achieved on a stationary set... entirely through a careful choreography between the actors and the camera." "The flashes of light in the underwaterminiature shots... were unintentionally caused by the jolting ofthe model... overthe rocks and slope ofthe seafloor set... which caused the miniature lights on the model to blow out." "The editors serendipitously used these accidents... to motivate the big showers of sparks on the interior sets." "Monk only sustains a concussion and a broken leg here... since the force ofthe blow was dissipated... by the pipes the hatch hit on its way to him." "Open flames of any sort in a saturation diving situation are very bad... since itvery quickly depletes the oxygen in the mixture." "After all ofthe normal scenes in Sub Baywere shot... the entire setwas tilted in the water for all the subsequentscenes." "In addition to the camera movement... hidden divers in the water kicked up a storm... to create the illusion ofthe water in the moonpool... sloshing around from the dragging." "Leo Burmester and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio doing their own stunts." "The full-scale fiberglass mock-up of Cab Three... was cabled and dragged through the set." "Using slowmotion in an action sequence makes for subjective time... and also keeps the events clear forthe audience." "Movie Rule Number One:" "Save your pets first." "All shotfull-size with a stuntman." "Fire hoses aboard ocean vessels and habitats... utilize seawater pressurized via pumps." "This rescue scene gave more motivation to Monk's characterfor his later actions... butwas not in the original theatrical version." "With all ofthe underwater action, parts ofthe Deepcore miniature... broke off constantly and had to be reattached underwater... using baling wire and sticky clay on almostevery take." "Stuntcoordinator Dick Warlock was filmed by cameramen in scuba gear... as the closed module was flooded." "The flooding ofthe drill room utilized huge dump tanks on the stage sets... which were built into pits dug directly into the concrete warehouse floor... to avoid the setwalls having to withstand the pressure ofthe water." "All ofthe actors, in particular Kidd Brewer and Ed Harris... did all their own water stunts." "Hydraulic bulkheads are, of course, designed to automatically seal off... flooded sections of both ships and habitats." "The flooding hallways were all shot on the stages in South Carolina... using dump tanks and false ceilings to allowthe actors an escape route... in case of emergency." "The only exception was the flooding ofthe living quarters... which was shot by flooding the one pressurized module... in the Deepcore set in A-tank." "This is, of course, why itwas specified in the script... that Bud's wedding ring was made oftitanium." "Note thatthis is where the character of Sonny breaks his arm... which will be in a sling forthe restofthe story." "Underwaterminiature shotof Deepcore." "This scene was cutshort in the theatrical version... but, in its complete version, shows Bud's way... of handling the emotional states of his crew... by giving Sonny something to focus on despite its futility." "From this pointon in the film, sound designer Blake Leyh... and supervising sound editor Dody Dorn... added both water drips and metal creaks and groans... to enhance the claustrophobia and precariousness of Deepcore's position." "Listen carefully to the off-camera whispered dialogue:" "Monk is asking Coffey about his mental state and Coffey is answering defensively." "These kinds ofthrow-away exchanges, which are written and added... as looped audio in postproduction, can help round out plots and characters." "With half ofthe sets flooded from this pointon in the story... the actors had to spend many oftheirwork days... wading around in knee-deep water." "Agood expository scene like this rightafter a big action sequence... delineates the condition of all parties... and defines the direction the storywill take next." "Here, it's about defining the predicament- running outof air and power- then setting up a goal- getting more oxygen- so the audience has an expectation." "The following scene was not in the original theatrical release... and is an extension ofthe necessary exposition in the previous scene." "They are using the ROVs to survey the damage to the rig." "This crane shotestablishes both the condition ofthe Sub Bay... and the body count of both crewmen and vehicles." "Narratively, it lets the audience knowwhat happened... to all ofthe other crewmembers... and the factthat One Night was able to pilot Flatbed... back into the Sub Bay intact." "This ROVvideo shotof Cab Three with a girderthrough its front dome... was an underwaterminiature insertshot... filmed in the 1932 Olympic Swim Stadium nearthe Los Angeles Coliseum." "This is the actual video signal from the ROV... as itwas piloted through the flooded set with stuntactors playing dead." "This was Mary Elizabeth's primary underwater scene... in which she had to wear the WSM custom diving gear." "Since there were to be numerous dialogue scenes underwater... the common task of clapping the slate wouldn'twork... because the only microphones were inside the helmets." "As a result, picture and sound were kept in sync... by banging the slate on the side ofthe actors' helmets." "This discussion between Bud and One Nightabout Lindsey... was cutfrom the theatrical version ofthe film." "On the big set in A-tank." "In the original story, both Catfish and Coffey... were supposed to go out underwater with Lindsey... with the two men going aft to scavenge other oxygen tanks." "As filmed, Catfish did go out diving with Lindsey... butwas engrossed with working on a different part ofthe rig... and did notsee the NTIs." "After her encounter..." "Lindseywas to have said to Catfish overthe restored radio link..." ""You better not have missed that."" ""Missed what?" he replies." "In the end, only Lindseywas shown going out... in orderto keep her completely isolated... for her encounterwith the NTIs." "The hundreds of underwater lights used in the film... were provided by both Al Giddings' company, Ocean Images... and Pete Romano's Hydro Image." "Underwater lighting specialist Richard Mula... designed the powerful AC lights with GFIs (ground-fault interrupters)... so theywould shutoff immediately ifthere were anywater leaks." "Even with massive amounts of current... flowing through the sheathed underwater cables... electrocution was virtually impossible... since any leaking current in the water was being dissipated... over 7.5 million gallons ofwater in A-tank... and 2.2 million gallons in B-tank." "This scene required shooting... a series of visual-effects background plates of Lindsey underwater- in this shot, against underwater bluescreen- so the NTI ships could be added." "Interactive lights were used to play across the actress and set... while she gazed in awe at nothing." "The NTI Scoutship was designed as a cross between... a diver propulsion vehicle and an underwater ramjetmade of glass." "The actual miniature was abouttwo feet long... and made of glass and molded plastic... with a series ofTesla globes, ultraviolet paint... and fiber optics running through it... each ofwhich was shot in a separate motion-control pass... and composited together optically." "Bluescreen elementof Lindsey composited with a miniature set... and the three-foot-wide NTI Manta model." "The Manta was made of sculpted plexiglass... and had both fiber optics and neon tubes in it." "Underwater live-action plate shot in A-tank." "These wide shots were also augmented... with matte paintings and interactive light." "The up angles of Lindsey reaching up to touch the Manta ship... were done with the actress in frontof an underwater bluescreen... with a piece of clear plexiglass for herto touch... and her bubbles to bounce off." "This final crane shotwas filmed on a dry bluescreen stage... with stuntwoman Marcia Holly standing in for Mary Elizabeth... since the helmets were too heavy forthe actress to wear outofthe water." "Bubbles were then added optically, along with the Manta ship... whose movementwas matched to the live-action, motion-control crane shot." "Lindsey is using a Nikonos underwater camera and housing... which is considered the standard for real underwater still photography." "The Manta's refractive wake was an added optical distortion." "Sonny must be asleep atthe sonar station... to have missed this encounter, of course." "This insert of Lindsey's photos and light box... were shot in Gale Anne Hurd's garage during postproduction... with video editor Ed Marsh's hand doubling for Ed Harris'." "In the novel, Orson Scott Card shows the NTIs... deliberately showing themselves only to Lindsey... since they believe she is the most receptive to their presence... from her brief encounter atthe Montana." "Naturally, it is Hippy, the most paranoid ofthe riggers, who believes in UFOs." "The beings were specifically called NTIs... to getaway from the connotations of E.T." "To add to Lindsey's sense ofwonder at her encounter... cinematographer Mikael Salomon bounced light... off small mirrored trays ofwater onto herface." "This was justified practically on the set bywater in the bilges... caused by the flooding... but is an example of subtly emphasizing... certain on-setelements for dramatic effect." "Note that Bud's hand is still blue." "This confrontation scene was cut from the theatrical version ofthe film... but illustrates Bud's and Coffey's very differentmethods... of dealing with people under stress." "Catfish is justspoiling for a fight... which carries through from his firstcomments aboutthe SEALs... atthe compression chamber earlier... all the way to the fight later on." "Originally, Catfish even insults Coffeywith "...and yourmama dresses you funny"... to try to starta fight... butthis was cutout so Catfish didn'tseem so recklessly macho." "This scene was shot in the pressurized underwater set in A-tank... in orderto have the real ROVfloating outside the window port." "Even though we were recording video with the ROV's camera during the take... we couldn't use itfor playback because the camera crewwas visible." "We had to shoota separate take justforthe video." "Here's an editorial trick to compress time:" "Hippy puts in a tape to record... butthe nextcut is ofthe tape being played back to Bud later." "This way, we don't have to show everything in between... butthe narrative flow is uninterrupted." "Note this single dolly shot actually reveals Lindsey... in the background ofthe scene... listening to the conversation before the camera racks focus to her." "Yetanother confrontation between the riggers and the SEALs... further setting up Lindsey's and Coffey's animosity towards each other... and escalating Bud's involvement." "Roger Ramjetwas a popularmilitary cartoon hero from 1950s television." "Michael Biehn deftly put an almostsnake-like hiss... into his dialogue in this scene... adding to Coffey's sense of danger and territory." "In fact, a later scene description in the script reads..." ""Don't poke atthe rattler" in reference to Coffey." "Bud defuses the situation again... this time by gathering witnesses in a show of strength... then backing everyone off." "Even so, this is the firsttime we see Bud really raise his voice... in a confrontation, since itconcerns Lindsey's safety." "Coffey uses a classic military euphemism." "Note the use of lighting to reinforce his mental state." "The entire confrontation was removed fortime from the airline version... which cuts directly from Lindsey exiting the control module... after seeing Hippy's video to this post-confrontation scene." "While itstill worked narratively... the omission lessened Lindsey's strength of character... in challenging the SEALs' authority on "her" rig." "You'd think Lindseywould have noticed Coffey's condition... since she was the one warning the SEALs about HPNS in the first place." "Orson Scott Card even addresses this point in the novel... having Lindsey internally questioning her own condition for having missed it." "Notice that Hippy is eating a packet of powdered hotchocolate mix." "This pullback was omitted from the theatrical version... but is one ofthe few shots that really shows off... the interior-to-exterior scope ofthe Deepcore set in A-tank." "Underwater DPAI Giddings is shooting from a DPV... which is moving backwards from the window... as he racks both focus and exposure during the shot." "This video shot is the only one in the film where a year date is visible... which was an errorthatoccurred when the software was restarted... much like your VCRflashing "12:00."" "The time stamp on the ROV's overlay reads "1987."" "This was a live video shot where the ROV's video signal... was fed to the monitor seen in the shot." "We've panned offthe monitor by the time the camera shows up in the image." "Big Geek is another actual ROV built by Benthos Engineering in Massachusetts." "Its real name is the SuperSea Rover... and it is used for both commercial and military diving operations." "This particular ROV had been used to detectand clearmines in the Persian Gulf." "These surveillance POVs were recorded as separate takes on set... and later played back in the control module with Coffey." "Both this small scene and the earlier scene of Monk's rescue from the fire... were deleted from the theatrical version... butadd motivation to Monk's later actions... as the only SEAL willing to disobey Coffey's unauthorized orders." "In the original script, he tells Lindsey... aboutan ocean UFO encounter he had as a child." "The scene description forthis reads..." ""Asign ofthe mileage thatthese two have logged together."" "Uh-oh-here we go again." "This underwater POVwas shot in A-tank on the exterior Deepcore set... with the camera on a DPV... butwe couldn'ttake itall the way into the moonpool... because the Sub Bay setwas in B-tank." "Hippy has now programmed Big Geek to go down into the abyss." "Note the continual use of purple/magenta lighting... to denote the presence ofthe NTIs." "Note the gag here that Hippy- the one fervent believer in extraterrestrials- misses the whole pseudopod event because he's in the bathroom." "Industrial Lightand Magic's (ILM) First CG (computer graphics) shot in the film." "This intriguing watery POV came about... as a resultoftrying to reduce... the number of computer-generated pseudopod shots during preproduction." "The floating effectwas achieved... by taking a floating, wide-angle Steadicam shot... and optically processing the footage... into concentric, overlapping rings... with each ring one frame outof sync with the next." "This shot gets us around having to showthe pseudopod... spinning the hatch wheel to open the door... as well as saving the full reveal ofthe pseudopod until the lastmoment." "In fact, there was originally going to be a shot... where the pseudopod splits its tip into four "finger" tendrils... and picks up the warhead, butthatwas cutearly on." "Due to the lead time necessary to develop the computer animation... this scene was shotas early in the shootas possible, in October of 1988." "This gave Industrial Lightand Magic aboutseven months... to meetthe original release date." "Jim Cameron wrote this sequence in such a way... that he could delete itentirely ifwe couldn't getthe effects to work." "The actors were." "Of course, looking at nothing on the set during the takes... but reference passes were shoton the set... using a long piece of air-conditioning hose wielded by a couple of grips." "This notonly gave the actors an eyeline and the crew a laugh... but gave ILM good direction... on howthe pseudopod was to move and be shaped in the final shots." "To form the faces ofthe characters on the pseudopod... both Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio... had theirfaces scanned by a now standard device... called a Cyberware scanner." "The actor had to sit perfectly still in a chair rig... while a scanning laser revolved around the chair... converting the basic facial geometry... into a 3-D polygon model in the computer." "In orderto create as much usable data as possible..." "Mary Elizabeth was scanned multiple times... each with herface in a slightly differentexpression... from neutral to a full smile." "This was a double's hand shot in frontof a bluescreen." "ILM CG supervisorJohn Knoll shot 360-degree photos... of every set involving the pseudopod... in orderto use them as reflection maps forthe pseudopod's surface." "The computer-generated passes- including separate reflection and refraction layers- were scanned back outto film with mattes... and