Anastasia
Member
The Hosts said (I've cleaned the dialogue up a little, so this is not verbatim):
Corey: Here is the direct challenge then to the costuming people ... and the visual design people ... you've got to come up with visuals for all of the Valar so that we can depict them and contain in a compressed visual form so, because we're going to have no narrator explaining it, right, think about all of the things that are said about the Valar, each one of the Valar in the Valaquenta and show us how to visually (I couldn't hear this last part)"
Trish: So obviously we have some homework before season one... but not for next time... you guys have got plenty of time
Corey: You've got several weeks
Trish: We actually do have... we actually have an episode that we plan to talk about costuming and stuff like that.
I thought we could do some brainstorming in this forum.
If you wish to share artist renderings of the Valar that you like, please remember to credit the artist.
If you have specific quotes from the Valaquenta (or other parts of the Silmarillion) that you would like to share/are using as reference, I will add them to this post so that all of the references are in the same place.
Bre has kindly shared her hard work. She has compiled a document containing all visual references in the Silmarillion, HoME #1 and H0ME #2, it is available on Google Drive. The page specifically referencing the Valar can be found HERE
Anyways, I've got lots to do this week, so unfortunately I can't contribute more that this at the moment. Have fun brainstorming!
Edit: June 27th, 2015
I added a direct link to Bre's document to his post.
Edit: March 29th, 2016
Here are the cues that the hosts provided in the first casting episode (http://silmfilm.mythgard.org/session-16-episode-14-casting/)
Melkor:
Dark hair, pale skin, physically powerful
Mairon:
Red hair, boyish
Manwe:
Older, close cropped silver hair, humble, possibly Native American casting
Varda:
Beautiful, dark hair with streaks of silver
Ulmo:
Long hair (possibly dreadlocks); short beard; sturdy build; possibly Asian, Pacific Islander, or African casting
Aule:
Big featured, ruddy, possibly Slavic casting
Yavanna:
Tree-ish, Gaia/earth mother, natural long hair, possibly West African casting
Nienna:
Pale, piercing eyes, veil, not eye-catching
Tulkas:
Burly, exuberant
Nessa:
Young, graceful/ballerina, Tan, possibly Asian or Latina casting
Orome:
Tall, lean, gruff, blond and Nordic (looks like the Rohirrim)
Vana:
Youngest, pretty, flowery, looks a little like Yavanna
Mados:
Gravitas, wise, possibly Japanese casting
Vaire:
Cold, intimidating, intense, mature
Lorien:
Monk-like, gorgeous, restful, possibly Asian casting
Este:
Beautiful, sleepy, possibly Asian casting
Osse:
Long, matted hair and beard; wild; thin
Uinen:
Longest hair, green straight smooth hair, gymnast/martial artist build
Melian:
Beautiful; raven-haired; grey-eyed; possibly Asian, Italian, Mediterranean, or gypsy casting
Olorin:
Possibly young, possibly short.
Curumo:
Tall, thin, formal
Ungoliant:
Femme fatale, Morticia Addams
Eonwe:
Young, Strapping, thin but broad shouldered, like a knight, a little like Manwe
Ilmare:
Young, echoes Varda, possibly same hair but different skin
Gothmog:
Wings, classically beautiful/angelic, blonde hair, blue eyes
Edit April 23rd 2016:
Information from the second casting episode Session 18 (http://silmfilm.mythgard.org/session-18-casting-poll-results-costuming-chat/)
-Discussion of how "weird" to make the Valar, no definite decisions made, but definitely more humanoid than elemental because it is easier to relate to humanoid beings than to elements.
Melkor: Michael Fassbender
-should look like he hoards light
-diamond and silver jewelry
-should have a circlet which gradually becomes the iron crown.
-No armour, he believes that the other Valar are the aggressors.
-He is trying to look strong and benevolent (to those that submit to his rule)
-un valiant
Mairon: Simon Woods
-costume begins simple and becomes more ornate as the season progresses to suggest Melkor's influence
-costume should look like he is a craftsman making an artwork out of himself. This can perhaps be done with jewelry and/or decorative armour.
-be careful not to make him look like he is the leader and Aule is the follower.
-should have rings and a circlet
-colours, reds and Browns, getting more fiery as the season progresses.
