I've been flooded with email today, and unfortunately some of it has not survived my spam filter on gmail. If you've sent me an email in the past couple of days and I haven't responded - please resend.
[ we now return you to your regular pulp program already in progress]
It looks like I'm moving in the next three weeks. Not happy about it, but not upset either. Moving is a cleansing ritual and the detritus here at the Secret Mtn. HQ has been accumulating rather quickly. Time to get lean and mean again. Hmmmm...
The printer proofs are coming out this weekend for the marketing materials we've designed. I can't wait to show our client. It's like Christmas when you open a box of sell sheets or brochures or posters that you've created and take a gander.
People from all over the world will see our work in Cannes. I've told the client they have to take pictures of the booth for us showcasing the posters and banners. Since they are a relatively new company it's exciting for them too.
That reminds me that AFM is right around the corner on November 1st. Sanata Monica's Loew's Hotel will be crawling with film and television buyers from around the world. It's going to be fun as we are designing key art and sales materials for 4 new movies.
See guys, that's how movies are sold - at big "flea markets" around the globe. All the companies trot out their wares and people haggle for a deal. It has more in common with used car sales than high art in a gallery.
"You want our A-list blockbuster movie?"
"Yes please. Your best price for [insert country or territory here] "
"Fine. We can cut you a deal, but you have to take these [three dog movies] with it."
"But good sir. My esteemed employer with rend my prvates into dust if I make this deal."
"Don't worry. I've got the number of a good surgeon. Just sign here..."
And so it goes...
Friday, September 29, 2006
I've Been Plugged By Warren Ellis!
From Warren Ellis's email newsletter [bad signal] today:
bad signal
ME
Another week fucking vanished into thin air. Off to London in a few hours for dinner with a couple of old friends. Notes on the week:
* My website hosting service has finally driven me up the wall, so I'm moving warrenelliscom over the weekend. Expect some downtime.
* It appears that I'm going to be writing a direct-to-DVD animated film next month. Right now, I thinkI'm still under NDA (Non-DisclosureAgreement), although the design artist leaked it some months back. He does a lot of covers for Vertigo. More than that I will not say until I get the nod. Interestingly, there's also the possibility I'll be brought into do the voice direction, too.
* (Direct-to-DVD has long interested me, since I made the acquaintance of DVD pulp king Bill Cunningham. D2DVD is the common search term. D2DVD still has the stink of straight-to-video on it, mostly because ofthe potboiler crap that fills the field, but it wouldn't be hard to do something that was actually good in the area.)
* (I also like D2i, or webisodes as we used to call them -- I think maybe the BATTLESTAR GALACTICA direct-to-internet pieces call themwebisodes too. I've also been watching tv on my phone, streamed straight to the handset and run with RealPlayer. Will have a note about thatsoon, I think.)
* Finishing the first draft of theDEAD CHANNEL script this weekend.Terrified.
* Today I will also find out if I'm writing another animated film, I think. This one is related to a videogame I consulted on over the summer -- I know for a fact this oneis still under NDA, they don't loosenthat until the game's well intoproduction.
* Did I mention the requested revisions on the novel were minor?I think I have to slightly alter fourlines and add one small scene. Easy. I'm told we're gunning for July 06,to roughly coincide with my beingin the US for a few days that month.
* Have agreed terms on a massive, career-killing new project atMarvel, and also a crazy format stunt at Avatar that William the Avatar boss came up with last year.
* So I'm home alone and working flat out all weekend. Will probably turn up on the Engine on Saturday night to do the Open Mic thing.
-- W
---Sent via mobile device from pub, street or road
(c) 2006 Warren Ellis.
Reposted here without permission, but with the best of intentions.
----------------------------------------
Warren Ellis is an excellent example of someone using their "brand" to branch out and create new media. I remember about a year or two ago when Warren and I were trading emails on this subject, and I'm glad to see him join the DVD Premiere fold.
For the 8000+ of you who read Warren's [bad signal] today and wondered who the hell I am, welcome. I hope you stick around as we discuss a lot of things here at DISContent related to screenwriting, movies, DVD (they are two separate entities) television, comics, pulps and the internet -- and how they are all interrelated. I am a writer-producer- DVD marketer and approach everything about this as a business - a fun creatively rewarding business - but a business nonetheless. I tell you what I think - right or wrong - usually in the form of a rant. This has earned me the title "Mad Pulp Bastard." (Thank you, John Rogers)
If you're new here, or have been lurking for awhile and been too shy to speak up - now's the time to do so. Tell us who you are and what you're up to.
bad signal
ME
Another week fucking vanished into thin air. Off to London in a few hours for dinner with a couple of old friends. Notes on the week:
* My website hosting service has finally driven me up the wall, so I'm moving warrenelliscom over the weekend. Expect some downtime.
