'This Freaking Tower!': Tech Saves Potty-mouthed Stars in Vertigo Thriller 'Fall'

"Fall" follows two young women who decide to scale an impossibly tall metal telecommunications tower FABRICE COFFRINI AFP/File
"Fall" follows two young women who decide to scale an impossibly tall metal telecommunications tower FABRICE COFFRINI AFP/File
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'This Freaking Tower!': Tech Saves Potty-mouthed Stars in Vertigo Thriller 'Fall'

"Fall" follows two young women who decide to scale an impossibly tall metal telecommunications tower FABRICE COFFRINI AFP/File
"Fall" follows two young women who decide to scale an impossibly tall metal telecommunications tower FABRICE COFFRINI AFP/File

When you're dangling from a tower 2,000 feet above the desert floor by your fingertips, it may be difficult not to drop a couple of F-bombs -- even if you're a Hollywood actor shooting a PG-13 rated movie.

Fortunately, a new editing technology came to the rescue of the "potty-mouthed" stars of "Fall," out in US theaters Friday, which follows two young women who decide to scale an impossibly tall metal tower in the remote California desert.

This being a movie, the adventure doesn't go to plan, leaving Becky (Grace Caroline Currey) and Hunter (Virginia Gardner) stranded on a tiny platform where vertigo is just one of the terrifying challenges they must overcome.

"I'm talking about the most intense winds I've ever experienced," Currey told AFP, of the grueling shoot.

"Gini (Gardner) and I are just holding on to that pole, sitting there, swaying, looking at each other, and it's making sounds.

"We had a moment going, 'what did we get ourselves into? Also, are these our final hours? Are we gonna make it down?'"

"There was definitely some swearing in the environment and in the air."

Though the movie was not shot at the real B67 TV Tower, which is twice the height of the Eiffel Tower, the actors still had to perform on a terrifying set: a 60-foot tower perched atop a sheer cliff in the Mojave desert.

Using judicious angles to avoid showing the mountain, British director Scott Mann was able to retain a realistic feel for the Indy thriller at the tiny budget of $3 million.

But when major Hollywood studio Lionsgate agreed to distribute the film, there was one problem.

The actors were cursing throughout, using language likely to trigger a restricted "R" rating that could dampen box office receipts.

"Potty mouths Virginia and Grace, is what I'd say!" joked Mann, in an interview with AFP via Zoom.

"I do not blame Gini and Grace -- because let's be honest, off the top of this ridiculous structure, thousands of feet up, asking to improvise out scenes, it is entirely justified they would be saying that."

"Definitely my fault!" he admitted.

- 'Potty-mouth language' -
While a giant summer superhero movie might typically reshoot certain scenes, the budget on "Fall" did not allow for that, and filmmakers were reluctant to edit out dialog.

Instead they found a creative solution: a nascent technology, primarily invented for foreign-language dubbing, enabling them to seamlessly swap in more family-friendly audio.

It maps the actors' faces, learning their specific mouth movements, before manipulating these motions with 3D computer effects to sync with new dialog.

"What the technology allowed was, rather than having to rebuild the tower and go up the mountain again, just to go to a sound studio," said Mann, who co-founded a start-up working on the technology.

"We rewrote those little moments, just to work around some of that potty-mouth language, and then basically inject it back into the movie."

While the tool has been referred to as "deepfake," Mann said that label suggests more nefarious uses such as pornography, while in reality it is more "hands-off."

"It's an interesting use, and I think it was a good solution," he said.

- 'Wild' -
Despite being released in mid-August -- typically a period with low audiences, where many weaker films are unceremoniously dumped by studios -- "Fall" has received very positive reviews.

The Guardian said the micro-budget movie should embarrass other giant studios who throw "a hundred times more at blockbusters with a hundred times less of a thrill factor," while Vanity Fair dubbed it "an engrossing dog-days surprise."

For Currey, who did many of her own stunts including clinging onto a plummeting ladder, making the movie was "pretty wild, not like anything I've ever done before."

"And we didn't know if we were going to be R or PG-13," she added.

"As far as Gini and I knew, we could say whatever we wanted!"



Pearl Jam Drummer Matt Cameron Says He’s Leaving the Band After Nearly 30 Years

Matt Cameron of Pearl Jam performs during BottleRock Napa Valley on Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Napa, Calif. (AP)
Matt Cameron of Pearl Jam performs during BottleRock Napa Valley on Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Napa, Calif. (AP)
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Pearl Jam Drummer Matt Cameron Says He’s Leaving the Band After Nearly 30 Years

Matt Cameron of Pearl Jam performs during BottleRock Napa Valley on Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Napa, Calif. (AP)
Matt Cameron of Pearl Jam performs during BottleRock Napa Valley on Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Napa, Calif. (AP)

Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron said Monday that he’s leaving the band after nearly 30 years.

The 62-year-old Cameron announced his departure in a social media post.

“After 27 fantastic years, I have taken my final steps down the drum riser for the mighty Pearl Jam,” Cameron said. “Much love and respect to Jeff, Ed, Mike and Stone for inviting me into the band in 1998 and for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime, filled with friendships, artistry, challenges and laughter.”

Cameron didn't give a reason for his departure.

“Matt Cameron has been a singular and true powerhouse of a musician and drummer. He has propelled the last 27 years of Pearl Jam live shows and studio recordings. It was a deeply important chapter for our group and we wish him well always,” Pearl Jam members said in a statement posted to the band's social media accounts.

They made no mention of a replacement.

Cameron, who played drums for Soundgarden for more than a decade before joining Pearl Jam, was not a founding member of the band and didn't play drums for the early albums that made them rock superstars.

But he provided some much-needed stability at the drum kit after the band had gone through four others since its inception. He first joined in 1998 as a temporary replacement for Jack Irons, playing on a long tour before making his studio debut with the group on 2000's “Binaural.”

He just finished a yearlong tour with the band in support of its 12th studio album, “Dark Matter.”

Cameron was born and raised in San Diego before moving to Seattle shortly before its music scene became a global phenomenon. He played in proto-grunge band Skin Yard before joining Soundgarden. He did double duty with Pearl Jam and a reunited Soundgarden from 2010 to 2017.