Marvel directors: Even when actors like Chris Evans do their own stunts, we make sure they’re VERY wired in and rehearse a lot before filming. We also add dangerous weapons in in post so there’s no chance of danger, even with a prop. 🙂
Good Omens directors: We’re making David Tennant DRIVE A FLAMING CAR and IF HE DIES, HE DIES
Marvel directors: Even when actors like Chris Evans do their own stunts, we make sure they’re VERY wired in and rehearse a lot before filming. We also add dangerous weapons in in post so there’s no chance of danger, even with a prop. 🙂
Good Omens directors: We’re making David Tennant DRIVE A FLAMING CAR and IF HE DIES, HE DIES
“I remembered once, in Japan, having been to see the Gold Pavilion Temple in Kyoto and being mildly surprised at quite how well it had weathered the passage of time since it was first built in the fourteenth century. I was told it hadn’t weathered well at all, and had in fact been burnt to the ground twice in this century.
“So it isn’t the original building?” I had asked my Japanese guide.
“But yes, of course it is,” he insisted, rather surprised at my question.
“But it’s been burnt down?”
“Yes.”
“Twice?”
“Many times.”
“And rebuilt.”
“Of course. It is an important and historic building.”
“With completely new materials.”
“But of course. It was burnt down.”
“So how can it be the same building?”
“It is always the same building.”
I had to admit to myself that this was in fact a perfectly rational point of view, it merely started from an unexpected premise. The idea of the building, the intention of it, its design, are all immutable and are the essence of the building. The intention of the original builders is what survived. The wood of which the design is constructed decays and is replaced when necessary. To be overly concerned with the original materials, which are merely sentimental souvenirs of the past, is to fail to see the living building itself.”
it has happened before. it will happen again. it has been lost before. it will be lost again. and again. and again. and again. art and architecture are transient, and temporary, and 850 years may seem like a lot to the individual, who will live maybe 100 if they are very lucky and very healthy, but even the pyramids at saqqara have only existed for about 6000 years and that’s still not all that much, if you consider the grand scheme of things.
yes, this is terrible. as someone who is deeply religious and literally a professional historian with a focus on art and architecture, this is terrible. im mourning. im gutted. im horrified and upset and miserable. but.
it’s not over.
victor hugo wrote hunchback because notre dame du paris was in the process of collapsing and falling apart, and revitalized the entire world’s focus and love for this church, and that was not even 200 years ago. it led to it being renovated.
the roof has fallen in. the scars of fires are on its buttresses. the rose window has fallen out. the beams and piers have collapsed. the spire has toppled. the stones have suffered, and will suffer again, but it is not gone.
renovation work is essential. sometimes things collapse and burn and break and have to come back. it’s not a terrorist attack, it’s renovation, an accident, but we have so much evidence, history, carefully documented everything on one of the most studied places in the world.
it’s not the end.
Hey so, French person here. And also an ex History student. I’m here to say: Please listen to o.p. above.
Obviously everyone is shocked but here’s a few important key facts:
The roof is completely gone. Part of it dated back from the 13th century but the rest was from the 19th. The stone arch roof under the top roof is fine.
One of the three main stained glass rose windows has fallen out. Most of the other stained glass windows are okay.
The spire has fallen down and that’s the saddest part. BUT! It was in the process of being restored and the 16 statues that were there were removed just four days ago! So they’re fine.
The main structure is still here and nothing has “burned down” unlike what some people have been saying.
The “treasure” (sacred objects) is safe.
Notre Dame is still there. It’s just damaged. Almost nothing was lost today, and nobody was wounded either. It’s scary, but it’s gonna be okay.
To the people that keep calling me stupid in the comments:
Yes, I know, the fire is still not completely out and the damage still needs to be fully evaluated. This comment is based on the live coverages I’ve been watching all evening.
However the worst is behind us even if the firemen have been saying it’s a “difficult fire” (”un feu difficile”).
On the topic of works of art that were inside:
UPDATE (10:20 pm):
Apparently the fire is still going in the north tower.
The firemen seem worried there’s possible structural damage there.
The fire is also still going at the back of the roof.
It currently looks like this:
UPDATE (10:44 pm):
Firemen at the entrance (source:
REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer). We can see inside the cathedral. The stone arch roof has apparently been damaged in some places but as you can see the inside of the main structure isn’t on fire so far.
The firemen are doing all they can. One of them has apparently been wounded.
UPDATE (11:05 pm):
“Le feu a baissé en intensité. On peut penser que la structure de
Notre-Dame est sauvée, notamment le beffroi nord”, a déclaré le
secrétaire d’Etat auprès du ministre de l’Intérieur Laurent Nunez.
