Image by LD
To director Cohen, “Dragonheart is a fable; a hero’s journey with a very unusual set of heroes.” Sean Connery describes Dragonheart as “a tale of the legends.” The screenplay by Charles Edward Pogue, based on a story by Patrick Read Johnson & Pogue, cuts quite deep and is much more than a superficial framework for dazzling visual effects.
Set in the war-torn 10th century, the tale begins with a 14-year old prince (Lee Oakes) stepping into the bloody fray of a peasant revolt after witnessing his father, a vengeful and violent king, killed in battle. An eager pupil, Prince Einon has been well-trained in the way of the sword by his protector, Bowen (Dennis Quaid), a powerful, Nobel knight dedicated to the lofty ideals of The Old Code-the creed of honor in the Arthurian tradition. But on this day, Bowen’s watchful eye is not enough to protect his young charge, who is seriously wounded in the revolt.
Einon’s desperate mother, Queen Aislinn (Julie Christie) leads the dying prince, in Bowen’s arms, to a dark cave. Here she invokes the Celtic religious belief in the divine omniscient power of dragons, as she pleads for the supernatural intervention of one particular flying, fire-breathing creature to heal her son’s wounds and save his life. It is not until Einon swears that he will rule with mercy, that tyranny and bloodlust will be forever buried with his father, that the dragon severs his chest and gives half his life force to Einon so he might live to fulfill this promise.
Einon does live, but emerges as a far more evil despot than his late father.
Bowen, believing it was the dragon’s heart that poisoned his young charge, vows to spend the rest of his life ridding the land of dragons.
Twelve years later, accompanied by Gilbert (Pete Postlethwaite), a kindly monk with literary ambitions, Bowen has become a bitter, cynical nomad consumed by his obsession with dragonslaying, and apathetic to the misery and suffering caused by the older and more ruthless King Einon (Daved Thewlis). Turning his back on The Old Code he once embodied, he’s transformed his mission into money, slaying dragons simply for gold. After his many conquests, he finally encounters the only dragon left for him to slay.
But this last remaining dragon has a collection of knights’ skeletons to rival Bowen’s own pile of dragons’ horns. Equal in cunning and skills, neither dragon nor dragonslayer is able to vanquish the other and their epic confrontation end is in stalemate-and a bargain: the last dragon and the last dragonslayer go into business for mutual benefit.
They travel the land together, with the dragon ferociously poised to “attack” the various villages, with Bowen always on the spot, offering to “slay” the dragon ad save the village-for a price. This way, Bowen can sustain his line of work and earn his living, and the dragon, by pretending to be slain, can remain alive. Inspired by a constellation in the sky, Bowen gives his new companion the name Draco. Together, they survive on nothing more than their faded glory and easy lure of getting by until they encounter Kara (Dina Meyer), daughter of the leader of the peasant revolt against Einon’s father, a lovely, feisty girl hell-bent on destroying the king.
Eventually Bowen discovers that Draco is the same dragon who years earlier gave half his heart to save Einon, but that it wasn’t the dragon’s heart that poisoned the young man’s soul. Guided by Draco, Bowen is forced to finally reconcile himself to the fundamentals of The Old Code.
Moved to restore the kingdom to the days when truth and honor prevailed, Bowen and Draco resolve to join Kara and take on the over-whelming forces of Einon himself. However, they soon discover that a complete victory over Einon comes with its own heavy price, as the fate of the king is inextricably bound with the fate of the dragon.
DRAGONHEART is 1 hour 43 Mins long. It is available on VHS, Laserdisk and DVD. On VHS you can purchase a Windscreen Edition. This contains 10 minutes of special behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with director Rob Cohen, Dennis Quaid, Dina Meyer and many others! and on Laserdisk you can purchase a Signature Collection. On this amazing Laserdisk you will receive 3 disks containing, Commentary with director Rob Cohen on analog audio channel 1 (left), The Making of DRAGONHEART, an original documentary featuring interviews with Rob Cohen, Raffaella De Laurentiis, Dennis Quaid, Dina Meyer, members of the special effects teams and others involved with the film, Extensive exploration on the development and creation of Draco, the dragon, Satellite conferences between Rob Cohen and ILM's special effects team. phil Tippett's animatics/video storyboards of a dragon sequence, Behind-the-scenes footage, Dolby Digital audio on analog channel 2 (right), Domestic Theatrical trailers and TV spots, Foreign Theatrical trailers, Outtakes from the film, Production drawings, Clay models and early concepts of Draco, Storyboards and production photographs, and Original advertising concepts and campaigns. A MUST SEE!
