Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Indiana Jones - Video: SciFi Wire: Featurette

Courtesy of SciFi Channel's SciFi Wire and HULU, Featurette: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

The cast and filmmakers talk about the history of the Indiana Jones' movies and the challenges of making the new film, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

Stargate Atlantis - NEW Photos from 'Whispers' May 14 '08

From Joseph Mallozzi's blog update for May 14, 2008:

http://josephmallozzi.wordpress.com/2008/05/14/may-14-2008-breaking-botmc-news-updates-on-my-impending-nervous-breakdown/

(Please follow the link for the complete blog update, and for the full-sized, high-resolution format of the photos posted here.)

May 14, 2008: Breaking BOTMC news + updates on my impending nervous breakdown!


Some truly awesome news to kick off today's blog entry. Authors Jennifer Pelland and Kage Baker have kindly agreed to come by and field your questions and comments as part of our July Book of the Month Club discussions. Kage will join us the week of June 30th when we'll be discussing In the Garden of Iden, while Jennifer will be
joining us the week of July 14th for our discussion of Unwelcome Bodies. That gives you all plenty of time to track down the books, read them, and come up with some exceptionally brilliant insights to share with the rest of us. So put down the video game console, turn off the t.v. (There's nothing to watch anyway. Atlantis doesn't
premiere for another month
.), and get on it. Past participants have won signed scripts, lifetime subscriptions to Apex SF & Horror Digest, and best wishes for an absolutely swimming weekend.

Well, I was back in the editing suite with detective Mike Banas today, looking to complete my producer's cut of Whispers. As I mentioned yesterday, the director's cut was five and a half minutes over, but once the obvious trims were made, it was down to three and a half minutes over. And once the not-so obvious trims were made, it was only one and a half minutes long. At that point, it became a slow-going, incredibly frustrating, agonizingly lengthy process of line-cutting, dialogue shifting, and scene trimming to finally - finally! - get it down to a mere 35 seconds over. And THAT is when things got REALLY tough. Yes, losing that last half minute or so nearly killed me (either my heart would have given out or I suspect Mike would have strangled me with his bare hands), but I did it. The producer's cut is out. And, I'm very happy with the result. It's a nice, tight, creepy little episode with a dozen or so great scares. All it needs is an exceptionally horrorific score - and that's where composer Joel Goldsmith comes in. I have a feeling he's going to have a blast with
this one.

I returned to the production offices late this afternoon - anxious, exhausted, slightly nauseous, and more than a little combative. In other words, I was in a the perfect mood to give a fellow writer notes on his latest script. Today, that writer happened to be Alan McCullough. The script: Outsiders. Alas, I got to do very little
screaming/script-throwing/couch-jumping. Alan wrote a solid first draft of what is going to be a really good episode. Damnit! And I'd made it a point to wear my couch-jumping shoes today too.

Today's photos: Whispers

Mailbag:

**snippage**

Christin writes: "His [Caron Beckett's] turtles are named Michelle and Jeffrey? Seriously? You're pulling my leg (the left one, please, as I'm still having a little trouble with my right knee). I hope there's a good reason for that. "

Answer: Yep.

**snippage**

Michelle writes: "Not to seem pitifully self-absorbed or anything, but is it possible the names of Carson's turtles were inspired by the leaders of a certain save-a-character campaign, SaveCarsonBeckett, led by MICHELLE, and Tara JEFFREY?"

Answer: Hmmm. Isn't that an interesting coincidence? Incidentally, Zelenka has a pet iguana named Kirk.

**snippage**

Linburk writes: "I was wondering, since it will be my first time, when and where you will be having this book discussion with Joe Abercrombie."

Answer: Right here on the blog the week of May 19th.

