Tagged: Sci-Fi

Interview: From Animation to Print With James Farr and ‘Xombie’

News
April 3, 2008

In 2003, James Farr posted online the first chapter of Xombie, a short film he produced using Flash animation, on the ‘Net. The eerie tale introduced viewers to Zoe, a young girl who finds herself alone in a zombie wasteland with no memory of how she came to be there, as well as a sentient zombie named Dirge who rescues her from the menacing flesh-eaters.

Four years, 10 episodes and 13 million views later, Xombie: Dead on Arrival (as the series was later named) is widely regarded as one of the InterWebs’ first "cult classic" original animated series, and Farr remains one of the most popular filmmakers from the early days of the Flash-animation scene. The series, with its well-scripted dialogue and pacing, as well as Farr’s use of talented voice actors who gave life — or rather, death — to many of the characters, continues to be held up as a prime example of the medium’s potential.

So, with a celebrated animated series behind him, what did the talented creator do next? He jumped into the world of comics, of course.

The first issue of Xombie: Reanimated, a six-issue series written by Farr with art from Nate Lovett, hit comic shops in 2007 courtesy of Devil’s Due Publishing, just a short time after the final episode of Dead on Arrival hit the online world. Reanimated continued the story of Zoe and Dirge, picking up ten years after the first adventure and moving Farr’s unlikely heroes (along with their zombie dog, Cerberus; the Egyptian mummy, Nephthys; and her zombie dinosaur, Chimaera) into a brand new medium.

According to Farr, Dead on Arrival and Reanimated provided the first two chapters in a trilogy that, he hopes, is breathing fresh air into the musty, recycled conventions of zombie-genre storytelling.

I spoke with Farr about the recent release of the Xombie: Reanimated collection, as well as the line of Xombie-inspired figures produced by DDP. We spoke about what’s next for the series, and his forays into manga, sniper-avoidance and his "big role" in last year’s live-action Transformers film.

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Interview: Mark Verheiden on ‘Battlestar Galactica’ and ‘Teen Titans’

News
April 1, 2008

Writer / Producer Mark Verheiden is one of those fortunate individuals who has been able to make a living doing what he loves. His list of career accomplishments crosses most of today’s media landscape from feature films to series televison to comic books.

Starting off many years ago writing comics like The American and Alien Vs. Predator, through feature films like Time Cop, to producing episodes of the TV series Smallville, Verheiden has been a busy man. For the last several years, Verheiden has been even busier than usual, serving as Co-Executive Producer and writer on the critically-acclaimed series Battlestar Galactica — which airs on the Sci-Fi Channel and has its Season Four premiere this Friday.

In addition to his producing and writing duties on Battlestar, Verheiden has also been hard at work adapting DC Comics’ The Teen Titans for the big screen as well as one of his own comic book stories, Ark. Recently, ComicMix sat down with Verheiden to talk with him about the next season of Battlestar, his plans for Teen Titans, the writer’s strike, what makes a good story and much more.

COMICMIX: Mark, thanks for taking the time to talk with us.

MARK VERHEIDEN: Of course. Always a pleasure.

CMix: How are you doing these days?

MV: Good. Now that you’re recording, I’ll say nothing incriminating.

CMix: Okay… unless you want to say something incriminating…

MV: No, not me.

CMix: Okay, let’s get to it then. You’re back from the writer’s strike. Hard at work on BSG?

MV: Oh yes, we’re back and right into it again.

CMix: Did the strike have any effect on your plans for the show? Did you have time to think while you were off?

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A Time Warrior to India, by Ric Meyers

News
March 30, 2008

I like it when the DVDs I review here are similar, but I also really like it when they’re very different. And other than being made by British talents, the DVDs in this edition are about as different as they can get. First, there’s the cultural classic that is A Passage to India. Columbia Pictures decided that marking the 100th anniversary of director David Lean’s birth (March 25, 1908) was a great excuse to remaster three of his films as “2-Disc Collector’s Edition Columbia Classics.” First out of the box is Lean’s final film, a two-hour and forty-four minute “intimate epic” based on E.M. Forster’s lauded novel of the same name.

