original gollum design for lord of the rings

Motion-capture data oftentimes has all sorts of problems, because it doesn't capture faces, hands or feet very well. Then, Peter Jackson would decide that the performance could be pushed a little more, and Serkis would come in again to do his scenes on a motion-capture set. Serkis' movements would be match-moved as a rough performance onto a digital puppet for the animators to use, so they could begin blocking in the face and the beats. To begin, Serkis would be on set, shooting Gollum's scenes with the live actors. Gollum was created through a combination of techniques. Bay Raitt, the creature facial lead for the movie, likes to use the following analogy: 'Andy Serkis wrote the music, then Randy Cook conducted it, and the animators are the ones playing the music that you see in the film.' With the motion and voice originally supplied by Serkis, the final on-screen presence was crafted and honed by a team of 18 animators.

We want to like him, but don't know quite what to make of him. Yet we hold our sympathy for Gollum somewhat at arm's length it is a hesitant trust. It is no mean feat for one character to arouse so much contempt and pity.

Gollum is, without question, one of the highlights of The Two Towers, and considered to be among the best performances of the film. With the two personalities cleverly juxtaposed, we see in a moment the wonderful, expressive range of actor Andy Serkis and the team of Weta artists who successfully brought the performance to life.

In The Two Towers, a favorite scene of audiences was the schizophrenic argument of the submissive, frightened Smeagol with his belligerently self-protective alter-ego Gollum. Andy Serkis provided the voice and acting for Gollum, which the animators used as a foundation in delivering the character's final performance.

Original gollum design for lord of the rings