then composited optically with the live-action footage." "When the film was made in 1988-89... the use of photorealistic computer graphics in film was still in its infancy... so the computers were only used to generate elements forfilm... unlike today, when shots are completely composited in the computer... before being put back to film." "This is the only actual digital composite shot in the film." "ILM'sJohn Knoll took a live plate ofwater... being dropped from a long tray above the hallway... and hand-painted a transition from the CG pseudopod to the falling water." "This shotofthe pseudopod falling back into the water... was achieved by adding the CG element... to a shotwhip-panning down to a splash created... by dropping a 55-gallon steel drum into the water ofthe moonpool." "This shotof Coffey really makes him look creepy... because it's running backwards." "A little subconscious filmmaking trick." "Coffey is trying to keep sane by focusing his mind through pain." "He was originally going to be burning holes in his arm using a cigarette... butthis was changed after itwas realized... that no smoking would be allowed on the rig... especiallywhen they're on oxygen reserves." "Okay, so he's snapping here." "Note thatthe backlighting of his eyes by cinematographer Mikael Salomon... really adds to his crazed look." "This sequence of Hippy discovering thatthe MIRV is gone... along with the following conversation aboutthe NTIs... was cutfrom the theatrical version fortime." "The idea ofthe NTIs living that deep underwater is based... on the thoughtthatthe high ambient pressure ofthe abyssal depths... might be similar to the gravity on denser planets." "Every film needs a good shock to make everybody jump." "Here's ours." "Another nice editorial cut on movement... which compresses time in a dramatic fashion." "What did you think was going to happen in a PG-13 movie?" "Monk has now removed the loaded clip from Coffey's pistol." "You'd think Coffey would be smart enough to notice... that his gun did not have a full clip in it... but, then again, he's got HPNS." "Notice how all ofthese intercuts featureJammer in the background... as a reminder that he's not locked up." "From the script: "...the SEAL's fear is making him the perfectmachine... totally dependent on external orders."" "Coffey jams the hatchwheel with his belt... preventing access to the corridorto Sub Bay." "The only other door, in the frontofthe Sub Bay... was jammed shut during the dragging of Deepcore." "Note the use of choreography to draw out this momentformaximum suspense:" "The sound ofthe hatch unlocked, the hatch opening... seeing the gun, then revealingJammer." "And Schoenick is clutching his groin." "The compressor room was on the lower level ofthe Deepcore seton stage." "All the diving suits thatwould have keptthem warm... were, of course, stored in the Sub Bay." "Ed Harris and Leo Burmester did their own real free swim forthis scene... with safety divers readywith regulators... justoutside of camera range." "The challenge forthe actors, apart from holding their breath... was seeing well enough underwater withoutmasks to hittheirmarks." "This was shot in an insert tank back in Los Angeles." "We had to cheatthe lighting in orderto see anything in this scene... motivating itas the ambient light coming from below." "This is, of course, the narrative setup for Catfish to save the day." "We eitherforgetthat he's here... orthink that he went back to the compressor hatch and joined the others." "Back in A-tank." "Back in the Sub Bay set in B-tank." "Coffey is conveniently losing it here, giving Bud time... to slip into the Sub Bay unnoticed and take a momentto warm up." "We had to take a momentto visually emphasize the coldness ofthe water here." "In the treatmentand early drafts, the SEALs were always threatening... to duct-tape Bud or Lindsey to a chair ifthey interfered with the mission." "Ironically, in the final film, it's Schoenick who gets the honor." "The Sub Bay setwas tilted and partially submerged... afterthe crash scenes, which made the fightscene more challenging to do." "All ofthis action also had to be shot on video from a high angle... in orderto be played back later in the control module." "Various parts ofthe set, along with the pipe Bud wields... were made offoam rubberfor safety." "Even so, this is one ofthe few non-diving scenes... requiring stunt doubles for some ofthe action." "Ever notice thatthe seeming bad guy who turns outto be a good guy... inJames Cameron movies happens to have a religious name?" "In Aliens, itwas Bishop." "In The Abyss, it's Monk." "Composer Alan Silvestri chose to use a tribal drum sound... forthis fightsequence in orderto punctuate... the primitive feel of hand-to-hand combat... as a contrast to the surrounding technology." "Editorially, we are cutting seamlessly back and forth... between character POVs and normal, third-party movie shots." "The humidity created by the water in an enclosed set... caused the camera lenses to fog up a lot... so a warm-air blowerwas attached to the handheld camera... to defrostthe lens." "Rubberized pipes on the wall for safety." "Stagehands had to startall the cables and lights swinging consistently... atthe beginning of each take." "This kind ofthing can be both a blessing and a curse... forthe editor in terms of continuity." "Catfish uses "the Hammer" on Coffey." "Note the single white flashframe edited in atthe pointofthe punch... used to add visual powerto the hit, along with the slow-motion fall." "Yeah, so there's a white plastic bucket on the seafloor in this shot." "Itfell outof Deepcore, okay?" "The onlyway to get bullettrails underwater is to use real bullets... so Cameron cleared the set and a real weapon was used... for a series of underwater inserts with an unmanned camera." "Moving the camera to create a sense of motion... on a stationary cockpitset on stage." "One Night's line, "You're better in these than I am"... was written as a confession of respect of sorts to Lindsey... whom One Night has disdained for hertreatmentof Bud." "Bud is able to catch up with Flatbed... because Coffey has to maneuver it around the debris under Deepcore." "Shot in A-tank with the full-scale submersible." "Some ofthe wider shots showing the back of Flatbed... had to be optically retouched... to remove the thick control umbilical used to pilotthe fake submersible... which was actually a cockpitand shell... builtaround a big industrial ROV called Haida." "This was one ofthe main action sequences to be filmed... in the big A-tank set." "These close-ups of Geek straining atthe rope... were done by an off-camera diver holding the ROVand flailing itaround." "Underwater RC miniature of Flatbed turning." "Motion-control miniature Flatbed shot in smoke on a stage... with the manipulator arm stop-motion-animated." "Underwaterminiature shot ofthe radio-controlled Flatbed model... ramming a Deepcore skid set piece in the Olympic Swim Stadium." "In the cockpitset piece on stage." "Full-scale in A-tank." "Composite of live action below... with a motion-control model shot in smoke, with Lindsey projected inside." "We cable-tied the underwater RC miniatures together... with theirthrusters pointing in opposite directions... to make them spin around." "Full-scale again in A-tank." "Bud swims overto the lockout hatch on the submersible... butsince the sub is the real one, the lockout hatch is fake... so we cutto Bud entering the stern hatch... in the interiormock-up on the stage." "This was the real WSM manipulator arm atwork... being controlled from the A-tank observation room off-screen... while the actors pretended to work it from inside the submersible." "Motion-control miniatures shot in smoke." "The sub battle was a well-blended combination... of every methodologywe had." "Here's the shot by shot." "Read fast!" "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots... with the actors in A-tank in 1988- rocking camera." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Motion-control miniature shot dry-for-wet in smoke... on a Dreamqueststage in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Motion-control miniature shot dry-for-wet in smoke... on a Dreamqueststage in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Rear projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Rear projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Rear-projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Rear-projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Shoton a dry stage with the actors in submersible mock-ups... and fine goose down blown around to simulate floating particulate matter." "Underwaterminiatures again." "Dry on stage." "Underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium." "Dry on stage." "These rear-projection shots required notonlywater sprays into the set... buta nondestructive way of"cracking" the dome... which was on loan from a real submersible... was six inches thick and could not be destroyed." "To create the cracks, a lighting gag was used... to reveal a series of crack shapes created from clear plastic tape... and stood on edge on the dome." "The imploding Flatbed was achieved with a quarter-scale model... builtaround a squibbed vacuum bottle, with a gelatin puppetof Coffey inside." "Builtaround a squibbed vacuum bottle, with a gelatin puppetof Coffey inside." "Underwaterminiature again." "The interior Cab One setwas built one-third largerthan the actual sub... to better accommodate the camera and actors." "Forthe initial part ofthe drowning scene... the setwas turned on its side on the stage." "Forthe restofthe scene, the set- essentially an open-ended cylinder- was suspended from a crane and slowly lowered into B-tank... to create the illusion ofthe water level rising." "The camera was in a waterproof housing, with the camera crew in wetsuits." "Removable sections ofthe setwall allowed easy access between takes." "The scene had to be broken down into very specific beats... in orderto maintain continuity ofthe water level... overthe course ofthe takes." "The crane and operator were outside ofthe tented area... and could notsee the set... so a series of marks were put on the cable... so the operator could consistently hitspecific marks." "The waterwas heated to 85 degrees... with the actors providing the sense of cold." "The biggestchallenge was keeping the warmth ofthe water... and the late summerweather from fogging up the lens." "Composer Alan Silvestri had originallywritten... a minor-key variation ofthe main Abyss theme forthis scene... which lentan elegiacal tone to it... and reinforced the emotion ofthe performances." "Jim Cameron feltthatthe scene might play even more powerfully... ifthe music played againstthe emotion instead... so Silvestri recomposed it as a suspense cue... which underlined the coldness ofthe circumstances." "This made the emotion ofthe performance even stronger... without becoming melodramatic." "There have been numerous documented cases of revival... following cold-water drowning." "None, of course, have been voluntary." "Mostofthe documented cases... have been of children falling into icy lakes or rivers... and being revived with few or no lasting ill effects... after as much as 40 minutes." "Most people who drown actually suffocate to death." "The body's reflexes are trying... to preventwater from entering the lungs... so the victim runs outof oxygen... and has a buildup of carbon dioxide that isn'texhaled." "Only after death do the muscles relax and allowwaterto flow into the lungs." "Lindsey has to intentionally inhale the waterto try to freeze herself." "Several crucial close-ups forthe end ofthe scene... were shotmonths later in the underwater insert tank in Los Angeles." "Due to scheduling issues... the two actors had to shoot their close-ups separately." "As a result, Mary Elizabeth played her last, longing stare... into a helmetfilled with ping-pong balls for buoyancy... and Ed Harris played his final emotional moment... while clutching a bewigged stand-in." "Ed Harris is actually towing Mary Elizabeth through this whole scene... with her holding her breath and playing dead." "Safety divers were standing by to hand her a regulator ata moment's notice." "This was shot in A-tank... with the actress 30 feet underwater withouta mask." "Jim Cameron specificallywanted this scene... to involve the Deepcore crew "family" only, so Monk- who, as a medic, should have been involved in such a medical emergency... was leftoutofthe scene." "Presumably, Monk took heavy sedatives afterthe Sub Bay fight... and was now asleep and thus unavailable to assist in Lindsey's revival." "The shooting ofthis scene was one of the most draining ofthe production." "Notonlywere half a dozen actors performing... ata fever pitch of emotion... but Mary Elizabeth had to play soaking-wet dead and half-exposed... on a cold metal floorwith the others physically pounding on herforweeks." "One ofthe other challenges of shooting realistic "dead" people... is to recreate the fixed, unresponsive and dilated pupils ofthe eyes." "Medical eyedrops were used to dilate Mary Elizabeth's pupils... forthe main close-ups... with care taken notto shine the lights directly into herface." "Cyanotic (blue) makeup is also used to create... the characteristic bloodless pallor ofthe skin in hypothermia cases." "One ofthe original concepts forthis scene... involved seeing Lindsey's dying POV... where herview ofthe others shrinks away into blackness... as if she were falling down a tunnel." "Instead, this overhead shotwas used... to suggestthe classic "floating above your body" feeling... reported by manywho have had near-death experiences." "Lindsey should have some bruised, if not broken, ribs from the revival... and would need to be on antibiotics to avoid pneumonia... broughton by the fact thatthe water in her lungs... would have temporarilywashed away the protective mucus lining." "Note that Bud's hand is still blue." "These are real scleral contacts that Ed Harris is putting in." "They are clear lenses thatcovermostofthe eye... and contain a small glass bead in the center... thatallows partial vision underwaterwithouta mask." "Bud holds Beany, the only other Deepcore crewmember... who has experienced fluid breathing first-paw." "Fluid breathing is a viable concept... but has not been fully tested on human beings for a number of reasons... ranging from liability forvolunteers... to the factthat, while experiments have shown... thatan anesthetized person can survive while fluid breathing... it is farmore difficultto actively work underwaterwhile doing so... since physical activity demands greater oxygen consumption." "A nice moment here from Ed Harris thatechoed his portrayal... ofJohn Glenn in The Right Stuff." "Since we did notactually have Ed Harris... breathing the liquid fluorocarbon... this filling scene was done with pink-colored water... which was pumped into a sealed helmet." "Some people thoughtwe used a "trick glass" effect... with a double-paned dome with liquid between the layers... butyou can tell by the fact thatthe liquid is touching Ed's skin... and the amountof refraction thatthis was notthe case." "Ed Harris had the formidable task of holding his breath... while pretending that he was inhaling the liquid." "Atthe end of each take, Ed would signal he needed air... and the two side plugs on the helmet were pulled out... and the pink water drained out so he could breathe." "The suitand helmetwould then need to be dried forthe nexttake." "Forthe shots with the filled helmet..." "Ed had to hold his breath as the helmetwas quickly filled... and then continue to hold his breath until the shotwas completed... and the helmet drained again." "These takes lasted upwards of a minute ormore." "Forthe lastshot of Bud saying farewell... and disappearing into the water..." "Ed had to descend to the bottom of B-tank... then surface again to allowthe helmet to be drained so he could breathe." "Needless to say, he learned howto hold his breath for a long time... while still focusing on the performance." "His POVdescending was shot byjim Cameron himself... who had to hold his breath as he went down... so he wouldn'tcast bubbles into the shot." "This was the hero shotofthe entire Deepcore underwater set in A-tank... with underwater cinematographer Al Giddings operating the camera... which was mounted on Mike Cameron's Sea Wasp DPVcamera platform." "This was one ofthe few days in which A-tank was clear enough... to getsuch a wide shot." "Even with filters running constantly, A-tank literally had its own weather... and we would have to check it every