Gerry can’t shoot today. He has a splitting headache. Sounds like we’re a married couple in bed, late at night. He says it might be because his blood pressure is up. Some action hero! Kept checking up on him since the image of him suffering from a stroke kept creeping in my mind. That’s a filmmaker’s nightmare. Your main actor’s body half paralyzed when you have already shot a lot of footage. Made some mental assessment and thought about possible patch em up scenarios in case that happens. Should I have Gerry insured for a performance-neutralizing stroke?

How much? Enough to pay for a Computer graphic replacement maybe. I mean Lucas is doing it all the time right? I even heard that there’s a forthcoming BRUCE LEE movie. They’d digitize him and scan him into the film. Goes to show the quality of actors we have at this time. Despite the advances in film technology that can erase piano wires and stuff that can make any lame actor look good, they’d still go back to the old dead ones.

So why not just computer animate GERRY if something happens. They can do that on dinosaurs and aliens. GERRY would be a sinch. Use ALIAS SOFTWARE then do a Tex map to simulate the folds and crease’s on Gerry’s stomach. The extra skin folds at the back of Gerry’s neck when he howls in anger. The animators would study the earlier footages of GERRY walking. I mean no one walks like Gerry. That heavy drooping shoulder and that slumping forward gait that passes for locomotion.

Personally I’d go to TIPPET STUDIOS. That animation company of PHIL TIPPET. He did DRAGON SLAYER and JURASSIC PARK. He’s great with character animation.

T-REX’s are a dime a dozen now since the start of the computer revolution. But they don’t have any personalities. They just growl and eat people up but that’s it! No character! But Tippet instills personalities in his creations like his legendary predecessor RAY HARRYHAUSEN. (I LOVE THESE GUYS! THEY’RE MY HEROES! )

So definitely I’d have him animate GERRY. I can be the invaluable resource person on GERRY. I spent a lot of time with him. Well that hardly qualifies someone on being an expert on someone else but I have studied his movements and his mannerisms in a level that is almost frightening. I have to do that, I m directing him. I have watched hundreds of hours of footages featuring him in various poses. Reclining, sitting down, scratching his belly, fidgeting with a pen, the works.I’d be right beside Phil, instructing him that THE GERRY would do this in that way. No He doesn’t flush the john after using he just flips the lid with his foot.

Now I come to the terrible center of this equation. What about Gerry’s squealing voice? Hell, I ‘d do it myself. It’s not too hard. Been practicing anyway, “ Hi Jenny, this is ERIK.”

With state of the art tech I’d make a GERRY that is more GERRY than GERRY. Right down to that VELOCIRAPTOR toe nail.

I’d have a character that won’t complain at TAKE 57. Or give excuses that he has to meet with his girlfriend. Who wont argue with me about the merits of MICHAEL BAY and his style of cinematic bombast! Someone who would just follow what I say when I say “ Ok now jump thru the glass window and right unto the pavement. No I won’t cut! People expect a cut in this type of scenes. I’d follow your fall thru the broken window. WHAT?What airbag? YOU WANT AN AIRBAG? GET THIS PUSSY OUT OF HERE! BRING ME JESTONI ALARCON!”

But then again he’d just be a robot. But then again he’s my robot. Mine. Wouldn’t that be great? Ahh well I can do fantasize can’t I. Seriously I hope he’s ok. But I ‘d better check TIPPET STUDIOS just in case.