Editing Forrest Gump (section)

== Production ==
=== Pre-production and script ===
{{Main|Forrest Gump (novel)|l1 = ''Forrest Gump'' (novel)}}

{{Quote box |width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|quote="The writer, Eric Roth, departed substantially from the book. We flipped the two elements of the book, making the love story primary and the fantastic adventures secondary. Also, the book was cynical and colder than the movie. In the movie, Gump is a completely decent character, always true to his word. He has no agenda and no opinion about anything except Jenny, his mother and God."|source=—director [[Robert Zemeckis]]<ref name="BookChanges" />}}

The film is based on the 1986 [[Forrest Gump (novel)|novel]] by [[Winston Groom]]. Both center on the character of Forrest Gump. However, the film primarily focuses on the first eleven chapters of the novel before skipping ahead to the end of the novel, with the founding of Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and the meeting with Forrest Jr. In addition to skipping some parts of the novel, the film adds several aspects to Gump's life that do not occur in the novel, such as his needing leg braces as a child and his run across the United States.<ref name="MoviesBook">{{cite news|last=Delarte|first=Alonso |title=Movies by the Book: Forrest Gump|work=Bob's Poetry Magazine|date=February 2004|url=http://bobspoetry.com/Bobs01Fe.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327090919/http://bobspoetry.com/Bobs01Fe.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2009|page=24|access-date=July 2, 2009}}</ref>

Gump's core character and personality are also changed from the novel; among other things, his film character is less of a [[savant]] – in the novel, while playing football at the university, he fails craft and gym but receives a perfect score in an advanced physics class he is enrolled in by his coach to satisfy his college requirements.<ref name="MoviesBook" /> The novel also features Gump as an [[astronaut]], a [[professional wrestler]], and a [[chess]] player.<ref name="MoviesBook" />

The book had a bidding war regarding an adaptation even before publication, with [[Wendy Finerman]] and [[Steve Tisch]] acquiring them by joining forces with [[Warner Bros.]], where Finerman's husband [[Mark Canton]] was president of production.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news |author=Grimes, William |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html?scp=28&sq=Forrest%20Gump&st=cse |title=Following the Star Of a Winsome Idiot |work=The New York Times |date=September 1, 1994 |access-date=June 28, 2012 |archive-date=November 22, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122145911/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html?scp=28&sq=Forrest |url-status=live }}</ref> Groom was paid $500,000 and also wrote the first three first drafts of the screenplay, which leaned closer to the events of the novel.<ref name=dad>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-07-ca-24436-story.html|title=Forrest Gump's Proud Dad|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|author=Epstein, Robert|date=August 7, 1994|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214231013/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-07-ca-24436-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After ''[[Rain Man]]'' told the story of a savant, Warner Bros. lost interest in the picture, and by 1990 the project was in [[Turnaround (filmmaking)|turnaround]]. Finerman contacted [[Columbia Pictures]], who went on to reject it,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-10-ca-25605-story.html|title=One Studio's Trash Is Another's Treasure|work=Los Angeles Times|author=Welkos, Robert W.|date=August 10, 1994|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233845/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-10-ca-25605-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> while hiring [[Eric Roth]] to rewrite the script. Roth and Finerman kept in contact with Groom to ensure the script was historically accurate.<ref name=dad/> Roth delivered a screenplay in 1992, which [[Paramount Pictures]] chairwoman [[Sherry Lansing]] liked enough to bring the project to her studio, who acquired the rights from Warner Bros. in exchange for the script for ''[[Executive Decision]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/13/movies/gump-a-9-year-personal-campaign.html|title='Gump,' a 9-Year Personal Campaign|work=The New York Times|author=Weinraub, Bernard|date=July 13, 1994|access-date=June 28, 2012|archive-date=May 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526103500/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/13/movies/gump-a-9-year-personal-campaign.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=thr/>

