Guillermo del Toro’s Guide to Creating the Perfect Movie Monster: ‘No Element Must be Accidental’
Occasionally, Twitter is a beautiful thing — like when it delivers epic diatribes on creating the perfect movie monster from someone who knows best — “Pan’s Labyrinth” director Guillermo del Toro. The director had some down time while waiting “on a bench in Paris,” so he took to Twitter to dole out some sage musings on cinematic golems, as one does. This is the latest in the famed director’s unofficial Twitter series, which always begin: “13 Tweets on…”
“When an artist has an imbalance between beauty and tragedy, or rage, in his/her sense of self, it becomes quite likely that she/he will look inwards and find monsters as a way to reconcile the two,” he wrote. “Monster creation, to me, is one of the hardest forms of creation. When they are good and powerful they need to draw from a multitude of sources: Myth, literature, nature reference and our own spirit…It is a multi-layered task and one that uses image as a storytelling device.”
“Like a piece of art, a glance at the monster tells you its story and purpose and what it represents. No element must be accidental. First shape and outline, then it must be entirely expressive sculpturally. Painting comes next. And it must be counterintuitive to sculpture — at odds with it sometimes…Direct the actor like a performer and not an impersonator…The very WORST monsters you can design are the ones you base on movie monsters that already exist. Its not a creation, it’s a dilution. You derive but not give. Creation without risk is chitter-chatter.”
To read the entire thread, click on the two Tweets below.
13 Tweets about monster creation. 1: When an artist has an imbalance between beauty and tragedy, or rage, in his/her sense of self-
— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 16, 2017
Final thoughts on Monsters as I wait on a bench in Paris: The very WORST monsters you can design are the ones you base on movie monsters-
— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 16, 2017
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