* It appears that I'm going to be writing a direct-to-DVD animated film next month. Right now, I thinkI'm still under NDA (Non-DisclosureAgreement), although the design artist leaked it some months back. He does a lot of covers for Vertigo. More than that I will not say until I get the nod. Interestingly, there's also the possibility I'll be brought into do the voice direction, too.
* (Direct-to-DVD has long interested me, since I made the acquaintance of DVD pulp king Bill Cunningham. D2DVD is the common search term. D2DVD still has the stink of straight-to-video on it, mostly because ofthe potboiler crap that fills the field, but it wouldn't be hard to do something that was actually good in the area.)
* (I also like D2i, or webisodes as we used to call them -- I think maybe the BATTLESTAR GALACTICA direct-to-internet pieces call themwebisodes too. I've also been watching tv on my phone, streamed straight to the handset and run with RealPlayer. Will have a note about thatsoon, I think.)
* Finishing the first draft of theDEAD CHANNEL script this weekend.Terrified.
* Today I will also find out if I'm writing another animated film, I think. This one is related to a videogame I consulted on over the summer -- I know for a fact this oneis still under NDA, they don't loosenthat until the game's well intoproduction.
* Did I mention the requested revisions on the novel were minor?I think I have to slightly alter fourlines and add one small scene. Easy. I'm told we're gunning for July 06,to roughly coincide with my beingin the US for a few days that month.
* Have agreed terms on a massive, career-killing new project atMarvel, and also a crazy format stunt at Avatar that William the Avatar boss came up with last year.
* So I'm home alone and working flat out all weekend. Will probably turn up on the Engine on Saturday night to do the Open Mic thing.
-- W
---Sent via mobile device from pub, street or road
(c) 2006 Warren Ellis.
Reposted here without permission, but with the best of intentions.
----------------------------------------
Warren Ellis is an excellent example of someone using their "brand" to branch out and create new media. I remember about a year or two ago when Warren and I were trading emails on this subject, and I'm glad to see him join the DVD Premiere fold.
For the 8000+ of you who read Warren's [bad signal] today and wondered who the hell I am, welcome. I hope you stick around as we discuss a lot of things here at DISContent related to screenwriting, movies, DVD (they are two separate entities) television, comics, pulps and the internet -- and how they are all interrelated. I am a writer-producer- DVD marketer and approach everything about this as a business - a fun creatively rewarding business - but a business nonetheless. I tell you what I think - right or wrong - usually in the form of a rant. This has earned me the title "Mad Pulp Bastard." (Thank you, John Rogers)
If you're new here, or have been lurking for awhile and been too shy to speak up - now's the time to do so. Tell us who you are and what you're up to.
Monday, September 25, 2006
Give It The [Re]Boot
Marc Bernardin and I have a little game going on here. It all started innocently enough with Marc recounting how he wished he was writing in the 80's because then he could write crap-tacular stuff like MANIMAL.
Then I had to open my big, mad-pulp-bastard mouth and throw out the R-word.
So that's it kids - what show would you like to reboot? What show in the dim recesses of your memory deserves a second chance to be done right?
(Just like Battlestar Galactica is being done right)
No movies. No comics. Just TV shows.
More importantly - you should also tell us how it should be done right. What changes would you make? Who would write / direct / produce it? Who would star in it?
Oh, and Marc? I have an idea on how to reboot MANIMAL...
And here's that reboot:
A series of brutal murders across the country lead FBI investigators to conclude that a serial killer is using trained animals to attack and kill random citizens - one is choked by a snake, another mauled by a panther and yet another clawed by a huge falcon.
Animal Behavioralist, Dr. Molly Harper, is called in to consult with FBI Agent Tony Smith and concludes that these people weren't just attacked by animals, they were attacked by the same animal - one which used the same M.O. every time, but with a different "weapon."
As Harper and Smith dig deeper, despite orders from the higher-ups to the contrary, they discover their suspect is a serial killer with the ability to become any animal genotype he comes in contact with. His profile is coded "Manimal."
It's X-Files meets Seven (with a bit of Manchurian Candidate).