[[Ivan Reitman]], [[Penny Marshall]] and [[Terry Gilliam]] passed on the project before [[Robert Zemeckis]] was hired.<ref>{{cite video|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvCGFJd17Q|title=Penny Marshall Discusses Passing on Directing "Forrest Gump"|publisher=[[Larry King]]|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233844/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvCGFJd17Q|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="GilliamDirect">{{cite web |last=Plume |first=Kenneth |url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/644/644724p1.html |title=Gilliam on Grimm |website=IGN |page=3 |date=August 24, 2005 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224124306/http://movies.ign.com/articles/644/644724p1.html |archive-date=December 24, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=thr>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/throwback-thursday-forrest-gump-ran-733915/|title=Throwback Thursday: 'Forrest Gump' Ran Away With the Box Office in 1994|author=Higgins, Bill|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=September 18, 2014|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233844/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/throwback-thursday-forrest-gump-ran-733915/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Barry Sonnenfeld]] was attached to the film, but left to direct ''[[Addams Family Values]]''.<ref name="BarryDirect">{{cite magazine |last=Fretts |first=Bruce |title=Get Barry |url=https://ew.com/article/1995/11/03/get-barry/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |page=2 |date=November 3, 1995 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090425194723/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,299341,00.html |archive-date=April 25, 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Casting ===
[[John Travolta]] was the original choice to play the title role and later said that passing on the role was a mistake.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40271801|title=9 stars who turned down great film roles|last=Smith|first=Neil|date=June 16, 2017|work=BBC News|access-date=June 29, 2017|language=en-GB|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191413/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40271801|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://celebs.answers.com/movies/iconic-roles-and-the-stars-who-regret-turning-them-down?param4=fb-us-mo-gut#slide11 |title=Iconic Roles and the Stars Who Regret Turning Them Down |publisher=Celebs.Answers.com |access-date=April 1, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222152251/http://celebs.answers.com/movies/iconic-roles-and-the-stars-who-regret-turning-them-down?param4=fb-us-mo-gut |archive-date=February 22, 2014 }}</ref><ref name="JTRole">{{cite news|author=''Forbes'' staff |title=Star Misses – 4) Forrest Gump Starring ... John Travolta |url=https://www.forbes.com/2009/02/25/nicole-kidman-gwyneth-paltrow-kate-winslet-business-media_star_misses_slide_5.html?thisSpeed=30000 |work=Forbes |date=February 25, 2009 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722063736/http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/25/nicole-kidman-gwyneth-paltrow-kate-winslet-business-media_star_misses_slide_5.html?thisSpeed=30000 |archive-date=July 22, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Bill Murray]], [[Chevy Chase]], and [[Matthew Broderick]] were also considered for the role.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2019/07/05/forrest-gump-movie-celebrates-25th-anniversary/1634248001/# |title=Is there a real Forrest Gump? 25 years after Tom Hanks' film, we have answers |work=USA Today |last=Alexander |first=Bryan |date=July 5, 2019 |access-date=August 14, 2023}}</ref> [[Sean Penn]] had stated in an interview that he had been second choice for the role; he would later portray a character with a disability in the 2001 film ''[[I Am Sam]]''. Hanks revealed that he signed on to the film after an hour and a half of reading the script.<ref name="HankSign">{{cite news|last=Mal|first=Vincent|title=Show Some Gumption Hanks Excels in Tale of a Simple Man's Brushes with Fame|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=VP&p_theme=vp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFF785EECC284D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=July 6, 1994|access-date=July 1, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009013256/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=VP&p_theme=vp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFF785EECC284D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}}</ref> He initially wanted to ease Forrest's pronounced Southern accent, but was eventually persuaded by director [[Robert Zemeckis]] to portray the heavy accent stressed in the novel.<ref name="HankSign" /> Hanks also said it took him three days producing unusable footage in order to learn how to play the role.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.startribune.com/no-oscar-nom-for-tom-7-of-the-best-tom-hanks-movies-to-remind-you-how-talented-he-is/600029750/|title=No Oscar nom for Tom? 7 of the best Tom Hanks movies to remind you how talented he is|last=Hewitt|first=Chris|work=[[Star Tribune]]|date=March 3, 2021|access-date=March 11, 2021|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191413/https://www.startribune.com/no-oscar-nom-for-tom-7-of-the-best-tom-hanks-movies-to-remind-you-how-talented-he-is/600029750/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Winston Groom]], who wrote the original novel, describes the film as having taken the "rough edges" off the character whom he had envisioned being played by [[John Goodman]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Grimes|first=William|title=Following the Star Of a Winsome Idiot|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=November 16, 2013|date=September 1, 1994|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201221457/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, Tom's younger brother [[Jim Hanks]] is his acting double in the movie for the scenes whenever Forrest was running.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://nypost.com/2014/09/05/secrets-behind-the-infamous-forrest-gump-running-scene/| title= Secrets behind the infamous 'Forrest Gump' running scene| date= September 5, 2014| access-date= August 2, 2022| archive-date= August 2, 2022| archive-url= 
https://web.archive.org/web/20220802201731/https://nypost.com/2014/09/05/secrets-behind-the-infamous-forrest-gump-running-scene/amp/| url-status= 
live|work=The New York Post}}</ref> Tom's daughter Elizabeth Hanks appears in the movie as the girl on the school bus who refuses to let young Forrest sit next to her.<ref>{{cite web|last=Stark|first=Chandler|url=
