Raymond Prado contacted me a few days ago to tell me about his new site http://raymondprado.com/ and I found a hidden gold mine. There are a ton of great storyboards, but the ones I found most interesting were the ones for Bryan Singer's X-Men (2000).
Currently living in Vermont, Prado is a professional storyboard artist and second unit director on films like Source Code (2010), Ray (2004) and Parker (2013).
First, several panels from the deleted origin scenes for Storm and Cyclops.
A young Ororo Munroe (Storm) creates snowballs in Africa
A young Scott Summers (Cyclops) discovers his powers as he accidentally blows a hole in the high school roof. This scene was added to X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
The ones I really wanted to show you are for Logan and Sabretooth's first fight in Alaska. It's very different from the film including a battle on, and under, an icy lake. I've also included the section from the original 1999 X-Men script by Ed Solomon and Christopher McQuarrie.
Check the images out after the jump and click to enlarge.
Here's the scene from the script for Logan and Sabretooth's Fight:
EXT. SHOW COVERED WXLDERBESS - DAY
PLACID SNOW, mountains in the distance. A magnificent vista,
suddenly disturbed by movement below.
A FIGURE RUNNING AT INHUMAN SPEED. A moment later ANOTHER
FIGURE ENTERS FRAME. Larger... moving slightly faster.
TITLES:
CENTRAL ALASKA
THE NOT TOO DISTANT FUTURE
CLOSE UP ON:
An anomaly, to say the least. A man whose features are so
much like an animal, one would think he had animal in his
blood. His hair is course and black, sprouting wildly from
his head. He is LOGAN. We will come to know him well. As well
as we can.
Then to the thing following him. So much like an animal
himself, he makes Logan look perfectly human. Larger,
fiercer, somehow inherently more savage. This is called
SABERTOOTH. The reasons are obvious'.
Teeth like said animal and clawed fingers to match.
Mutants of course. Two who must certainly be members of a
class "remote in the extreme."
EXT. WOODED HILLSIDE
Logan hits a slope at full speed, making it most of the way
proper before sliding the last of it on his heels.
At the bottom, he comes to an awkward skid on the frozen bed
of ice that is a lake at other times of year.
He makes an agile footed run across the ice, but adjusting
has closed the gap.
SABERTOOTH LEAPS and leaps far, overtaking Logan and landing
on his back.
FEROCIOUS TEETH SINK DEEP INTO LOGAN'S SHOULDER. A scream
fills the wilderness for miles. Blood flows.
Sabertooth, in a bloodlusting rage, slams Logan down only to
smash a whole in the ice with his prey.
Logan clamors free and dives under, caught instantly by the
current and swept away.
SILENCE
Sabertooth stares at the hole in the ice in frustration. Like
the cat he resembles so closely, he watches carefully,
suddenly making out bubbles under the surface, trailing away.
Be is quickly after them, clawed feet working as cleats in
the ice.
UNDER ICE
Logan struggles, already short of breath and at the same time
trying to swim madly from the shadow above. The muffled sound
of feet pounding like a heartbeat.
ABOVE ICE
Sabertooth stops again... Listening, looking, searching with
senses sharpened beyond that of human comprehension. Be
smiles.
WHAM
He droves a monstrous fist through the ice and reaches in up
to his shoulder.... searching....
SILENCE AGAIN.
Then a violent yank. The ice gives way to the soaked and naif
frozen Logan who struggles to free himself from Sabertooth' s
grasp. A large creature dwarfed by a larger one, he is
hoisted in the air, claws tearing his neck.
ANGLE ON:
Logan's right hand. His skin ripples and pulsates, trembles
from cold... or perhaps something else.
SUDDENLY, three steely claws, some nine inches long, spring
from the very flesh just above the knuckles.
A stunned pause as both he and Sabertooth look down at the
menacing rake.
Then Logan drives it home, sinking up to his hand into
Sabertooth's side.
