Updated 01/04/2016 – I have added another 2 pictures to the gallery below. Thanks to Stolen for the close up one.
Updated 02/04/2016 – Added another one.
We have our first on location pictures of Alien: Covenant! Filming is due to start on Alien: Covenant in the next week or so and news of the crew moving into Fiordland National Park in New Zealand has been cropping up on social media over the last few weeks. Now, we finally have our first look at what’s going on in Fiordland!
First On Location Pictures of Alien: Covenant!
These pictures (more below) were taken in front of Mitre Peak, an iconic mountain in the South of New Zealand. They are constructing what would appear to be a spaceship (possibly the Covenant?). In its current state it’s hard to tell for certain what exactly it might be though. Is it just some generic section of the hull or might it be an airlock?
In related news, a recent article (that has since been removed from the website) posted by the Otago Daily Times confirmed that Alien: Covenant would be filming in the Te Anau region of South New Zealand (thanks to Stolen for the tip!):
“Details of exactly what is being filmed, how many people are involved and how long filming will take are shrouded in mystery, but it has been confirmed scenes for Alien: Covenant are at present being shot in the Te Anau-Milford Sound area.
A company spokesman, who declined to be named, said 13 trucks fitted out as camera, make-up, wardrobe and office trucks had been hired ‘‘for a few weeks”. Most were already in Fiordland, with the rest on their way south. They were being used for Alien: Covenant scenes, he said.
He knew Fiordland was to be a location for Alien: Covenant and had heard some filming had begun. Scouts had been scoping locations for the past six to eight weeks, he said. ‘‘I know Fiordland is ideally suited to their needs. It is a grand-scale production … which will use Fiordland’s natural scenery overlaid with special effects.”
https://www.reddit.com/r/scifi/comments/4dez8v/alien_covenant_set_in_milford_sound_new_zealand/
Much clearer snap of the construction.
It is definitely not easy to reinvent Gigeresque landscape but all of his work is not necessarily related to sexual/morbid connotions. Personnaly, I'm not fond of his too explicit sexual drawings (look at my avatar, I cut out the d**k which was on the tail). You can google for example 'Biomechanical Landscape I,II,IIa'
I think it is at an acceptable level and it probably shouldn't offend so many people.
Well, the term Paradise indicates it will be a lush planet full of life. It wouldn't be so much of a paradise if it was completely void of any life. It doesn't have to be xenomorphs stalking people in a jungle - I agree, that wouldn't look right and that's more for Predator. That was a big problem with Predators, the jungle just looked something out of Earth. Instead they should have been aiming for something like Avatar style scenery.
What is a Gigeresque landscape exactly? (Guys have u concept art or pics ?)Yes, I love to see the influence of Giger's work in Covenant, hopefully in caves.
But is really possible to make a planet Gigeresque ?? I doubt, don't forget that his work has a sexual/morbid connotation (too hard for public) and it's not easy to imagine and reinvent piece like that. That may be why nobody since 1979 has wanted to call him, too sinister for a studio film.
But his minimal participation in Prometheus was excellent, the cave was unbelievable and "never seen" ! That's why I'm optimistic, Ridley wants to show unusual things, and Paradise will be surprising. Beautiful in appearance and probably horrible in the dark.
But Prometheus is not Alien, isn't just a monster movie. It's pure science fiction film that just tries to move away from the original and offer unusual things. This is not a flaw, ambition is different.
However Covenant will be an Alien film, so I expect that we find the stifling atmosphere of the first. As I think from the beginning, the caves will surprise us visually.
If Ridley Scott works 16 weeks in a studio, it is precisely to create something that is not found on Earth.
Have you watched Legend of him? He creates an incredible forest and even an artificial sun in a studio. Ridley can create absolutely everything in the studio. Be patient, we have no idea of what really happens!
Agreed guys. It is supposed to be a dark, dangerous world.
There has to be a good reason to why the Engineers built an underground world despite having a Paradise on the surface (so the living planet is a nice idea) and to why David is the sole inhabitant of the planet. Did they all die there, did they move to another planet (supposedly a bit of both) ?.. So many questions that need to be answered
Ive thought that an overgrown misty, fog filled rainforest would make for a great HIVE-setting too. Still, if I have to choose b/w the two, I'll take Giger landscapes and the other side of the mirror AKA Dark Seed-land, anyday.
And then on top of it there's all the talk of "gods" - the thing which is really on the nose. It's an Alien movie, for pete's sake. The creature itself comes from an artist that uses sexual and sometimes satanic imagery. How it became something linked with human history and "gods" is beyond me. Yes, I do want to see the Engineers, but can they do it without being overly grand and silly about the whole thing? I wish they'd just keep it dark, sinister and claustrophobic.
