2C - The Ridgway Record – The Daily Press, – The Kane Republican, Friday, July 24, 2015 8-Bit Icons: A look at the video games of 'Pixels'
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Q(asterisk)bert is ready for his close-up.
After bringing Harry Potter and Mrs. Doubtfire to life on the big screen, Chris Columbus' latest film sees the director in- serting classic video game characters into the real world. "Pixels" follows a trio of 1980s arcade cham- pions who are recruited by the government to stop an alien force that's taking the form of Donkey Kong and other interactive crit- ters.
"I was excited about bringing these charac- ters to life in a way we haven't seen," said Co- lumbus. "I've done visual effects before, but they've all been reality based. In this particular situation, we were creating 30-foot- tall voxelized, lived-from- within creatures that had to be menacing enough to destroy a city, yet also have a mischievous charm about them."
"Pixels," out Friday, is inspired by the 2010 short film of the same name that depicted old-school games wrecking
blocky
carnage on New York City. Columbus included imag- ery from about 20 titles, such as "Burger Time" and "Tetris." During a re- cent interview on the Sony backlot, the "Home Alone" director discusses bring- ing the games to life in his movie.
___ "Centipede"
For their first mission against the misunder-
stood extraterrestrials, the "Pixels" protagonists played by Adam Sandler and Josh Gad encounter the slithering baddies who star in the 1981 shoot- 'em-up "Centipede." In the movie, behemoth
rendi-
tions of the game's bugs descend from the sky onto human forces positioned on a soccer field in Lon- don.
"I wanted 'Centipede'
to be a surrealistic three- dimensional moment," said Columbus. "It's the first time we really in- sert these characters. For me, I pushed it into 'Yel- low Submarine' territory where, in the middle of that scene, it just totally turns psychedelic. You shouldn't do any mind- altering drugs before you watch that particular se- quence of the film." ___
"Pac-Man"
An oversized tyrannical take on Pac-Man goes on a chomping spree through the streets of New York as the movie's heroes tail the pellet-eating character in Mini Coopers. Columbus filmed the chase sequence over three-and-a-half weeks by having the ac- tors followed by a yellow golf cart, which was later replaced with a computer- generated Pac-Man. "The key was that we weren't immersing people into 'Pac-Man' as much as the game was forcing itself onto the streets of Manhattan," said Colum- bus. "Because the visual- effects toolbox is so giant
these days, there's this temptation to do every- thing CGI, but I wanted a tangible, hand-made qual- ity to the film. We didn't resort to CGI for every- thing."
___
"Q(asterisk)Bert" In the movie, the cube-hopping creature Q(asterisk)bert serves as an intergalactic trophy who eventually becomes a sidekick to the human heroes. Despite his his- tory of speaking only in cartoon bubbles
filled
with punctuation marks, "The Goonies" and "Grem- lins" screenwriter
opted
to give the aliens' version of Q(asterisk)bert a voice and beef up his role in "Pixels."
"In the first draft of the script, Q(asterisk)bert was there, but we didn't utilize him as much," said Columbus. "When we first started playing
around
with the designs, I felt like it was my Gizmo moment from 'Gremlins.' I could actually create a fun, love- able character that kids would respond to and add a different element — that not all the aliens are here to kill us."
___ "Dojo Quest"
The filmmakers li- censed characters from real-world video games for the movie, but they opted to craft a fictional title starring a ninja-fighting heroine named Lady Lisa (played by Ashley Ben- son), who serves as an unconventional love in-
terest for Gad's character. To promote "Pixels," Sony released a side-scrolling mobile game resembling "Dojo Quest."
"Lady Lisa was in the first draft of the script, and I thought it would be fun to create just one game that didn't exist back in the '80s," said Columbus. "It never occurred to me not to do it. I felt like we could get away with it. A character like Lara Croft could've worked, but I loved the fact that Josh Gad's character has been pining for this woman all his life."
___ "Donkey Kong"
The movie's climatic final battle takes place inside the alien's mother- ship, where
filmmakers
recreated the original 1981 barrel-jumping game. Columbus called Donkey Kong "the holy grail" of game characters and said talking Nintendo into al- lowing them to feature the angry ape required more convincing than any of the other games depicted in "Pixels."
"The 'Donkey Kong'
sequence is one that we could have done 90 per- cent CGI, but we liter- ally built the game from scratch," said Columbus. "We built the platforms. When you walked into that soundstage, it was mind blowing to see ac- tors 100 feet in the air on harnesses running around from barrels that we later added. It was an amazing experience."
