Editing 12 Monkeys (section)

== Production ==
=== Development ===
[[File:Terry Gilliam 01.jpg|thumb|upright|''12 Monkeys'' was directed by [[Terry Gilliam]].]]
The genesis of ''12 Monkeys'' came from [[executive producer]] Robert Kosberg, who had been a fan of the French short film ''[[La Jetée]]'' (1962). Kosberg persuaded that film's director, [[Chris Marker]], to let him [[Pitch (filmmaking)|pitch]] the project to [[Universal Pictures]], seeing it as a perfect basis for a full-length science fiction film. Universal agreed to purchase the [[film rights|remake rights]] and hired [[David Peoples|David]] and [[Janet Peoples]] to write the screenplay.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Chris Nashawaty |url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1219922_1,00.html |title=They Call Him Mr. Pitch |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=July 28, 2006 |access-date=2012-04-10 |archive-date=October 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016103131/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1219922_1,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Producer [[Charles Roven]] chose [[Terry Gilliam]] to direct, because he believed the filmmaker's style was perfect for ''12 Monkeys''{{'}} nonlinear storyline and time travel subplot.<ref name="note" /> Gilliam had just abandoned a [[film adaptation]] of ''[[A Tale of Two Cities]]'' when he signed to direct ''12 Monkeys''.<ref name="first">{{cite book |author=Ian Christie |author2=Terry Gilliam |author2-link=Terry Gilliam |title=Gilliam on Gilliam |pages=[https://archive.org/details/gilliamongilliam0000gill/page/220 220–225] |publisher=[[Faber and Faber]] |year=1999 |isbn=0-571-20280-2 |location=London |url=https://archive.org/details/gilliamongilliam0000gill/page/220 }}</ref> Though Gilliam felt the script was "too complex" to take on.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/terry-gilliam-interview-zero-theorem-twitter-12-monkeys/ | title=Terry Gilliam interview: Zero Theorem, Twitter, 12 Monkeys | date=14 March 2014 }}</ref>

The film represents the second film for which Gilliam did not write or co-write the screenplay. Although he prefers to direct his own scripts, he was captivated by Peoples' "intriguing and intelligent script. The story is disconcerting. It deals with time, madness and a perception of what the world is or isn't. It is a study of madness and dreams, of death and re-birth, set in a world coming apart".<ref name="note">DVD production notes</ref>

Universal took longer than expected to approve ''12 Monkeys'', although Gilliam had two stars (Willis and Pitt) and a firm budget of $29.5 million (low for a Hollywood science fiction film). Universal's production of ''[[Waterworld]]'' (1995) had resulted in various [[cost overrun]]s. To get ''12 Monkeys'' approved for production, Gilliam persuaded Willis to lower his normal [[asking price]].<ref name="second">''Gilliam on Gilliam,'' Christie, Gilliam, pp.226–230</ref> Because of Universal's strict production incentives and his history with the studio on ''[[Brazil (1985 film)|Brazil]]'', Gilliam received [[final cut privilege]]. The [[Writers Guild of America]] was skeptical of the "inspired by" credit for ''La Jetée'' and Chris Marker.<ref name="comment" /> Gilliam said that he had not seen ''La Jetée'' when he made ''12 Monkeys''.<ref>''Gilliam on Gilliam'' edited by Ian Christie. Faber and Faber, 1999. Page 73.</ref>

=== Casting ===
Gilliam's initial casting choices were [[Nick Nolte]] as James Cole and [[Jeff Bridges]] as Jeffrey Goines, but Universal objected.<ref name="first" /> Other actors were suggested for the roles included [[Nicolas Cage]] and [[Tom Cruise]], but Gilliam rejected the choices.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/12-monkeys-oral-history | title=The oral history of 12 Monkeys, Terry Gilliam's time travel masterpiece | date=20 February 2024 }}</ref> Gilliam, who first met Bruce Willis while casting Jeff Bridges' role in ''[[The Fisher King (film)|The Fisher King]]'' (1991), believed Willis evoked Cole's characterization as being "somebody who is strong and dangerous but also vulnerable".<ref name="note" /> Gilliam later stated that he wasn't originally interested in casting Willis because of the actor's mouth.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/12-monkeys-oral-history | title=The oral history of 12 Monkeys, Terry Gilliam's time travel masterpiece | date=20 February 2024 }}</ref>

Gilliam cast [[Madeleine Stowe]] as Dr. Kathryn Railly because he was impressed by her performance in ''[[Blink (1993 film)|Blink]]'' (1994).<ref name="note" /> The director first met Stowe when he was casting his abandoned film adaptation of ''[[A Tale of Two Cities]]''.<ref name="first" /> "She has this incredible ethereal beauty and she's incredibly intelligent", Gilliam said of Stowe. "Those two things rest very easily with her, and the film needed those elements because it has to be romantic."<ref name="note" />

Gilliam originally believed that Pitt was not right for the role of Jeffrey Goines, but the casting director convinced him otherwise.<ref name="first" /> Pitt was cast for a comparatively small salary, as he was still relatively unknown at the time. By the time of ''12 Monkeys''{{'}} release, ''[[Interview with the Vampire (film)|Interview with the Vampire]]'' (1994), ''[[Legends of the Fall]]'' (1994), and ''[[Seven (1995 film)|Se7en]]'' (1995) had been released, making Pitt an [[A-list]] actor, which drew greater attention to the film and boosted its box-office standing. In [[Philadelphia]], months before filming, Pitt spent weeks at [[Temple University]]'s hospital, visiting and studying the psychiatric ward to prepare for his role.<ref name="note" />