Filming began July/94 and ended around Feb/95. It took 13 months of daily work to add Draco to the sceans. The whole movie took around two and a half years to fully compleat. It was released in theaters on Friday May 31st 1996 and released on home video Thusday November 26th 1996.
96 animater and technical directors at Industrial Light & Magic where involved in creating Draco's 30 minutes of screen time at the cost of $16,000.00 US per second for the total of $22 million.
Want to know a bit about DRAGONHEART eh? Well you have come to the right place. Please, take a seat and make your self comfortable.
Director Rob Cohen explains, “The challenge in Dragonheart was to pick up where Jurassic Park left off, in territory pioneered by Steven Spielberg. Unlike the dinosaurs, Draco is not solely an animal; he’s the first CGI (Computer Graphic Imagery) actor. He speaks, he emotes, he has feelings, a soul, and humor. He’s Sean Connery, essentially, as an 18-foot-high, 43-foot-long dragon.”
Connery himself explains, “It’s three dimensional. You remember, in Jurassic Park, the raptors, they were the most impressive thing I think I’ve ever seen in that way. Well, this is even more. This is something that’s pulsating and breathing with a heart...skeletally it’s correct. When it stands and moves around. It’s uncanny.” In explaining his vision, the director points out, “Creature movies have historically been done in the dark to hide matte lines and wires and rigging. I wanted to see Draco mythic and glorious in the sun. A dragon flying in the sunshine is so much more amazing than a dragon flying against the moon at night. I wanted to see Draco and Bowen walking along in broad daylight, with the dragon just as real in the scene as Bowen’s horse. There was a time when it would have been nearly impossible to pull off a computer generated creature in bright sunshine, but technology has advanced and we did it.” While Draco was inevitably built on the computer screen, his birth began on the printed page with the recording of the script with Sean Connery, Dennis Quaid and Cohen in the Bahamas. During the session, cameramen covers Connery’s profile as well his mouth movements as he spoke his lines, while Quaid read Bowen’s lines and Cohen read all the other character’s lines.
Once principal photography began, Cohen explains, “Dennis had the thankless job of carrying not only his own role, but the dragon’s. I worried about how we’d effectively help him pull that off, but as soon as we began filming, I relaxed. I saw that the dragon was real for him.”
I imagined a dragon inside myself,” Quaid explains, “We all have one, in one form or another. To me, this dragon is both the wild nature of ourselves and or conscience in his embodiment of the Old Code-ethical behavior and morality. At the same time, he’s our unconscious, the place from which our dreams arise. I just spoke my lines to the dragon within me.”
In capturing Bowen’s relationship with Draco, Quaid got additional assistance from the crew. Dragon reference points took all forms and shapes as the effects crew brought to life the illusory, yet emotionally alive dragon. Simple poles with tennis ball ‘eyes’ became fondly known as monster sticks, while plywood heads of varying shapes, and a two-and-a-half foot long, pose-able dragon model suited varying demands.
For scenes featuring Draco in flight, VistaVision cameras were mounted onto a microlight airplane purchased for the production. This small, hardbody plane, piloted by its designer and builder, David Cook, was made in England and holds just two people. Its wings are about 30 feet in diameter, so it was actually much smaller than Draco would be at 70 feet. Footage shot from the plane furnished aerial shots for Draco’s point of view, and it served as a “stand-in” for the airborn dragon. In this way, the actors had a tangible object to follow with their eyes, and reference shots were generated for later replacement with computer images.
Back on the ground, there wasn’t a single forest scene more complicated than the extended fight between Draco and Bowen after Draco has burst from the waterfall to escape the dragonslayer. In hot pursuit, Bowen captures the airborne dragon’s leg with one of his bolos, and is subsequently flown through the forest. “What we put this poor guy through.” says De Laurentiis. “Dennis was in a harness, being flown all over the forest for days!”
This long battle culminates in an anguishing, yet humorous stand-off with Bowen trapped inside the dragon’s mouth. There, with his sword firmly planted toward the soft palate of Draco’s mouth. Bowen threatens Draco with having his brain pierced if he dares to bite down and consume him. In shooting this scene, Cohen says, :I wanted the audience to feel what it would be like to be inside a dragon’s mouth-this disgusting, living cave with spit and bad breath.”
