Happy Birthday Anna Friel

33 today !

Albert Whitlock - Visual Effects Society’s tribute

A great tribute to one of the master's of Visual FX/ Matte Painting's who died in 1999. Pity the video on this site isn't any bigger quality.

Click the above image for link !

Ailments the Dr can't seem to diagnose...

At the moment I have this thing where I feel the need to inhale a deep breath or take a deep yawn to relieve a sort of breathless feeling I get, now I have slight Asthma and take my inhalers when needed, but this seems unrelated. Over the year this is about the 3rd time this has occurred, and I told the Dr about it on one Asthma check up and he just give me a 'haven't got a clue what you're going on about' type of look, at the time when I told him it wasn't affecting me but I thought I'd mention it anyway.

So it's started up in the last few days again, and I've done a search online, and found numerous people, young to old, smokers and non smokers, athlete's and non athlete's who are all taking about similar symptoms, and who've been told by Dr's it's anxiety related, it's Asthma related amongst various other things, and these people are from all around the world.

Now I'm not too worried about it this time as I'm sure it will just cease like it has before. And the bizarre thing is my son had a similar thing around 3 years ago were he kept feeling the need to take deep breaths too. I have my own theories on what the cause might be, I think it might be allergy based, possibly spores, pollen etc... so I've been taking Benadryl to see if that helps.

But I know of a few people who talk about bizarre medical conditions that they just can't seem to get diagnosed at a GP, they fob them off with stress, anxiety etc... Yet they've read about other people will the self same problem online, now I'm sure most Dr's aren't too pleased with people saying hey I've Googled what's wrong with me, but I do believe that there are things out there that the average GP doesn't have a clue about or how to treat it !

This weeks watching and reading has been...

Hardware (1990) - Directed by Richard Stanley
Mutant Chronicles (2008) - Directed by Simon Hunter
The Caves of Androzani (1984) Directed by Graeme Harper
3D Artist#4 (2009) Published by Image Publishing
A Century of Model Animation (2008) by Ray Harryhausen & Tony Dalton
Cinefex#118 (2009) by Published by Don Shay

Happy Birthday Ray Harryhausen

89 Today !!

Farrah Fawcett R.I.P

As a 10 year old I had this poster (above) of Farrah Fawcett (Majors) on my wall, and loved Charlie's Angels in that sort of pre teen, I know these women are hot, but I can't quite work out why I feel this way, sort of way.
I also watched Farrah in Logan's Run, The Cannonball Run and Saturn 3. Very sad to hear she's passed away at only 62 years of age.

Alien Makers

Very nice 80 minute documentary interviewing lots of model crew who worked on Alien. Rone Hone, Roger Nichols, Neil Swan, Brian Eke, John Hatt, Martin Bower, Simon Deering, Jon Sorensen, Bill Pearson all contribute.

Click the above pic for the link !

Remakes

With Hollywood keen on remakes, here's a list of films that are public domain, so it wouldn't cost them a penny to buy the rights...mind you saying that I'm not sure if anyone in their right mind would want to remake Attack of the Giant Leeches.

List of films in the public domain in the US

Screamers (1996) - Matte Paintings

Caught the end of Screamers the other night on TV, quite a fun SF movie based on the Philip K. Dick short story Second Variety. In the original story the film is set on Earth, not Siruis 6B like in the movie, and it's a story about the Americans and Russians. The film stars Peter Weller and was directed by Canadian filmaker Christian Duguay.
I was always impressed with the Matte Paintings which were created by Deak Ferrand , they really do a superb job of expanding the filming locations shot around Québec in Canada.

Tie Fighter Model

I posted this picture on my Art Blog here in Jan o8' I got a lot of feedback on this, though I didn't let on it was a model as I think some people thought it was a CG render.

Anyway, the model has been minus it's wing and top hatch for a while, so during a clear out I've fixed it and decided to take some pics to prove it is really a kit and not a CG render.

The Tie-Fighter has always been one of my favourite Star Wars ships, I like this much better than the later Tie-Interceptor from Return of the Jedi.

Terminal Force (1995)

I'm wondering why I haven't seen this Sci-Fi gem ? Not only does it have Brigitte Nielsen,Craig Fairbrass and Richard Moll, the sign of quality in any direct to DVD flick, but it has Sam Raimi acting in it !! Craig Fairbrass plays a character called Lord Tarkin ! :) Pity Music Zone closed down, this would certainly have been on there £1.97 shelf !! Better than the 3 Star Wars prequels ? Me thinks so !!! George Lucas take note !