La
structure de Notre-Dame de
Paris “est sauvée et préservée dans sa globalité” a précisé le
responsable des pompiers. Mais les deux-tiers de la toiture seraient en
revanche partis en fumée.
“The fire’s intensity has decreased. We think the general structure of Notre-Dame is saved, including the north tower,” declared the Secretary of State to the interior minister Laurent Nunez.
The structure of Notre-Dame de Paris “has been saved and preserved in general” added the chief fireman. But two-thirds of the roof have gone up in flames.”
LAST (I hope) UPDATE (00:40 am):
The fire is contained. The wounded firefighter is apparently out of danger.
Don’t get me wrong, this is a disaster, but it could have gone so much worse.
Here’s what the inside of the main building looks like after the fireon the roof.
[Image: photo of the inside of Notre Dame, with a firefighter in the foreground. Water is covering the checkered tiled floor. The stone roof has collapsed in two distinct areas each situated between two keystones, but seems otherwise mostly intact. Apart from these two areas, what we can see of the interior structure seems untouched. There’s smoke in the distance. The altar and the golden cross in the background seem untouched too, as well as most of the pews and chairs.]
FINAL UPDATE (next morning, 09:45 am), please reblog this version and not the outdated info:
One firefighter was injured, and two policemen were
slightly injured.
The structural damage is being evaluated but the main structure is
still there; a (relatively small) part of the stone roof has collapsed,
though.
The wooden part of the roof has been almost entirely destroyed because
that’s where the fire (accidentally) started.
The “treasure” (the most sacred relics and items) was confirmed saved
very early on.
The spire that was added during the 19th century restoration has
fallen down (however as stated before the 16 statues that were there had been removed 4 days ago). It contained some relics, which are lost.
According to the fire fighters, the main organ is damaged, but the
bells are still in place, and (according to them) most of the paintings that were still inside
were only damaged by water and soot, so they will be restored. Some of the large paintings (”les grands formats”) were partly damaged by fire.
The sources about the stained glass windows contradict each other but
it’s certain that at least one of the small rose ones has fallen down (one
that was at the back of the building). Some sources say every stained glass window is
gone (unlikely, see photo below), some other sources say most of them are still there. Wait & see.
Do you want to see something really cool, though?
That rose stained glass window seems mostly intact, which seemed very unlikely at first considering how close it was to one of the collapsed parts of the stone ceiling. It literally collapsed right in front of it. Honestly I’m a bit stunned by this photo so I mainly made this last update to share it with you guys.
Very good news from Twitter, aside from where the spire fell through the vault, the inside of the cathedral is looking relatively alright. Breathtaking pictures.
More pictures.
That picture of the cross glowing through the smoke, embers raining down, that is going to last forever. That is going to be on front pages and in history books. That will be one of those iconic photos of history that never fades.
it has happened before. it will happen again. it has been lost before. it will be lost again. and again. and again. and again. art and architecture are transient, and temporary, and 850 years may seem like a lot to the individual, who will live maybe 100 if they are very lucky and very healthy, but even the pyramids at saqqara have only existed for about 6000 years and that’s still not all that much, if you consider the grand scheme of things.
yes, this is terrible. as someone who is deeply religious and literally a professional historian with a focus on art and architecture, this is terrible. im mourning. im gutted. im horrified and upset and miserable. but.
it’s not over.
victor hugo wrote hunchback because notre dame du paris was in the process of collapsing and falling apart, and revitalized the entire world’s focus and love for this church, and that was not even 200 years ago. it led to it being renovated.
the roof has fallen in. the scars of fires are on its buttresses. the rose window has fallen out. the beams and piers have collapsed. the spire has toppled. the stones have suffered, and will suffer again, but it is not gone.
renovation work is essential. sometimes things collapse and burn and break and have to come back. it’s not a terrorist attack, it’s renovation, an accident, but we have so much evidence, history, carefully documented everything on one of the most studied places in the world.
it’s not the end.
Hey so, French person here. And also an ex History student. I’m here to say: Please listen to o.p. above.
Obviously everyone is shocked but here’s a few important key facts:
The roof is completely gone. Part of it dated back from the 13th century but the rest was from the 19th. The stone arch roof under the top roof is fine.
One of the three main stained glass rose windows has fallen out. Most of the other stained glass windows are okay.
The spire has fallen down and that’s the saddest part. BUT! It was in the process of being restored and the 16 statues that were there were removed just four days ago! So they’re fine.
The main structure is still here and nothing has “burned down” unlike what some people have been saying.
The “treasure” (sacred objects) is safe.