=== Filming ===
[[File:SenatorTheatre.JPG|thumb|The [[Senator Theatre]] was used as a filming location.]]
[[Principal photography]] lasted from February 8 to May 6, 1995. Shooting on location in [[Philadelphia]] and [[Baltimore]] (including the [[Senator Theatre]])<ref name="nytimes" /><ref>{{cite magazine |author=Jeff Gordinier |url=https://ew.com/article/1995/05/19/bruce-willis-proves-he-exudes-testosterone/ |title=Brass Bald |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=May 19, 1995 |access-date=2012-04-10 |archive-date=December 23, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201223203919/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,297297,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> in winter was fraught with weather problems. There were also technical glitches with the futuristic mechanical props. Because the film has a nonlinear storyline, continuity errors occurred, and some scenes had to be reshot. Gilliam also injured himself when he went horseback riding. Despite setbacks, the director managed to stay within the budget and was only a week behind his [[shooting schedule]]. "It was a tough shoot", acknowledged [[Jeffrey Beecroft]], the film's [[production designer]]. "There wasn't a lot of money or enough time. Terry is a perfectionist, but he was really adamant about not going over budget. He got crucified for ''[[The Adventures of Baron Munchausen|Munchausen]]'', and that still haunts him."<ref name="nytimes" />

The filmmakers were not allowed access to [[sound stage]]s; thus, they had to find abandoned buildings or landmarks to use.<ref name="comment">[[Terry Gilliam]], [[Charles Roven]], DVD [[audio commentary]], 1998, [[Universal Home Video]].</ref> The exteriors of the climactic airport scene were shot at the [[Baltimore–Washington International Airport]], while the interior scenes were shot at the [[Pennsylvania Convention Center]] (formerly [[Reading Terminal]]). Filming at the psychiatric hospital was done at the [[Eastern State Penitentiary]] and [[Girard College]].<ref name="third" /> Some shots took place in abandoned motels in [[Camden, New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sojo1049.com/6-awesome-movies-shot-in-new-jersey/|title=6 Awesome Movies Shot in New Jersey|first=Heather|last=DeLuca|website=SoJO 104.9|date=February 28, 2016 |access-date=February 28, 2019|archive-date=April 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210409092459/https://sojo1049.com/6-awesome-movies-shot-in-new-jersey/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nj.com/expo/life-and-culture/g66l-2019/02/5a666e5a959680/41-blockbuster-movies-you-didnt-know-filmed-in-new-jersey-.html|title=41 blockbuster movies you didn't know filmed in New Jersey|first1=Bobby|last1=Olivier|website=NJ.com|date=February 22, 2019|access-date=February 28, 2019|archive-date=February 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190223075054/https://www.nj.com/expo/life-and-culture/g66l-2019/02/5a666e5a959680/41-blockbuster-movies-you-didnt-know-filmed-in-new-jersey-.html|url-status=live}}</ref> ''12 Monkeys'' was shot in the [[1.85:1]] format rather than [[anamorphic]].<ref name="theasc">{{cite web|url=https://theasc.com/articles/twelve-monkeys-dystopian-trip-through-time|title=Twelve Monkeys: A Dystopian Trip Through Time|last=Pizzello|first=Stephen|date=February 1, 2020|website=[[American Cinematographer]]|publisher=[[American Society of Cinematographers]]|access-date=November 7, 2023|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209032542/https://theasc.com/articles/twelve-monkeys-dystopian-trip-through-time|archive-date=February 9, 2023}}</ref>

=== Design ===
Gilliam used the same filmmaking style as he had in ''Brazil'' (1985), including the [[art direction]] and [[cinematography]] (specifically using [[Fresnel lens]]es).<ref name="second" /> The appearance of the interrogation room where Cole is being interviewed by the scientists was based on the work of [[Lebbeus Woods]]; these scenes were shot at three [[power station]]s (two in Philadelphia and one in Baltimore). Gilliam intended to show Cole being interviewed through a multi-screen interrogation TV set because he felt the machinery evoked a "nightmarish intervention of technology. You try to see the faces on the screens in front of you, but the real faces and voices are down there and you have these tiny voices in your ear. To me that's the world we live in, the way we communicate these days, through technical devices that pretend to be about communication but may not be".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.smart.co.uk/dreams/tgmonkex.htm |author=Nick James |title=Time and the Machine |work=[[Sight and Sound]] |date=April 1996 |access-date=2012-04-10 |archive-date=November 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112014332/http://www.smart.co.uk/dreams/tgmonkex.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[art department]] made sure that the 2035 underground world only used pre-1996 technology, to depict the bleakness of the future. Gilliam, Beecroft and set decorator [[Crispian Sallis]] went to several [[flea market]]s and salvage warehouses looking for materials to decorate the sets.<ref name="note" /> The majority of visual effects sequences were created by Peerless Camera Company, which Gilliam founded in the late 1970s with Kent Houston, the film's [[visual effects supervisor]].<ref name="theasc" /> Additional digital compositing was done by [[The Mill (company)|The Mill]], while [[Cinesite]] provided film scanning services.<ref name="note" />