As sales fall in U.S., McDonald's eyes variety of changes
NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald's is looking at variety of changes to win back customers in the U.S.: A new value mes- sage to replace the Dol- lar Menu, breakfast all day, and nips and tucks to improve the taste of its burgers.
"There is no silver bul- let. No one move will turn a business that has been in decline for nearly three years," CEO Steve East- erbrook said Thursday during a conference call with analysts and inves- tors.
The remarks came af- ter the company reported a 2 percent drop in sales at established U.S. stores for the three-month peri- od ended June 30, mark- ing the seventh straight quarterly decline in its flagship market.
McDonald's said cus- tomer visits slipped as promotions failed to live up to expectations. Among the offerings during the period were sirloin burg- ers, which were featured in ads with a revamped Hamburglar character. Overseas, McDonald's Corp. said the sales fig- ure rose 1.2 percent in Europe. It fell 4.5 percent in the segment including Asia, the Middle East and Africa, as China contin- ued to recover from a sup- plier issue.
On a global basis, the figure dipped 0.7 percent. Looking
ahead, Easter- brook said the company Let The Staff at OFFICE
Richard W. Foust, Au.D. CCC-A Doctor of Audiology
Jennifer Detsch, Au.D. CCC-A Doctor of Audiology
Questions to ask yourself to help you determine if you need to have your hearing evaluated by an experienced professional.
Gretchen Orzechowski, Au.D. CCC-A Doctor of Audiology
expects improvement in major international mar- kets to help turn global sales positive in the third quarter. But he noted that the U.S. remains a "little bit of a drag." He said the company has been par- ticularly hurt by its move away from the Dollar Menu, since it wasn't re- placed with anything as compelling. To help fill that void, McDonald's started pro- moting a $2.50 deal for a double cheeseburger and fries in June. But Easter- brook said during the call that the offer wouldn't satisfy the need for a na- tional replacement for the Dollar Menu, and that the company is exploring op- tions on that front. David Palmer, an RBC Capital Markets analyst, noted that the company's move away from the Dol- lar Menu has diminished the impact of its national advertising without a val- ue message.
Still, Palmer said in
a note to investors that he thinks change is hap- pening at McDonald's at a faster pace than in the past.
In the meantime, East- erbrook stressed the im- portance of the small changes the company is making to improve the taste of its food, such as toasting buns longer and searing burgers to lock in flavor.
SEE CHANGES ON PAGE 6C Help You Hear
What You’ve Been Missing.
Debi Mitchell, BCHIS
Vanessa Mirtich, HIS
• Do people complain that you turn the TV volume up too high? • Do you have trouble hearing in background noise? • Do you frequently ask people to speak up or repeat themselves? • Do you have trouble understanding the speech of women and children? • Do you often feel that people mumble or don’t speak clearly? • Do people get annoyed because you misunderstand what they say?
Please call our office for an appointment today and you will receive the following procedures for FREE.
FINANCING NOW
To Meet Your Needs 0% Interest $0 Down for 12 Months*
*Pending Credit Approval
• A video otoscopic inspection of your ears • A hearing screening and consultation • A demonstration of the latest technology (if applicable)
We offer a 45 day RISK FREE trial on all hearing aids. AVAILABLE
The St. Marys Of ce has moved to
1095 Million Dollar Hwy, Suite 2
Purchase a hearing aid in the month of July and
Receive FREE Batteries for one year.
Richard W. Foust, Au. D. CCC-A Doctor of Audiology & Hearing Aid Service
102 N. 2nd Street Clearfi eld, PA 16830 765-8284 • 1-888-830-8284
900 Beaver Drive DuBois, Pa 15801 371-1085 • 1-800-890-3388
1095 Million Dollar Hwy, Suite 2 St. Marys, PA 15857 834-7721 • 1-800-445-0095
{}$1000 OFF
www.drfoust.com Hear the Difference for Yourself!
Space is limited so call today! By appointment only. Expires 7/31/15. FREE LLC 107 Robin Rd., St. Marys, PA 15857
Call us today for your FREE no-obligation hearing screening and demonstration.
A SET OF UNITRON DIGITAL
HEARING INSTRUMENTS Expires 7/31/15
Signs (indoor & outdoor),
Apparel (silkscreen & embroidered), Promotional Items,
Offi ce Furniture (desks, chairs, workstations, etc.), & much more!!
Call: 814-834-3006 • Fax: 814-834-3847 Email: contact@proprintingoffi
ce.com for Pricing
Visit our website:
www.proprintingoffi
ce.com or Facebook page: Pro Printing & Offi ce LLC
QUESTIONS
QUESTIONS
Serving Your Area For Over
Years 35
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16