Sunday, January 9, 2011

Exclusive Jessica Rabbit Artist Interview - David Russell



What better way to begin a new year than with an exclusive ImNotBad.com artist interview. This one is quite a surprise. I was contacted by David Russell in Australia, who worked for Amblin Entertainment as concept artist on Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He also worked on other films such as Return of the Jedi, The Chronicles of Narnia, Batman, The Color Purple and X-Men Origins. Naturally I had a lot of questions for someone who worked so directly in the filmmaking process, and was honored when he responded with lots of fantastic information about Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Jessica. Find out what he thinks about animator Richard Williams, the Disney Studio's real concerns about Jessica, her deleted scene in Eddie's bathtub, if Harrison Ford had been cast as Eddie, why he feels the characters disappeared for so long, and be the first to know when he's going to sell his collection of artwork from various film projects.


DynamicImagesdr.com and FineArtAmerica.com



ImNotBad.com:
It's very exciting to have you for our special interview. To let the readers know a little more about you, what was it that inspired you to start drawing?

David Russell:
My creative journey began in childhood, when my imagination was stirred by fantasy books such as the Oz series. This lead to an interest in mythology, especially Norse tales. Somewhat later I chanced upon the dynamic comic book work of Jack Kirby, and this influence set me on my path as a visual artist.


Comic artist, Jack Kirby




INB:
What was the first project you worked on?

David:
My first film project was Return of the Jedi --the result of personal determination and a lucky series of breaks. I loved the original Star Wars films, and it was a fantastic privilege to participate in the creation of Jedi. Everyone in the team was aware that a bright moment in cinematic history was coming to an end, so in some ways it was a bittersweet experience.

Concept art on the Death Star 2 for Star Wars - Return of the Jedi




INB:
How were you approached to work on the art for Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

David:
I had worked for Steven Spielberg on The Color Purple, and with Robert Zemeckis on Amazing Stories. Both directors liked my work, and so brought me aboard the [Roger Rabbit] production.





INB:
When is it that initial work on Who Framed Roger Rabbit really started?

David:
Pre-production commenced in 1986.





INB:
When it came to Jessica Rabbit, it seems it took quite a few different looks to get her how she appeared on screen, do you know why that happened?

David:
Creating a well-designed animation character is often a complex process. Jessica presented a number of challenges, and her evolution went through many stages.






INB:
Were there any ideas beforehand on how the characters were going to look?

David:
When I began working on the film, none of the character designs had been finalized. Jessica in particular had very little development, and so I began creating a number of concept sketches, some of which were incorporated in my ongoing storyboards. I did largely design what became her final costume, and ultimately her basic look.



INB:
Did anyone comment on Jessica Rabbit's appearance during the creation?

David:
As the script pointedly referred to her voluptuousness, I continued to make her ever-more curvaceous, prompting [Steven] Spielberg to remark that, every time he saw one of my new sketches or storyboards sequences, Jessica's breasts seem to get bigger! Of course, this was during an early stage of pre-production, and eventually Richard [Williams] and Russell Hall finalized her look.





INB:
Are you pleased with the final look of the characters that ended up on screen?

David:
Yes, with the exception of Jessica. She looks great, but her face is a bit babyish, and her waistline is too extreme--again, this was done to reduce the 'real-life' quality of her sexiness.



INB:
Did either of the studios involved with the movie, Disney or Amblin, have any reservations on how overly-sexy Jessica Rabbit was going to appear on screen?

David:
Oh, yes! I think Disney was the most concerned about this; but, without a sexy Jessica, the movie couldn't succeed.




Early concept art for Jessica Rabbit




INB:
What do you think of the voice talents who performed for Jessica - Kathleen Turner and Amy Irving.

David:
Kathleen Turner was the perfect voice talent choice for Jessica. Amy Irving (who commissioned me to paint a portrait of herself and baby, Max Spielberg, during production as a birthday gift for Steven) did a creditable job of singing Jessica's Ink and Paint Club torch song.



INB:
What were some deleted or unused ideas for the movie involving Jessica?

David:
Certain scenes were either planned or shot, then cut for budget or editing reasons. The scene [below] was Eddie's office encounter with Jessica. She was originally intended to be taking a bath when he arrives--but it seems Disney decided that was just way too hot!



An unused scene concept between Jessica Rabbit and Eddie Valiant


INB:
What was your reaction to the movie when you saw it?

David:
I loved every second of it! The film was almost perfect. I do feel that an American actor would have been more suitable for the part of Eddie Valiant. I rather think that, had Harrison Ford (a red-hot actor at the time) agreed to play the role, at least one more [Roger Rabbit] film would have been made.



INB:
Do you think the design of Jessica Rabbit inspired a lot of the shapely cartoon girls we see all the time now on TV, in comics and in games?

David:
Oh, yes, no doubt about it! Jessica raised the bar for all subsequent female animation character designs.





INB:
For a while now there has been rumor of a Roger Rabbit sequel. Do you have any thoughts on this?

David:
There have been serious discussions about a sequel, with Robert Zemeckis again slated to direct. I think it was a tragedy that a series of films did not follow the first release. There were many reasons for this, including the great difficulty in persuading powerful and competitive studios such as Universal, Warner's and Disney to cooperate on future productions. It's a credit to Spielberg, Zemeckis, and producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, that Roger Rabbit was such a high quality production.

In many ways the mid-80's represented the peak period of the film directors involved in Roger Rabbit. Certainly Robert Zemeckis never again made a film as powerful as Roger Rabbit; indeed, his subsequent forays into animation (Polar Express, Beowulf, etc) were notably dismal efforts. Perhaps this circumstance also underlines the cooperative nature of film production.

However, from a creative perspective, the real hero of this film was my friend and colleague Richard Williams. This incredible artist--with his firm grasp of the entire history of animation--artfully weaved the dynamic influences of Tex Avery, Disney, and others into the world of of Roger Rabbit, ultimately creating one one of the most amazing films of all time. In doing so, he almost single-handedly revived studio interest in top-quality animation features. This is a remarkable accomplishment, and, in a fair world, Richard would have been showered with gold for his efforts.



Richard Williams




INB:
For many years, Roger Rabbit and Jessica seemed to disappear from Disney existence. Plans for so many things were cancelled, and there have been a lot of rumors as to why this happened. Is there any comment you could make as to why?

David:
Roger Rabbit was successful largely because of the influence of Richard Williams. I do not feel he was treated with the respect that he deserved, negating the chances that he could be included in future Roger Rabbit films. Again, the film represents a minor miracle of high-level studio cooperation--a fragile situation that, given Hollywood's competitive structure, could not be expected to endure.



David Russell plans on selling some of his one-of-a-kind art collection from various movies he has worked on through the years. Please check back here and visit his sites for more information as it becomes available. Stay Tooned!

www.dynamicimagesdr.com & www.fineartamerica.com




Jessica Rabbit Concept Art
Jessica Rabbit Artist Interviews