Notre Dame is still there. It’s just damaged. Almost nothing was lost today, and nobody was wounded either. It’s scary, but it’s gonna be okay.
When I was a kid, my mom was a judge and my dad was starting his solo practice, and they both worked full time. There were four of us kids between the ages of one and seven (the Just Us League) and no decent daycares nearby, so they hired a nanny. She had three almost-adult children, and on days when she couldn’t work, one of her kids would substitute. The oldest kid was named Bob, age 18, and he had just finished army basic training when this all went down. Bob did not have the good sense god gave a rock.
I have an older brother, Jake, who was seven; then me, Hellen, age five, then Seth, age three, and my little sister Gin would have been one. It was late August, and we were at our nanny’s house, though she was gone for the day. Bob was in charge.
Bob should probably not have been in charge.
Bob tried keeping us entertained with board games and tag and movies. Gin took a nap. Eventually he decided to get creative, and sat us down in the living room with a game and vanished into the garage. There was a smashing sound. And then some saw noises. And then some hammering. And then we saw him going around the house to the back yard through the windows, though we were too short to see what he was doing. And finally, he yelled to us to come out into the driveway.
Jake and Seth and I trooped out. Bob had both hands behind his back. He stepped up to Jake and revealed what he had in his right hand.
It was a wooden sword. It was clearly made from what appeared to be parts of a chair’s legs, cut down and nailed together. He presented this, and announced, “You are Sir Jake, the strongest knight!”
He stepped up to Seth and presented what was in his left hand. It was another wooden sword, smaller than the first, also crudely made out of chair legs. He announced, “You are Sir Seth, the bravest knight!”
At this point, I was practically vibrating in place, waiting eagerly for my sword so I could use it to whale on my brothers, as god intended me to do. I was therefore understandably disappointed to be presented with the business end of a garden hose and told, “You are Miss Hellen, the Water Fairy!”
“No,” I said. “I want a sword.”
Bob was confused. “But you get water magic! Magic’s great!”
“No.” I repeated, holding the hose. It had a spray nozzle set to jet. “I want a sword.”
“Magic’s great. Magic’s better than a sword.” Bob insisted. “You’ll see. Wait here a moment.”
And then Bob ran around the side of house and vanished.
We stood in the driveway. Jake and Seth poked each other with their swords. I spritzed them idly with the hose, trying to decide which of them would be easier to steal a sword from.
And then we heard a quiet wooshing noise, and smelled smoke.
We turned. As we watched, a line of fire rushed around the corner of the house, consuming a path of gasoline poured into the dry August grass.
We paused and considered this for a few moments. I raised the hose and sprayed a jet of water at the fire. It went out. We glanced at each other. Then we took off running, following the trail of fire, spraying as we went.
The fire led in a path around the house to the back yard. As we turned the corner, we saw Bob, clad in a bathrobe and holding a curtain rod, standing in the center of a large ring of burning grass. He cackled manically. “I am the FIRE WIZARD! Your puny swords are useless! Nothing but water magic can defeat me!”
I promptly blasted him with the hose. He spluttered. The fire did not go out.
I turned the hose on the fire itself, spraying a section close to us so that it would extinguish. As soon as there was enough room, Jake charged forward, brandishing his chair leg sword with a battle cry. Seth, always happy to be included, followed. They ran into the circle and began beating Bob around the kneecaps with their swords. I kept spraying.
Eventually, Bob the Fire Wizard was brought down and all the fire was extinguished. Seth and Jake continued to work on bruising Bob’s shins, and I quickly discarded the hose to lend my fists and extremely pointy elbows to the cause. Bob lay in the smoldering grass, probably regretting using such sturdy chair legs.
Once we’d all tired ourselves out and lay panting in a heap, Bob decided it was time for the moral of the story. “You see, a sword is nothing compared to the power of a little girl with **magic**.”
We thought about this for a few moments. Bob nodded wisely. Jake and Seth nodded back.
“I still want a sword.” I said.
there’s a lot of people in the tags and replies expressing several concerns, which I will address:
“Where was Gin?” She was sleeping in a crib on the sunporch. We did this a lot–played outside while she napped–because we could hear her if she woke up and started crying, but were less likely to wake her up. She slept through the whole thing and was totally fine.
“You can’t put out a gasoline fire with water.” At the time, my little kid brain assumed that any flammable liquid was gas, but in retrospect it could have been almost anything. It very well may have been something other than gasoline. All I know is I could extinguish it with a garden hose.
“What did your parents say?” A lot of swear words at a very high volume.
“Did you get a sword?” Yes. Lots. Here are a couple of them, and also my pet ringneck dove, Arson. You can see how this all may have had some lasting effect on me.