Manimal leaves clues to his hunts to prod our two heroes to keep investigating. Harper & Smith learn that Manimal is really Jonathan Chase, a former operative for the CIA - who was declared dead in Afghanistan.
But who is Jonathan Chase really?
How did he acquire the ability to become any animal he touches?
Why is he murdering these seemingly random people across the United States?
As Harper & Smith uncover answers to the questions about the "man" in "Manimal", they must stay one step ahead of the conspiracy that surrounds Jonathan Chase, and try and stop a serial killer who fights tooth and nail to destroy those who have robbed him of his humanity...
Then I had to open my big, mad-pulp-bastard mouth and throw out the R-word.
So that's it kids - what show would you like to reboot? What show in the dim recesses of your memory deserves a second chance to be done right?
(Just like Battlestar Galactica is being done right)
No movies. No comics. Just TV shows.
More importantly - you should also tell us how it should be done right. What changes would you make? Who would write / direct / produce it? Who would star in it?
Oh, and Marc? I have an idea on how to reboot MANIMAL...
And here's that reboot:
MANIMAL
A series of brutal murders across the country lead FBI investigators to conclude that a serial killer is using trained animals to attack and kill random citizens - one is choked by a snake, another mauled by a panther and yet another clawed by a huge falcon.
Animal Behavioralist, Dr. Molly Harper, is called in to consult with FBI Agent Tony Smith and concludes that these people weren't just attacked by animals, they were attacked by the same animal - one which used the same M.O. every time, but with a different "weapon."
As Harper and Smith dig deeper, despite orders from the higher-ups to the contrary, they discover their suspect is a serial killer with the ability to become any animal genotype he comes in contact with. His profile is coded "Manimal."
It's X-Files meets Seven (with a bit of Manchurian Candidate).
Manimal leaves clues to his hunts to prod our two heroes to keep investigating. Harper & Smith learn that Manimal is really Jonathan Chase, a former operative for the CIA - who was declared dead in Afghanistan.
But who is Jonathan Chase really?
How did he acquire the ability to become any animal he touches?
Why is he murdering these seemingly random people across the United States?
As Harper & Smith uncover answers to the questions about the "man" in "Manimal", they must stay one step ahead of the conspiracy that surrounds Jonathan Chase, and try and stop a serial killer who fights tooth and nail to destroy those who have robbed him of his humanity...
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Spooks, Smith and Shark...
along with JERICHO and the new Showtime series DEXTER were on my plate today for a nice Sunday of catching my breath and just lying back and being entertained.
SPOOKS has taken a flashier, less realistic turn this season and I'm not amused by it. It's trying to be 24 which it isn't, nor should it try to be. I can't imagine Harry not ordering the elimination of all of the conspirators involved once they had the meeting about taking over the government. I don't like Ros, but I'll wait until the end of the season.
SMITH - was indeed a love letter to Michael Mann's brilliant HEAT. I'm eager to see the characters again, and see some multi-episode stories instead of the self-contained hour I've just viewed. I think the editing is a bit skewed on this as well as clues are paid off before they are dropped (the exploding van should have been held as a surprise). This is a show that needs to find its characters and make them more "real" than they are.
SHARK - was predictable. I actually like JUSTICE better as it has the visual hooks a series like this requires. I also think they could have had Stark fight to keep his daughter somehow - show her he had changed...
JERICHO - was okay, not spectacular which is what I wanted. It's a bit soft in the belly and I want to see some hard decisions from these survivors. I also want some reality to this in regards to radiation fallout, water poisoning, rationing, potential fascism (you know there's some supremacist groups out there in Kansas along with a bunch of meth-heads).
DEXTER - is brilliant. A serial killer of serial killers. Disturbingly funny and unique.
SPOOKS has taken a flashier, less realistic turn this season and I'm not amused by it. It's trying to be 24 which it isn't, nor should it try to be. I can't imagine Harry not ordering the elimination of all of the conspirators involved once they had the meeting about taking over the government. I don't like Ros, but I'll wait until the end of the season.
SMITH - was indeed a love letter to Michael Mann's brilliant HEAT. I'm eager to see the characters again, and see some multi-episode stories instead of the self-contained hour I've just viewed. I think the editing is a bit skewed on this as well as clues are paid off before they are dropped (the exploding van should have been held as a surprise). This is a show that needs to find its characters and make them more "real" than they are.
