The Morning Watch: 'Ghostbusters' Storyboard Comparison, Using Cuts As A Visual Effect & More

The Morning Watch is a recurring feature that highlights a handful of noteworthy videos from around the web. They could be video essays, fanmade productions, featurettes, short films, hilarious sketches, or just anything that has to do with our favorite movies and TV shows.

In this edition, see how storyboards for a scene from Ghostbusters compare to what ended up in the theatrical cut of the movie. Plus, listen and learn from Shazam! and Annabelle: Creation director David F. Sandberg as he explains how cuts can be used as visual effects in movies. And finally, hear what Michael K. Williams has to say as he looks back at his career, from The Wire to Lovecraft Country and more.

First up, see the original Ghostbusters storyboards used to plan the scene in which Dana Barrett is taken by Gozer the Gozerian. The drawings are much more detailed than the kind of storyboards we usually see nowadays, and they match the movie pretty closely, showing that this scene ended up very close to what director Ivan Reitman originally envisioned.

Next, Shazam! and Annabelle: Creation director David F. Sandberg (ponysmasher on YouTube) illustrates how cutting can be used as a visual effect. Perhaps more accurately, it shows how cuts can be used to aid visual effects to make them appear seamless. For example, did you know that there are a couple scenes in Aliens where the facehugger attacks Ripley that are played in reverse, but you can't tell because of how quick the editing is.

Finally, GQ brought in Lovecraft Country star Michael K. Williams to take a look back at his career, reaching back to his days on HBO in The Wire and Boardwalk Empire and coming up to more recent projects like When They See Us, Hap and Leonard, and many more.