The Art of the Matrix

About this book

The firstand onlybook licensed by the creators of this awesome film--"A careening cyberride without the headset, a virtual masterpiece...The Bible meets Batman; Lewis Carroll collides with William Gibson, Greek and geek mythology bump and run."--Richard Corliss, Timemagazine. An intimate journey into the mind's eyes of the two brothers who wrote and directed one of 1999's most unusual and successful movies of the year (over $170 million in the US and Canada; $350 million worldwide)--The Matrixgrew out of the Wachowskis' fascination with ideas that challenge perceptions of reality, and the way that mythology and the Internet informed culture. It tells the story of a computer hacker Keanu Reeves) in the 22nd century who joins a band of freedom fighters (led by Laurence Fishburne) struggling against evil computers that control the earth. To sell their amazing script to Warner executives, the talented Wachowski brothers employed tom comic book professionals to visualize their script in the form of storyboards. This unique book will include the complete storyboards created for 219 scenes by Steve Skroce and others, the Wachowskis' complete shooting script, many of their original sketches, several gatefolds of Geof Darrow's intricate conceptual designs, annotations by Skroce and Phil Oosterhouse, and a section on scenes cut before filming, annotated, wioth script pages and storyboards. A must for all science fiction, cyberspace, comic book, and Matrix fans! This unique volume includes: * The shooting script by writers/directors Larryand Andy Wachowski * Black & white storyboards (600+) by Steve Skroce * Color storyboards by Tani Kunitakeand Collin Grant * Conceptual drawings by Geof Darrow, presented in four double-sided gatefolds * Color renderings of Geof Darrow * Conceptuals by Warren Manser * Three storyboard sequences cut before filming * 32-page color album of memorable stills and poster * Commentary by the artists about their work on the film, interviewed especially for this book * Thumbnail sketches by the Wachowski Brothers * Introduction by Zach Staenberg, Oscar "RM" -winning Film Editor * Scene notes by Phil Oosterhouse * Deleted script excerpts * Film credits