https://www.looper.com/960822/small-details-you-missed-in-forrest-gump/| title= Small Details You Missed In Forrest Gump|date=September 5, 2014| access-date=July 6, 2024|work=Looper}}</ref> [[Joe Pesci]] and [[Kevin Bacon]] were considered for the role of Lieutenant Dan Taylor, which was eventually given to [[Gary Sinise]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eonline.com/photos/28395/25-facts-about-forrest-gump|title=25 Facts About Forrest Gump|access-date=August 2, 2022|archive-date=August 2, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802202242/https://www.eonline.com/photos/28395/25-facts-about-forrest-gump|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kevin-bacon-forrest-gump_n_3732424 |title=Kevin Bacon Turned Down Role Of Lt. Dan In 'Forrest Gump' |work=The Huffington Post |date=August 9, 2013 |access-date=September 3, 2024}}</ref> Sinise drew inspiration from the struggles that Vietnam veterans, some on his wife's side of his family, were going through when returning from serving in Vietnam.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottking/2021/03/01/why-serving-honoring-veterans-became-gary-sinises-lifelong-mission/ | title=Why Serving, Honoring Veterans Became Gary Sinise's "Lifelong Mission" | website=[[Forbes]] }}</ref> [[David Alan Grier]], [[Ice Cube]] and [[Dave Chappelle]] were offered the role of Benjamin Buford Blue, but all three turned it down.<ref name="BMRole">{{cite news|last=Wiser|first=Paige|title=Might-have-beens who (thankfully) weren't: The wacky world of Hollywood's strangest casting calls|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1161512A55EF6310&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=Chicago Sun-Times|date=December 17, 2006|access-date=July 1, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009052703/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1161512A55EF6310&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CubeGrierBubba">{{cite news |last=Boucher |first=Geoff |title=On the Trail of a Hollywood Hyphenate; Rapper/Actor/Writer/Producer/Director. Is There Room For Anything Else on Ice Cube's Resume? |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-mar-26-tm-12661-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=March 26, 2000 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110108044726/http://articles.latimes.com/2000/mar/26/magazine/tm-12661 |archive-date=January 8, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> Chappelle, who said he believed the film would be unsuccessful, has been reported as saying that he regrets not taking the role. Hanks was aware of Chappelle's disappointment in missing out on the part and agreed to work with him in a future movie, which ended up being ''[[You've Got Mail]]''.<ref name="BMRole" /> Rapper [[Tupac Shakur]] also auditioned.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/tupac-shakur-auditioned-for-an-iconic-movie-role-that-went-to-tom-hanks.html/ | title=Tupac Shakur Auditioned for an Iconic Movie Role That Went to Tom Hanks | date=July 28, 2021 | access-date=October 27, 2022 | archive-date=October 27, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221027070449/https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/tupac-shakur-auditioned-for-an-iconic-movie-role-that-went-to-tom-hanks.html/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Filming ===
[[File:ForrestGump-Jenny-Boat-2055.jpg|thumb|The shrimping boat Gump used in the film]]
Filming began in August 1993 and ended in December of that year.<ref name="FilminDates">{{cite news|last=McKenna|first=Kristine|author-link=Kristine McKenna|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/60281832.html?dids=60281832:60281832&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+19%2C+1993&author=KRISTINE+McKENNA&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Cover+Story+He%27s+Serious+About+This+One+For+Tom+Hanks%2C+it%27s+been+a+long+ride+from+%60Splash%27+to+%60Philadelphia%2C%27+in+which+the+likable+comedy+actor+plays+an+AIDS+patient+who%27s+fired+from+his+job.+What+made+him+take+the+leap%3F+It+has+a+lot+to+do+with+what+he%27s+done+so+far%2C+the+times+and%2C+well%2C+life&pqatl=google|title=He's Serious About This One For Tom Hanks, it's been a long ride from 'Splash' to 'Philadelphia,' in which the likable comedy actor plays an AIDS patient who's fired from his job|work=Los Angeles Times|format=Fee required|date=December 19, 1993|access-date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=January 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111205510/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/60281832.html?dids=60281832:60281832&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+19%2C+1993&author=KRISTINE+McKENNA&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Cover+Story+He%27s+Serious+About+This+One+For+Tom+Hanks%2C+it%27s+been+a+long+ride+from+%60Splash%27+to+%60Philadelphia%2C%27+in+which+the+likable+comedy+actor+plays+an+AIDS+patient+who%27s+fired+from+his+job.+What+made+him+take+the+leap%3F+It+has+a+lot+to+do+with+what+he%27s+done+so+far%2C+the+times+and%2C+well%2C+life&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref> Although most of the film is set in Alabama, filming took place mainly in and around [[Beaufort, South Carolina]], as well as parts of coastal Virginia and North Carolina,<ref name="HankSign" /> including a running shot on the [[Blue Ridge Parkway]] near [[Grandfather Mountain]] where a part of the road subsequently became known as "Forrest Gump Curve".<ref>Grandfather Mountain audio tour</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/20130126081418/http://www.indianagazette.com/a_news/article_6088508b-000c-5c86-a60e-5ea14a1d9112.html Must-see sites abound along Blue Ridge Parkway – The Indiana Gazette Online: Indiana County Area News]. Indianagazette.com (June 12, 2011). Retrieved on March 7, 2013.</ref> Downtown portions of the fictional town of Greenbow were filmed in [[Varnville, South Carolina]].<ref>[http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/f/ForrestGump.html Film locations for Forrest Gump (1994)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806231350/http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/f/ForrestGump.html |date=August 6, 2019}}. Movie-locations.com. Retrieved on March 7, 2013.</ref> The studio was about to pull the plug on the film, until Zemeckis and Hanks cut the running sequence in the middle, Hanks used his own money for the sequence.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/tom-hanks-and-steven-spielberg-on-indiana-jones-173307833.html | title=Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg on 'Indiana Jones 5' and Saving 'Forrest Gump' | date=October 9, 2015 }}</ref> The scene of Forrest running through Vietnam while under fire was filmed on [[Hunting Island State Park]] and [[Fripp Island, South Carolina]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Katherine |title=Island getaway is motion-picture perfect |work=St. Petersburg Times |url=http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/27/Travel/Island_getaway_is_mot.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110917010438/http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/27/Travel/Island_getaway_is_mot.shtml |archive-date=September 17, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Additional filming took place on the [[Biltmore Estate]] in [[Asheville, North Carolina]]. 
[[File:Forrest Gump Point Monument Valley November 2018 003.jpg|thumb|left|The location along [[U.S. Route 163]] in [[Monument Valley]] where Forrest ends his run]]
The Gump family home set was built along the [[Combahee River]] near [[Yemassee, South Carolina]], and the nearby land was used to film Curran's home as well as some of the Vietnam scenes.<ref name="DVDProdDesign">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Building the World of Gump: Production Design)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> Over 20&nbsp;[[sabal|palmetto]] trees were planted to improve the Vietnam scenes.<ref name="DVDProdDesign" /> Forrest Gump narrated his life's story at the northern edge of [[Chippewa Square]] in [[Savannah, Georgia]], as he sat at a bus stop bench. There were other scenes filmed in and around the Savannah area as well, including a running shot on the [[Richard V. Woods Memorial Bridge]] in Beaufort while he was being interviewed by the press, and on West Bay Street in Savannah.<ref name="DVDProdDesign" /> Most of the college campus scenes were filmed in [[Los Angeles]] at the [[University of Southern California]]. The lighthouse that Forrest runs across to reach the Atlantic Ocean the first time is the [[Marshall Point Lighthouse]] in [[Port Clyde, Maine]]. Additional scenes were filmed in Arizona, Utah's [[Monument Valley]], and Montana's [[Glacier National Park (U.S.)|Glacier National Park]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=D'Arc|first1=James V.|title=When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah|date=2010|publisher=Gibbs Smith|location=Layton, Utah|isbn=9781423605874|edition=1st}}</ref>

