Godzilla (1998 film) scenes that required practical effects, Tatopoulos' studio created a 6th-scale animatronic model of Godzilla's upper-body as well as a 24th-scale Godzilla suit donned by stuntman Kurt Carley, however, the filmmakers favored CG over practical effects and as a result, the final film features 400 digital shots, 185 of which feature Godzilla, and only two dozen practical effects used in the final film. Production began in May 1997, in New York City, and moved to Los Angeles in June. Scenes in New York were filmed in 13 days; tropical scenes were filmed in the Hawaiian Islands. The United States Marine Corps
The Return of Godzilla by Ifukube's biographer Erik Homenick and "Japanese Giants" editor Ed Godziszewski, as a joke spread by fans which was later misinterpreted as fact. Ifukube declined to score the film due to his priorities, at the time, teaching composition at the Tokyo College of Music. The special effects were again directed by Teruyoshi Nakano, who had directed the special effects of several previous "Godzilla" films. The decision was made by Tanaka to increase the apparent height of Godzilla from to so that Godzilla would not be dwarfed by the contemporary skyline of Tokyo. This meant that the miniatures had to be