morning... to see ifwe had to limitourselves to shooting tighter shots... due to cloudier conditions." "One ofthe only indications thatthis shot is underwater atall... is the small stream of residual bubbles escaping from the Deep Suit." "This shotof Lindsey was filmed in smoke on stage." "This high angle was a composite of live underwaterfootage in A-tank... and a matte painting created by Dream Quest." "The descentshots were achieved via several differentmethods." "Aseries of shots were done with the camera dollying sideways... while Ed Harris was dragged horizontally through the water... by a cable pastthe rock wall set." "Other shots featuring Harris were shot in the insert tank... with either blackness ormoving footage ofthe rock wall projected behind him." "This rear-projection shot with the crane... had Ed suspended sideways in the water to simulate a down angle." "This is a composite of a Bud puppet shot underwater against bluescreen... with a motion-control miniature shot ofthe crane." "The deepestactual suit dive to date was by the U.S. Navy in 1998... which senta diver down to 2,000 feet... while wearing a one-atmosphere hard-shelled suitcalled the NewtSuit." "Shots of Bud falling 50 vertical feet... along the rock wall set in A-tank were difficult... because it is very difficult to equalize your ears... without being able to pinch your nose... so all ofthe long falling shots were performed... by veteran diver Charlie Arneson... who wore a clothespin on his nose inside the Deep Suit helmet." "The descentwas basically created outof dozens of shots... of either Charlie Arneson in the wide angles... and Ed Harris in the closer angles... falling pastthe same section of rock wall." "Bud's intentionally misspelled messages were prerecorded on videotape... and played back for Mary Elizabeth in the command module set." "Later, in postproduction... dozens of new inserts on the messages typing out... were shotto reflect minortextchanges." "Since Ed Harris was not in these scenes... with all ofthe other actors in the command module... he requested some time off to go to New York... to getsome much deserved rest." "On a showwhere pretty much every scene... took two to three times longer to shootthan scheduled... we anticipated thatthese scenes would take a week ormore of shooting... so Ed's requestwas granted." "Sure enough, all ofthe command module scenes... including many key emotional moments for Lindsey... were completed in only a few days... so Ed Harris had to be called back from New York early to resume his work." "While tests in a pressure tank at Duke University Medical Center in 1980... have taken divers to a simulated depth of 2,132 feet... it is thoughtthatonly fluid breathing would allow depths belowthat." "Atthese pressures, test divers have noted... that just inhaling was like "trying to breathe honey."" "The deepestscuba dive on compressed airwas to 510 feet... by Richard Birch atAndros Island in the 1960s." "The deepestscuba dive on an HeO2 breathing mixture... was to 900 feet in the 1990s by Sheck Exley." "The deepestfree dive, with no gear, was made... by a Cuban diver named "Pippin" who held his breath down to 450 feet." "At 17,000 feet, the ambient pressure is nearly 570 atmospheres." "This flare ignition shotwas filmed in Gale Anne Hurd's swimming pool... during postproduction." "Underwatermagnesium flares have to be handled with extreme care." "They can cause severe burns and cannot be putoutonce they're lit." "The onlyway to extinguish itwas to break offthe unlit portion... and just letthe lit part burn itself out." "The music composed by Alan Silvestri forthese scenes... was intentionally spare and atonal... to reflectthe remote and moonlike landscape through which Bud travels." "This "candle in the dark" speech... as well as a number of earlier confessional moments from Lindsey... were trimmed out ofthe theatrical release fortime." "As it is, the descentsequence compresses over half an hour of real time... into justover eightminutes." "This wide miniature shotof a Bud puppet falling againstthe rock wall... was one ofthe key images inJim Cameron's mind... when writing the sequence- a "candle in the dark."" "Audience participation fans atthis pointyell out, "A Bud light!"" "In the original script, Bud does, in fact, see lights all around him... in the form of bioluminescentsquid." "This series of shots was omitted for cost reasons." "This is anotherminiature composite of a Bud puppetshot in smoke... with the glow ofthe distant NTI Ark lighting up the wall." "There was also going to be bioluminescentalgae... all overthe rock wall... which would stir up like fairy dust when Bud lands... butthis effect-which would have had to be done live on the set... to avoid a massive amount of optical work" "was cutfor scheduling and budget reasons." "We were going to use different-colored cyalume stick chemicals... and spread them all overthe rock wall set to create the glowing algae... butthe chemical will only glow a short time... and meantthatwe would have had to keep adding iton every take... and deal with the changing brightness from take to take." "The Deep Suit helmet used for all ofthe underwater scenes... had a pink-tinted faceplate thatcould be lifted... so a regulator could be used between takes." "Each take, Ed would breathe via regulator... until he signaled he was ready... then the safety diverwould swim away with his regulator and tank..." "Ed would brush away the bubbles that had collected in the helmet... close the faceplate and begin the shot." "Atthe end, Ed would signal that he was outof air... and his safety diverwould swim in quicklywith his regulator." "Since he could notwear a diving mask while wearing the Deep Suit helmet..." "Ed wore the scleral lenses, which had been custom-fitted for him... and gave him a tiny spot of clearvision... in an otherwise blurry underwaterview." "To ensure thatthe indistinguishable wire-color gag would work... we used a pair of black-and-white wires." "All ofthe close-ups ofthe wires and detonator... were shot in the insert tank in Los Angeles." "This whole scene had to be lit very carefully to look good... since it had a yellow-green key light... a purple fill light, and a pinkish light on Bud's face inside the helmet." "Bud originally had ten minutes worth left... but itwas changed to five to put Bud closerto death... so his vision ofthe ntl- Jammer's "angel"-approaching... would feel like a near-death experience." "This wide shot is a miniature rock wall with a tiny Bud puppeton it." "The following closer shots were all in A-tank." "Sound designer Blake Leyh created... a "winding down" mechanical breathing sound forthe Deep Suit... to reinforce the idea that Bud was outof oxygen." "The NTI reflection was optically added to Bud's helmet." "The hero NTI puppet was six feetacross... and was made of clear plastics and rubbers... with hundreds offiber-optic cables for lighting... and monofilamentwires to control its movements." "Glows were then added optically to enhance the image." "This shotwas filmed backwards to make the NTI's fingers grasp Bud's hand." "Awire cable pulled Bud up offthe underwater set." "The miniature NTI puppet was then shot in a tank... and tracked to the live-action plate." "The challenge was to have their hands always in realistic contact... even though theywere shot completely separately... and the NTI had to be moving back and forth with the movements of its wings." "Forthis long tracking shot, Ed Harris was suspended... in frontof a dry bluescreen in the Deep Suit... with a miniature NTI puppet shot in water and tracked to his movements." "The two elements were then composited over a miniature rock wall background." "This big reveal ofthe NTI Ark... used a 12-foot-diameter, motion-control model... filled with fiber optics lit by lasers." "Only halfthe Ark was builtforthese shots... which were filmed in heavy smoke to create scale." "Atwo-foottall Bud puppetwas shot underwater against bluescreen... and composited with the NTI puppet... which was shotseparately underwater against black." "Both had to be perfectly synchronized... both to each other's movements and to the camera and background." "Small elements ofthe Manta ship were added as tiny moving lights... to further enhance the scale ofthe Ark." "Several larger-scale sections ofthe Ark were built... including the spire tunnel entrance and the tunnel itself... which had to be able to accommodate a motion-control camera... through all of its twists and turns." "The models were made of back-lit clear plastic and were shot in heavy smoke." "The moving tunnel background and its reflections... were composited onto an underwater bluescreen shotof Ed Harris... reacting to nothing while colored lights were panned over his face." "Afull-size section ofthe NTI chamber made of back-litfiberglass... was builtand used both on stage and underwater." "The parting ofthe waterwall was achieved... by strapping both Bud and the camera to the set piece... turning itsideways, and filming it being lowered into the tank." "The footage was then run in reverse... so it looked like the water was moving sideways off of Bud." "This method was done both full-scale forthe close-ups... and in miniature forthe wider shots." "Slowmotion and a series of dissolves were used... to create a dream-like feel to the agonizing process... of Bud's "rebirth" as an air-breather." "The water-wall sequence was achieved by rear-projecting an image on a screen... on one end ofthe setorthe other." "To create the rippling liquid surface... the projected image was bounced with a series of mirrors... through a large tray ofwater." "For one wall's image, half a dozen NTI puppets were shottogether... in the large insert tank." "The video newscastwall material- dubbed "NTV"- was edited together... from both custom news anchorfootage shot in preproduction... and from stock footage." ""WGJP" referred to the production company name forthe film... which was GJP- for Gale andJim Productions." "The seismologist in the news report was played by Michael Chapman... the noted cinematographer offilms such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull..." "The Fugitive and The Story of Us." "The wave news reporter, played by Tom Isbell... also shows up in the high-rise climax... ofJim Cameron's 1994 film, True Lies." "This handheld video news shot... had extras running from a rear-projection screen... showing a composite image ofthe wave in Santa Monica." "Classic nuclear bomb stock footage... from both the Nevada and Bikini Atoll tests in the 1940s and '50s." "This montage of"Mankind's Greatest Hits"... was edited togetherfrom old stock footage by video editor Ed Marsh." "The music heard here was originally written for and used... in the movie The Seventh Sign." "Since the sequence was cutto it as a temp music track... itwas easierto license the music ratherthan write newmaterial." "The crowd scenes were shot in Santa Monica, California... with 300 hundred extras screaming and running from nothing... whileJim Cameron directed them through a bullhorn." "The wave shots were done by ILM... and incorporated footage of real beach waves shotat 300 frames per second... in Waimea, Hawaii, which is known as a surfers' haven... because of its huge waves." "This nighttime shot... incorporates a matte painting ofthe Russian naval base." "This is the only computer-generated wave shot in the sequence... since it proved impossible to make real wave footage... come to a realistic standstill." "This was one ofthe other reasons the scene was notadded until 1992... forthe Special Edition... when the technologywas finally in place to make it look good." "A bunch of ILM staffers stood in frontof a bluescreen forthis shot." "Some ofthese tighter crowd shots were filmed afterthe Santa Monica shoot... in a Long Beach parking lot nextto the stage." "The NTIs bow in respectto Bud for his sign of sacrifice." "Finding universal gestures forthe NTIs thatwould be easily understood... butwould not look silly being done by an extraterrestrialjellyfish... was one ofthe big challenges in these scenes." "The implication here... is thatthe NTIs can control the weather and dissipate the hurricane." "Hence the time-lapse stock footage of clouds." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot in Westport, Washington." "These daylightshots in the Benthic bridge were also shoton stage... with white backdrops and strong lighting to simulate daytime." "Even though the umbilical was severed... the Benthic can still communicate with Deepcore via the UQC... an underwater acoustic telephone system in standard use today." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot atthe Salton Sea in California." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot atthe Salton Sea in California." "McBride is talking about rescuing the Deepcore crew... using the Navy's DSRVs- Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles." "The U.S. Navy maintains two ofthese submersibles-named Mystic and Avalon- with one on each coast formaritime emergencies." "BothJim Cameron's and Gale Anne Hurd's personal assistants... played cameos aboard the Benthic bridge as crewmembers." "The entire question of how Bud communicates with the NTIs... was a challenge to make plausible." "The video waterwall was the main visual solution to this dilemma... while Bud's messages allowed an elaboration ofthe ideas... while skirting the deeper communications issue." "In Orson Scott Card's novel ofthe film... the NTIs are able to communicate emotions semi-telepathically... by using theirwater-control power... to manipulate the chemical signals in the human brain." "The underwater shots ofthe rising Ark... were added to the film late in postproduction... to insure thatthe audience understood... thatwhatthey saw atthe bottom ofthe abyss... and whatthey saw atthe surface were the same craft." "These shots were done in smoke on the motion-control stages at Dreamquest." "The lightsuffusing the Deepcore crew hints atthe physiological changes... the NTIs had to make to the humans so they did not die... from the rapid decompression broughton by coming to the surface." "The Ark-rising sequence was shot... by Gene Warren and the Fantasy II Film Effects team." "Using a series of model sections... ranging from an 8-footspire top to a 20-footcomplete spire..." "Fantasy II shota series of high-speed miniature shots outatthe Salton Sea." "These elements were then composited with bluescreen shots... ofthe Benthic crew by Dreamquest." "The wide shotofthe entire Ark was shot... in the Fantasy II parking lot in Burbank... with a 12-foot diameterminiature... in three inches of heavily dyed blue water." "Itwas filmed at 300 frames per second... and then cascade-printed to 600 frames per second... to create the mile-wide scale ofthe Ark." "Large, 20-footsections ofthe Ark surface had to be built in scale... with the 42-foot Benthic Explorer model... as well as the navy destroyermodels and Deepcore." "These were also shot outatthe Salton Sea." "Bags of baking soda were blown across the shots by fans... to create scale mist in these high-speed shots." "These shots were done with the actors standing... in frontofthe full-size Deepcore set in the tank... after it had been partially drained." "An Ark surface paint job was laid down overthe seafloor set... along with a small ridge of detail to hide the edge ofthe tank from the camera." "The greatestchallenge ofthe scene... was to somehow keep the feel ofthis magical city of light... thatwe saw in the darkness ofthe abyss while itwas in broad daylight." "Optical composite of a matte painting, a miniature Ark section... and live footage of photo-doubles forthe crew... standing in a parking lotarea in six inches ofwater... with a piece of hatch we brought back from Gaffney beside them." "The matte painting was begun at Dreamquest... and completed byjim Cameron himself on the scoring stage... while he was working on the sound mix." "This is a forced perspective shot... with a six-foot portal miniature in the foreground... and Ed Harris standing way atthe far end ofthe stage in the background." "The color scheme ofthe Ark in daylight- swirling purples and salmon pinks- was to suggestthe pearlescenttextures and shadings of seashells." "After several attempts to shootthem... in the golden lightof dusk ("magic hour")... these final shots of Bud and Lindsey were shot... on the stage in Long Beach... with the NTI portal model and spire cutouts outoffocus behind them." "These are actually photo-doubles of Bud and Lindsey... standing in a wet parking lot at Cal State Dominguez Hills... with more water optically printed to extend itto the sides ofthe frame." "Actor Kidd Brewer ("Finler") Passed away... a year afterthe film was released in 1989." "This dedication was added for the Special Edition release in 1993." "This quote from philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)... was omitted from the theatrical version ofthe film... because itwas used on anotherfilm... released just prior to the release of The Abyss." "The main title animation was created by Ernest Farino and Paul Olson." "14-footminiature sub shot in smoke on a motion-control stage." "The USS Montana, SSBN-741, is an Ohio-class ballistic missile sub on patrol." "There is no real sub with this name, butthe Ohio-class subs- all named after states- are quite real... and are still the top-of-the-line submarines forthe U.S. Navy." "Cavitation is the sound created by the movementofwater over a propeller." "It is to be minimized in orderto avoid detection." "Cavitation sounds are particular to each sub and can be used... by Navy sonarmen to track and identify individual vessels." "U.S. Navy subs have, in fact, played chicken with Russian subs foryears... playing both tag and hide-and-seek in the world's oceans." "The idea was to show superiority by being able to sneak up... on the other sub without being detected." "To date, no naval sub disaster on either side... has been publicly proven to have been the resultof such dangerous games." "Sonarman Barnes is played by Michael Beach, now known for his role on "ER."" "The main sonar graphics were created by Video Image." "The futzing ofthe video was done by mixing the video signals together... using Radio Shack TVsignal boxes." "14-footminiature sub shot in smoke on a motion-control stage... with optical ripple enhancement." "As with many classic UFO reports, power systems tend to dim or shut down... in the presence of extraterrestrial technology." "40-footminiature sub shotat 40fps." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater... in the 1932 Olympic Swim Stadium nearthe Los Angeles Coliseum." "40-foot underwaterminiature shotat 40fps in a 55-foot deep tank." "Rear-screen projection of a miniature torpedo room behind live extras." "The sailorwith the fire extinguisher isJim Cameron's younger brother, Mike." "40-foot underwaterminiature shotat 40fps in a 55-foot deep tank." "The helmsman is played by Abyss art directorJoe Nemec... who had served on a nuclearmissile sub in the Navy." "Every Navy sub has a classified crush depth... belowwhich the sub will implode from the water pressure." "It is believed thatmost Navy subs have crush depths of 2,000 feet." "The buoy launch was shot in the main tank on a full-scale section of sub hull." "Optical composite ofthe full-scale buoy and underwaterminiature sub." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater." "Rear-screen projection of a flooding miniature engine room... behind live extras." "There were hoses just behind the door set piece." "Huge dump tanks were used to flood the set." "Once this scene was shot, the entire setwas submerged in a tank... for subsequent underwater scenes." "14-footminiature sub shot underwater... with tiny glass beads for scale bubbles... plus full-scale bubbles composited in atthe end." "The blinking lightwas added optically." "Live helicopters with optical rain added." "42-footminiature Benthic Explorer shotoffWestport, Washington... and composited with live helicopters and rain elements." "The Benthic Explorer never existed as anything buteither... a 10th-scale miniature or as limited interiors... such as the Benthic bridge set on stage." "Live helicopters shot in frontof a big gray backdrop... and a helipad set built on a pier/parking lot... in Long Beach, California." "These views from the bridge were achieved by shooting... through a piece ofwindow set on a tall scaffold above the helipad set." "Lindsey Brigman is played by Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio... who had garnered critical acclaim... in both Scarface and The Colorof Money." "Bendix' line was a sly reference to the main creature... inJim Cameron's previous film, Aliens." "Unlike mostfilms, all the video playback forthis film... was shotwithoutthe benefit of specialized 24fps video equipment." "A 144-degree shutterwas used on the camera to eliminate the roll-bars." "Since the Benthic bridge scenes were shot later in the schedule... itwas possible to use a lotof generic video ofthe Deepcore model... and underwater live action in the tanks as playback material." "Comedian Chris Elliot played the part of Bendix, the crew chief." "Known atthe time for his stint on David Letterman's show... he subsequently appeared in such films as Cabin Boy... and There's Something About Mary." "Matte painting by Dreamquestartist Bob Scifo... combined with live-action underwater elements." "Live action underwaterwith the real actors on the full-scale Deepcore set... in the main filming tank, called "A-tank."" "Since the film takes place atabyssal depths... where no lightfrom the surface should penetrate... all ofthe underwaterfootage- both live-action and miniature- had to be shoteither at night or under heavily tented areas ofthe tanks." "Ed Harris is inside the one actual pressurized underwatermodule set... in A-tank, talking to actor Leo Burmester in his diving gear." "Bud Brigman is played by Ed Harris... who playedJohn Glenn in The Right Stuff... and would subsequently receive Oscar nominations for his work... in Apollo 13 and The Truman Show." "The drill room was builton a stage as one continuous set... to allowthese Steadicam shots to follow Bud from the drill room... all the way forward to the toolpusher's office set." "Hippy is played by Todd Graff, an actor/playwrightwho wenton... to write and produce "Used People," starring Shirley MacLaine." "Little Geek is a real working ROV- remotely operated vehicle- built by Benthos Engineering of Massachusetts." "Itwas operated on set byjim Cameron's brother, Mike." "Shot live underwater in A-tank... with actorsJ.C. Quinn and Kimberly Scott in Flatbed... and the full-scale Deepcore in the background." "The control module was shot on a dry, smoke-filled stage... to simulate being underwater." "One Night is played by Kimberly Scott... whose credits include Flatliners, The Client... the third and fourth Batman films and the TVseries The Commish." "The Sub Bay setwas built on the surface... ofthe secondary filming tank, "B-tank"... so the real submersibles could enter and exitthe moonpool perthe script." "Sonny is played byJ.C. Quinn, whose credits include..." "Primary Colors, Days of Thunder and Bastard Out ofCarolina." "Lew Finler is played by Capt. Kidd Brewer, Jr., a certified divemaster... who was a longtime Cameron friend and fellow diver." "Catfish is played by Leo Burmester, whose film credits include..." "Broadcast News, Lone Star and Devil's Advocate." "Commodore DeMarco (J. Kenneth Campbell)... was originally to be played by Cameron regular Lance Henriksen... but it didn't happen due to conflicting schedules." "Deepcore was conceived as an underwater oil-drilling platform... which had the advantage over other platforms... of being unaffected by surface weather." "This concept is technically feasible buteconomically prohibitive." "It's still cheaper to use surface platforms." "Lt. Hiram Coffey, head ofthe Navy SEAL team... is played by Cameron regular Michael Biehn... who grew a moustache forthe role to offset his boyish, good-guy looks." "Atoolpusher is the on-site crew supervisor on an oil rig." "This 11-foot Deepcore miniature and 14th-scale Flatbed model... were hung stationary and shot in smoke... while the camera and cliffface were dollied pastthe models... on a motion-control stage." "Shot in smoke on a stage, dollying towards a stationary set." "Rear projection ofthe quarter-scale underwater Flatbed miniature... on a screen outside ofthe command module window on stage." "Shot live, full-scale, in A-tank." "Underwaterminiature." "Large-scale miniature on the ocean with rain elements added on top." "Stationary seton stage with a rocking camera." "The storm was created using hoses, fans and a backdrop." "Live video cameras and monitors on two separate sets... were used to allow Mary Elizabeth and Ed Harris... to converse while both sides were being filmed." "This launchpad was builtfull-scale on a concrete pad nextto B-tank." "Forced-perspective shot with a quarter-scale Cab Three miniature... suspended over a watertank in the foreground... and full-scale people in the background." "Quarter-scale, radio-controlled miniature submersible... shot underwater in B-tank." "The RC subs were built by Walt Conti Productions... whose team was responsible for both the whales in Star Trek IV... and the sharks in Deep Blue Sea." "To create a proper sense of haze and blue murk... forthe underwaterminiature shots... blue food coloring and milk were fanned around in the water before each take." "To create scale particulate matter floating in the water... ground-up walnutshells were also stirred into the water." "Since the waterwas heated to about 85 degrees for diving semi-comfort... the filters had to work overtime... removing the semi-heated milk and walnut bits every day." "11-foot Deepcore miniature and 8th-scale Flatbed model... were hung sideways over a miniature ocean floor... and shot in smoke on a motion-control stage." "This is the Linda Ronstadtversion... ofthe greattruck-driving song, "Willing"... written by Lowell George and firstmade famous by Little Feat." "Karaoke time:" "I've been warped by the rain" "Driven by the snow" "I'm drunk and dirty, don'tya know" "But I'm still" "Willing" "Out on the road late last night" "I've seen my pretty Alice in every headlight" "Alice" "Dallas Alice" " And I've been from Tucson to Tucumcari" " Flatbed miniature shot in smoke with film projected inside the bubble." "Tehachapi to Tonapah" "Driven every kind ofrig that's ever been made" "Driven the back roads so I wouldn't getweighed" "And ifyou give me" "Weed" "Whites and wine" "And you show me a sign" "Then I'll be willin'" "To be movin'" "Miniatures shotseparately in smoke and composited together." "Rear-projected miniature footage outside the window." "Mary Elizabeth in a full-scale submersible shot in the main tanks." "All ofthe tighter close-ups ofthe submersible interiors... were shoton stage." "Compression chamber seton stage." "In the film, the Deepcore team practices "saturation diving"... which means they are actually living and working atambient pressure... which, at 1,700 feet, is 57 atmospheres." "Lindsey and the SEAL team came down in Cab Three... atone atmosphere- the pressure atsea level- so they mustspend time slowly being pressurized to 57 atmospheres... before they can join the restofthe crew in Deepcore." "Saturation diving is real, butthe pressurizing process... would in reality take several days or even weeks... ratherthan the eight hours depicted in the film." "Also, some ofthe breathing mixtures in use today... contain a lotof inert helium gas... so everybody sounds like Donald Duck when saturation diving." "Obviously, itwas feltthatthis touch of realism would interfere... with the audience's ability to concentrate on the story... so itwas avoided." "High Pressure Nervous Syndrome (HPNS)... is a real disorder thatcan strike divers." "Formore information, check outa scientific journal... called "Underwater Biomedical Research" atyour local university library." "Note that Coffey says, "They're checked out."" "He never says he is." "The pointofthis scene is to introduce that Catfish... a former Marine, as evidenced by his arm tattoo... used to pack quite a punch as a fighter." "This factwill, of course, figure later on in the film... and is an example of building importantelements... into the writing ofthe script." "Cutfrom the film was a moment... where Lindsey casually toes open a latched Navy case... and sees a glimpse of a strange detonator-like device... before Coffey slams his foot down on the case... and says pleasantly, "Curiosity killed the cat."" "We had to shootthis scene a second time... afterwe realized we had left Flatbed in the moonpool during this scene." "Flatbed is supposed to be towing the rig right now!" "Uh-oh." "More rear projection outside the window." "All ofthese interior Deepcore sets were built... as connected rooms on a stage- a warehouse, actually- in South Carolina, to allow the actors and camera crew... to move throughoutthe set, even from one floorto another." "Note howthe shots show offthe set, while the set gives the actors... all sorts ofthings to do with their characters... even as they are delivering story exposition in their dialogue." "This scene was cutfortime from the theatrical version... but illuminates the status of Bud and Lindsey's marriage and separation." "Italso introduces Bud's wedding ring... which was specifically noted in the script... as being both a gift from Lindsey and made of high-grade titanium." "Believe itor not, folks who are interested in such a wedding ring... can find iton the Web at..." "Apparently, afterthe movie came out, enough people asked about it... thatsome enterprising jewelers actually started offering... an "Abyss- style" titanium wedding ring." "Since itwas only going to be seen in this one scene..." "Bud's quarters were a redressing of one ofthe other Deepcore module sets." "In the theatrical version ofthe film... this scene is the firsttime we see Bud's titanium wedding ring... and the factthat he does not, in fact, flush it... is important later on in the film." "This is another example ofthe screenwriter's art." "Italso meantthatwe had to make Ed Harris' right hand blue... for pretty much the restofthe film, in orderto maintain continuity." "Composite of an underwatertank shot ofthe 14th-scale miniature Deepcore... with an 8th-scale model of Flatbed shot dry in smoke on a stage." "These "underwater photos" were actually shots... ofthe 70-footmotion-control miniature thatwere outputon a video printer... and taped togetherto simulate the classic photomosaic look." "These are dosimeter badges, used to detect levels of radiation... in case one ofthe warheads orthe sub's nuclear power plant... has been breached by the crash." "This brief moment between Bud and Coffey from the Special Edition... sets up the initial conflict between them... over Coffey's treatmentof Bud's crew." "All the divers carry cyalume sticks, which are plastic tubes containing... the same bioluminescentchemicals as fireflies use in their bodies." "You can buy these as emergency lights and road flares... in most hardware stores." "Fluid breathing is a real and tested concept... albeit notas of yet practical for human beings." "This scene- and the conceptofthe film- was inspired byjim Cameron seeing footage... of real-life experiments done with rats in the sixties... as well as a lecture by the one diver... who underwenta fluid breathing experiment in one of his lungs." "The basic idea is that the body does notcare... how it gets its oxygen in the lungs... as long as there is enough of it forthe body to function." "Water holds less oxygen than air, so fish compensate by having gills... which have more surface area... and can therefore drawmore oxygen from the water." "Mammals have lungs adapted to breathing air... so they cannotextract enough oxygen from water... to survive by breathing underwater." "The solution to this dilemma is to somehow increase... the amountof oxygen in the liquid you are breathing." "The firstexperiments were done in the 1950s and '60s... using an oxygenated saline solution." "Later, an oxygenated fluorocarbon was used... because itcould retain more oxygen under pressure." "These experiments were pioneered by Dr. Johannes Kylstra... and Dr. Peter Bennett of Duke University... who consulted on the film." "We really did this experiment on the set." "We had a representative from the Humane Society on the set... and we used real fluorocarbon liquid, which we saturated with oxygen." "We did six takes using live rats... and contrary to whatanimal rights activists have said... all ofthem survived the scene." "The only reason we did cutaways to the actors... was to disguise the factthat the rats were defecating in the liquid... since theywere freaking out about breathing it." "In fact, the production spent a great deal oftime and money... to insure the animals' safety in the scene." "Still, don'ttry this at home, kids." "The real fluorocarbon is clear... butwe wanted to distinguish it from regularwater... so we added a non-toxic, fluorocarbon-soluble dye to tint it pink." "The