Aliens Art - Circa 1987

I did this around 22 years ago, I've been doing a lot of clearing up and found it amongst some other old pictures. Never got around to adding on any text though, think I realised I'd never make a comic book artist and gave up ! :)

This weeks watching and reading has been...

Rambo (2008) - Directed by Sylvester Stallone
The Gate (1987) - Directed by Tibor Takács
Doctor Who: Regeneration (2001) Directed by Philip Segal and Gary Russell
Cinemagic#16 (1982) Published by Norman Jacobs & Kerry O'Quinn
Cinemagic#18 (1983) Published by Norman Jacobs & Kerry O'Quinn
If Chins could Kill (2002) by Bruce Campbell

Star Wars: The Old Republic - Cinematic

This cinematic is for the new Star Wars game Star Wars: The Old Republic, very slick animation, but according to the site for the game, this is set 3500 years before the rise of Darth Vader, looking at this it would seem technological advances move at an infinitesimal level in the Star Wars universe, we've got spaceships, attack craft, lasers, rocket packs, holographic displays etc... and in 3500+ years nothing seems to have changed, even Coruscant looks the same, didn't they have any different architects in that city for all that time ?! :)

Click to see the video here

Doctor Who unveils new companion

The BBC today revealed that the companion for the forthcoming series of Doctor Who will be Karen Gillan.
Twenty-one-year-old Gillan will star alongside new Time Lord, Matt Smith, when the smash hit drama returns to BBC One in spring 2010.

All I have to say on the matter is Toot Toot !!!!

Alien remake ?

Well it is 30 years old and they're already re-making films from the 80's and early 90's, if this is the best that Hollywood can come up with though I'd rather the Alien franchise just be remembered for what it was, or at least the first 2 films. Because there's no way a remake of Alien would or could work compared to the original, the Alien is an iconic monster, so do they keep the H.R Giger Alien design and then remake the movie around that, or do they come up with a new Alien too, which will no doubt not be a patch on the original creature ?

And as for a prequel, well that sounds shite too, back to explaining origins just for the sake of it, I'd rather speculate where the Alien came from and the Derelict ship and it's crew than being shown and having it spoilt !

Click the above picture for the full story !

BBC Confirm Doctor Who Movie

I think it would be great to see a few Doctor's in this movie if it goes ahead, including the regeneration of Paul McGann's Doctor to Christopher Eccleston's, something we never got to see ! Click the pic for full story !

Tennant to appear in Sarah Jane Adventures

I quite like the Sarah Jane Adventures show on CBBC, and it would be great to see the Doctor in one of the stories, click the above pic for the full story.

Happy Birthday ALIEN

Ridley Scott's SF Classic 30 year old today. I was too young to see it on it's release so the first time I seen it was on VHS in Pan and Scan, and I loved it from the moment I saw it. Ridley Scott's direction, Ron Cobb, Moebius and H.R Giger's design's, Derek Vanlint's cinematography, Jerry Goldsmith's music, everything worked. And who can forget Sigourney Weaver stripping down to her panties ?
Like many SF films of old, it isn't all fast camera moves, action and wall to wall CG FX, it's the slow pacing and attention to detail that makes this seem like we're really on board the Nostromo with it's fated crew as they're stalked by Giger's nightmarish creature. It's what we don't see of the Alien that makes it terrifying, we forget that this is a man in a suit. Also the facehugger and the chestburster are by far the most realistic versions of those creatures that have appeared in any of the Alien films, the shot were the tail tightens around Kane's neck as they try to remove it is very creepy indeed, and later when Ash has it laid out to examine it the underside, made of shellfish amongst other things, it really has a truly organic look to it. And for all the flashy FX that have come since in various Alien sequels, the original chestburster will always be the best.
It's hard to believe it's 30 years old, like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Wars, so many films have tried to copy the style of Alien, and most have been lame imitations, if you've never seen it I'd recommend the documentary's that are on the Alien Quadrilogy DVD set, for a great insight into how this classic was made.

Surrogates trailer

Looks like this could be a fun movie !!

This weeks watching and reading has been....