SHARK - was predictable. I actually like JUSTICE better as it has the visual hooks a series like this requires. I also think they could have had Stark fight to keep his daughter somehow - show her he had changed...
JERICHO - was okay, not spectacular which is what I wanted. It's a bit soft in the belly and I want to see some hard decisions from these survivors. I also want some reality to this in regards to radiation fallout, water poisoning, rationing, potential fascism (you know there's some supremacist groups out there in Kansas along with a bunch of meth-heads).
DEXTER - is brilliant. A serial killer of serial killers. Disturbingly funny and unique.
To Summarize...
I've been stroke-inducing busy these past two weeks wrapping up a marketing campaign for a new television series. The show is going to air on Showtime here in the states and the production / distribution company is taking it to Cannes for Mipcom so they can sell it around the world. That means a marketing concept needs to be created, copy needs to be written, catalogs created, brochures and banners and posters designed...
I really like doing this sort of work because it pays well, I'm working with people that I've worked with before - "Hey, let's get the band back together!" - and it really helps you define what your series or movie is about.
This series that I'm working on was pitched to our marketing team and we instantly understood what images were going to sell that concept. We instantly understood what the tagline needed to be (though I did provide the client with a couple of options).
We instantly "got it," and we took and applied that to every bit of material we created. It's that one, simple, crystal-clear idea that we could hang onto throughout the whole creative process - our barometer, yardstick, scale, whatever...
You may be saying to yourself that your movie can't be summed up in one sentence. It's too big, to epic to be summed up in 30 words or less. Fine, but let me tell you that someone is going to do it. Whether its the publicity department or the marketing department or sales department or (usually) all three...
Someone is going to summarize your movie in one sentence in order to sell it.
In fact, someone is not only going to summarize and sell your movie in one sentence, they are going to summarize it in one picture.
They are even going to summarize and sell it in three words or less.
So, the next time you write a treatment and it's 10 pages? Try and get it down to 3 pages. Then try and get it down to one page. Then get it down to one 30-words-or-less sentence. If it holds together at 30 words - it will hold together at 90+ pages.
Hopefully, soon I'll get the clearance to show you some of the stuff we've been working on. Then we can discuss how movies are really sold around the world and how that is changing.
I really like doing this sort of work because it pays well, I'm working with people that I've worked with before - "Hey, let's get the band back together!" - and it really helps you define what your series or movie is about.
This series that I'm working on was pitched to our marketing team and we instantly understood what images were going to sell that concept. We instantly understood what the tagline needed to be (though I did provide the client with a couple of options).
We instantly "got it," and we took and applied that to every bit of material we created. It's that one, simple, crystal-clear idea that we could hang onto throughout the whole creative process - our barometer, yardstick, scale, whatever...
You may be saying to yourself that your movie can't be summed up in one sentence. It's too big, to epic to be summed up in 30 words or less. Fine, but let me tell you that someone is going to do it. Whether its the publicity department or the marketing department or sales department or (usually) all three...
Someone is going to summarize your movie in one sentence in order to sell it.
In fact, someone is not only going to summarize and sell your movie in one sentence, they are going to summarize it in one picture.
They are even going to summarize and sell it in three words or less.
So, the next time you write a treatment and it's 10 pages? Try and get it down to 3 pages. Then try and get it down to one page. Then get it down to one 30-words-or-less sentence. If it holds together at 30 words - it will hold together at 90+ pages.
Hopefully, soon I'll get the clearance to show you some of the stuff we've been working on. Then we can discuss how movies are really sold around the world and how that is changing.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Spooks / MI-5...
...is back! Series 5 kicked off last night with a two-part episode which will finish tonight.Lots of new faces, new plots and surprises. This has always been one of my favorite shows and runs neck-and-neck with 24 for a realistic action-suspense drama.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Old Scripts...
are like ex-wives and girlfriends. There's always the Good, the Bad and the (downright) Ugly.
I just bumped into my ex-script, and we decided to have coffee. I'm not going to stick around long, and we're going to talk to one another in plain view - no makeup sex, nor ex-sex nor any of that. We've done all that already - old news that did neither of us any good. We're chatting is all and simply figuring things out - what we did right and what we screwed up. We'll work it all out, make each other feel better, finish our coffees and move on.
But I definitely told the ex-script it needs to lose five pounds from its ass if it ever wants to get a production company interested...