one practical drawback of breathing liquid... is thatthe fluid tends to wash out the mucus coating from your lungs... leaving you more vulnerable to pneumonia... and other respiratory infections." "As a result, we gave the rats antibiotics after doing the scene." "Mary Elizabeth in a full-scale submersible shot in A-tank." "Exceptforthe reallywide shots, these scenes were all shot... with the actors inside or atop the actual subs underwater." "The wide shots were done as miniature shots... using models and puppets on a dry, smoke-filled stage... with bubbles composited on top." "They are atthe edge ofthe Cayman Trench in the Caribbean... which is 21,000 feet deep at its lowest point." "The deepest place in the ocean is actually in the Marianas Trench... in the South Pacific, almostseven miles deep." "That's two miles deeper than Mount Everest is tall." "Only one submersible has ever gone down to the bottom ofthe Marianas Trench:" "The bathyscaphe Trieste, in 1960." "We exaggerated the scale ofthe Montana's propeller... properly called a screw, for effect as it looms outofthe darkness." "The screws on Navy subs are actually seven-bladed as depicted... buttheir specific designs are classified military secrets... because they are computer-designed to minimize noise (cavitation)... while maximizing speed." "Rear projection." "These wide shots ofthe subs moving overthe wreck ofthe Montana... were achieved by shooting three 8th-scale submersible models... suspended from a motion-control rig... over a 70-footminiature ofthe Navy sub wreck... all shot in smoke in multiple passes forthe lights." "Live footage of Lindsey, One Night and Hippywas rear-projected... into the front bubble ofthe 8th-scale miniature subs... via custom 35mm film projectors inside the models." "We builtonly one full-scale, underwater section... ofthe exterior ofthe Montana:" "A missile deck section with one hatch and six missile tube doors." "All ofthe shots done live in the big tank... had the actors in the submersibles... passing overthe same 60-foot piece of setover and over again." "This shotcombines live-action footage shot in the tank... with motion-control miniatures shot in smoke... and a matte painting to bridge them together." "The Montana's interiorflooded before itsank to crush depth... so the sub did not implode." "Instead, the visible exterior damage... was caused by its collision with the rock wall... and its final impact at its resting place on the ledge." "Only two U.S. Navy nuclear submarines have actually been lostatsea." "In 1963,the USS Thresher suffered a mechanical failure... during a training mission and sank to crush depth... where it imploded violently... leaving virtually nothing buta debris field... on the floor ofthe Atlantic." "In 1968,the USS Scorpion suffered a likely torpedo malfunction... in the Atlantic during a routine patrol and sank offthe Azores... coming to rest in several large pieces." "There were no survivors in either case." "In fact, the missions and locations of Navy subs are so secretive... thatthey do not really carry emergency buoys or use beacons... since they cannotafford to be found and salvaged by "hostile" nations." "Because ofthis, itoften takes months oryears... to find a missing or sunken sub." "One of our unofficial naval consultants on the film..." "Don Walsh of International Maritime, Inc... was one ofthe Navy divers who searched the Thresher wreckage... ironically, using the bathyscaphe Trieste." "Because ofthe basic story premises of sinking a U.S. Missile sub... and having a Navy SEAL go psycho from HPNS... the production never approached the U.S. Navy... for official sanctioning or consultation on the film." "Cab One and Cab Three were one and the same real submersible... owned and operated by Can-Dive Services, of Canada." "The stern hatch shown on the cabs- and indeed its entire stern thruster assembly- was a cosmetic add-on to the real submersible Aquarius... which was about six feetshorter in real life." "In reality, the actors are sitting up front... in the observation area ofthe submersible... pretending to pilot it... while the real submersible pilots stood behind them... and controlled the craft from the top hatch viewports." "Since there was only one functioning submersible... it had to be painted alternately... red and white for Cab One and yellowfor Cab Three... as needed forthe production schedule." "There was also a full-size hollowfiberglass mock-up... thatwas used for any scene requiring an operable stern hatch." "These full-scale underwater sets were built pre-destroyed... and lowered into the smallerfilming tank, B-tank... which was still 120 feet long by 50 feetwide by 22 feet deep." "The interior Montana search scenes were some ofthe firstto be filmed... with half a dozen actors in custom diving gear... maneuvering through a twisted, enclosed set 20 feet underwater." "Then things got harder." "Since the waterto fill the tanks was pumped in from a nearby lake... the filled tanks were then treated with heavy doses of chlorine... to kill off any algae or bacteria." "Ittook a while to getthe balance of chemicals right." "Forthe firstfew days, we erred on the side oftoo much chlorine... which bleached the swimsuits (and hair!" ") of some ofthe crew divers." "We had worked so successfully to keep the water clearfor camera visibility... thatourfirstset of underwater dailies... hardly looked underwater atall." "As a result, from then on we made sure always to have paper and debris... floating in every underwater Montana scene... to emphasize the fact thateverything was really underwater." "All ofthe actors' diving gear was real... and was custom-designed and builtforthe film... by Western Space and Marine in Santa Barbara." "The WSM folks also supplied the manipulator arm forthe submersibles... and were on set for all ofthe underwaterwork." "The helmets were designed to show offthe actual actors' faces... as well as to be safe and fully functional gear." "Underthe water, the helmets were neutrally buoyant." "Outofthe water, theyweighed 25-40 pounds each." "All ofthe dead bodies you see floating in the various scenes... are the real actors and stuntmen... holding their breaths underwater, pretending to be dead." "Safety divers with scuba gear... are positioned everywhere justoutof camera range... ready to swim in to each ofthem with air between takes." "Coffey takes the missile-arming key from the body ofthe captain." "His primary mission is to retrieve, destroy or otherwise secure... all ofthe classified material from the sub." "For dialogue scenes in the helmets... a lotof sound editing and looping had to be done... to minimize the intrusive sound ofthe automatic regulators." "All ofthe sunken Montana sets were tilted ata 45-degree angle... to create disorientation." "Apart from the exterior of Deepcore itself... the Missile Bay setwas the largest underwater set builtforthe film... featuring eight huge tubes spanning two stories offilmable decking." "The sailorwith the crabs in his mouth isJim Cameron's brother, Mike." "Mike is also an experienced diver and designed and built... the DPV (diver-propulsion vehicle)- based camera platform... used on the production." "Jammer is played byJohn Bedford Lloyd... who wenton to play Tom Hanks' brother in Philadelphia." "Jammer's underwater POVs through his helmetwere achieved... by shooting an underwater shot ofthe action and projecting it... on a screen in frontof an oversized faceplate prop... placed in frontofthe camera on a stage." "Coffey retrieves the Navy secretcode books." "We omitted a scene where he also plants thermite grenades... to destroy sensitive equipment." "The fraying-rope close-ups were shot... in a smallertank in Long Beach, California... afterthe South Carolina main underwater shootwas completed." "The lights ofthe NTI being underthe decking was achieved... by rotating colorwheels in frontof bright underwater lights." "The reflection ofthe NTI being was composited ontoJammer's helmet... as the NTIs had not been completed... atthe time ofthe main underwaterfilming." "Under high-ambient-pressure conditions... pure oxygen is toxic to the human body... so the divers in the story must breathe... a carefully balanced mixture of gases in orderto survive." "The NTI Scoutship shots were motion-control miniature composites... with all ofthe light passes shotseparately in smoke... for greater control." "Quarter-scale underwater miniatures of Cab One... and the Montana's sail, shot in B-tank." "The exposition here aboutJammer's coma... sets up his eventual return to consciousness... atan opportune moment later in the film." "This scene shows Maintenance Room B- identified by the suction-cup Garfield in the window- doubling as a darkroom." "Itwill later be used by the SEALs to work on the warhead." "Unlike many by-the-book military performances..." "DeMarco is seen here reluctantly resigned to going to Phase Two... ratherthan being a more stereotypical warmongerer." "All ofthe military characters atthis point in the film... realize the enormity ofthe task- hopefully a more realistic portrayal of military personnel." "The crew of Deepcore are able to watch broadcasttelevision... via a feed sent down the umbilical from the Benthic Explorer." "ActorJoe Farago as the news anchor." "All ofthe newsroom segments... were shot in preproduction in Los Angeles for playback on the set... and edited together later in Charlotte, North Carolina." "This is a shotofthe miniature Benthic Explorer and destroyer... being rear-projected behind a small ship-railing set piece... and rephotographed directly on video." "The windblown news reporter is played... by longtime Cameron friend and writing partner BillWisher." "Bill can also be seen in both Terminator films... and was Cameron's writing partner on T2." "Paranoid characters like Hippy are always a greatway... to narratively introduce ideas and tensions in a story." "It gives Bud and the other characters something to play off... and can seta mood or suspicion in the audience by implication." "Note the continuous Steadicam shot from the corridor into Sub Bay... which notonly reinforces the near-documentary style ofthe filmmaking... butalso makes the most ofthe contiguous sets." "Rear-screen projection of real ocean waves projected behind the set... with fire hoses, huge fans and a rocking camera... providing the restofthe hurricane." "All the actors on the bridge set had to move in sync with the camera... in orderto maintain the illusion ofthe ship in the storm." "Note the little bits of character business:" "Kirkhill is seasick while DeMarco is nonchalantly eating a sandwich." "Composite of a matte painting on the left..." "Composite of a matte painting on the left... with a live-action underwater plate shot in A-tank." "The SEALs are removing what is called a "frangible diaphragm"... from one ofthe missile tubes." "The cover is designed to keep water outofthe tube priorto launch... butto shatter easily as the missile goes through it." "Mostofthese newscasts were edited out ofthe theatrical version ofthe film... in orderto remove the brink-of-World-War-Three tension... in the original story." "This material features stock footage from various sources... including the Falkland Islands War of 1982... and was compiled by video editor Ed Marsh." "This missile recovery sequence was shot... on the same 60-footfull-scale section ofthe Montana... seen repeatedly in the exterior search sequence." "Each Tridentmissile carries eight MIRVs in its nose." "MIRVstands for Multiple Independently-targeted Re-entry Vehicles." "They are designed to separate and strike multiple targets... as the missile comes down." "As Coffey notes earlier... each ofthe eight nuclearwarheads is five times more powerful... than the one that destroyed Hiroshima." "The danger of using topical stories and public figures to lend authenticity... is, of course, thatthey can date the film." "The woman with the baby in the "man in the street" interviews... is Polly Cross, a longtime associate of Gale Anne Hurd." "She also played one ofthe "dead" Sarah Connors... in police photos seen in the first Terminator film." "Here's howto getthe most outof your set... by choreographing the action of both camera and actors... for dynamic composition and smooth transition between characters." "Adding a light haze of smoke into a scene... in orderto get these kinds of lightshafts... is one ofthe tricks ofthe cinematography trade." "Miniature ofthe Benthic Explorer shoton calm waters at dusk... on the Salton Sea by Fantasy II Film Effects." "Fire hoses, jetskis, airplane fans and people with rowboats and oars... were used to create the storm... while a crane lifted and dropped the stern ofthe model repeatedly... to create a sense ofthe ship rocking on the high seas." "This device is called a heave compensator and is used to counteract... the forces on a drill string caused by the up-and-down motion... of a ship on the surface." "Motion-control composite... ofthe miniature Flatbed and Deepcore A-frame shoton a stage in smoke... with the big manipulator arm of Flatbed stop-motion-animated." "In these Benthic bridge shots in the storm... some ofthe exteriorwaves are created via rear projection... while otherwindows just have heavy rain hitting them... to obscure the outside ofthe set." "A large wooden cutoutofthe crane was placed... in the far background outone ofthe rearwindows." "The crane and launch well shots were shotat 120 frames per second... using tenth-scale miniatures over an insert tank." "A big stretch of black plastic served as a horizon line in the background... and was tilted side to side in sync with the camera motion... to simulate the rolling ofthe ship." "Underwaterminiature shot ofthe radio-controlled Flatbed model... being hit by the Deepcore A-frame section." "The Deepcore dragging shots were all shot underwaterwith the miniature... in orderto getthe skids stirring up the seafloor silt." "These push-ins were shot by dollying the camera... towards the stationary stage set... with lightsmoke simulating the underwater haze." "The collapse ofthe crane was shot by 4-Ward Productions... with multiple high-speed cameras." "The actual shooting lasted abouttwo seconds in real time." "This cab was the only full-scale set piece forthe crane." "The tilting ofthe crane cab was done by raising and counter-tilting... the camera only;" "the cab itselfwas stationary." "All ofthe underwater falling crane shots... were filmed in either A-or B-tank... by the production's wet-for-wetminiature unit... led by underwater photographer Pete Romano... whose company, Hydro Image, also provided... many ofthe underwater cameras and lights used on the film." "Another kinetic Steadicam shot running through the corridors." "Acamera operator and a focus-pulling camera assistant... had to chase the actors through the set... changing directions and trying to avoid causing visible shadows." "The jutting pipes and valves in the halls caused a lotof bruises." "To give itthe appropriate weight when shooting at high speed... the umbilical miniature tubing was filled with lead shot... and dropped underwater onto both the miniature Deepcore... and the sand-covered seafloor set piece." "Motion-control composite ofthe miniature Flatbed and Deepcore... shoton a stage in smoke... with the rigid falling cables programmed... to fall precisely the same way in each pass." "All ofthe miniature falling crane and umbilical footage was shot... in the 8-perfVistaVision format... and rear-projected outside the control module window." "This allowed more freedom of movement... than would have been possible using bluescreen- and itwas all in-camera." "In the original story, itwas the heavy umbilical itself... which fell and caused the damage to Deepcore... but in development itwas decided... thatthe audience might not get enough of a sense ofthreat... from a falling cable." "Hence, it became the entire crane thatfalls." "Again, all ofthe apparentmovement ofthe Deepcore set... was achieved on a stationary set... entirely through a careful choreography between the actors and the camera." "The flashes of light in the underwaterminiature shots... were unintentionally caused by the jolting ofthe model... overthe rocks and slope ofthe seafloor set... which caused the miniature lights on the model to blow out." "The editors serendipitously used these accidents... to motivate the big showers of sparks on the interior sets." "Monk only sustains a concussion and a broken leg here... since the force ofthe blow was dissipated... by the pipes the hatch hit on its way to him." "Open flames of any sort