Lean came at the challenge with a lot to prove. Despite being one of the world’s most respected filmmakers, with an unprecedented run of sweeping successes behind him, the critical thrashing his turgid, half-badly miscast, penultimate film, Ryan’s Daughter, suffered, had sent him reeling into a fourteen year self-imposed exile. He returned to tackle a cerebral, controversial story that many felt was effectively unfilmable, including, according to the DVD’s extras, the author and several actors in the production.

The reaction at the time of its 1984 release ranged from grudging to delirious, though a majority seemed to feel it still wasn’t quite up to his undisputed classics, Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia (the other two films set to be part of this 100th birthday DVD celebration). The passage of time, however, has been great to this particular film, and this new release could do much to elevate its standing, since it’s fascinating, intriguing, beautiful, and in this artificial age of cgi additives, all natural.

The special features are involving, if not as exceptional as the film. They are, at their best, reserved and civilized like the subjects of their interviews. If the producers and actors had been American, there might have been lots of superlatives and hyperbole, but the likes of producer Richard Goodwin, Lean’s young assistant directors, and actors Nigel Havers and James Fox are polite to a fault.

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ComicMix Radio: Battlestar Galactica Takes Off For The Final Season

Podcasts
March 29, 2008

After this week’s marathon broadcast on the Sci-Fi Channel, Battlestar Galactica begins its final voyage — but where is it headed? Executive Producer Mark Verheiden fills us in on all he can dish here on ComicMix Radio and in an exclusive interview you’ll find on ComicMix later this week, plus:

— An historic court decision may change Superman as we know him

— Calling All Robots begins production

— The Lone Ranger back in the movies – Hi Ho!

— And an exclusive Graham Crackers Comics variant could be in the mail to you — if you win by e-mailing us at: podcast [at] comicmix.com

So live a little… and just Press The Button!

And remember, you can always subscribe to ComicMix Radio podcasts via or RSS!

‘Doctor Who’ Rescheduled, Russell T. Davies Annoyed

News
March 29, 2008

Outpost Gallifrey reports that Doctor Who Executive Producer Russell T. Davies has become quite vocal in his disappointment regarding a decision to move the hit series to an earlier timeslot on the BBC, as well as other changes planned for Season Four.

According to various reports cited by the Doctor Who news site, the decision to move the program to 6:20 PM in the weekly schedule, and a push to film in high-definition video, have met with significant opposition from Davies and others involved with the show.

From a Broadcast report posted on the site:

Russell T Davies is predicting that Doctor Who could lose up to 1.5m viewers when it returns in a new 6.20pm slot next month.

The writer and executive producer of the series told the Broadcast television drama conference today that the BBC should maintain the later 7pm-7.15pm slot and the budget for the sci-fi series but it had mucked it up.

The BBC believes the programme would do as well in the new slot, he said. "Well, we’ll see, but I think I’m right."

Not all time travel is welcome.

See what they did with that "time travel" line? Clever.

What does this mean for the American audience? I’m not certain, but it seemed worth noting for all of the Doctor Who fans here at ComicMix. Feel free to discuss in the comment section.

Interview: Brandon Jerwa on ‘Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero’

News
March 26, 2008

Writer Brandon Jerwa has had a varied and interesting career since beginning in comics early in 2001. Not letting rejection deter him, he persevered and eventually landed a job as a writer for the G.I. Joe comic book series. Later, Jerwa took on other television tie-in comics such as Highlander from Dynamite Entertainment — which he co-wrote with Michael Oeming.

During that time, he also wrote a backstory series about the Battlestar Galactica television character Tom Zarek. Due in part to his success with Zarek, Jerwa next took on a new comic for Dynamite titled Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero — a prequel of sorts to the Sci-Fi Channel TV series.

Now, with Season Zero rocketing towards a thriling conclusion in issue twelve, ComicMix caught up with Jerwa to talk about how he became the "go-to" guy for Battlestar Galactica at Dynamite, what we can expect from Season Zero as it finishes up and what other plans Jerwa has up his sleeve.

COMICMIX: Brandon, for people who might not know, can you give us a bit of info on your background? Did you read comics as a kid?

BRANDON JERWA: My first comic was an early issue of Star Wars when I was 4 or 5. I had all those early issues and they were definitely a huge thing to me, but I think Spider-Man and Batman made their way into the house pretty quickly after that! I don’t really remember a time when I didn’t have comic books.

My parents were supportive of the habit, so I’d always get at least one new book every time we’d go the grocery store or Kwik-E-Mart (ah, those were the days) and a long road trip was a surefire guarantee of a big pile of comics.