-red hair, no glowing eyes
-Aule's followers look like art students in Browns and greys, Mairon is differentiated by the red accents in his costume
Manwe: Daniel Day Lewis
-long white or grey hair, styled so it evokes feathers
-Sapphires, sky and stormy blues, white and silver
-his Eagles should look like him.
-no crown, to emphasize his humility
Varda: Lucy Liu
-Deep sky purple with silver accents, attendants in white/silver
-Silver accents should be light, nothing heavy.
-lots of stars in her costume, stars in her hair is of particular interest for certain scenes
-Starry eyes
-no nimbus, but generalized lighting effects to evoke her purview.
Ulmo: Manu Bennett
-costume should evoke all waters, not just the sea
-greens and blues
Aule: Liev Schreiber
-unkempt, as though he is so focused on his work that he forgets to attend to his own appearance.
-Browns and greys
-costume must include a smith's apron
Yavanna: Gina Torres
Nienna: Marion Cotillard
-dark grey
-veil
Tulkas: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
-close cropped Roman blonde hair
Nessa: Summer Glau
Orome: Alexander Skarsgard
-green, but not Robin Hood, furs and fur colours too
-was Yavanna's son in an earlier version
-proto-Rohirrim
Vana: Amanda Stenberg
Mandos: Idris Elba
-dark and foreboding
Vaire: Holly Hunter
-grey hair, light costume, in contrast to Mandos
Lorien: Alexander Siddig
-middle eastern influence
Este: Lyndie Greenwood
Osse: Ben Schnetzer
-goatee
-lighter blues
-eely/slippery
Uinen: Sophia Boutella
-dancer/martial artist look
Melian: Rachel Weisz
Olorin: Gael Garcia Bernal
-the hosts do not want him to wear grey or white
-he is a follower of Nienna
(Personal note: I am not sure how we are going to make those two statements work together given the proposed framework of the followers of specific Valar keeping to the colour scheme of their associated Vala)
Curumo: Domhall Gleeson
Ungoliant: Morena Baccarin
-hosts like the short hair
Eonwe: Liam Hemsworth
Ilmare: Yoojun Kim
Gothmog: Chris Pine
Corey: Here is the direct challenge then to the costuming people ... and the visual design people ... you've got to come up with visuals for all of the Valar so that we can depict them and contain in a compressed visual form so, because we're going to have no narrator explaining it, right, think about all of the things that are said about the Valar, each one of the Valar in the Valaquenta and show us how to visually (I couldn't hear this last part)"
Trish: So obviously we have some homework before season one... but not for next time... you guys have got plenty of time
Corey: You've got several weeks
Trish: We actually do have... we actually have an episode that we plan to talk about costuming and stuff like that.
~~~~~~~~~~~
I thought we could do some brainstorming in this forum.
If you wish to share artist renderings of the Valar that you like, please remember to credit the artist.
If you have specific quotes from the Valaquenta (or other parts of the Silmarillion) that you would like to share/are using as reference, I will add them to this post so that all of the references are in the same place.
Bre has kindly shared her hard work. She has compiled a document containing all visual references in the Silmarillion, HoME #1 and H0ME #2, it is available on Google Drive. The page specifically referencing the Valar can be found HERE
Anyways, I've got lots to do this week, so unfortunately I can't contribute more that this at the moment. Have fun brainstorming!
Edit: June 27th, 2015
I added a direct link to Bre's document to his post.
Edit: March 29th, 2016
Here are the cues that the hosts provided in the first casting episode (http://silmfilm.mythgard.org/session-16-episode-14-casting/)
Melkor:
Dark hair, pale skin, physically powerful
Mairon:
Red hair, boyish
Manwe:
Older, close cropped silver hair, humble, possibly Native American casting
Varda:
Beautiful, dark hair with streaks of silver
Ulmo:
Long hair (possibly dreadlocks); short beard; sturdy build; possibly Asian, Pacific Islander, or African casting
Aule:
Big featured, ruddy, possibly Slavic casting
Yavanna:
Tree-ish, Gaia/earth mother, natural long hair, possibly West African casting
Nienna:
Pale, piercing eyes, veil, not eye-catching
Tulkas:
Burly, exuberant
Nessa:
Young, graceful/ballerina, Tan, possibly Asian or Latina casting
Orome:
Tall, lean, gruff, blond and Nordic (looks like the Rohirrim)
Vana:
Youngest, pretty, flowery, looks a little like Yavanna
Mados:
Gravitas, wise, possibly Japanese casting
Vaire:
Cold, intimidating, intense, mature
Lorien:
Monk-like, gorgeous, restful, possibly Asian casting
Este:
Beautiful, sleepy, possibly Asian casting
Osse:
Long, matted hair and beard; wild; thin
Uinen:
Longest hair, green straight smooth hair, gymnast/martial artist build
Melian:
Beautiful; raven-haired; grey-eyed; possibly Asian, Italian, Mediterranean, or gypsy casting
Olorin:
Possibly young, possibly short.