=== Visual effects ===
[[File:ForrestGumpJFKScreenshot.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Black-and-white film screenshot showing the main character on the left looking toward another man, President Kennedy, (voiced by actor Jed Gillin), on the right. Kennedy is smiling and looking to his left. In the background, several men are looking in different directions and one is aiming a camera.|Gump with President Kennedy. A variety of visual effects were used to incorporate Hanks into archive footage with various historical figures and events.]]

[[Ken Ralston]] and his team at [[Industrial Light & Magic]] were responsible for the film's visual effects. Using [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] techniques, it was possible to depict Gump meeting deceased personages and shaking their hands. Hanks was first shot against a [[Chroma key|blue screen]] along with reference markers so that he could line up with the archive footage.<ref name="DVDEyes1">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Through the eyes of Forrest Gump)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|time=12:29|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> To record the voices of the historical figures, voice actors were filmed and special effects were used to alter [[Lip sync#In films|lip-syncing]] for the new dialogue.<ref name="BookChanges">{{cite news|last=Mills|first=Bart|title=In 'Forrest Gump,' Historical Figures Speak for Themselves|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24184772.html?dids=24184772:24184772&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jul+08%2C+1994&author=Bart+Mills.+Special+to+the+Tribune.&pub=Chicago+Tribune+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=IN+%60FORREST+GUMP%2C%27+HISTORICAL+FIGURES+SPEAK+FOR+THEMSELVES&pqatl=google|format=Fee required|work=Chicago Tribune|date=July 8, 1994|access-date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=July 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707202525/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24184772.html?dids=24184772%3A24184772&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS%3AFT&type=current&date=Jul%2B08%2C%2B1994&author=Bart%2BMills.%2BSpecial%2Bto%2Bthe%2BTribune.&pub=Chicago%2BTribune%2B%28pre-1997%2BFulltext%29&desc=IN%2B%60FORREST%2BGUMP%2C%27%2BHISTORICAL%2BFIGURES%2BSPEAK%2BFOR%2BTHEMSELVES&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref> Archival footage was used and with the help of such techniques as [[chroma key]], [[image warping]], [[morphing]], and [[rotoscoping]], Hanks was integrated into it.