in a saturation diving situation are very bad... since itvery quickly depletes the oxygen in the mixture." "After all ofthe normal scenes in Sub Baywere shot... the entire setwas tilted in the water for all the subsequentscenes." "In addition to the camera movement... hidden divers in the water kicked up a storm... to create the illusion ofthe water in the moonpool... sloshing around from the dragging." "Leo Burmester and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio doing their own stunts." "The full-scale fiberglass mock-up of Cab Three... was cabled and dragged through the set." "Using slowmotion in an action sequence makes for subjective time... and also keeps the events clear forthe audience." "Movie Rule Number One:" "Save your pets first." "All shotfull-size with a stuntman." "Fire hoses aboard ocean vessels and habitats... utilize seawater pressurized via pumps." "This rescue scene gave more motivation to Monk's characterfor his later actions... butwas not in the original theatrical version." "With all ofthe underwater action, parts ofthe Deepcore miniature... broke off constantly and had to be reattached underwater... using baling wire and sticky clay on almostevery take." "Stuntcoordinator Dick Warlock was filmed by cameramen in scuba gear... as the closed module was flooded." "The flooding ofthe drill room utilized huge dump tanks on the stage sets... which were built into pits dug directly into the concrete warehouse floor... to avoid the setwalls having to withstand the pressure ofthe water." "All ofthe actors, in particular Kidd Brewer and Ed Harris... did all their own water stunts." "Hydraulic bulkheads are, of course, designed to automatically seal off... flooded sections of both ships and habitats." "The flooding hallways were all shot on the stages in South Carolina... using dump tanks and false ceilings to allowthe actors an escape route... in case of emergency." "The only exception was the flooding ofthe living quarters... which was shot by flooding the one pressurized module... in the Deepcore set in A-tank." "This is, of course, why itwas specified in the script... that Bud's wedding ring was made oftitanium." "Note thatthis is where the character of Sonny breaks his arm... which will be in a sling forthe restofthe story." "Underwaterminiature shotof Deepcore." "This scene was cutshort in the theatrical version... but, in its complete version, shows Bud's way... of handling the emotional states of his crew... by giving Sonny something to focus on despite its futility." "From this pointon in the film, sound designer Blake Leyh... and supervising sound editor Dody Dorn... added both water drips and metal creaks and groans... to enhance the claustrophobia and precariousness of Deepcore's position." "Listen carefully to the off-camera whispered dialogue:" "Monk is asking Coffey about his mental state and Coffey is answering defensively." "These kinds ofthrow-away exchanges, which are written and added... as looped audio in postproduction, can help round out plots and characters." "With half ofthe sets flooded from this pointon in the story... the actors had to spend many oftheirwork days... wading around in knee-deep water." "Agood expository scene like this rightafter a big action sequence... delineates the condition of all parties... and defines the direction the storywill take next." "Here, it's about defining the predicament- running outof air and power- then setting up a goal- getting more oxygen- so the audience has an expectation." "The following scene was not in the original theatrical release... and is an extension ofthe necessary exposition in the previous scene." "They are using the ROVs to survey the damage to the rig." "This crane shotestablishes both the condition ofthe Sub Bay... and the body count of both crewmen and vehicles." "Narratively, it lets the audience knowwhat happened... to all ofthe other crewmembers... and the factthat One Night was able to pilot Flatbed... back into the Sub Bay intact." "This ROVvideo shotof Cab Three with a girderthrough its front dome... was an underwaterminiature insertshot... filmed in the 1932 Olympic Swim Stadium nearthe Los Angeles Coliseum." "This is the actual video signal from the ROV... as itwas piloted through the flooded set with stuntactors playing dead." "This was Mary Elizabeth's primary underwater scene... in which she had to wear the WSM custom diving gear." "Since there were to be numerous dialogue scenes underwater... the common task of clapping the slate wouldn'twork... because the only microphones were inside the helmets." "As a result, picture and sound were kept in sync... by banging the slate on the side ofthe actors' helmets." "This discussion between Bud and One Nightabout Lindsey... was cutfrom the theatrical version ofthe film." "On the big set in A-tank." "In the original story, both Catfish and Coffey... were supposed to go out underwater with Lindsey... with the two men going aft to scavenge other oxygen tanks." "As filmed, Catfish did go out diving with Lindsey... butwas engrossed with working on a different part ofthe rig... and did notsee the NTIs." "After her encounter..." "Lindseywas to have said to Catfish overthe restored radio link..." ""You better not have missed that."" ""Missed what?" he replies." "In the end, only Lindseywas shown going out... in orderto keep her completely isolated... for her encounterwith the NTIs." "The hundreds of underwater lights used in the film... were provided by both Al Giddings' company, Ocean Images... and Pete Romano's Hydro Image." "Underwater lighting specialist Richard Mula... designed the powerful AC lights with GFIs (ground-fault interrupters)... so theywould shutoff immediately ifthere were anywater leaks." "Even with massive amounts of current... flowing through the sheathed underwater cables... electrocution was virtually impossible... since any leaking current in the water was being dissipated... over 7.5 million gallons ofwater in A-tank... and 2.2 million gallons in B-tank." "This scene required shooting... a series of visual-effects background plates of Lindsey underwater- in this shot, against underwater bluescreen- so the NTI ships could be added." "Interactive lights were used to play across the actress and set... while she gazed in awe at nothing." "The NTI Scoutship was designed as a cross between... a diver propulsion vehicle and an underwater ramjetmade of glass." "The actual miniature was abouttwo feet long... and made of glass and molded plastic... with a series ofTesla globes, ultraviolet paint... and fiber optics running through it... each ofwhich was shot in a separate motion-control pass... and composited together optically." "Bluescreen elementof Lindsey composited with a miniature set... and the three-foot-wide NTI Manta model." "The Manta was made of sculpted plexiglass... and had both fiber optics and neon tubes in it." "Underwater live-action plate shot in A-tank." "These wide shots were also augmented... with matte paintings and interactive light." "The up angles of Lindsey reaching up to touch the Manta ship... were done with the actress in frontof an underwater bluescreen... with a piece of clear plexiglass for herto touch... and her bubbles to bounce off." "This final crane shotwas filmed on a dry bluescreen stage... with stuntwoman Marcia Holly standing in for Mary Elizabeth... since the helmets were too heavy forthe actress to wear outofthe water." "Bubbles were then added optically, along with the Manta ship... whose movementwas matched to the live-action, motion-control crane shot." "Lindsey is using a Nikonos underwater camera and housing... which is considered the standard for real underwater still photography." "The Manta's refractive wake was an added optical distortion." "Sonny must be asleep atthe sonar station... to have missed this encounter, of course." "This insert of Lindsey's photos and light box... were shot in Gale Anne Hurd's garage during postproduction... with video editor Ed Marsh's hand doubling for Ed Harris'." "In the novel, Orson Scott Card shows the NTIs... deliberately showing themselves only to Lindsey... since they believe she is the most receptive to their presence... from her brief encounter atthe Montana." "Naturally, it is Hippy, the most paranoid ofthe riggers, who believes in UFOs." "The beings were specifically called NTIs... to getaway from the connotations of E.T." "To add to Lindsey's sense ofwonder at her encounter... cinematographer Mikael Salomon bounced light... off small mirrored trays ofwater onto herface." "This was justified practically on the set bywater in the bilges... caused by the flooding... but is an example of subtly emphasizing... certain on-setelements for dramatic effect." "Note that Bud's hand is still blue." "This confrontation scene was cut from the theatrical version ofthe film... but illustrates Bud's and Coffey's very differentmethods... of dealing with people under stress." "Catfish is justspoiling for a fight... which carries through from his firstcomments aboutthe SEALs... atthe compression chamber earlier... all the way to the fight later on." "Originally, Catfish even insults Coffeywith "...and yourmama dresses you funny"... to try to starta fight... butthis was cutout so Catfish didn'tseem so recklessly macho." "This scene was shot in the pressurized underwater set in A-tank... in orderto have the real ROVfloating outside the window port." "Even though we were recording video with the ROV's camera during the take... we couldn't use itfor playback because the camera crewwas visible." "We had to shoota separate take justforthe video." "Here's an editorial trick to compress time:" "Hippy puts in a tape to record... butthe nextcut is ofthe tape being played back to Bud later." "This way, we don't have to show everything in between... butthe narrative flow is uninterrupted." "Note this single dolly shot actually reveals Lindsey... in the background ofthe scene... listening to the conversation before the camera racks focus to her." "Yetanother confrontation between the riggers and the SEALs... further setting up Lindsey's and Coffey's animosity towards each other... and escalating Bud's involvement." "Roger Ramjetwas a popularmilitary cartoon hero from 1950s television." "Michael Biehn deftly put an almostsnake-like hiss... into his dialogue in this scene... adding to Coffey's sense of danger and territory." "In fact, a later scene description in the script reads..." ""Don't poke atthe rattler" in reference to Coffey." "Bud defuses the situation again... this time by gathering witnesses in a show of strength... then backing everyone off." "Even so, this is the firsttime we see Bud really raise his voice... in a confrontation, since itconcerns Lindsey's safety." "Coffey uses a classic military euphemism." "Note the use of lighting to reinforce his mental state." "The entire confrontation was removed fortime from the airline version... which cuts directly from Lindsey exiting the control module... after seeing Hippy's video to this post-confrontation scene." "While itstill worked narratively... the omission lessened Lindsey's strength of character... in challenging the SEALs' authority on "her" rig." "You'd think Lindseywould have noticed Coffey's condition... since she was the one warning the SEALs about HPNS in the first place." "Orson Scott Card even addresses this point in the novel... having Lindsey internally questioning her own condition for having missed it." "Notice that Hippy is eating a packet of powdered hotchocolate mix." "This pullback was omitted from the theatrical version... but is one ofthe few shots that really shows off... the interior-to-exterior scope ofthe Deepcore set in A-tank." "Underwater DPAI Giddings is shooting from a DPV... which is moving backwards from the window... as he racks both focus and exposure during the shot." "This video shot is the only one in the film where a year date is visible... which was an errorthatoccurred when the software was restarted... much like your VCRflashing "12:00."" "The time stamp on the ROV's overlay reads "1987."" "This was a live video shot where the ROV's video signal... was fed to the monitor seen in the shot." "We've panned offthe monitor by the time the camera shows up in the image." "Big Geek is another actual ROV built by Benthos Engineering in Massachusetts." "Its real name is the SuperSea Rover... and it is used for both commercial and military diving operations." "This particular ROV had been used to detectand clearmines in the Persian Gulf." "These surveillance POVs were recorded as separate takes on set... and later played back in the control module with Coffey." "Both this small scene and the earlier scene of Monk's rescue from the fire... were deleted from the theatrical version... butadd motivation to Monk's later actions... as the only SEAL willing to disobey Coffey's unauthorized orders." "In the original script, he tells Lindsey... aboutan ocean UFO encounter he had as a child." "The scene description forthis reads..." ""Asign ofthe mileage thatthese two have logged together."" "Uh-oh-here we go again." "This underwater POVwas shot in A-tank on the exterior Deepcore set... with the camera on a DPV... butwe couldn'ttake itall the way into the moonpool... because the Sub Bay setwas in B-tank." "Hippy has now programmed Big Geek to go down into the abyss." "Note the continual use of purple/magenta lighting... to denote the presence ofthe NTIs." "Note the gag here that Hippy- the one fervent believer in extraterrestrials- misses the whole pseudopod event because he's in the bathroom." "Industrial Lightand Magic's (ILM) First CG (computer graphics) shot in the film." "This intriguing watery POV came about... as a resultoftrying to reduce... the number of computer-generated pseudopod shots during preproduction." "The floating effectwas achieved... by taking a floating, wide-angle Steadicam shot... and optically processing the footage... into concentric, overlapping rings... with each ring one frame outof sync with the next." "This shot gets us around having to showthe pseudopod... spinning the hatch wheel to open the door... as well as saving the full reveal ofthe pseudopod until the lastmoment." "In fact, there was originally going to be a shot... where the pseudopod splits its tip into four "finger" tendrils... and picks up the warhead, butthatwas cutearly on." "Due to the lead time necessary to develop the computer animation... this scene was shotas early in the shootas possible, in October of 1988." "This gave Industrial Lightand Magic aboutseven months... to meetthe original release date." "Jim Cameron wrote this sequence in such a way... that he could delete itentirely ifwe couldn't getthe effects to work." "The actors were." "Of course, looking at nothing on the set during the takes... but reference passes were shoton the set... using a long piece of air-conditioning hose wielded by a couple of grips." "This notonly gave the actors an eyeline and the crew a laugh... but gave ILM good direction... on howthe pseudopod was to move and be shaped in the final shots." "To form the faces ofthe characters on the pseudopod... both Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio... had theirfaces scanned by a now standard device... called a Cyberware scanner." "The actor had to sit perfectly still in a chair rig... while a scanning laser revolved around the chair... converting the basic facial geometry... into a 3-D polygon model in the computer." "In orderto create as much usable data as possible..." "Mary Elizabeth was scanned multiple times... each with herface in a slightly differentexpression... from neutral to a full smile." "This was a double's hand shot in frontof a bluescreen." "ILM CG supervisorJohn Knoll shot 360-degree photos... of every set involving the pseudopod... in orderto use them as reflection maps forthe pseudopod's surface." "The computer-generated passes- including separate reflection and refraction layers- were scanned back outto film with mattes... and then composited optically with the live-action footage." "When the film was made in 1988-89... the use of photorealistic computer graphics in film was still in its infancy... so the computers were only used to generate elements forfilm... unlike today, when shots are completely composited in the computer... before being put back to film." "This is the only actual digital composite shot in the film." "ILM'sJohn Knoll took a live plate ofwater... being dropped from a long tray above the hallway... and hand-painted a transition from the CG pseudopod to the falling water." "This shotofthe pseudopod falling back into