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   The Potash Road Set While hiking up in the Fisher Towers area on my first day out, I met a sweet german couple on the trail. After explaining why www.johncartermovie.com was emblazoned on my t-shirt, they asked if I had seen the set on Potash road (Hwy 279) which was holding up traffic the previous day. I said no, and that we we're aware of any filming in that area. Most likely it was probably another one of the 2-3 other films being shot last weekend. Nevertheless, I said I would check it out later... Well, I checked it out yesterday and sure enough, it's a real JCOM film set! And oh what a set it is! I wasn't the only one pulling over to take photos that morning; a few other folks were out there as well exchanging information they had heard. Here's what I've gathered about the set. The Cave Apparently, this set is THE cave that John Carter wanders into on Earth, which according to this interview with Ciarin Hinds he touches something which sends him to Mars. We thought we had this location sussed out back in February as being in Winspit Quarries in Dorset, England (see article here) shows how much we know :) Now for the fun bit. Unfortunately, it sort of IS the cave, and it sort of AIN'T. This is a bit complicated, so stay with me here... The opening you see in the photo is a natural declivity in the rock, NOT the actual cave opening. The declivity used to extend all the way down to the ledge, but set crews have plastered over the opening to form a wall which extends from the ledge base up to the point you see as the bottom of the opening you see in the photo, matching the rock perfectly. You'd swear that was natural rock down there. This new fake wall they built holds another cave opening in it at ledge level, using the declivity behind the wall to form the inside of this new cave. THAT's the real cave entrance they will film. Not the one in the picture. So where is this new, lower, fake cave anyway? Well, it's hidden from view. Here's why: The top of the REAL opening is actually below the cave you see by about 3 feet. The reason you can't see it is that the "ledge" hides it. This is sorta the complex bit, but I'll try to explain. The ledge edge is a good distance away from the mountain wall face (where the cave is)... probably about 10-15 feet. As you move away from the wall (towards the camera), the ledge also seems to ramp upwards to a height of about an additional 2-4 feet. Because my camera is at street level (sorry folks, I left my portable fork lift at home) it's about 35 feet below the ledge. From this angle, the ledge hides a good 6-8 feet of the mountain wall behind it. This is unfortunate because it completely obscures the reportedly, 6' high cave entrance we are all dying to see. The Ramp The ramp was built to haul equipment up and down to the ledge where the actual filming is going on. Also, we heard they may be bringing horses up to the ledge, but that's not for certain. The ledge does run quite a ways horizontally, so a horseback chase scene might be possibly in the works if the path is wide and flat enough. The Weird Coloring on the Mountain The odd coloring on the mountin is natural shiny spots on the rock which change color depending on the time of day. What you see in this photo is the blue sky being reflected. It shows up that way in photos, but looks more obsidian in color by eye. It look kinda like a dull metallic black paint. I couldn't get anyone to explain how it forms, but it's everywhere in this area. It might drive the color guys nuts in post. We've got lots more locations to show you, so stay tuned to the next installment! Until then, here's a few photos I took nearby at Arches National Park for your viewing enjoyment. Arches is another amazing place! I only hiked one of the many trails and am dying to see the others. The 3 mile hike to/from the Delicate Arch was awesome, and I highly recommend it. Unfortunately, when I took that picture of me in the arch, the wind was gusting so high, it nearly blew me over the edge!
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 This LIVE TWITTER FEED is FORUM QUICK LINKS
- The 3D or Not To 3D Poll
A TARS TARKAS This is just too cool! This creativity piece of work was made by Khanada Taylor, webmaster for www.jamespurefoy.us RARE DISNEY MARS & BEYOND ANIMATED SERIES
What the?!?! Yeah, that's what I said too when I saw this... this is a Banth from Disney's 1957 space series, Mars and Beyond. Click the photo above to view the clip. This hysterically funny video mentions Barsoom in pretty good detail at around 2:44 in the timeline. Check it out! |
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