In one Vietnam War scene, Gump carries Bubba away from an incoming [[napalm]] attack. To create the effect, [[stunt actor]]s were initially used for [[compositing]] purposes. Then, Hanks and Williamson were filmed, with Williamson supported by a cable wire as Hanks ran with him. The explosion was then filmed, and the actors were digitally added to appear just in front of the explosions. The jet fighters and napalm canisters were also added by CGI.<ref name="DVDVietnam">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Vietnam)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>

The CGI removal of actor [[Gary Sinise]]'s legs, after his character had them amputated, was achieved by wrapping his legs with a blue fabric, which later facilitated the work of the "roto-paint" team to paint out his legs from every single frame. At one point, while hoisting himself into his [[wheelchair]], his legs are used for support.<ref name="DVDLegs">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Lt. Dan's Legs)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>

The scene where Forrest spots Jenny at a [[peace rally]] at the [[Lincoln Memorial]] and [[Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool|Reflecting Pool]] in Washington, D.C., required visual effects to create the large crowd of people. Over two days of filming, approximately 1,500 [[Extra (actor)|extras]] were used.<ref name="DVDEnhanReal">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Enhancing Reality)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> At each successive take, the extras were rearranged and moved into a different [[Cartesian coordinate system#Quadrants and octants|quadrant]] away from the camera. With the help of computers, the extras were multiplied to create a crowd of several hundred thousand people.<ref name="HankSign" /><ref name="DVDEnhanReal" />