the water... was achieved by adding the CG element... to a shotwhip-panning down to a splash created... by dropping a 55-gallon steel drum into the water ofthe moonpool." "This shotof Coffey really makes him look creepy... because it's running backwards." "A little subconscious filmmaking trick." "Coffey is trying to keep sane by focusing his mind through pain." "He was originally going to be burning holes in his arm using a cigarette... butthis was changed after itwas realized... that no smoking would be allowed on the rig... especiallywhen they're on oxygen reserves." "Okay, so he's snapping here." "Note thatthe backlighting of his eyes by cinematographer Mikael Salomon... really adds to his crazed look." "This sequence of Hippy discovering thatthe MIRV is gone... along with the following conversation aboutthe NTIs... was cutfrom the theatrical version fortime." "The idea ofthe NTIs living that deep underwater is based... on the thoughtthatthe high ambient pressure ofthe abyssal depths... might be similar to the gravity on denser planets." "Every film needs a good shock to make everybody jump." "Here's ours." "Another nice editorial cut on movement... which compresses time in a dramatic fashion." "What did you think was going to happen in a PG-13 movie?" "Monk has now removed the loaded clip from Coffey's pistol." "You'd think Coffey would be smart enough to notice... that his gun did not have a full clip in it... but, then again, he's got HPNS." "Notice how all ofthese intercuts featureJammer in the background... as a reminder that he's not locked up." "From the script: "...the SEAL's fear is making him the perfectmachine... totally dependent on external orders."" "Coffey jams the hatchwheel with his belt... preventing access to the corridorto Sub Bay." "The only other door, in the frontofthe Sub Bay... was jammed shut during the dragging of Deepcore." "Note the use of choreography to draw out this momentformaximum suspense:" "The sound ofthe hatch unlocked, the hatch opening... seeing the gun, then revealingJammer." "And Schoenick is clutching his groin." "The compressor room was on the lower level ofthe Deepcore seton stage." "All the diving suits thatwould have keptthem warm... were, of course, stored in the Sub Bay." "Ed Harris and Leo Burmester did their own real free swim forthis scene... with safety divers readywith regulators... justoutside of camera range." "The challenge forthe actors, apart from holding their breath... was seeing well enough underwater withoutmasks to hittheirmarks." "This was shot in an insert tank back in Los Angeles." "We had to cheatthe lighting in orderto see anything in this scene... motivating itas the ambient light coming from below." "This is, of course, the narrative setup for Catfish to save the day." "We eitherforgetthat he's here... orthink that he went back to the compressor hatch and joined the others." "Back in A-tank." "Back in the Sub Bay set in B-tank." "Coffey is conveniently losing it here, giving Bud time... to slip into the Sub Bay unnoticed and take a momentto warm up." "We had to take a momentto visually emphasize the coldness ofthe water here." "In the treatmentand early drafts, the SEALs were always threatening... to duct-tape Bud or Lindsey to a chair ifthey interfered with the mission." "Ironically, in the final film, it's Schoenick who gets the honor." "The Sub Bay setwas tilted and partially submerged... afterthe crash scenes, which made the fightscene more challenging to do." "All ofthis action also had to be shot on video from a high angle... in orderto be played back later in the control module." "Various parts ofthe set, along with the pipe Bud wields... were made offoam rubberfor safety." "Even so, this is one ofthe few non-diving scenes... requiring stunt doubles for some ofthe action." "Ever notice thatthe seeming bad guy who turns outto be a good guy... inJames Cameron movies happens to have a religious name?" "In Aliens, itwas Bishop." "In The Abyss, it's Monk." "Composer Alan Silvestri chose to use a tribal drum sound... forthis fightsequence in orderto punctuate... the primitive feel of hand-to-hand combat... as a contrast to the surrounding technology." "Editorially, we are cutting seamlessly back and forth... between character POVs and normal, third-party movie shots." "The humidity created by the water in an enclosed set... caused the camera lenses to fog up a lot... so a warm-air blowerwas attached to the handheld camera... to defrostthe lens." "Rubberized pipes on the wall for safety." "Stagehands had to startall the cables and lights swinging consistently... atthe beginning of each take." "This kind ofthing can be both a blessing and a curse... forthe editor in terms of continuity." "Catfish uses "the Hammer" on Coffey." "Note the single white flashframe edited in atthe pointofthe punch... used to add visual powerto the hit, along with the slow-motion fall." "Yeah, so there's a white plastic bucket on the seafloor in this shot." "Itfell outof Deepcore, okay?" "The onlyway to get bullettrails underwater is to use real bullets... so Cameron cleared the set and a real weapon was used... for a series of underwater inserts with an unmanned camera." "Moving the camera to create a sense of motion... on a stationary cockpitset on stage." "One Night's line, "You're better in these than I am"... was written as a confession of respect of sorts to Lindsey... whom One Night has disdained for hertreatmentof Bud." "Bud is able to catch up with Flatbed... because Coffey has to maneuver it around the debris under Deepcore." "Shot in A-tank with the full-scale submersible." "Some ofthe wider shots showing the back of Flatbed... had to be optically retouched... to remove the thick control umbilical used to pilotthe fake submersible... which was actually a cockpitand shell... builtaround a big industrial ROV called Haida." "This was one ofthe main action sequences to be filmed... in the big A-tank set." "These close-ups of Geek straining atthe rope... were done by an off-camera diver holding the ROVand flailing itaround." "Underwater RC miniature of Flatbed turning." "Motion-control miniature Flatbed shot in smoke on a stage... with the manipulator arm stop-motion-animated." "Underwaterminiature shot ofthe radio-controlled Flatbed model... ramming a Deepcore skid set piece in the Olympic Swim Stadium." "In the cockpitset piece on stage." "Full-scale in A-tank." "Composite of live action below... with a motion-control model shot in smoke, with Lindsey projected inside." "We cable-tied the underwater RC miniatures together... with theirthrusters pointing in opposite directions... to make them spin around." "Full-scale again in A-tank." "Bud swims overto the lockout hatch on the submersible... butsince the sub is the real one, the lockout hatch is fake... so we cutto Bud entering the stern hatch... in the interiormock-up on the stage." "This was the real WSM manipulator arm atwork... being controlled from the A-tank observation room off-screen... while the actors pretended to work it from inside the submersible." "Motion-control miniatures shot in smoke." "The sub battle was a well-blended combination... of every methodologywe had." "Here's the shot by shot." "Read fast!" "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots... with the actors in A-tank in 1988- rocking camera." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Motion-control miniature shot dry-for-wet in smoke... on a Dreamqueststage in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Motion-control miniature shot dry-for-wet in smoke... on a Dreamqueststage in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Rear projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Rear projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Rear-projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Rear-projection of miniature underwater footage outside a cockpitmock-up on stage." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Live-action underwater shots with the actors in A-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in B-tank in 1988." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Radio-controlled underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium in 1989." "Live action with the actors in a submersible mock-up on stage in 1988-89." "Shoton a dry stage with the actors in submersible mock-ups... and fine goose down blown around to simulate floating particulate matter." "Underwaterminiatures again." "Dry on stage." "Underwaterminiatures shot in the Olympic Swim Stadium." "Dry on stage." "These rear-projection shots required notonlywater sprays into the set... buta nondestructive way of"cracking" the dome... which was on loan from a real submersible... was six inches thick and could not be destroyed." "To create the cracks, a lighting gag was used... to reveal a series of crack shapes created from clear plastic tape... and stood on edge on the dome." "The imploding Flatbed was achieved with a quarter-scale model... builtaround a squibbed vacuum bottle, with a gelatin puppetof Coffey inside." "Builtaround a squibbed vacuum bottle, with a gelatin puppetof Coffey inside." "Underwaterminiature again." "The interior Cab One setwas built one-third largerthan the actual sub... to better accommodate the camera and actors." "Forthe initial part ofthe drowning scene... the setwas turned on its side on the stage." "Forthe restofthe scene, the set- essentially an open-ended cylinder- was suspended from a crane and slowly lowered into B-tank... to create the illusion ofthe water level rising." "The camera was in a waterproof housing, with the camera crew in wetsuits." "Removable sections ofthe setwall allowed easy access between takes." "The scene had to be broken down into very specific beats... in orderto maintain continuity ofthe water level... overthe course ofthe takes." "The crane and operator were outside ofthe tented area... and could notsee the set... so a series of marks were put on the cable... so the operator could consistently hitspecific marks." "The waterwas heated to 85 degrees... with the actors providing the sense of cold." "The biggestchallenge was keeping the warmth ofthe water... and the late summerweather from fogging up the lens." "Composer Alan Silvestri had originallywritten... a minor-key variation ofthe main Abyss theme forthis scene... which lentan elegiacal tone to it... and reinforced the emotion ofthe performances." "Jim Cameron feltthatthe scene might play even more powerfully... ifthe music played againstthe emotion instead... so Silvestri recomposed it as a suspense cue... which underlined the coldness ofthe circumstances." "This made the emotion ofthe performance even stronger... without becoming melodramatic." "There have been numerous documented cases of revival... following cold-water drowning." "None, of course, have been voluntary." "Mostofthe documented cases... have been of children falling into icy lakes or rivers... and being revived with few or no lasting ill effects... after as much as 40 minutes." "Most people who drown actually suffocate to death." "The body's reflexes are trying... to preventwater from entering the lungs... so the victim runs outof oxygen... and has a buildup of carbon dioxide that isn'texhaled." "Only after death do the muscles relax and allowwaterto flow into the lungs." "Lindsey has to intentionally inhale the waterto try to freeze herself." "Several crucial close-ups forthe end ofthe scene... were shotmonths later in the underwater insert tank in Los Angeles." "Due to scheduling issues... the two actors had to shoot their close-ups separately." "As a result, Mary Elizabeth played her last, longing stare... into a helmetfilled with ping-pong balls for buoyancy... and Ed Harris played his final emotional moment... while clutching a bewigged stand-in." "Ed Harris is actually towing Mary Elizabeth through this whole scene... with her holding her breath and playing dead." "Safety divers were standing by to hand her a regulator ata moment's notice." "This was shot in A-tank... with the actress 30 feet underwater withouta mask." "Jim Cameron specificallywanted this scene... to involve the Deepcore crew "family" only, so Monk- who, as a medic, should have been involved in such a medical emergency... was leftoutofthe scene." "Presumably, Monk took heavy sedatives afterthe Sub Bay fight... and was now asleep and thus unavailable to assist in Lindsey's revival." "The shooting ofthis scene was one of the most draining ofthe production." "Notonlywere half a dozen actors performing... ata fever pitch of emotion... but Mary Elizabeth had to play soaking-wet dead and half-exposed... on a cold metal floorwith the others physically pounding on herforweeks." "One ofthe other challenges of shooting realistic "dead" people... is to recreate the fixed, unresponsive and dilated pupils ofthe eyes." "Medical eyedrops were used to dilate Mary Elizabeth's pupils... forthe main close-ups... with care taken notto shine the lights directly into herface." "Cyanotic (blue) makeup is also used to create... the characteristic bloodless pallor ofthe skin in hypothermia cases." "One ofthe original concepts forthis scene... involved seeing Lindsey's dying POV... where herview ofthe others shrinks away into blackness... as if she were falling down a tunnel." "Instead, this overhead shotwas used... to suggestthe classic "floating above your body" feeling... reported by manywho have had near-death experiences." "Lindsey should have some bruised, if not broken, ribs from the revival... and would need to be on antibiotics to avoid pneumonia... broughton by the fact thatthe water in her lungs... would have temporarilywashed away the protective mucus lining." "Note that Bud's hand is still blue." "These are real scleral contacts that Ed Harris is putting in." "They are clear lenses thatcovermostofthe eye... and contain a small glass bead in the center... thatallows partial vision underwaterwithouta mask." "Bud holds Beany, the only other Deepcore crewmember... who has experienced fluid breathing first-paw." "Fluid breathing is a viable concept... but has not been fully tested on human beings for a number of reasons... ranging from liability forvolunteers... to the factthat, while experiments have shown... thatan anesthetized person can survive while fluid breathing... it is farmore difficultto actively work underwaterwhile doing so... since physical activity demands greater oxygen consumption." "A nice moment here from Ed Harris thatechoed his portrayal... ofJohn Glenn in The Right Stuff." "Since we did notactually have Ed Harris... breathing the liquid fluorocarbon... this filling scene was done with pink-colored water... which was pumped into a sealed helmet." "Some people thoughtwe used a "trick glass" effect... with a double-paned dome with liquid between the layers... butyou can tell by the fact thatthe liquid is touching Ed's skin... and the amountof refraction thatthis was notthe case." "Ed Harris had the formidable task of holding his breath... while pretending that he was inhaling the liquid." "Atthe end of each take, Ed would signal he needed air... and the two side plugs on the helmet were pulled out... and the pink water drained out so he could breathe." "The suitand helmetwould then need to be dried forthe nexttake." "Forthe shots with the filled helmet..." "Ed had to hold his breath as the helmetwas quickly filled... and then continue to hold his breath until the shotwas completed... and the helmet drained again." "These takes lasted upwards of a minute ormore." "Forthe lastshot of Bud saying farewell... and disappearing into the water..." "Ed had to descend to the bottom of B-tank... then surface again to allowthe helmet to be drained so he could breathe." "Needless to say, he learned howto hold his breath for a long time... while still focusing on the performance." "His POVdescending was shot byjim Cameron himself... who had to hold his breath as he went down... so he wouldn'tcast bubbles into the shot." "This was the hero shotofthe entire Deepcore underwater set in A-tank... with underwater cinematographer Al Giddings operating the camera... which was mounted on Mike Cameron's Sea Wasp DPVcamera platform." "This was one ofthe few days in which A-tank was clear enough... to getsuch a wide shot." "Even with filters running constantly, A-tank literally had its own weather... and we would have to check it every morning... to see ifwe had to limitourselves to shooting tighter shots... due to cloudier conditions." "One ofthe only indications thatthis shot is underwater atall... is the small stream of residual bubbles escaping