I just bumped into my ex-script, and we decided to have coffee. I'm not going to stick around long, and we're going to talk to one another in plain view - no makeup sex, nor ex-sex nor any of that. We've done all that already - old news that did neither of us any good. We're chatting is all and simply figuring things out - what we did right and what we screwed up. We'll work it all out, make each other feel better, finish our coffees and move on.
But I definitely told the ex-script it needs to lose five pounds from its ass if it ever wants to get a production company interested...
Monday, September 11, 2006
Lessons from a Fell
FELL is a comic book by Warren Ellis and Ben Templesmith that is pretty radical in today's comic marketplace:
- It has a $1.99 cover price (a buck cheaper than other comics)
- It's printed on 16 pages of glossy paper showcasing Ben's wild artwork.
- The stories are packed with art and story and are each self-contained. The format is very tight - nine panels or so to a page. You don't have to have read the entire run prior in order to understand the relationships and storyline. You hop on and go.
- The back pages have insights into the creation of the series...
- It's also turning the comic book world on its ear. Some people hate it. Some love it. (Most do as it's gone back for several printing on multiple issues).
You guys can see where I'm going with this right? FELL is a hell of a lot like a pulp DVD.
- Most movies from the indies are sold around $14.99-19.99 retail. About $9.00 cheaper than their studio counterparts.
- Pulp movies for the most part hit the 90 minute mark. Enough room to put the movie, an interview (Insights), and a few trailers on it. It's tight. Focused.
- and if we are to believe the Video Buyers Group, pulp movies are making people money.
Both FELL and Pulp movies are born out of an economic necessity - to pack as much story into as little space as possible - and make it affordable for the purchaser. The restrictions to the story and the artwork actually work in its favor....
So the thought is this - deconstruct what you are trying to do in film and look at the restrictions brought about by the:
Format (film or video? Full Frame or widescreen)
Length
Budget
Actors
Design
Lighting
and make that work FOR you. By rethinking the approach, you can come up with new stories, characters and looks. But before you do that - have a solid grounding in the conventions of the medium you're working in. If you know the rules it doesn't "show" when you break them. One can always spot someone who doesn't get it.
Remember: restrictions are the squeeze that brings out the juicy pulp.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
My Top 25 TV Characters
Taking a clue from James Gunn, Joss Whedon and Michael Patrick Sullivan (Who?) I am giving you my list of my top 25 tv characters of all time...
Here are the rules if you want to play yourself(No JR, not play with yourself!):
No puppets or cartoons, otherwise Kermit and Homer would definitely be on this list.
No mini-series, otherwise I'd definitely include Philip Marlow from THE SINGING DETECTIVE.
No reality show people, otherwise Matt Kennedy Gould from THE JOE SCHMO SHOW would be on here.
All characters must be regulars on the show. Okay, here we go
1. TOM QUINN - SPOOKS/MI-5 : Because he's very cool and serene even in the most dire of circumstances and yet he's human about it all.
2. VIC MACKEY - THE SHIELD: Vic is a moral swamp, but damn if he doesn't make you want to go out and be a badass every now and then.
3. THE PRISONER - he didn't break.
4. EMMA PEEL - THE AVENGERS: Steed was trained as an agent, but Mrs. Peel was a "talented amateur." That and the catsuits makes you instantly like her.
5. JACK BAUER - 24: Jack sacrifices for the cause - his life, his wife, and his values. He gets the job done no matter what it takes.
6. STRINGFELLOW HAWKE - AIRWOLF: The interesting name. The cool chopper. Part of the reason I joined the USAF. Too bad Jan-Michael Vincent couldn't take some of the qualities of the character and embrace them in his personal life.
7. PAPPY BOYINGTON - BLACK SHEEP SQUADRON: An air ace who shot the enemy down every week - and he was real! Sparked my interest in history which led to a bachelor's degree.
8. STEVE AUSTIN - THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN: Okay, who didn't want to be Steve Austin when they grew up?
9. HANNIBAL SMITH - THE A-TEAM: Sarcastic, caustic and always the smartest strategist in the room. Liked the stogies too...
10. MR. SPOCK - STAR TREK: Strong, cool , different. Made women understand that brainy was sexy (okay, they already knew that, but he educated young males on this fact) .
11. TONY NEWMAN - THE TIME TUNNEL: I wanted to hop around in time and see things for myself.
12. STEVE BURTON - LAND OF THE GIANTS: As a kid, I just thought the idea of giant people was cool. I also have a yearning to be Ant-Man but don't tell anyone.
