Two weeks ago I was on the set of 300, Zack Snyder’s adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel about a brave group of Spartans holding off a million Persians. I’m not allowed to share the details of the visit with you guys just yet, but I am allowed to say that what I saw was impressive. The level of detail and care going into the production is great – copies of 300 are everywhere to be found on set. Frank Miller ended up being on set that day, and he seemed truly happy with what he was seeing. The real indicator, for me, came in he few images we saw of completed film – while 300 is being shot under harsh lights in front of a blue screen, the process that is being used on the film (called “crushing”) renders every frame into a painting. I don’t know how this stuff will look in motion, but as images they were breathtaking. I confused production art with actual frames a couple of times on the visit. Check out the example above.
The movie’s site is finally live. You’ll be seeing some video journals soon (don’t judge the movie by what you see on the first one! They showed it to us before showing some of the final frames, and I was convinced 300 would look very cartoony), and for now there is some great concept art that leads you from the pages of the book to the finished product.
Check out the site by clicking right here.