Editing Space Jam (section)

==Production==
===Development===
[[File:Ivan Reitman 2011.jpg|thumb|upright|''Space Jam'' producer [[Ivan Reitman]] in 2011. A conversation between him and a Nike executive sparked the idea of a film starring [[Michael Jordan]] and [[Bugs Bunny]].]]
In 1992 and 1993, two [[Super Bowl]] [[Nike, Inc.|Nike]] ads, "Hare Jordan" and "Aerospace Jordan" respectively, aired on television and featured [[Michael Jordan]] with the character [[Bugs Bunny]].<ref name = "WaPost2016"/>{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=54}} [[Wieden+Kennedy]] creative director [[Jim Riswold]] conceived the "Hare Jordan" campaign following the popularity of advertisements where Jordan played with [[Mars Blackmon]] (played by [[Spike Lee]]), a character from ''[[She's Gotta Have It]]'' (1986); he chose Bugs Bunny for his next campaign because the character was his "childhood hero".<ref name = "WaPost2016"/> Directed by [[Joe Pytka]], "Hare Jordan" took six months and a $1 million budget to make.<ref name = "WaPost2016"/> It was hindered by reluctance from Warner Bros. to allow Nike to modernize Bugs' character; however, the commercial success of both ads "was a nice bit of research for Warner Bros. to understand that the Bugs character still had relevance and to tie it in with Michael", explained Pytka.<ref name = "2016EW">{{cite magazine|last=Lawrence|first=Derek|date=November 15, 2016|url=https://ew.com/article/2016/11/15/space-jam-20th-anniversary-joe-pytka/|title=''Space Jam'': The story behind Michael Jordan's improbable victory|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|access-date=July 9, 2020|archive-date=April 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210409211918/https://ew.com/article/2016/11/15/space-jam-20th-anniversary-joe-pytka/|url-status=live}}</ref> This led to the company green-lighting a film featuring Jordan and Bugs, which came out of a plane meeting between a Nike executive and producer [[Ivan Reitman]].{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=54}}<ref name = "WaPost2016"/> Jordan was offered movie deals previously, but his manager, [[David Falk]], turned them all down because he felt the basketball icon could only act as himself.<ref name = "WaPost2016"/>

The project was closed when Jordan retired from basketball in 1993, only to be reopened in 1995 when Jordan returned as a basketball player.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996a|p=8}} Falk pitched the idea to several major studios, without a story or script written.<ref name = "WaPost2016"/> One of them was Warner Bros., which tried to create more "adult, sophisticated material" that deviated from the formula set by [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Disney]] in the animated film market.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> After Warner Bros. initially rejected Falk's pitch, he called the consumer products division leader, Dan Romanelli, reacting in surprise the studio would turn down a project having potential of high-selling merchandise.<ref name = "WaPost2016"/>

Pytka was informed about the project only months before the start of principal photography; in addition to being hired as director, he also revised the script, including writing a scene where Jordan hits a home run after he returns to Earth that was filmed, but ultimately never used.<ref name = "2016EW"/> [[Spike Lee]] was also interested in helping Pytka with the screenplay, but Warner Bros. blocked him from the project out of dissatisfaction from how he funded ''[[Malcolm X (1992 film)|Malcolm X]]'' (1992).<ref name = "2016EW"/>

=== Casting ===
According to Pytka, it was difficult to get most actors involved with ''Space Jam'' due to its odd premise: "I mean, they're going to work with an animated character and an athlete — are you serious? They just didn't want to do it."<ref name = "2016EW"/> Before [[Wayne Knight]] was cast as Stan, his initial choices were [[Michael J. Fox]] and [[Chevy Chase]], whom he had worked with on [[Doritos]] commercials; Warner Bros. rejected both actors.<ref name = "2016EW"/> [[Jason Alexander]] also turned down the role.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-09-10/news/0909070267_1_bugs-bunny-space-jam-movie |title=His Airness vs. Air: The making of 'Space Jam' Jordan conquers another challenge: The movies - Chicago Tribune |access-date=October 11, 2021 |archive-date=November 10, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110025637/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-09-10/news/0909070267_1_bugs-bunny-space-jam-movie |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Nathan Lane]] said Pytka rejected him for the part because he appeared "too gay."<ref>[https://deadline.com/2025/03/nathan-lane-space-jam-homophobia-1236348470/ Nathan Lane Says Homophobia Kept Him From Landing ‘Space Jam’ & Other Projects]</ref> 

The easiest actors to obtain were the NBA players, except for [[Gheorghe Mureșan]].<ref name = "2016EW"/> [[Bill Murray]]'s appearance was present in the script from the beginning, but the filmmakers were unable to book him until filming started; Murray held out until Jordan personally asked him to be in the film.<ref name = "2021TheRinger">{{cite web|last=Phillips|first=Lior|date=July 14, 2021|url=https://www.theringer.com/music/2021/7/14/22575900/quad-city-djs-space-jam-original-theme-song-soundtrack|title=Hoop There It Is|work=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]]|access-date=September 19, 2021}}</ref><ref>[https://uk.news.yahoo.com/bill-murray-says-made-michael-184525488.html Bill Murray Says He Made Michael Jordan Personally Ask Him to Be in “Space Jam”]</ref>

