Modern Mages: Jim Aupperle

Jim Aupperle (pronounced “Aw-pearl”) is one of the most respected technical artists of his generation; he’s made the crucial task of lighting visual-effects shots his specialty.  Jim has worked with the best, and he successfully made the transition from traditional techniques to CGI some years back.  He regularly contributes to online forums about the field and is a historian of the craft.  FM was delighted to have a chance to speak with Jim.

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FM: Please tell us about your connections to Forrest J Ackerman and “Famous Monsters of Filmland.”

JA: My first connection, and what got me started, was Issue #24.I saw it on the newsstand in 1963 when I was 11 years old.  I was already a fan of horror films but I had no idea how they were made, and I was incredibly excited.  That issue was a great one to be introduced to FM, because it was the first of a four-part series on “King Kong.” It had lots of armatures, puppets, Obie’s scrapbook and more.  It showed how it was done.

In 1969 or 1970 word got out that Uncle Ray was coming to L.A.  Forry had an open house for him, and Jon Berg got me an invitation.  I lined up with another thirty or so fans to meet Ray, and there I met Steven Czerkas. Steve’s another visual-effects guy and is responsible for the great “Cine-Saurus” traveling dinosaur exhibition.

Forry in effect introduced me to science fiction and my chosen career..  I visited him many times over the years; he was an incredibly generous fellow.  I’m not good about taking photos, but somewhere I have a photo of Forry and a T. rex from “Planet of the Dinosaurs.”

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FM: What were and are the greatest artistic influences upon you?

JA: Well, it started with my interest in films and stop-motion movies when I was young.  And I would say that the artist Gustave Doré had the greatest impact on me, and I’m not alone in that.  Most lighting people, CGI or traditional, refer to his work.  I collect his books and illustrations.

John Singer Sargeant is a master of light; I love the way he reflects colors into the shadows, and the play of light upon his subjects.  It inspires my CGI lighting work and makes it more ‘alive.’  Auguste Rodin’s sculptures almost move; he’s a master at evoking dynamic motion from a still figure.  There is a great collection of Rodin sculptures in San Francisco’s Legion of Honor museum, and I sometimes go there and study the play of light across their surfaces.

I was also greatly inspired by reading Eugene Delacroix’ journal, and by his paintings.  And certainly Vermeer, his command of light. I can’t paint, but I “paint with light” when I’m lighting a shot.

FM: That reminds me of a painting class I once took; the thing I’ve used most from it was the concept of “under-painting” to set the picture’s tone.  For a warm image you first washed the canvas with a golden tint; for a cool one you washed it with pale blue.  Then everything built up from that base was bent one way or the other.

JA: Yes, indeed.  With CGI it’s sometimes too easy to let the technology take over, to just let the software make the adjustments.  The old masters had to think through the whole image from the very first brushstroke.

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FM: What interests you today in visual effects and fantasy filmmaking?

 

JA: To be honest, I have to say that, as far as films go today, the market is over-saturated.   There’s no longer the same sense of excitement.  I don’t wish to dismiss the fine work that’s being done, but I’m not as interested in today’s fantasy films.  I like good characters and stories as well as great effects.  And fantasy films used to be so rare; maybe one or two films a year.  We felt lucky when we got to see the occasional Ray Harryhausen or George Pal film.  Today, it’s one or two such films a week!

In a way Forry was way ahead of his time, and so were my friends and co-workers.  More recently I’ve been attending older films and theater screenings.  I like them better than today’s films.  The Stanford Theater in Palo Alto is the nearest great revival theater to me, and I often go there to see classic films.

Even though I’ve been working in CGI for fourteen years now (hard to believe!), I couldn’t do what I’m doing from scratch.  You need huge support systems for all the computers and software and administration.  Like other old-timers, I doubt I’d have the same passion for the field today without my exposure to those old-school techniques.  When I worked on the first “Hellboy” movie at Tippett Studios, it was great to combine old techniques with digital techniques.  A full-scale creature was built and rigged on the set, and was intercut with a CGI version of it in the final cut.. Mixing up different tricks keeps it from getting stale, or giving it away.

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FM: If you could resurrect a lost or unmade film, what would it be?

JA: I would love to see Marion C. Cooper’s film “War Eagles” actually made.  It could work today if it were shot in an anachronistic, “retro” way.  As you probably know, it was to be a film about a lost land of Vikings who ride gigantic eagles, and who join the Allies to fight the Nazis.  Obie was working on it when Uncle Ray met him for the first time; then came World War II and Cooper joined the Army, and the project died.

I’d also love to see Dave Allen’s “The Primevals” finished.  Dave was such a great guy, and “The Primevals” is such a cool project.  His friends are trying to finish it, I understand.

I feel incredibly lucky that things turned out for me.  “Famous Monsters” was key to discovering my career and a great circle of friends.  It was a starting point for so much that I value today.

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FM: Jim, thank you so much for speaking with us today.

 

JA: Thank you, and I’m so glad to see “Famous Monsters” back amongst us!

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