Warcraft Orcs Tell All

By: Lynn Barker

In the new film Warcraft, gamers can see their fave characters in big-screen action. Director Duncan Jones made an effort to flesh out the characters and provide a little interaction before and after battles.

Actress Paula Patton plays Garona Halforcen, the feisty orc/draenei survivor caught between worlds. Thinking she is half human and half orc, she must decide which team to play on. 

Robert Kazinsky enacts Orgrim Doomhammer, Blackhand’s right-hand man. He is sneaky and tactically brilliant, a brave warrior who will carry the Doomhammer of legend.

Reporters learned that Robert is an uber-fan of the games so he is both thrilled to be in the film and really hoping it pleases fans. Paula not only gives great advice for tweens and teens but was a total newbie to the “Warcraft” universe and was so overwhelmed when seeing herself in the Garona make-up that she wondered if she could actually play the role.  Check it out.

Q: Both of you, why sign on for this project?

• Paula: The script and the character were so compelling and (director) Duncan (Jones) wanted to meet with me and it was just great. It was a creatively-artistic meeting. He showed me the world and we talked about it and it was my first introduction into “Warcraft”. I had known about Duncan’s film work, “Moon”, “Source Code”, I thought he was an incredible director and the way he explained this role to me and the passion he had and the way he described Garona, I was so moved.
• He was like “Do you want to do this?” “I want to do this”. Then, I got in my car and I thought “S**t”. I was so scared. I want to do it justice and how will I become a half orc, half human? So, then I realized that it’s the things you are most scared of doing that you should do. So it was all those things telling me to be a part of it. Then, I have to say, I didn’t really know what I was in until I watched the movie. That’s the real truth. You’re on these amazing sets and then you start to realize what your director has really done. I’ve seen the film twice now. I went “Oh my gosh, it’s remarkable". He created this incredible world. I was so thrilled to be a part of this fantasy and it became like a dream come true.
• Robert: I would have swept the floor to be a part of this film and I’d have played any part in it. I think I offered to literally pay (the production company) Legendary to have the role so I was more than happy when I was asked to be Orgrim Doomchisle, as Duncan calls him.  For me, this game has been in my life for like twelve years so it feels very much like a full circle for me to actually get to be in this and there’s nothing, not rain nor sleet, nor snow nor armored ogre that can stand in my way of trying to be in this.

Q: Wow! Enthusiastic! In the game it’s easy to level up by killing more orcs. In real life it’s harder. So, for all the young fans of the movie and the game, what advice would you have for them?

• Paula: With not killing any orcs? It’s about having no fear. Sometimes you feel that you are in competition but if you have no fear and you have faith in yourself, then you can achieve that and achieve it with partnership with a group, with a team then I truly believe it’s mind over matter. Just like in a fantasy film and with imagination, you can will it to yourself. You have to have faith and believe and not let in any bit of negativity or doubt or what came before you or what people say is impossible. You decide your own reality and make it possible.

Q: Awesome advice. You really do kick some butt in this film. That’s great to see but the process of getting into your costume, your hair, make-up, appliances, can you talk a little bit about that and did it help you create this very fearsome character?

• Paula: Absolutely. That process began way before we started shooting. We had a lot of tests to find it and make it right. It’s trial and error and I had a moment, I’m not gonna lie to you, I (had the make-up done) and there was no mirror, and then went to the bathroom, looked in the mirror and almost had a panic attack, “Hope I can do this”. It was like six hours later and I was so horrified. I remember it was one of those moments that I was like “It’s amazing, they won’t believe it”.
• Yes, there were a lot of hours in the day but I loved it, I came to embrace it because I was afraid. I didn’t know how I was going to fully become this half orc half human. Part of it is what you do mentally to prepare but then it became the collaborative effort of costumes and make-up and hair all with Duncan’s vision. Then you put on the finishing touches and the contact lenses which really obscured my vision. After that I didn’t feel human. Certainly not wearing much clothing while everybody else wearing clothing made me feel like I didn’t fit in (laughter). So, I came to embrace it. I didn’t know any other way so I loved it in the end because that was how I found her.
• Robert: As an addendum, it also was very encouraging for us. We’d get a 6 A.M. call time and go “Ow, that’s awful”. We’d go in for a 20 minute makeup. Then you would look at the call sheet and see that Paula’s call time was 3:15 A.M. !  Then you’d think “Aw, I don’t have it that bad!”  

Q: What make-up did you have?

• Robert: I had to shave (my head) every day. It wasn’t a trim. It was a shave. Toby (Kebbell who plays Durolan) had a couple of days where it was like six hours of makeup as well. I was so excited to be in this film and play the character that when was on the plane to Vancouver and I see Toby Kebbell two seats ahead of me. I go over and tap him on the shoulder and go “Hi, mate. I’m your Orgrim” and he looked at me like “What? I went back to my seat and thought “What a knob!” (laughter).

Q: How hard was working with all the motion capture in this?

• Robert: Duncan created a set that was safe for us to play in. When we were doing motion capture and we were shorn of adornments and costume and you’re just out there with your costume essentially made of imagination, you have to rely on each other and trust each other. It created a camaraderie that I hadn’t come across before on any movie. It’s that collaboration that allowed us to be free and trust each other.

Q: You are a big player of the game. Talk about the movie for game fans in particular.

• Robert: Obviously ,I needed this film to be good. After twenty years and ten billion dollars of the game, we deserve a good film. There’s this pressure I felt on myself that we would have to deliver something that would be acceptable to me if I were to watch it. I felt that pressure on myself then go to set and see a lot of people that had given up jobs that paid better, jobs that had better positioning. Some people would go for months without work just so they could stay free to take this job because they were fans. They were passionate about it.
• Every single one of those people whether it was Duncan all the way down, you’d be amazed at how many people who worked on this film had mysteriously actually played the game. All felt pressure to deliver something that would represent the hardcore gamer like myself and then the best way they did that was by simply telling a great story. We’ve been making movies about Jesus for a long time and he died two thousand years ago and about ancient Egypt and Cleopatra. A good story is a good story and this is a great story. By making a great movie about a great story, we were servicing the fans like myself.

Q: This is Leroy Jenkins day. Robert, can you explain that to those you don’t know?

• Robert: (laughs) Maybe Leroy Jenkins makes an appearance in the movie. When you play the game, these figures become a part of your culture and you wonder if they’ve become a part of popular culture as well. Whether you’ve played the game or not, there is a fair chance you’ve heard of Leroy Jenkins. It started off as a short family video in Blackwing Lair where there’s a bunch of players gathering around going “Okay, guys, you’re going to rush in and you’re going to freeze this thing and you’re going to trap this. We’re going to go and do this”. There’s a guy standing in the corner who says “F**k it! Leroy Jenkins” and runs in and gets everybody killed. Leroy Jenkins then kind of became the vernacular for rushing in without planning and being a damned idiot. You’re so happy to be there that you’re an idiot. That’s pretty much me for the whole film. I guess I’m kind of Leroy Jenkins.

Warcraft is in theaters now!

Warcraft Trailer

 

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