13. HORACE RUMPOLE - RUMPOLE OF THE BAILEY: How I always imagined all British barristers were in real life. Imagine my surprise I find the show was created by a former barrister...
14. JOHN KOENIG - SPACE: 1999 - Feeds into my love of explosions and model s. Perhaps this is also a holdover from my MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE phase.
15. NICK KNIGHT - FOREVER KNIGHT: has been the topic of conversation lately. I like the idea of having time to do all of the things I want. I don't like the whole blood and no tan business.
16. BRITT REID- THE GREEN HORNET: It was the car...and the fact that everyone thought he was a bad guy. What a perfect cover. I used to watch the show with my Dad when it was on, because that was the only night during the week he was home before I went to bed. It was our thing.
17. JAMES WEST - THE WILD WILD WEST: Robert Conrad at his finest. Many episodes directed by William Witney - serial director extraordinaire.
18. ALEXANDER MUNDY - IT TAKES A THIEF: Smart, funny and the epitome of 60's cool. Runs neck and neck with Robert Culp and I SPY.
19. DAVID BANNER - THE INCREDIBLE HULK: the form for my teenage angst. Everything would have been so much better if I could have turned green and grown monstrous when I was angry... and I was that a lot.
20. SIMON TEMPLAR - THE SAINT: Another crook gone over to the good side, sort of...Roger Moore should never have become James Bond.
21. MICHAL SCOFIELD - PRISON BREAK: Cold, calculating and yet ultimately the guy who's doing the right thing for his brother. Genius.
22. FRANK PARKER - 7 DAYS: Another time travel show, but the character of Frank Parker was interesting. Get an expendable crazy man to take on the most dangerous assignments ever...
23. DUNCAN MCLEOD - HIGHLANDER: Better character than Conner. More developed (Obviously). Again, appeals to my immortality kick.
24. MICHAEL - LA FEMME NIKITA: cold, ruthless but with a heart of justice. Doesn't waste anything - time, movements, words. Efficient beyond measure.
25. ROBERT McCALL - THE EQUALIZER: When I get older I want to be this guy. Seen and done a bit of everything. Dedicated, fearless. Knows and keeps secrets.
Here are the rules if you want to play yourself(No JR, not play with yourself!):
No puppets or cartoons, otherwise Kermit and Homer would definitely be on this list.
No mini-series, otherwise I'd definitely include Philip Marlow from THE SINGING DETECTIVE.
No reality show people, otherwise Matt Kennedy Gould from THE JOE SCHMO SHOW would be on here.
All characters must be regulars on the show. Okay, here we go
1. TOM QUINN - SPOOKS/MI-5 : Because he's very cool and serene even in the most dire of circumstances and yet he's human about it all.
2. VIC MACKEY - THE SHIELD: Vic is a moral swamp, but damn if he doesn't make you want to go out and be a badass every now and then.
3. THE PRISONER - he didn't break.
4. EMMA PEEL - THE AVENGERS: Steed was trained as an agent, but Mrs. Peel was a "talented amateur." That and the catsuits makes you instantly like her.
5. JACK BAUER - 24: Jack sacrifices for the cause - his life, his wife, and his values. He gets the job done no matter what it takes.
6. STRINGFELLOW HAWKE - AIRWOLF: The interesting name. The cool chopper. Part of the reason I joined the USAF. Too bad Jan-Michael Vincent couldn't take some of the qualities of the character and embrace them in his personal life.
7. PAPPY BOYINGTON - BLACK SHEEP SQUADRON: An air ace who shot the enemy down every week - and he was real! Sparked my interest in history which led to a bachelor's degree.
8. STEVE AUSTIN - THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN: Okay, who didn't want to be Steve Austin when they grew up?
9. HANNIBAL SMITH - THE A-TEAM: Sarcastic, caustic and always the smartest strategist in the room. Liked the stogies too...
10. MR. SPOCK - STAR TREK: Strong, cool , different. Made women understand that brainy was sexy (okay, they already knew that, but he educated young males on this fact) .
11. TONY NEWMAN - THE TIME TUNNEL: I wanted to hop around in time and see things for myself.
12. STEVE BURTON - LAND OF THE GIANTS: As a kid, I just thought the idea of giant people was cool. I also have a yearning to be Ant-Man but don't tell anyone.
13. HORACE RUMPOLE - RUMPOLE OF THE BAILEY: How I always imagined all British barristers were in real life. Imagine my surprise I find the show was created by a former barrister...