To facilitate Cohen’s concept, the Industrial Light & Magic Creature Shop built a full-size mechanical tongue and jaw, puppeteered on location. (A CG Draco would be wrapped around the animatronic jaws in post-production to complete the illusion.) “When they fired up the hydraulics and the tongue started to move, I looked at it and thought ‘My God, that is eerie.’ We had planned and revised our plans but there was that tongue doing everything a human tongue could do. It was quite amazing.”
When the computer graphics work began, it started with Academy Award-winning animator and effects artist Phil Tippett, who designed the appearance of the dragon. (Tippet devised the sophisticated “Go-Motion” dimensional animation process while working on the film dragonslayer and conducted groundbreaking work on Jurassic Park.)
“Draco had to be unlike anyone’s expectations of a dragon,” says Cohen. “That ruled out a serpentine creature with viscous red eyes and small, slippery wings. Draco had to be a strong, majestic, mythical being. So Phil and I began by looking towards Eastern cultures in which the dragon is revered. We studied Fu Dogs and Chinese and Japanese dragons; we also thought that dragons were probably the evolutionary descendants of the dinosaur. Phil had just come off Jurassic Park , so he knew the dinosaur physiognomy intimately.” The finished design thus blended Oriental influences with the dinosaur physiognomy and was next turned over to animators at Industrial Light & Magic.
“You would think we had more freedom in doing a dragon,” explains ILM visual effects supervisor Scott Squires, “because it’s a mythical creature and nobody really knows what a dragon looks like. But the fact that it’s a fantasy creature actually made our job harder. We were given a fantasy-based image which we had to make look reality-based.”
Other challenges are explained by ILM animation supervisor James Staoru Straus who says. “This wasn’t to be a dragon, it was to be a Talking dragon-and a passionate feeling, funny, happy, sad dragon with complex folding wings and armor-like scales. Whereas the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park had been required only to snarl or roar, Draco would have to convincingly move his lips to match Sean Connery’s recorded dialogue. This required extremely subtle facial animation.” Straus continues, “Draco had to be a magical character who was made of starlight and could fly in graceful and combat posture, and hold his own standing right next to another actor. The laws of physics-which we rely upon in producing believable looking animation-were just thrown out the window!”
Sean Connery’s voice was recorded prior to filming, and the computer graphics were designed to match not only his voice, but also his physical expressions, borrowed from previous acting performances. In this way, Draco is not simply voiced by Sean Connery, the dragon is acted by Sean Connery.
To aid ILM in the creation of Draco’s performance, Rob Cohen created a reference library of Sean Connery film clips. He edited key moments from Connery’s extensive filmography assembling hundreds of images that animators could use for guidance in devising the dragon’s various expressions and moods.
“Sean has an incredible body of work,” Cohen observed, “so I pulled clips from the beginning of his career to his most recent performances, categorizing every possible emotion: sardonic, amused, skeptical, critical, charming, seductive, intellectual, introspective, melancholy. We broke down his emotional life on film and studied how he uses his eyes and posture and body, then we applied them to Draco. For example, if we needed Draco to look angry, I could tell the animators, ‘Go to the anger bin and you will see something Sean in Russia House, suitable for Draco in this moment.” Connery says, “They must be sick of the sight of me, because they have all the cuttings and trims and photographs and pictures and stuff from all the movies. It’s quite interesting. One is not conscious of all your gestures until they’ve been put together like this.”
The computer model of the dragon was by far the most complicated and elaborate model ILM had ever built. The tyrannosaurus Rex in Jurassic Park, for example, had between seven and 8,000 control verities’ Draco had about 280,000. Ultimately, 96 animators and technical directors were involved in delivering the 181 CG shots that make up approximately 30 minutes of film time featuring a living, 3-Dimensional dragon, walking and flying proudly in the sun.
To recreate a vast, beautiful, yet rugged natural world where dragons once lived, the filmmakers chose the historic, diverse terrain of eastern Europe’s Bratislava and its surroundings as home base for production. The capital of Slovakia (a small country sandwiched between Austria to the west, the Czech Republic to the north and Hungary to the south). Bratislava lies next to the Danube River, not far from Vienna. Its mountains, scenic national forests, and majestic Romanesque castles offered the perfect setting for this 10th Century fable. In fact, Bratislava was founded just before the 10th century began. This city also houses a fully functioning and impressively-equipped film studio that was used for interior scenes.
