4 Creating Primitive Skull Islanders	KING KONG PRODUCTION NOTES Introduction Movie Profile Synopsis A Filmmaker's Dream The Story of King Kong A Young Dreamer Meets a Classic Story 4Casting Kong: Keeping Original Time Naomi Watts as Ann Darrow Jack Black as Carl Denham Adrien Brody as Jack Driscoll Captain, Assistant, Orphan Building a Shrewder Ape Andy Serkis as Kong 4Filming Kong: An Island Off the Charts Cool-Looking Dinosaurs Primitive Islanders A Fully Digitalized Kong A City That No Longer Exists Shooting in Non-Digital World 35-Year Journey Neared End 4Other Stuff: Articles & Interviews Picture Galleries King Kong Poster Store 3Website Home
	To create the frightening, primitive tribe on the Island, 100 actors were transformed into Skull Islanders by donning Weta-designed costumes (constructed from sea shells, feathers, fish and animal bones and human hair), wigs (a portion of which were hand-knotted), makeup, body paint, prosthetic teeth and weapons.  While of the same tribe, different looks were created by varying the weapons, wigs and contact lenses. For a handful of actors given featured parts (the feral child, the shaman and the drummers), their longer time on camera meant more work to produce their looks-the actress playing the shaman spent five hours in the chair with three prosthetic and makeup technicians working to transform her into the terrifying crone.  Additionally, as the Islanders are first seen during a rainstorm, Weta workers developed a waterproof process for coloring their skin.  Initial designs for the most famous Islander-Kong himself-were completed by Gus Hunter in May of 2003. The biggest challenge in his design: to create a realistic gorilla, yet one with features that make him unique and instantly recognizable from other silverbacks. Once a firm design direction was established by Jackson, sculptors developed a three-dimensional study of Kong, which was reviewed and tweaked regularly until the look was finally locked. From there, Weta molded and produced a maquette that was sent for digital scanning; these scans produced data as the first step in Weta Digital's process to create what would become the onscreen Kong. For Richard Taylor, the intensive work involved during the production was a reward unto itself. He says, “The most enjoyable aspect of working on King Kong for me is that Weta Workshop has been involved in the film at many levels, from the conception and design of the creatures-including the development of one of the cinema's greatest icons, King Kong-to the exploration of the unique cultures of the island, both present and past. It has been a creative challenge that we have reveled in: the chance to reinvigorate and redefine a unique look for a world so powerfully brought to life on the screen over 70 years ago.” 4Next Page: A Fully Digitalized King Kong