Curumo:
Tall, thin, formal
Ungoliant:
Femme fatale, Morticia Addams
Eonwe:
Young, Strapping, thin but broad shouldered, like a knight, a little like Manwe
Ilmare:
Young, echoes Varda, possibly same hair but different skin
Gothmog:
Wings, classically beautiful/angelic, blonde hair, blue eyes
Edit April 23rd 2016:
Information from the second casting episode Session 18 (http://silmfilm.mythgard.org/session-18-casting-poll-results-costuming-chat/)
-Discussion of how "weird" to make the Valar, no definite decisions made, but definitely more humanoid than elemental because it is easier to relate to humanoid beings than to elements.
Melkor: Michael Fassbender
-should look like he hoards light
-diamond and silver jewelry
-should have a circlet which gradually becomes the iron crown.
-No armour, he believes that the other Valar are the aggressors.
-He is trying to look strong and benevolent (to those that submit to his rule)
-un valiant
Mairon: Simon Woods
-costume begins simple and becomes more ornate as the season progresses to suggest Melkor's influence
-costume should look like he is a craftsman making an artwork out of himself. This can perhaps be done with jewelry and/or decorative armour.
-be careful not to make him look like he is the leader and Aule is the follower.
-should have rings and a circlet
-colours, reds and Browns, getting more fiery as the season progresses.
-red hair, no glowing eyes
-Aule's followers look like art students in Browns and greys, Mairon is differentiated by the red accents in his costume
Manwe: Daniel Day Lewis
-long white or grey hair, styled so it evokes feathers
-Sapphires, sky and stormy blues, white and silver
-his Eagles should look like him.
-no crown, to emphasize his humility
Varda: Lucy Liu
-Deep sky purple with silver accents, attendants in white/silver
-Silver accents should be light, nothing heavy.
-lots of stars in her costume, stars in her hair is of particular interest for certain scenes
-Starry eyes
-no nimbus, but generalized lighting effects to evoke her purview.
Ulmo: Manu Bennett
-costume should evoke all waters, not just the sea
-greens and blues
Aule: Liev Schreiber
-unkempt, as though he is so focused on his work that he forgets to attend to his own appearance.
-Browns and greys
-costume must include a smith's apron
Yavanna: Gina Torres
Nienna: Marion Cotillard
-dark grey
-veil
Tulkas: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
-close cropped Roman blonde hair
Nessa: Summer Glau
Orome: Alexander Skarsgard
-green, but not Robin Hood, furs and fur colours too
-was Yavanna's son in an earlier version
-proto-Rohirrim
Vana: Amanda Stenberg
Mandos: Idris Elba
-dark and foreboding
Vaire: Holly Hunter
-grey hair, light costume, in contrast to Mandos
Lorien: Alexander Siddig
-middle eastern influence
Este: Lyndie Greenwood
Osse: Ben Schnetzer
-goatee
-lighter blues
-eely/slippery
Uinen: Sophia Boutella
-dancer/martial artist look
Melian: Rachel Weisz
Olorin: Gael Garcia Bernal
-the hosts do not want him to wear grey or white
-he is a follower of Nienna
(Personal note: I am not sure how we are going to make those two statements work together given the proposed framework of the followers of specific Valar keeping to the colour scheme of their associated Vala)
Curumo: Domhall Gleeson
Ungoliant: Morena Baccarin
-hosts like the short hair
Eonwe: Liam Hemsworth
Ilmare: Yoojun Kim
Gothmog: Chris Pine
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