Reitman, serious about the voice actors for the established ''Looney Tunes'' characters being far better than their original voice actor, [[Mel Blanc]], and not just replications, was very involved in the voice casting.{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=55}} [[Joe Alaskey]], one of Blanc's successors since the latter's death, was put by Reitman through a set of auditions, which lasted for months until Alaskey grew tired of auditioning and backed out from the project.<ref name=Vulture>{{cite news |last1=Greene |first1=James |title=Sufferin' Succotash! Looney Tunes Voice Actor Joe Alaskey On Bugs Bunny, Geraldo, & Why He Wasn't In 'Space Jam' |url=https://www.vulture.com/2012/12/sufferin-succotash-looney-tunes-voice-actor-joe-alaskey-on-bugs-bunny-geraldo-why-he-wasnt-in-space-jam.html |access-date=April 9, 2021 |work=Vulture.com |date=December 3, 2012 |archive-date=April 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210410221102/https://www.vulture.com/2012/12/sufferin-succotash-looney-tunes-voice-actor-joe-alaskey-on-bugs-bunny-geraldo-why-he-wasnt-in-space-jam.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Billy West]] learned of ''Space Jam'' through Reitman on ''[[The Howard Stern Show]]'', who was producing Stern's film ''[[Private Parts (1997 film)|Private Parts]]'' (1997). Reitman was impressed by West's voice talent and asked him if he could audition for ''Space Jam''. West accepted, and after doing an audition, he landed the roles of Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd.<ref>{{Cite interview|last=Dur|first=Taimur|url=https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview-billy-west-bugs-bunny-space-jam/|title=INTERVIEW: Billy West reveals how The Howard Stern Show led to voicing Bugs Bunny in Space Jam|website=The Beat|date=July 14, 2021|archive-date=July 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210714183644/https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview-billy-west-bugs-bunny-space-jam/|url-status=live}}</ref> The casting directors originally planned several voice cameos; however, that did not work out, and [[Danny DeVito]] ended up being the only celebrity voice actor in the film, which was for Mr. Swackhammer, who was originally planned to be played by [[Jack Palance]].{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=55}} Swackhammer was also planned to be a live-action character until the very final days of development, with [[Dennis Hopper]] possibly playing the role due to his friendship with Pytka.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/>

{{Blockquote|One thing I heard was that Ivan Reitman, when they were thinking about going ahead with this movie, had phoned up [[Robert Zemeckis]] about ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]'' and asked, "Do you have any advice on what we should do to make a movie like this?" And he said,
"Don't do it, it nearly killed me."|Neil Boyle, supervising animator<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/>}}

=== Scale ===
The Classic Animation faction of Warner Bros., which animated the commercials and was located in [[Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles]], was originally planned to be the only company responsible for ''Space Jam''. However, after only a week, the animation work was so complicated that Warner Bros. contacted more studios, including reassigning the Feature Animation division in [[Glendale, California|Glendale]] from working on ''[[Quest for Camelot]]'' (1998) to ''Space Jam''. Ten of Classic Animation's members, including the production's animation director [[Tony Cervone]], were taken out of the faction to become involved all throughout production, and development artists were reassigned to animating jobs, including supervising animator Bruce Woodside, who had little faith in the project: "Like so many other animators, I adore the classic Warner Bros. characters, but I really had little hope that tying them to the massive anchor of an apparently doomed marketing scheme could actually give them a successful second life in features".<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1">{{cite web|last=Failes|first=Ian|date=November 15, 2016|url=https://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/oral-history-space-jam-part-1-launching-movie-144935.html|title=The Oral History of 'Space Jam': Part 1 – Launching the Movie|work=[[Cartoon Brew]]|access-date=June 29, 2020|archive-date=June 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200630025508/https://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/oral-history-space-jam-part-1-launching-movie-144935.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

After Cervone was hired as animation director, [[Jerry Rees]] contacted [[Bruce W. Smith]] about being another animation director on the film; Rees was fired by the time Smith joined, and Pytka hired Smith to direct the animation sequences alongside Cervone.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> Before January 1996, when animation production was put into overdrive, none of the animators' drafts or concepts for how the film should look met with Reitman's approval;{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}} Bill Perkins joined that month as animation art director, and when first arriving at the Sherman Oaks division, "we only had around eight months to do about 52 minutes of animation" and "it was just kind of a little skeleton crew."<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> Cervone highlighted Reitman's role as supervisor: "It started off as a string of gags with no structure, and he helped a lot with that."{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=56}} The drafting process involved the animators and artists using the original cartoons as references.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}} Ultimately, they went with [[Bob Clampett]]'s style of animation due to being wilder than [[Chuck Jones]]' style.{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=55–56}}