A HOWL unlike anything ever heard and Sabertooth throws Logan
away from him, the claws tearing across his ribs as he does
so.
Logan flies several yards before hitting the ice and sliding
several dozen more. Be is stopped by his head as it hits a
rock on the far shore.
Sabertooth skulks over to him, taking a hand away from the
gash on his side in time to watch the fatal-looking wounds
heal as quickly as the sealing of a Ziplock bag.
With the sound of Sabertooth's breathing comes the rising of
the wind...
Snow from the ground begins to swirl in the bitter cold air.
Sabertooth is nearly upon Logan now and the wind rises
further, until he must shield his eyes from the bitter, icy
As he approaches, we see the fresh claw marks on Logan's face
healing before our very eyes, leaving not so much as a
scratch.
A SUDDEN FLASH OF LIGHT .
Lightning? No. Lightning is not red.
Sabertooth looks around, puzzled, then down at Logan's
motionless body. Then to his feet where a hole in the ices
spouts bubbling water.
The wind blows so violently now that he nearly misses two
figures standing only a few yards away - mere silhouettes in
the icy haze.
A closer look tell us it is a man and a woman, THEY WEAR
STRANGE UNIFORMS of form-fitting material - the man wears a
reflective visor that hides his eyes. The woman's face is
bare, revealing dark skin and penetrating eyes.
ANOTHER FLASH - one that seems to come from the visor itself.
An intense beam of red light. Sabertooth looks down and sees
the ice at his feet has melted - more accurately been melted -
away.
Be plunges through the ice like a mark in a carnival dunking
tank. The more he claws at the edges f the hole, the more the
flashes of li-jht make the hole t ger. Hi* massive weight and
hairy coat quickly suck him down.
The TWO FIGURES - CYCLOPS AMD STORM - obviously two of the
children we saw earlier now grown - stand over the whole and
calmly watch Sabertooth gather himself and swim back to the
surface.
Storm looks down at the hole, concentrating her intense gaze.
The wind whips further, and her skin dimples with goosebumps
as the temperature drops and the water in the hole begins to
freeze.
Sabertooth manages to smash through and again, Cyclops fires
a beam of light to rob him of an edge to grab on to.
Storn then further forces the temperature down, freezing the
ice thick and thicker.
UHDER THE ICE
Sabertooth pounds violently as the ice above him drives him
further and further down, becoming more and more a wall
between him and his prey.
Finally, he wisely concedes.
With one last look at the two mysterious figures now nearly
obscured by the ice, he tuns his body and swims away with the
same agility he had on land.
ABOVE ICE
THE SNOW AND WIND ARE NOW VIOLENTLY RAGING
Cyclops and Storm walk over to Logan and look down at him
curiously, observing the metallic claws that seem to grow out
of his flesh. More puzzling is the way in which they retract,
vanishing into holes in his flesh which heal as quickly as
the wound in Sabertooth's side.
LOGAN'S P.O.V.
They look at one another, wondering. Logan's eyes begin to
close as they obscure the last of all perceptible detail.
Wikipedia Synopsis:
X-Men is a 2000 American superhero film based on the fictional Marvel Comics characters of the same name. Directed by Bryan Singer, the film stars an ensemble cast that includes Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Anna Paquin, Famke Janssen, Bruce Davison, James Marsden, Halle Berry, Rebecca Romijn, Ray Park and Tyler Mane. It introduces Wolverine and Rogue into the conflict between Professor Xavier's X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants, led by Magneto. Magneto intends to mutate world leaders at a United Nations summit with a machine he has built to bring about acceptance of mutantkind, but Xavier realizes this forced mutation will only result in their deaths.
There are a ton of great storyboards and samples of Raymond Prado's portfolio at http://raymondprado.com/ and on Instagram (Praydo).
What do you think of the illustrations? Would you have enjoyed this scene more than the filmed fight scene?