Star Fleet - The Complete Series (1982) - Created by Go Nagai
Dark Star (1974) - Directed by John Carpenter
Silent Running (1972) Directed by Douglas Trumbull
Cinemagic#2 (1979) Published by Norman Jacobs & Kerry O'Quinn
Amazing Cinema#1 (1981) by Don Dohler
Roadside Picnic (1972) by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

Making of the Gremlins fan film

I posted this Gremlins fan film here last September, here's a short film of the making of. Rick Baker, Joe Dante and Michael Finnell want it included in the Blu Ray extras! They are still in talks with Warner Bros about it. Joe Dante even said in an interview that this guy would be the right person to make a Gremlins 3 if it ever happens.

Martin Scorcese American Express commercial

Cliffhanger remake

Producer Neal Moritz (I Am Legend & Fast & Furious) is remaking Renny Harlin's 1993 Stallone action thriller Cliffhanger. Now it may not have been brilliant but I actually thought it was a pretty fun movie, and certainly not in need of any kind of revamp, remake or reboot, only a few years back there was talk that Stallone was to do a sequel to the original movie, which I assume is now defunct !

My Birthday today !!

I'm as old as the answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything !!

Happy Birthday - Rosario Dawson

30 years old today, ah... if I was 10 years younger...I'd still be in with no chance !!

Ron Cobb Interviews

Great Ron Cobb interviews and pics, just click the piccy of Ron !!

The Namos Chronicles - Pt 2

Angela Reith who created the music for The Namos Chronicles has very kindly sent me a few words about her involvement in the production.


As part of my work as a AV and Video Producer at Scripture Union’s Sound and Vision Unit (SVU) from 1977-1983, I composed the music for a number of soundtracks, including The Namos Chronicles. Allan Lee was also a staff producer there and we had a lot of fun creating musical jingles together in the 8-track sound studio, and working together on AV productions which were intended as discussion-starters on life and faith issues for children and teenagers.

Allan was very interested in SF and so he commissioned Nigel Forde (actor, novelist, scriptwriter and Radio 4 poet) to write some updated versions of the parables of Jesus, in the SF genre. Nigel was part of York-based Riding Lights Theatre Company who I had worked with as a musician while I was still at Birmingham University studying English & Music. This was in the early 1970s, when the theatre company was amateur, calling itself Breadrock Street Theatre Company, and performing on Welsh beaches, in pub car parks and in the Royal Albert Hall.

So The Namos Chronicles were born, and as resident producer and musician, I was commissioned to compose the music. I am ashamed to say that I cannot remember a single musical theme that I composed for the series, as, since then, much music has flowed onto manuscript paper and Sibelius software, and I don’t have a copy of the soundtrack or the music MS anywhere in my files. But I do remember that we were very new to multi-track recording in 1980/1981, having recorded previous music cues ‘as live’ and in stereo, with musicians crammed into our small SVU studio. We didn’t know about ‘click tracks’ at that stage and so I laid down a piano guide track on our new MCI 8-track recorder and synched all the other tracks to this, using a synthesiser for brass and other orchestral instruments. We soon learnt more about multi-track recording techniques, but I imagine the production aspect of the Namos music would sound very creaky by today’s standards. I’m not sure I want to hear it again for that reason!

Allan Lee will have lots of stories about the production process (which took many weeks longer than planned) but one I particularly remember is the day when he and photographer Gordon Gray were creating and filming a small explosion in the basement photographic studio (which doubled as the sound-proofed recording studio). Unknown to them, the smoke from the explosion drifted into the air-conditioning system and circulated throughout the building. The Scripture Union Board was meeting on the top floor and the Board members were extremely alarmed when smoke emerged into the room. They set off the fire alarm and evacuated immediately. The first Allan and Gordon knew of it was when they saw the red light flashing in the studio indicating a fire.

Those were the days...

Angela Reith

The Namos Chronicles (1981)

I was recently looking through some old editions of Starburst Magazine, an article that brought back a lot of memories of reading this magazine when I was younger was about a project called The Namos Chronicles.

This project wasn't a film or TV show, it was a Filmstrip, Alan Marques who created designs and miniatures described it as, a multi-media slide show which was a science fiction based retelling of the Christian parables. So basically the show was all shot as 35mm stills and designed to be projected with a synchronous audio track. The Namos Chronicles was produced by the Sound and Vision Unit of Scripture Union, under the guidance of producer Allan Lee. It relates several parables from the New Testament against the backdrop of interstellar war. The Namos Federation is locked in a violent and bloody struggle with it's arch enemies, the Kaprians. Within the Framework of the conflict several incidents parallel the stories told by Christ to illustrate the points of the Christian philosophy. The project was hatched by Allan Lee in an attempt to make religious instruction more palatable and more fun for the space minded schoolchildren of the late 70's early 80's.