Production of ''Space Jam'' totaled around 19 months, with filming taking up ten of them;<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> this was half the time of any other film of its kind according to Smith.{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=57}} The animation was done at a very
quick pace by more than 700 workers from 18 studios in London, Canada, California and Ohio,<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/>{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=57}} starting January 1996 by the recently joined producers Ron Tippe and [[Allison Abbate]].{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=11}}  In trying to track the huge amount work done at the 18 studios, Tippe hung stills of all the shots throughout the Feature Animation faction's hallways, with completed ones marked in red.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt2"/>

Features about the film's production, including one from the official website, emphasized its state-of-the art computer technology when it came to its [[live-action/animated film|live-action/animation]] hybrid; "this film could have not been made two years ago," claimed Cervone in 1996.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}} Due to its mixture of various art mediums as well as the "broad sense of humor and entertainment" unique to the ''Looney Tunes'', Smith considered ''Space Jam'' an important part of diversifying the animation industry.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=10}} ''Space Jam'' broke the record for amount of composited shots in a featured film,<ref name = "Lyonsp12"/> "roughly 1,043" according to Tippe,{{Sfn|Lyons|1996a|p=8}} as well as a record number of FX shots, with around 1,100 in a single 90-minute film; ''[[Independence Day (1996 film)|Independence Day]]'' (1996), released the same year, had 700 FX shots within two hours of screen time.{{Sfn|Bittner|1996|p=54}} Tippe claimed the film would have, at most, "multiple characters, multiple levels of effects and, in some cases, up to 70 elements" in one shot.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996a|p=9}}

=== Filming ===
''Space Jam'' was one of the first-ever productions to be shot on a [[virtual studio]].<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> Jordan filmed in a 360-degree [[green screen]] room with [[match moving|motion tracker]]s; around him were green-suited
NBA players and improv actors from the Groundlings Theatre and School serving as placement identifiers for the animated characters, with a CGI background replica of a real-life setting chroma-keyed in.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/>{{Sfn|Lyons|1996|p=8}}{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}} Although Bill Murray initially came in only to work on the golf course scene, he then wanted to be in the climactic basketball game after Pytka showed him the process of how he directed the live-action/animation scenes.<ref name = "2016EW"/>

Concept drawings and discussions between the animators and Pytka about how the animation would be incorporated into the live-action shots took place on set during shooting, and re-writes to the script would be done daily.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> As an experienced commercial and music video director working on a sports film, Pytka took on fast, unlimited camera movements and [[Dutch angle]]s;{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}}<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt1"/> this made integrating the characters into the shots challenging for the animators.{{Sfn|Lyons|1996b|p=13}} To connect the real and animated worlds together, blue-screen shots of miniatures by [[Vision Crew Unlimited]] were used; these include a [[Christo]]-inspired interpretation of [[The Forum (Inglewood, California)|The Forum]] arena for exterior shots, city rooftops for a transition scene with a wide skyline view of Chicago serving as the chroma-keyed background,<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt3"/> and space ship parts initially produced by [[Boss Film Studios]] for a [[Philip Morris USA|Philip Morris]] advertisement.<ref name = "CartoonBrewpt2"/>

===Music===
{{Main|Space Jam: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture}}
The [[Space Jam: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture|soundtrack]] sold enough albums to be certified as 6-times Platinum.<ref name="platinum">{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com |title=RIAA Gold and Platinum Searchable Database |access-date=January 23, 2009 |archive-date=February 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110223204053/http://riaa.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The song "[[I Believe I Can Fly]]" by musical artist [[R. Kelly]] earned him three Grammy Awards.<ref>{{cite web|title=Grammy- Past Winners Search|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards?artist=R.%20Kelly&field_nominee_work_value=&year=1997&genre=27|publisher=National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences|access-date=October 28, 2013|archive-date=February 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225092126/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards?artist=R.%20Kelly&field_nominee_work_value=&year=1997&genre=27|url-status=live}}</ref> Other tracks included a cover of [[Steve Miller Band]]'s "[[Fly Like an Eagle (song)|Fly Like an Eagle]]" (by [[Seal (musician)|Seal]]), "[[Hit 'Em High (The Monstars' Anthem)]]" (by [[B-Real]], [[Busta Rhymes]], [[Coolio]], [[LL Cool J]], and [[Method Man]]), "[[Basketball Jones featuring Tyrone Shoelaces|Basketball Jones]]" (by [[Barry White]] & [[Chris Rock]]), "[[Pump up the Jam]]" (by [[Technotronic]]), "[[I Turn to You (All-4-One song)|I Turn to You]]" (by [[All-4-One]]) and "[[For You I Will (Monica song)|For You I Will]]" (by [[Monica (singer)|Monica]]). The film's [[Space Jam (song)|title song]] was performed by the [[Quad City DJ's]].