@ Copyright 2000 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Marvel Enterprises, Donners' Company, Raymond Prado. All rights reserved
Currently living in Vermont, Prado is a professional storyboard artist and second unit director on films like Source Code (2010), Ray (2004) and Parker (2013).
First, several panels from the deleted origin scenes for Storm and Cyclops.
A young Scott Summers (Cyclops) discovers his powers as he accidentally blows a hole in the high school roof. This scene was added to X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
The ones I really wanted to show you are for Logan and Sabretooth's first fight in Alaska. It's very different from the film including a battle on, and under, an icy lake. I've also included the section from the original 1999 X-Men script by Ed Solomon and Christopher McQuarrie.
Check the images out after the jump and click to enlarge.
Here's the scene from the script for Logan and Sabretooth's Fight:
EXT. SHOW COVERED WXLDERBESS - DAY
PLACID SNOW, mountains in the distance. A magnificent vista,
suddenly disturbed by movement below.
A FIGURE RUNNING AT INHUMAN SPEED. A moment later ANOTHER
FIGURE ENTERS FRAME. Larger... moving slightly faster.
TITLES:
CENTRAL ALASKA
THE NOT TOO DISTANT FUTURE
CLOSE UP ON:
An anomaly, to say the least. A man whose features are so
much like an animal, one would think he had animal in his
blood. His hair is course and black, sprouting wildly from
his head. He is LOGAN. We will come to know him well. As well
as we can.
Then to the thing following him. So much like an animal
himself, he makes Logan look perfectly human. Larger,
fiercer, somehow inherently more savage. This is called
SABERTOOTH. The reasons are obvious'.
Teeth like said animal and clawed fingers to match.
Mutants of course. Two who must certainly be members of a
class "remote in the extreme."
EXT. WOODED HILLSIDE
Logan hits a slope at full speed, making it most of the way
proper before sliding the last of it on his heels.
At the bottom, he comes to an awkward skid on the frozen bed
of ice that is a lake at other times of year.
He makes an agile footed run across the ice, but adjusting
has closed the gap.
SABERTOOTH LEAPS and leaps far, overtaking Logan and landing
on his back.
FEROCIOUS TEETH SINK DEEP INTO LOGAN'S SHOULDER. A scream
fills the wilderness for miles. Blood flows.
Sabertooth, in a bloodlusting rage, slams Logan down only to
smash a whole in the ice with his prey.
Logan clamors free and dives under, caught instantly by the
current and swept away.
SILENCE
Sabertooth stares at the hole in the ice in frustration. Like
the cat he resembles so closely, he watches carefully,
suddenly making out bubbles under the surface, trailing away.
Be is quickly after them, clawed feet working as cleats in
the ice.
UNDER ICE
Logan struggles, already short of breath and at the same time
trying to swim madly from the shadow above. The muffled sound
of feet pounding like a heartbeat.
ABOVE ICE
Sabertooth stops again... Listening, looking, searching with
senses sharpened beyond that of human comprehension. Be
smiles.
WHAM
He droves a monstrous fist through the ice and reaches in up
to his shoulder.... searching....
SILENCE AGAIN.
Then a violent yank. The ice gives way to the soaked and naif
frozen Logan who struggles to free himself from Sabertooth' s
grasp. A large creature dwarfed by a larger one, he is
hoisted in the air, claws tearing his neck.
ANGLE ON:
Logan's right hand. His skin ripples and pulsates, trembles
from cold... or perhaps something else.
SUDDENLY, three steely claws, some nine inches long, spring
from the very flesh just above the knuckles.
A stunned pause as both he and Sabertooth look down at the
menacing rake.
Then Logan drives it home, sinking up to his hand into
Sabertooth's side.
A HOWL unlike anything ever heard and Sabertooth throws Logan
away from him, the claws tearing across his ribs as he does
so.
Logan flies several yards before hitting the ice and sliding
several dozen more. Be is stopped by his head as it hits a
rock on the far shore.
