Michael Bay has been spilling the beans on his first week’s shooting of Transformers. And, as you might expect from the Pearl Harbor helmer, it’s not a tale of sitting with his actors filming quiet, reflective character scenes. It’s been work in the harsh desert, Blowing Shit Up On A Considerable Scale.
“We finished our first week. One of the best first weeks on a movie I've ever experienced,” brags Bay. “We shot over 250 set ups. I'm working on the military aspects of the film right now in New Mexico at Hollaman Air Force base and the Army's White Sands missile base. The military has been stellar with us. This is the largest military cooperation since Pearl Harbor and Black Hawk Down.”
Yes, we all know his legendary hardware hard-ons, and now he has the most military muscle to play with since Harbor…
“Friday we shot two CV-22s (Ospreys). They fly like aliens dropping out of the sky. We also shot stealth fighters and low attack missile runs (50 feet off the deck) A10 Warthogs. They look so deadly and mean. We also shot in an army tank graveyard that has more tanks in it then all of Iraq. The military cast Josh (Duhamel) and Tyrese (Gibson) are surrounded with top notch Seal Team members.”
And if the Transformers cast were thinking it would be all shooting inside cooled soundstages with giant blue screens so the robots can be added later, they were in for a very big Think Again: “I almost dropped from heat stroke on Wednesday in the 118 degree heat. Several crewmembers went down in the heat on these dunes. It is amazing how quickly it can come on - I now see how some of those football players drop dead from heat stroke.”
Since this is the man who experienced desert shooting for The Island, we’d have thought he’d at least bring a couple of extra bottles of water. Or perhaps a lovely parasol to shade his mighty directing noggin? We suggest a nice Action Force design to match his current schedule.