Interview: Gary Goddard

[Jon Fu]

A titan within the industry, Gary Goddard and his design firms have been responsible for some of Universal’s most memorable attractions. His innovative work at The Goddard Group and Landmark Entertainment Group has led audiences through the world of Jurassic Park, King Kong, Terminator and Spiderman in some of the world’s most immersive experiences.


Mr. Goddard was gracious enough to grant us an interview that chronicles his groundbreaking work and relationship with Universal Studios.


Here's part one: http://insideuniversal.net/2013/11/interview-gary-goddard/

 

[Maurice2029]

Very cool interview. Thank you very much. Can't wait for part 2.

 

[scallenger]

Hope you guys enjoy it! It was really fun and amazing organizing this interview for Inside Universal! Gary is an awesome and amazing person who has been nothing short of spectacular in coming up with his responses and providing us with materials that have not been seen since the creation of the attraction itself! Part two will showcase even more never-before-seen art!

Do check out Goddard's own blog site, which they recently started adding their own new articles to.

http://www.thegoddardgroup.com/blog/

 

[smoaT]

I just read it. Amazing piece...

 

[Jon Fu]

I honestly think this article is worth a read if you haven't already done so. For one, it gives a great glimpse of how an attraction moves through the design process and how and why compromises are always made. Managing a theme park is full of internal politics and in-fighting - more so than I think many people would imagine.


Part 2 will be up in the coming days, and it'll detail some of the details behind Terminator and a small blurb on King Kong.

 

[scallenger]

Yeah it totally paints a bigger picture on the canvas of ride creation in general. Movies follow the same formula themselves. The original concepts are always way more complex and full of creativity compared to how they turn out. Much like Jurassic Park the film itself. If you have ever seen its concept art, their original vision was far bigger and complex. One can only hope they will borrow ideas from those concepts on the new film they are attempting, because they were quite amazing just like for the ride.

Gary really was making this his vision. It follows the novel much more closely than the film, and he really brings it to life in his original plans. Wait til you see what else he had in mind when part two comes out...

 

[Jon Fu]

Part 2 is up: http://insideuniversal.net/2013/11/interview-gary-goddard-part-2/

 

[Allen The Actor]

Haven't had a chance to fully read either article in its entirety but I can't wait to! Hopefully tomorrow!

 

[scallenger]

As for a little bonus, I have now uploaded the high-resolution images used for both parts of the interview! It even includes some storyboard images that we didn't have room for, so take a look! You'll notice in the numbering that we still don't have all of them, but more will likely show up on an upcoming Goddard blog on his blog site. Enjoy!

http://www.trescom.org/hosted/scallenger/jpride/Goddard%20Storyboard%20Art.zip

http://www.trescom.org/hosted/scallenger/jpride/Gary%20Interview%20Extras.zip