As a teenager I wasn't really fussed about the subject matter of this film, but it did have spaceships in it, and I do remember sending off a stamped addressed envelope for the info pack that was available at the time. Anyway all these years later I looked back through the article and one Google search later for the guy who designed and built the spaceships has put me in touch with the man himself Alan Marques. Who didn't scream crazed internet stalker and call his solicitor, but has kindly supplied me with some info and pictures about this project. Alan was only 19 at the time when he made the miniatures, and he'd met the producer Allan Lee in hospital.

In Alan's own words:

It was during the summer of 1979, I was basically stuck in a hospital bed as I had just come out of two weeks in intensive care and a major operation. I had survived being run over by a car on a pedestrian crossing in Portsmouth where I was a student doing a foundation in Art & Design at Portsmouth College of Art. It took me a year to learn to walk again and at nineteen being stuck in a bed with your legs in traction, the then favoured technique, was no fun.
So my art and model making skills, all be it in their infancy, came to the fore and I found my self scratch building spaceships to pass the time and monotony. Allan Lee used to visit the wards as he is/was a Christian and was active with the church and he introduced himself to me. Please keep in mind my memories might be a bit hazy about some of this as I have little memory of the accident as I nearly died and the brain does this thing were it blanks out whole tracts of ones life when it receives extreme trauma. Anyhow he saw one of the models I was building and asked me if I would be interested in letting him use the one I had and possibly building more for a production in which he was involved.

The space ships were photographed on medium format 120mm stills in a black velvet studio set up. Some of the engine lights had to be double exposed in camera using black back lit masks and gels, the long white ship based on Zero-X (Thunderbirds) had three rocket nozzles from a Saturn V kit and therefore could not have practical lights. However the big lander actually had lit engines and although you can't see it in the photos also had Scotchlight windows. Sorry, from what I remember none of these ships had names and I can't remember if the production gave them names or not.

The construction techniques were basic, keep in mind I was nineteen when I built them and had no formal model making training. I therefore had to build them using generally available materials. The underlying construction of both ships was a 1 inch wooden dowel running through 1.5mm mounting board bulkheads. The ships hulls were all made with 1.5mm mounting board as well hence the somewhat blocky appearance. Once the main structure had been completed in card the entire surface was coated by gluing paper thin plasticard. After that is was a case of using 0.5mm, 1mm, and 1.5mm plasticard for the panelling along with what ever kit parts I had to hand within the budget I was allowed. Both ships were sprayed with either matte white car primer and matte grey car primer. Dirtying down was done with a DeVilbiss airbrush.
I kept in touch with Allan Lee in the early eighties while doing my Photo, Film & TV degree at the London College of Printing, but lost contact with him as I was only in my early twenties and a mixture of my not being very religious and having too big an ego for no good reason meant we drifted apart. He was a very nice guy though and into Sci-Fi of course.

Alan Marques

Alan has very kindly dug out these concept drawings that he did for the various ships, Alan says 'Please keep in mind how young I was when I made these they are very basic but I still use a very loose style to this day as I am usually interested in the core form and idea and only embellish later, also you will probably spot the odd very familiar vehicle amongst the images.'

Alan also mentions that the orange ship seen in the photo's are doctored versions of the Buck Rogers Marauder, and that Allan Lee needed some additional models for the story and since he was up to his neck with the two main ships and running behind on the schedule, so Allan Lee took it upon himself to kit bash a marauder together for the shoot.

The colour storyboards by Alan Marques above and below show the Baseship in its original intended use before Allan Lee saw it and asked to use it. The design was influenced by the Nostromo from Alien which had not too recently been released so was in his thoughts. Alan says he built the ship for a stop motion animated short which never went ahead after it was used in the The Namos Chronicles. Alan still has the miniature for the Baseship in long term storage, and said if he ever digs it out he'll send some new stills of what it looks like today.

Alan Marques has gone on to work on Hardware, Space Precinct, GoldenEye, The Wind in the Willows, been digital effects supervisor on The Borrowers, Hackers, Lost in Space and Vertical Limit amongst others and his website can be found HERE

Many others were involved in the production of The Namos Chronicles. The costumes were designed and made by Liz Balmforth, who at the time was a final year student at Croydon College of Art. The music was written and performed by Angela Reith and the cast was provided by the Riding Lights Theatre Company, based in York. The photography for the project was provided by Gordon Gray.