Sabertooth skulks over to him, taking a hand away from the
gash on his side in time to watch the fatal-looking wounds
heal as quickly as the sealing of a Ziplock bag.
With the sound of Sabertooth's breathing comes the rising of
the wind...
Snow from the ground begins to swirl in the bitter cold air.
Sabertooth is nearly upon Logan now and the wind rises
further, until he must shield his eyes from the bitter, icy
As he approaches, we see the fresh claw marks on Logan's face
healing before our very eyes, leaving not so much as a
scratch.
A SUDDEN FLASH OF LIGHT .
Lightning? No. Lightning is not red.
Sabertooth looks around, puzzled, then down at Logan's
motionless body. Then to his feet where a hole in the ices
spouts bubbling water.
The wind blows so violently now that he nearly misses two
figures standing only a few yards away - mere silhouettes in
the icy haze.
A closer look tell us it is a man and a woman, THEY WEAR
STRANGE UNIFORMS of form-fitting material - the man wears a
reflective visor that hides his eyes. The woman's face is
bare, revealing dark skin and penetrating eyes.
ANOTHER FLASH - one that seems to come from the visor itself.
An intense beam of red light. Sabertooth looks down and sees
the ice at his feet has melted - more accurately been melted -
away.
Be plunges through the ice like a mark in a carnival dunking
tank. The more he claws at the edges f the hole, the more the
flashes of li-jht make the hole t ger. Hi* massive weight and
hairy coat quickly suck him down.
The TWO FIGURES - CYCLOPS AMD STORM - obviously two of the
children we saw earlier now grown - stand over the whole and
calmly watch Sabertooth gather himself and swim back to the
surface.
Storm looks down at the hole, concentrating her intense gaze.
The wind whips further, and her skin dimples with goosebumps
as the temperature drops and the water in the hole begins to
freeze.
Sabertooth manages to smash through and again, Cyclops fires
a beam of light to rob him of an edge to grab on to.
Storn then further forces the temperature down, freezing the
ice thick and thicker.
UHDER THE ICE
Sabertooth pounds violently as the ice above him drives him
further and further down, becoming more and more a wall
between him and his prey.
Finally, he wisely concedes.
With one last look at the two mysterious figures now nearly
obscured by the ice, he tuns his body and swims away with the
same agility he had on land.
ABOVE ICE
THE SNOW AND WIND ARE NOW VIOLENTLY RAGING
Cyclops and Storm walk over to Logan and look down at him
curiously, observing the metallic claws that seem to grow out
of his flesh. More puzzling is the way in which they retract,
vanishing into holes in his flesh which heal as quickly as
the wound in Sabertooth's side.
LOGAN'S P.O.V.
They look at one another, wondering. Logan's eyes begin to
close as they obscure the last of all perceptible detail.
Wikipedia Synopsis:
X-Men is a 2000 American superhero film based on the fictional Marvel Comics characters of the same name. Directed by Bryan Singer, the film stars an ensemble cast that includes Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Anna Paquin, Famke Janssen, Bruce Davison, James Marsden, Halle Berry, Rebecca Romijn, Ray Park and Tyler Mane. It introduces Wolverine and Rogue into the conflict between Professor Xavier's X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants, led by Magneto. Magneto intends to mutate world leaders at a United Nations summit with a machine he has built to bring about acceptance of mutantkind, but Xavier realizes this forced mutation will only result in their deaths.
There are a ton of great storyboards and samples of Raymond Prado's portfolio at http://raymondprado.com/ and on Instagram (Praydo).
What do you think of the illustrations? Would you have enjoyed this scene more than the filmed fight scene?
@ Copyright 2000 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Marvel Enterprises, Donners' Company, Raymond Prado. All rights reserved
About the Author
Very different from the movie!
ReplyDeleteEspecially the lake scene Alex.
ReplyDeleteAWSOME
ReplyDeleteNice find Maurice! Will use these in the X-Men concept art post of mine & credit you for it...
ReplyDelete