CMix: What were your favorites?

BJ: My favorites as a kid were Star Wars, Avengers, all the Spider-titles, including the most awesome one, Marvel Team-Up; along with Marvel Two-In One, Detective Comics, Power Man and Iron Fist, Justice League of America and Teen Titans. G.I. Joe obviously made a huge impression on me.

I also have an undying love for Rom: Spaceknight.

CMix: How did you get started writing comics?

BJ: Well, I’m told that I’m the exception to the rule. I was living with my wife and infant son in Portland, Oregon when I started. It was 2001 and I was unemployed, so I thought I’d use my time playing stay-at-home dad to shoot for the Big Dream.

I wrote two scripts – one a G.I. Joe pitch for Devil’s Due and an original superhero piece for Dark Horse. A few months later, Dark Horse had given me my first rejection letter, but Devil’s Due apparently thought I was the man for the job.

My two-part script was extended to four parts and became my G.I. Joe: Frontline arc "History Repeating." Just a few months after those issues hit stands, I was the new regular writer of G.I. Joe.

CMix: How much did you know about Battlestar Galactica before you started writing any of the comics? Are you a fan of the Sci-Fi Channel show or the original ’80s version?

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Dark Horse Offers ‘Making Of’ for ‘Serenity: Better Days’ #1

News
March 24, 2008

If you’re reading ComicMix, chances are you’re a fan of sci-fi, movies, TV and, of course, you probably read comic books on a regular basis. Being a fan and reader of comics, perhaps you’ve wondered how all the elements from script to art to color to lettering come together to form the finished comic you hold in your hands and read each week?

If you have wondered about this magical process, the folks at Dark Horse Comics have got something for you. At their website, they’ve put up a "How-To" guide which takes you through the steps from script to finished page of their brand-new Serenity: Better Days comic book.

Clicking through the guide you can see the original script pages written by Joss Whedon and Brett Matthews, rough sketches of the panel placement, art and pencils by Will Conrad, colors by Michele Madsen and letters by Michael Heisler — all the elements that go into a finished comic book page.

It’s an interesting look at how things go from normal-looking words on a page to a colorful and exciting final product. Check it out.

Joss Whedon on his Superhero Musical

News
March 19, 2008

"Once more, with feeling!" No, it’s not the infamous musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but Joss Whedon is developing another musical.

This time around, the project will feature his other passion: superheroes! Whedon revealed on his blog today that during the writer’s strike he and his family wrote three 10-minute episodes of a musical intended for the Internet. And to his great surprise, they actually finished it, began preproduction and are in the midst of filming it.

Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog will star Neil Patrick Harris, best known for his role as Doogie Howser, M.D., and Nathan Fillion, best known as Capt. Reynolds on the sci-fi show Firefly. We’re tickled that the actors once again assume those titles when they play Doctor Horrible and Captain Hammer respectively. Rounding out the cast is Buffy alumni Felicia Day as Penny.

The news directly from Whedon:

So…..

The bag is catless.

During the strike I started writing a musical intended as a limited internet series, 3 episodes of approximately 10 minutes each. Writing with me was my brother Jed, his fiancee Maurissa, and my other brother Zack. To my shock and surprise, we finished it. To my greater shock and surprise, we managed (with the help of many people I’ll be praising at length soon) to drag it into preproduction (yes, just as DOLLHOUSE was given a start date two months away and all my comics were due.) And today, after a grueling week of writing everything ever while trying to be a producer, I got to start shooting. A musical.

This much I will say: It’s the story of a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he’s too shy to talk to. And I’m having the time of my life.

"DOCTOR HORRIBLE’S SING-ALONG BLOG"

Neil Patrick Harris…..as Dr. Horrible

Nathan Fillion……….as Captain Hammer

Felicia Day………….as Penny

And a cast of Dozens!

Coming soon.

-j.

Interview: Jacen Burrows on Garth Ennis, Warren Ellis and ‘Crossed’

News
March 17, 2008

Artist Jacen Burrows has already had an impressive career in a relatively short amount of time. His talent, bold visual style and penchant for the darker, more sinister aspects of life have already earned him a place collaborating with some of the most popular and successful writers working in comics today.