14. JOHN KOENIG - SPACE: 1999 - Feeds into my love of explosions and model s. Perhaps this is also a holdover from my MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE phase.
15. NICK KNIGHT - FOREVER KNIGHT: has been the topic of conversation lately. I like the idea of having time to do all of the things I want. I don't like the whole blood and no tan business.
16. BRITT REID- THE GREEN HORNET: It was the car...and the fact that everyone thought he was a bad guy. What a perfect cover. I used to watch the show with my Dad when it was on, because that was the only night during the week he was home before I went to bed. It was our thing.
17. JAMES WEST - THE WILD WILD WEST: Robert Conrad at his finest. Many episodes directed by William Witney - serial director extraordinaire.
18. ALEXANDER MUNDY - IT TAKES A THIEF: Smart, funny and the epitome of 60's cool. Runs neck and neck with Robert Culp and I SPY.
19. DAVID BANNER - THE INCREDIBLE HULK: the form for my teenage angst. Everything would have been so much better if I could have turned green and grown monstrous when I was angry... and I was that a lot.
20. SIMON TEMPLAR - THE SAINT: Another crook gone over to the good side, sort of...Roger Moore should never have become James Bond.
21. MICHAL SCOFIELD - PRISON BREAK: Cold, calculating and yet ultimately the guy who's doing the right thing for his brother. Genius.
22. FRANK PARKER - 7 DAYS: Another time travel show, but the character of Frank Parker was interesting. Get an expendable crazy man to take on the most dangerous assignments ever...
23. DUNCAN MCLEOD - HIGHLANDER: Better character than Conner. More developed (Obviously). Again, appeals to my immortality kick.
24. MICHAEL - LA FEMME NIKITA: cold, ruthless but with a heart of justice. Doesn't waste anything - time, movements, words. Efficient beyond measure.
25. ROBERT McCALL - THE EQUALIZER: When I get older I want to be this guy. Seen and done a bit of everything. Dedicated, fearless. Knows and keeps secrets.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
The View From Here...
...at the Secret Mountain HQ has a very calming effect, especially after the week I've had. I'm not complaining - lots of stuff coming up that I am eager to announce and move forward - it's just that it helps to sit back, pop the top on an adult beverage and relax.
(and yes, this is the view from the other night as the sun went down)
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
The Cutting Edge of Blade
I don't know if you've been watching it, but one of my guilty pleasures has been BLADE: THE SERIES that is on Spike TV. While I've pounded the last movie, the TV series at least takes the time to build its mythology and characters and really deliver the bang for the buck (each episode is produced for $2M).
But what's really interesting is the attitude the producers are taking with the DVD set for the first season. In this interview, Producer and Writer/Creator David Goyer talks about the DVD with Comic Book Resources and reporter Jonah Weiland:
So, you said no to that?
I thought even for my tastes it went too far.
But it made it in there?
It's going to be in the DVD release.
But what's really interesting is the attitude the producers are taking with the DVD set for the first season. In this interview, Producer and Writer/Creator David Goyer talks about the DVD with Comic Book Resources and reporter Jonah Weiland:
Well, you know, there was something that I pulled. Every episode we film additional material for DVD release. The DVD episodes will be R-Rated, which will be kind of fun, so we film alternate dialogue and will have full frontal nudity and things like that. There was something in the final episode in which one of Marcus' familiars is banging another familiar and the girl was completely naked and we knew we couldn't do that, but Blade ends up dispatching her and she's totally naked when it happens, so it's pretty extreme.
So, you said no to that?
I thought even for my tastes it went too far.
But it made it in there?
It's going to be in the DVD release.
--------
In an age where producers are scrambling to put together the financial equations to make series work, this is a simple way for BLADE to make sure they could up the numbers for the DVD set and offset any losses from the series. Here, Goyer is basically teasing the comic book audience into getting the DVD - because it's something they haven't seen before.
.
Brilliant.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Now This Is A Webisode...
You want to learn how to tease (new) viewers and get them primed for the show you're creating? You want people to shake with the buzz that's surrounding your show? You want to take the internet further, blurring the lines between information access and entertainment? Then click on the picture below:
This is how it's done folks. Study it. Learn from it. Enjoy!
Monday, September 04, 2006
Tales of the Shadowmen 3: Danse Macabre
Jean-Marc Lofficier is publishing his latest Tales of the Shadowmen volume, Danse Macabre soon and yours truly's story is included.Check out the latest info here on J-M's site.