A Giger-scape would be cool to see. The beautiful mountains in these pics, however, not so much.
It doesn't look otherworldly, to me. It looks like Earth. Why? Because there's plant-life. You want to know what looks not of this Earth? Barren planets.
That being said, it's very pretty. But having it be purely organic and bright and nice to look at isn't exactly in line with the dirty, dark Alien lens of the universe. Perhaps they're going for a wild, "sylvan scene," like Milton's Paradise Lost. But I don't really want it to be literal. And if they have a monster hunting people in a big, wild jungle, it starts to sound more like Predator and less like Alien. Honestly if you're going to try something incongruous with the Alien type of setting, I'd rather have them do the film in a field of poppies, like The Wizard of Oz.
The jungle environment (assuming its an earth-like jungle environment) could be a tricky thing. I found the Aliens looked very out of place in the woods in AVP:R. I find that is the case whenever they are openly outdoors. They strike me as critters that are always hiding in the dark. (Not sure if we saw any of the Aliens in the forest there, it could have been just the Facehuggers).
If its a Giger jungle, I'm all for it...
Just to build on that, I'd also like to see a hived up jungle environment. I think that'd be pretty interesting.
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTveaut3Gx8XvIBV73vojTVI3XbJeSSU36DniA4o-zXfFKr3HbHFrWcfQk
just like that ringed planet at LV-223...
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTepkMi8_bEVDOugj0JZxUB2pkcICRPdVYEQhYgR0RthO_MtE_jkg
Here's another.
I do love the scenary. It looks gorgeous and it makes a nice visual change from all the bleak landscapes. However, there's a certain expectation for something more Gigeresque and Alieny. I hope we get a lot of that in the film too.
And another.
https://scontent-lhr3-1.cdninstagram.com/t51.2885-15/e35/12930801_1532166497078338_857194087_n.jpg
From one of the local yokels:
And legally Fox can't do anything about most of these photo's (except for the really close-up one) since one can claim they are merely photographs of Mitre Peak with the film set being incidental.
Here's another one from a tourist:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CfFmjV2UUAEpXB9.jpg:large
Film set on far left, harbour and cruise boats on right.
We did see it in full scale most likely. We probably didn't see the whole thing.
They probably are, but if they can't pin down where the actual leak is, then what can they do?
Excellent!!!
I intend to write something about Paradise Lost and Covenant soon
― John Milton, Paradise Lost
Plus God's going to probably be some fat lazy titty monster if Ridley has his way. To really put it "on the nose".
Do you guys remember this Ridley Scott interview:
Good looking guy - someone or something we think is good but it isnt (Maybe Engineers, maybe David, maybe humans themselves)
Other guy - someone or something we think is bad but it isnt afterall so bad...
I m pretty sure we ll see some new being that is above Engineers... and that creature will look bad and its actions will look bad, but at the end something will happen that will change human perspective...
So who created Xeno and why is not a single answer but multiple answers that have multiple meanings!
Here's another one -
https://www.avpgalaxy.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/020416_01.jpg
Well I do apologise for bringing you the first pictures of Covenant instead of a gag.
Ah you guys are no fun.... then again there is 4/26 right around the corner.
I still remember that Engineer with a plasma caster on his shoulder. XD
We posted these the day before.
I agree, I'd love to see something big pop up for the franchise.
Prometheus opened up many new doors for the expanded universe, so I hope the sequels do the same.
None the less it all seems very Prometheus-y.
I'm very much eager to see where they're going with it. I just hope this one is a massive step-up. We really need it.
https://www.avpgalaxy.net/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.freesmileys.org%2Fsmileys%2Fsmiley-basic%2Fpuke.gif&hash=90451f08e27d77bdd9986de38a336a5561d22710https://www.avpgalaxy.net/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sherv.net%2Fcm%2Femoticons%2Fsick%2Fsmileys-vomiting.gif&hash=e933673e1d92c9b16eb29b39344f605a8f56e100
Joking aside, I m very optimistic about Covenant and other two movies!
This is the part where they are planning a shared universe with the Terminator isn't it?
Skynet being this ultimate destroyer of life, so David counters Skynet's plan by going back even further and creating life so he can keep on creating John Connor despite Skynet's attempts to destroy him.
Which means, Skynet kept going after the wrong people! It's not the Connors they should be targeting, but the Weylands!
http://img06.deviantart.net/303e/i/2012/337/d/1/thumbs_up_for_the_watchers__by_pedrotpredator-d5mzk4i.jpg
But you forgot to mention that Ridleys plan is to make David ultimate creator of life.
John Logan himself said that David will travel back in time and create first living organism.