from the Deep Suit." "This shotof Lindsey was filmed in smoke on stage." "This high angle was a composite of live underwaterfootage in A-tank... and a matte painting created by Dream Quest." "The descentshots were achieved via several differentmethods." "Aseries of shots were done with the camera dollying sideways... while Ed Harris was dragged horizontally through the water... by a cable pastthe rock wall set." "Other shots featuring Harris were shot in the insert tank... with either blackness ormoving footage ofthe rock wall projected behind him." "This rear-projection shot with the crane... had Ed suspended sideways in the water to simulate a down angle." "This is a composite of a Bud puppet shot underwater against bluescreen... with a motion-control miniature shot ofthe crane." "The deepestactual suit dive to date was by the U.S. Navy in 1998... which senta diver down to 2,000 feet... while wearing a one-atmosphere hard-shelled suitcalled the NewtSuit." "Shots of Bud falling 50 vertical feet... along the rock wall set in A-tank were difficult... because it is very difficult to equalize your ears... without being able to pinch your nose... so all ofthe long falling shots were performed... by veteran diver Charlie Arneson... who wore a clothespin on his nose inside the Deep Suit helmet." "The descentwas basically created outof dozens of shots... of either Charlie Arneson in the wide angles... and Ed Harris in the closer angles... falling pastthe same section of rock wall." "Bud's intentionally misspelled messages were prerecorded on videotape... and played back for Mary Elizabeth in the command module set." "Later, in postproduction... dozens of new inserts on the messages typing out... were shotto reflect minortextchanges." "Since Ed Harris was not in these scenes... with all ofthe other actors in the command module... he requested some time off to go to New York... to getsome much deserved rest." "On a showwhere pretty much every scene... took two to three times longer to shootthan scheduled... we anticipated thatthese scenes would take a week ormore of shooting... so Ed's requestwas granted." "Sure enough, all ofthe command module scenes... including many key emotional moments for Lindsey... were completed in only a few days... so Ed Harris had to be called back from New York early to resume his work." "While tests in a pressure tank at Duke University Medical Center in 1980... have taken divers to a simulated depth of 2,132 feet... it is thoughtthatonly fluid breathing would allow depths belowthat." "Atthese pressures, test divers have noted... that just inhaling was like "trying to breathe honey."" "The deepestscuba dive on compressed airwas to 510 feet... by Richard Birch atAndros Island in the 1960s." "The deepestscuba dive on an HeO2 breathing mixture... was to 900 feet in the 1990s by Sheck Exley." "The deepestfree dive, with no gear, was made... by a Cuban diver named "Pippin" who held his breath down to 450 feet." "At 17,000 feet, the ambient pressure is nearly 570 atmospheres." "This flare ignition shotwas filmed in Gale Anne Hurd's swimming pool... during postproduction." "Underwatermagnesium flares have to be handled with extreme care." "They can cause severe burns and cannot be putoutonce they're lit." "The onlyway to extinguish itwas to break offthe unlit portion... and just letthe lit part burn itself out." "The music composed by Alan Silvestri forthese scenes... was intentionally spare and atonal... to reflectthe remote and moonlike landscape through which Bud travels." "This "candle in the dark" speech... as well as a number of earlier confessional moments from Lindsey... were trimmed out ofthe theatrical release fortime." "As it is, the descentsequence compresses over half an hour of real time... into justover eightminutes." "This wide miniature shotof a Bud puppet falling againstthe rock wall... was one ofthe key images inJim Cameron's mind... when writing the sequence- a "candle in the dark."" "Audience participation fans atthis pointyell out, "A Bud light!"" "In the original script, Bud does, in fact, see lights all around him... in the form of bioluminescentsquid." "This series of shots was omitted for cost reasons." "This is anotherminiature composite of a Bud puppetshot in smoke... with the glow ofthe distant NTI Ark lighting up the wall." "There was also going to be bioluminescentalgae... all overthe rock wall... which would stir up like fairy dust when Bud lands... butthis effect-which would have had to be done live on the set... to avoid a massive amount of optical work" "was cutfor scheduling and budget reasons." "We were going to use different-colored cyalume stick chemicals... and spread them all overthe rock wall set to create the glowing algae... butthe chemical will only glow a short time... and meantthatwe would have had to keep adding iton every take... and deal with the changing brightness from take to take." "The Deep Suit helmet used for all ofthe underwater scenes... had a pink-tinted faceplate thatcould be lifted... so a regulator could be used between takes." "Each take, Ed would breathe via regulator... until he signaled he was ready... then the safety diverwould swim away with his regulator and tank..." "Ed would brush away the bubbles that had collected in the helmet... close the faceplate and begin the shot." "Atthe end, Ed would signal that he was outof air... and his safety diverwould swim in quicklywith his regulator." "Since he could notwear a diving mask while wearing the Deep Suit helmet..." "Ed wore the scleral lenses, which had been custom-fitted for him... and gave him a tiny spot of clearvision... in an otherwise blurry underwaterview." "To ensure thatthe indistinguishable wire-color gag would work... we used a pair of black-and-white wires." "All ofthe close-ups ofthe wires and detonator... were shot in the insert tank in Los Angeles." "This whole scene had to be lit very carefully to look good... since it had a yellow-green key light... a purple fill light, and a pinkish light on Bud's face inside the helmet." "Bud originally had ten minutes worth left... but itwas changed to five to put Bud closerto death... so his vision ofthe ntl- Jammer's "angel"-approaching... would feel like a near-death experience." "This wide shot is a miniature rock wall with a tiny Bud puppeton it." "The following closer shots were all in A-tank." "Sound designer Blake Leyh created... a "winding down" mechanical breathing sound forthe Deep Suit... to reinforce the idea that Bud was outof oxygen." "The NTI reflection was optically added to Bud's helmet." "The hero NTI puppet was six feetacross... and was made of clear plastics and rubbers... with hundreds offiber-optic cables for lighting... and monofilamentwires to control its movements." "Glows were then added optically to enhance the image." "This shotwas filmed backwards to make the NTI's fingers grasp Bud's hand." "Awire cable pulled Bud up offthe underwater set." "The miniature NTI puppet was then shot in a tank... and tracked to the live-action plate." "The challenge was to have their hands always in realistic contact... even though theywere shot completely separately... and the NTI had to be moving back and forth with the movements of its wings." "Forthis long tracking shot, Ed Harris was suspended... in frontof a dry bluescreen in the Deep Suit... with a miniature NTI puppet shot in water and tracked to his movements." "The two elements were then composited over a miniature rock wall background." "This big reveal ofthe NTI Ark... used a 12-foot-diameter, motion-control model... filled with fiber optics lit by lasers." "Only halfthe Ark was builtforthese shots... which were filmed in heavy smoke to create scale." "Atwo-foottall Bud puppetwas shot underwater against bluescreen... and composited with the NTI puppet... which was shotseparately underwater against black." "Both had to be perfectly synchronized... both to each other's movements and to the camera and background." "Small elements ofthe Manta ship were added as tiny moving lights... to further enhance the scale ofthe Ark." "Several larger-scale sections ofthe Ark were built... including the spire tunnel entrance and the tunnel itself... which had to be able to accommodate a motion-control camera... through all of its twists and turns." "The models were made of back-lit clear plastic and were shot in heavy smoke." "The moving tunnel background and its reflections... were composited onto an underwater bluescreen shotof Ed Harris... reacting to nothing while colored lights were panned over his face." "Afull-size section ofthe NTI chamber made of back-litfiberglass... was builtand used both on stage and underwater." "The parting ofthe waterwall was achieved... by strapping both Bud and the camera to the set piece... turning itsideways, and filming it being lowered into the tank." "The footage was then run in reverse... so it looked like the water was moving sideways off of Bud." "This method was done both full-scale forthe close-ups... and in miniature forthe wider shots." "Slowmotion and a series of dissolves were used... to create a dream-like feel to the agonizing process... of Bud's "rebirth" as an air-breather." "The water-wall sequence was achieved by rear-projecting an image on a screen... on one end ofthe setorthe other." "To create the rippling liquid surface... the projected image was bounced with a series of mirrors... through a large tray ofwater." "For one wall's image, half a dozen NTI puppets were shottogether... in the large insert tank." "The video newscastwall material- dubbed "NTV"- was edited together... from both custom news anchorfootage shot in preproduction... and from stock footage." ""WGJP" referred to the production company name forthe film... which was GJP- for Gale andJim Productions." "The seismologist in the news report was played by Michael Chapman... the noted cinematographer offilms such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull..." "The Fugitive and The Story of Us." "The wave news reporter, played by Tom Isbell... also shows up in the high-rise climax... ofJim Cameron's 1994 film, True Lies." "This handheld video news shot... had extras running from a rear-projection screen... showing a composite image ofthe wave in Santa Monica." "Classic nuclear bomb stock footage... from both the Nevada and Bikini Atoll tests in the 1940s and '50s." "This montage of"Mankind's Greatest Hits"... was edited togetherfrom old stock footage by video editor Ed Marsh." "The music heard here was originally written for and used... in the movie The Seventh Sign." "Since the sequence was cutto it as a temp music track... itwas easierto license the music ratherthan write newmaterial." "The crowd scenes were shot in Santa Monica, California... with 300 hundred extras screaming and running from nothing... whileJim Cameron directed them through a bullhorn." "The wave shots were done by ILM... and incorporated footage of real beach waves shotat 300 frames per second... in Waimea, Hawaii, which is known as a surfers' haven... because of its huge waves." "This nighttime shot... incorporates a matte painting ofthe Russian naval base." "This is the only computer-generated wave shot in the sequence... since it proved impossible to make real wave footage... come to a realistic standstill." "This was one ofthe other reasons the scene was notadded until 1992... forthe Special Edition... when the technologywas finally in place to make it look good." "A bunch of ILM staffers stood in frontof a bluescreen forthis shot." "Some ofthese tighter crowd shots were filmed afterthe Santa Monica shoot... in a Long Beach parking lot nextto the stage." "The NTIs bow in respectto Bud for his sign of sacrifice." "Finding universal gestures forthe NTIs thatwould be easily understood... butwould not look silly being done by an extraterrestrialjellyfish... was one ofthe big challenges in these scenes." "The implication here... is thatthe NTIs can control the weather and dissipate the hurricane." "Hence the time-lapse stock footage of clouds." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot in Westport, Washington." "These daylightshots in the Benthic bridge were also shoton stage... with white backdrops and strong lighting to simulate daytime." "Even though the umbilical was severed... the Benthic can still communicate with Deepcore via the UQC... an underwater acoustic telephone system in standard use today." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot atthe Salton Sea in California." "Benthic Explorer miniature shot atthe Salton Sea in California." "McBride is talking about rescuing the Deepcore crew... using the Navy's DSRVs- Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles." "The U.S. Navy maintains two ofthese submersibles-named Mystic and Avalon- with one on each coast formaritime emergencies." "BothJim Cameron's and Gale Anne Hurd's personal assistants... played cameos aboard the Benthic bridge as crewmembers." "The entire question of how Bud communicates with the NTIs... was a challenge to make plausible." "The video waterwall was the main visual solution to this dilemma... while Bud's messages allowed an elaboration ofthe ideas... while skirting the deeper communications issue." "In Orson Scott Card's novel ofthe film... the NTIs are able to communicate emotions semi-telepathically... by using theirwater-control power... to manipulate the chemical signals in the human brain." "The underwater shots ofthe rising Ark... were added to the film late in postproduction... to insure thatthe audience understood... thatwhatthey saw atthe bottom ofthe abyss... and whatthey saw atthe surface were the same craft." "These shots were done in smoke on the motion-control stages at Dreamquest." "The lightsuffusing the Deepcore crew hints atthe physiological changes... the NTIs had to make to the humans so they did not die... from the rapid decompression broughton by coming to the surface." "The Ark-rising sequence was shot... by Gene Warren and the Fantasy II Film Effects team." "Using a series of model sections... ranging from an 8-footspire top to a 20-footcomplete spire..." "Fantasy II shota series of high-speed miniature shots outatthe Salton Sea." "These elements were then composited with bluescreen shots... ofthe Benthic crew by Dreamquest." "The wide shotofthe entire Ark was shot... in the Fantasy II parking lot in Burbank... with a 12-foot diameterminiature... in three inches of heavily dyed blue water." "Itwas filmed at 300 frames per second... and then cascade-printed to 600 frames per second... to create the mile-wide scale ofthe Ark." "Large, 20-footsections ofthe Ark surface had to be built in scale... with the 42-foot Benthic Explorer model... as well as the navy destroyermodels and Deepcore." "These were also shot outatthe Salton Sea." "Bags of baking soda were blown across the shots by fans... to create scale mist in these high-speed shots." "These shots were done with the actors standing... in frontofthe full-size Deepcore set in the tank... after it had been partially drained." "An Ark surface paint job was laid down overthe seafloor set... along with a small ridge of detail to hide the edge ofthe tank from the camera." "The greatestchallenge ofthe scene... was to somehow keep the feel ofthis magical city of light... thatwe saw in the darkness ofthe abyss while itwas in broad daylight." "Optical composite of a matte painting, a miniature Ark section... and live footage of photo-doubles forthe crew... standing in a parking lotarea in six inches ofwater... with a piece of hatch we brought back from Gaffney beside them." "The matte painting was begun at Dreamquest... and completed byjim Cameron himself on the scoring stage... while he was working on the sound mix." "This is a forced perspective shot... with a six-foot portal miniature in the foreground... and Ed Harris standing way atthe far end ofthe stage in the background." "The color scheme ofthe Ark in daylight- swirling purples and salmon pinks- was to suggestthe pearlescenttextures and shadings of seashells." "After several attempts to shootthem... in the golden lightof dusk ("magic hour")... these final shots of Bud and Lindsey were shot... on the stage in Long Beach... with the NTI portal model and spire cutouts outoffocus behind them." "These are actually photo-doubles of Bud and Lindsey... standing in a wet parking lot at Cal State Dominguez Hills... with more water optically printed to extend itto the sides ofthe frame." "Actor Kidd Brewer ("Finler") Passed away... a year afterthe film was released in 1989." "This dedication was added forthe Special Edition release in 1993."