And in case you don't have them, go ahead and order the first two volumes as seen here. You'll be glad you did.
Clandestine Ops
Just some stuff I'm immersing myself. Formulating ideas and finding uniques takes on familiar tropes. What hasn't happened in the spy game? In terrorism/ special ops?
What do people think of when they think of spy shows?
What do people think of when they think of spy shows?
A Challenging Week...
I had a busy week last week and as such didn't get much out there in the way of this blog or my own writing. I was too busy taking meetings, talking on the phone, writing for other people, talking on the phone, watching movies and oh yeah, talking on the phone.
Let's just say this week has been a challenge.
I am working for a company from the Great White North writing all of their sell sheet copy and designing their sell sheets and key art. That means watching movies and figuring out what the sellable points are to the movie:
Does it have a lot of action?
Does it have a lot of sex and nudity (preferably together and still the cheapest special effect money can buy)?
Does it have stars?
In general, what's cool about it?
My job therefore is to communicate that "cool". Whether it's through the key art or the copy, I have to draw the buyer in and make him think, "Cool!"
I have to make him think that even if that cool isn't so cool in the movie. I think that's why I like the idea of creating the art and the title and all of the other marketing material prior to shooting the picture - it sets the bar pretty high. You as the writer, director or producer have to live up to that cool. It's a challenge to do so, but it's the type of challenge that makes you want to get better at what you do - and that's an incredibly good thing, not only for you but for the industry as a whole.
I had a meeting this week as an interview for writing a low budget horror movie. I don't know if I'm going to get it, but I know I'm the best person for the job (egotistical I know, but true) . They laid down some "rules" for me (ala Dogme), and I said to myself, "Hell, I've been following these rules all along! You have to do that when you're writing for little-to-no money and you're just starting out." Thing is, I look at it as a challenge. All these rules and restrictions and encumbrances make me want to do better - to come up with that take on an idea that fits the horror and the budget.
So if you look at your own situation, and say, "I have no money. No crew. No equipment. All I do have is the ability to shoot in my apartment for free." Then take up the challenge and write something that fits what you do have, and comes up with a unique take on a situation in that setting. Set the bar high for yourself by asking, "What story can make this apartment cool?"
You take up that challenge then I guarantee you you're on your way toward crafting a cool story that someone, somewhere will want to make. Find those unique sellable elements that everyone instantly understands and embraces. They are everywhere - on the street, in the restaurant and even in your apartment. Explore what could make them unique and interesting.
Come on... I "double-dog dare" ya.
Let's just say this week has been a challenge.
I am working for a company from the Great White North writing all of their sell sheet copy and designing their sell sheets and key art. That means watching movies and figuring out what the sellable points are to the movie:
Does it have a lot of action?
Does it have a lot of sex and nudity (preferably together and still the cheapest special effect money can buy)?
Does it have stars?
In general, what's cool about it?
My job therefore is to communicate that "cool". Whether it's through the key art or the copy, I have to draw the buyer in and make him think, "Cool!"
I have to make him think that even if that cool isn't so cool in the movie. I think that's why I like the idea of creating the art and the title and all of the other marketing material prior to shooting the picture - it sets the bar pretty high. You as the writer, director or producer have to live up to that cool. It's a challenge to do so, but it's the type of challenge that makes you want to get better at what you do - and that's an incredibly good thing, not only for you but for the industry as a whole.
I had a meeting this week as an interview for writing a low budget horror movie. I don't know if I'm going to get it, but I know I'm the best person for the job (egotistical I know, but true) . They laid down some "rules" for me (ala Dogme), and I said to myself, "Hell, I've been following these rules all along! You have to do that when you're writing for little-to-no money and you're just starting out." Thing is, I look at it as a challenge. All these rules and restrictions and encumbrances make me want to do better - to come up with that take on an idea that fits the horror and the budget.
So if you look at your own situation, and say, "I have no money. No crew. No equipment. All I do have is the ability to shoot in my apartment for free." Then take up the challenge and write something that fits what you do have, and comes up with a unique take on a situation in that setting. Set the bar high for yourself by asking, "What story can make this apartment cool?"
You take up that challenge then I guarantee you you're on your way toward crafting a cool story that someone, somewhere will want to make. Find those unique sellable elements that everyone instantly understands and embraces. They are everywhere - on the street, in the restaurant and even in your apartment. Explore what could make them unique and interesting.
Come on... I "double-dog dare" ya.
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