I'm hoping to get a few words from Angela Reith who provided the music soon, about her experiences making The Namos Chronicles, and hopefully a few words from it's director Allan Lee sometime in the future.

Snatch Wars

My mate Kinnon told me about this the other night down the pub. Darth Vader + Bricktop from Snatch

Click the piccy above

Richard Dolan Blog

My mate Richard Dolan finally has a Blog/Gallery of his wonderful work which I am running for him, check it out by clicking the above piccy !!

Straw Dogs remake

News up on Dark Horizons about a remake of Straw Dogs, the 1971 film by Sam Peckinpah. The film based on the novel The Siege of Trencher's Farm by Gordon Williams was banned in the UK from 1984 until 2002. The remake, like all good remakes :) , will move the action from rural England to the American deep south.
The remake of The Wicker Man in 2006, which was considered a resounding failure with the critics and the box office, also moved the action to the U.S.A
You can read the full story over at Dark Horizons here

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad

One of my first memories of seeing Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion magic was the Cyclops from The 7th Voyage of Sinbad ,the scene where it comes out of the cave and the Genie is summoned to build a wall between the Cyclops and Sinbad and his crew.
Directed by Nathan H. Juran, who also directed 20 Million Miles to Earth for which Ray Harryhausen had created the FX, the film was the first in a trilogy of Sinbad films made by Columbia Pictures. Sinbad, played by Kerwin Mathews, is on his way to Baghdad with his fiancé Princess Parisa (Kathryn Grant) when they stop at the island of Colossa for provisions,
they find evidence of a giant creature when they find footprints on the beach, then they encounter Sokurah the magician (Torin Thatcher) who is being pursued by a giant Cyclops, carrying a magic lamp Sokurah summons a genie who builds a wall of energy between the Cyclops and the men allowing them to escape in a boat, but the lamp is lost overboard and the Cyclops recovers it. On their return to Baghdad the Caliph refuses Sokurah a ship and crew to retrieve the lamp.That night Sokurah secretly shrinks Parisa to a small size. Sokurah then claims that he knows of a potion that can restore her, but it requires ingredients only to be found on the island of Colossa. The Caliph of Baghdad has no choice, so Sinbad enlists loyal men from his previous voyage, they also have to recruit thieves and murderers from the Caliph's prison to help make up the crews numbers.
For me The 7th Voyage of Sinbad is the best of the Sinbad films, once back on the island of Colossa Sinbad and his crew encounter the Cyclops, a two headed bird called a Roc, Sinbad fights a skelton swordsman, 5 years before Harryhausen's groundbreaking skeleton fight in Jason and the Argonauts , Sokurah's castle is protected by a fire breathing dragon, who later fights with a Cyclops. Harryhausen's personal favorite was the Snakewoman, created by Sokurah with a combination of Princess Parisa's maid, and a cobra for a scene in which she dances to entertain the Caliph of Baghdad and the Sultan, Parisa's father.
The music in this film by Bernard Herrmann is very memorable, but sadly although he worked on Jason and the Argonauts he never returned for 1974's The Golden Voyage of Sinbad and had passed away by the time Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger was made in 1977.
Nathan H. Juran also directed Kerwin Mathews and Torin Thatcher in 1962's Jack the Giant Killer, which was a stop-motion feature in the vein of the Sinbad films and an attempt to cash in on 7th Voyage's success.

Happy Birthday - Tim Curry

63 Today !! Darkness, Frank'n'Furter and Pennywise, 3 of his most iconic characters. I always loved him in LWT's Blue Money when it was shown, here's the intro.

Doctor Who Special pics

Plenty of pictures here from the Doctor Who Special to air at the end of the year. A lot of familiar faces including Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and her son Luke (Tommy Knight)Donna Noble's grandfather Wilf Mott (Bernard Cribbins) and mother Sylvia (Jacqueline King) Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) can also be seen on set.
Also some pics of Jessica Hynes, Nurse Redfern in "Human Nature" with whom The Doctor fell in love with, she can be seen in a book store as an author named Verity.

Click logo to see photos

The Red Band Gang - Pt 2

I made this post back in June of 08 about the amount of red elastic bands the postman was leaving lying around the streets near where I live, now the BBC have posted a story saying that 6% of Britain's streets are littered with bands dropped by the Postal Service.
Click above picture for link.