Among the film’s more important locations was magnificent castle at Spis, the largest Romanesque castle in central Europe, located in the center of Slovakia. For Dragonheart, this site represented the mysterious ruins, the mythical resting place of King Arthur.
The surrounding unspent countryside offered up another significant filming site, grounded in an abandoned quarry. Here, a spectacular waterfall-30 feet high and 20 feet wide-was constructed by internationally renowned production designer Benjamin Fernandez (1592: Conquest of Paradise, True Romance). He and his team built an enormous iron structure dressed with fiberglass boulder and a 250 foot artificial lake. A cascading waterfall was then generated using 25 huge, submersible water pumps funneling 6000 liters per second. It was a laborious task, but one which paid rich dividends.
Meanwhile, the studios in Bratislava were a hive of Industry as Fernandez’s construction team built the massive interior sets for Dragonheart. Included were the dark cistern where the final battle between Bowen and Einon takes place: Queen Aislinn’s bed chamber; and the cave where the young Einon is given the gift of life by Draco. Like the waterfall, the cave’s size was dictated by the size of the 43-foot-long dragon.
In another corner of Koliba studios, the costume team worked virtually from scratch creating authentic 10th century clothing. Original outfits were handmade for the principals, and a total of 600 costumes were used. The team’s benchmark was authenticity, patterning designs after the Bayeux Tapestry, housed in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. This 70 meter-long representation of the conquest of England by William the Conqueror is believed to have been woven by English embroiderers and inspired by the contemporary chansons de geste (songs of deeds). “The tapestry is like a film of the period,” says Fernandez. “It shows us what they wore, what they lived it, what weapons they used, even what furniture they had.”
The film’s arsenal of swords, shields, bows and arrows, pikes, wooden pitchforks and axes was created at workshops in both the U.S. and Slovakia-wooden swords for the practice and training sessions, aluminum swords for the extras and stuntmen in large battle scenes, and steel swords for the close-ups. Bowen’s sword, which is marked by the dragon’s claw at the beginning of the film, required more detailed work. The job was subsequently taken to a blacksmith in Bratislava who modeled the sword after that of Richaed the Lionhearted.
Interestingly, this blacksmith wasn’t the only foreigner to contribute to the production. The mammoth crew numbered over 200 and was widely international. Help came from 20 different countries including U.S., Australia, England, Italy, Germany, Spain, Croatia and many countries in between, with a ground team of native Slovaks.
Now you are probably wondering if there is going to be a 2nd DRAGONHEART... Well, when I called Universal (3 weeks prior to the movie appearing in the theaters) I chatted with a very reliable guy. He told me that they had intended started writing us a sequel! However, I have heard everything from, "Maybe", "Could be", 'I don't think so", "no" and "Stop calling you little @$!#". The bottom line is that I don't know. DRAGONHEART made $55 Million is the theaters (Witch they considered a hit.) I hope that that is enough to inspire them to do a sequel. I have had a chance to talk to Charles Edward Pogue and he has told me that Universal IS looking into doing a sequel, however it will be direct-to-video with a budget that sucks. Do not expect to see the cast from the first movie and Mr.Pogue's friends who where offered a writing job laughed at the amount Universal offered. *Cries*
If you wish to write to Sean Connery:
C/O Hollywood Pictures,
500 S. Buena Vista St,.
Burbank, CA 91521.
If you wish to write to UNIVERSAL:
Universal Pictures
100 City Plaza,
Building 488/8H,
Universal City, California,
91608.
(You can also call them at (818) 777-1293)
To hear Draco just click on a link.
" Stop calling me dragon!!"
" Have you been watching over me all night. . ."
"What do you see down there. . ."
A "knight is sworn to valor. . ."
"Long ago, when man was young and the dragon already old. . ."
Above in MP3 format. Draco in:
French German Spanish
Above in RM format. Draco in:
French German Spanish
To watch Draco just click on a image.
Dragonheart Trailer MOV
Dragonheart - Draco's naming MPG
Dragonheart - Draco's first fight AVI
Dragonheart - Draco's truth MPG
Dragonheart - Draco's soul MPG
Dragonheart - The making part 1 MPG
Dragonheart - The making part 2 MPG
Learn the TRUTH behind the making of DRAGONHEART
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