Some of these writers include Warren Ellis, Garth Ennis and Alan Moore on projects such as Dark Blue, Scars, The Courtyard and 303. More recently, he’s worked on Chronicles of Wormwood with Ennis.

And, just yesterday at Wizard World in LA, it was announced that he’s doing a brand-new project with Ennis called Crossed — described by Avatar Press’ William Christensen as "a story about the worst people can possibly be, as a group of good people attempt to survive in a world of pure evil."

ComicMix caught up with Burrows at Wizard World LA to get some more details on Crossed, his other work with writers like Warren Ellis, what artists he admires and much more.

COMICMIX: Jason, thanks for taking the time to talk with me. Let’s get right into it with a little background. When did you first start drawing?

JACEN BURROWS: I’ve been drawing from the beginning. Three years old I was doing more drawing than anything else. And I think everyone does that. All kids draw but it was just the thing I happened to stick with because everyone would tell me I was good at it so I never stopped. When other kids were outside doing things I was inside working on my drawing. So, its kinda my curse.

CMix: Your parents encouraged you?

JB: Oh yeah, they were like "do what you want" and let me do my thing. Early on I had a tendency to draw the things that were fun to me, like war scenes with tanks and dead bodies.

Teachers would freak out and my mom would come in and tell them I was just being creative. Later, when I had art teachers, they would say it’s all perfectly normal.

CMix: You liked that kind of thing? Monsters, severed heads, etc?

JB: Yeah, I had a nice healthy obsession with drawing monsters, werewolves and things like that. It’s the fun stuff.

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Gattaca Tales, by Ric Meyers

News
March 16, 2008

Well, it’s SF week at the ol’ DVD Xtra. Not sci-fi week, but SF week, using the “official” contraction sanctified by the Science Fiction Writers of America, of which I was once a member. Now, if I were considering the likes of I Robot and/or I am Legend – two Will Smith vehicles adapted from far superior books – then maybe it would be sci-fi week. But, no, I’m reviewing two wildly divergent films – one totally out of control and one totally in control – that best exemplify the “genre of ideas.”

As virtually almost always, the studios green-light these projects then never really know what to do with them or how to market them. So, while both these releases should have been (and would have benefited greatly from being) glutted with special features the way Will Smith’s DVDs are, they’re both a tad light in the digital loafers (as it were). The lightest, and the most needy, is Southland Tales, another ready-made cult classic created by writer/director Richard Kelly, who had already given the world Donnie Darko.

Anybody involved had to know what they were getting here. It’s not like the whole thing was improvised. In fact, during the thirty minute “making of” doc called “USIDent TV: Surveilling the Southland,” actors professed to not being able to understand the long script but signing on anyway. If any film needed an audio commentary, this one does, but it doesn’t have one. Instead, the half-hour behind-the-scenes featurette skims over a wide range of approaches – from actor interviews to set decoration to stunt detailing. Richard Kelly is much in evidence, however, vainly trying to defend and detail his base-level Dr. Strangelovian funhouse of a film.

Here, again, is where DVDs can improve the viewing experience. In theaters, Kelly’s overstuffed confection would, and did, become fairly intolerable. But taken in DVD chunks (or chapters, if you will), the futuristic action mystery musical dramedy can even be enjoyable … if only to marvel at Kelly’s hubris, and the huge cast who agreed to participate. Even as a game of “spot the cult fave,” the film can be fun. There’s the Rock, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Seann William Scott, Mandy Moore, Justin Timberlake, Christopher Lambert, Miranda Richardson, Wallace Shawn, Kevin Smith, Curtis Armstrong (Booger!), and Janeane Garofalo, as well as a bunch of past and future Saturday Night Livers and Mad–TVers.

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Tagged: Sci-Fi

Interview: From Animation to Print With James Farr and ‘Xombie’

Interview: Mark Verheiden on ‘Battlestar Galactica’ and ‘Teen Titans’

A Time Warrior to India, by Ric Meyers

ComicMix Radio: Battlestar Galactica Takes Off For The Final Season

‘Doctor Who’ Rescheduled, Russell T. Davies Annoyed

Interview: Brandon Jerwa on ‘Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero’

Dark Horse Offers ‘Making Of’ for ‘Serenity: Better Days’ #1

Joss Whedon on his Superhero Musical

Interview: Jacen Burrows on Garth Ennis, Warren Ellis and ‘Crossed’

Gattaca Tales, by Ric Meyers

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