Paul McGillion




Nicole De Boer




Dr. Carson Becket (Paul McGillion)




Dr. Allison Porter (Nicole De Boer)




Paul and Nicole



Carson and Allison



Carson and Allison

Stargate / Doctor Who / Battlestar - SciFi Friday Line Up May 16 '08

The SciFi Channel's (US) SciFi Friday line up for May 16 '08:

5:00P STARGATE ATLANTIS RISING - PT 2



6:00P STARGATE SG-1 ALLEGIANCE - Guest stars include Carmen Argenziano (Jacob Carter), Tony Amendola (Bra'tac), Obi Ndefo (Rak'nor), Peter Stebbings (Malek), Link Baker (Artok) and Rob Lee (Major Pierce)



7:00P STARGATE SG-1 OFF THE GRID



8:00P SARAH JANE ADVENTURES, THE WHATEVER HAPPENED TO SARAH JANE - PART 2



8:30P SARAH JANE ADVENTURES, THE THE LOST BOY - PART 1



9:00P DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 4 THE SONTARAN STRATAGEM



10:00P BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON 4 GUESS WHAT'S COMING TO DINNER?



11:00P DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 4 THE SONTARAN STRATAGEM



12:00A BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON 4 GUESS WHAT'S COMING TO DINNER?



01:00A STARGATE SG-1 FALLEN



02:00A STARGATE SG-1 HOMECOMING




Stargate SG-1/Stargate Atlantis photos courtesy of GateWorld


~~**~~**

Battlestar Galactica - Video: Sneak Peek of 'Guess What's Coming to Dinner'


From SciFi.com:

http://www.scifi.com/battlestar/stream/



LIVE STREAMING EPISODE

See a 10-minute sneak peek of each week's episode of Battlestar Galactica on SCIFI.COM!

Log on every Friday to watch a special LIVE streaming-video preview of the first act of that evening's new episode before it airs on SCI FI.

Live video streams will run on SCIFI.COM at the start of every hour from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. To view the stream, you must have the latest version of Windows Media installed on your computer.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/default.aspx

While the episode sneak peek is streaming live, you will not be able to pause it, rewind it, or fast-forward through it.

Babylon 5 - Video: 'Grail'

Courtesy of HULU, Babylon 5's 'Grail,' starring Michael O'Hare, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Richard Biggs, Stephen Furst, Bill Mumy and Peter Jurasik. Guest stars include David Warner, William Sanderson and Tom Booker.

A spiritual crusader on an intergalactic quest for the Holy Grail visits Babylon 5 and is befriended by a petty thief. Together, they help Sinclair and Garibaldi combat a mind-eating creature that terrorizes the inhabitants.

HypaSpace - Video: Superhero Fashions

From Canada's Space Channel's Video Interviews:

http://www.spacecast.com/interviews.aspx



Superhero Fashions

An Exclusive Spacecast Video!

New York City was the scene back on May 5 as the annual Vogue Party of the Year took place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The gala attracted a who's who of superstars including Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Tom Cruise, David Bowie, and more.

Video Link

Richard Dean Anderson - IVY: Interview on Green Life

With many thanks to Stargate Planet for the heads up!

http://stargate-planet.de/stargate.html

IVY is a German magazine for the new green lifestyle.

http://www.ivyworld.de/



In their current issue, they have an interview Stargate SG-1's Richard Dean Anderson, wherein RDA discusses his efforts for a green lifestyle.

The German website Jetzt.de has an excerpt from the interview here:

http://jetzt.sueddeutsche.de/texte/anzeigen/428208/TrkHomeMagTsr7

Battlestar Galactica - NEW Publicity Stills from 'Hub' May 14 '08

New publicity stills from Battlestar Galactica's 'Hub,' premiering on the SciFi Channel Friday June 6 '08 at 10pm.

Grace Park as Sharon Valeri/Boomer/Athena



Dean Stockwell as Brother Cavil



Mary McDonnell as President Laura Roslin


Stargate Atlantis - SciFi Pi: Live From Vancouver - Home of Stargate

From the Australian SciFi Channel's SciFi Pi site:

http://www.scifitv.com.au/Blog/2008/05/Vancouver-Home-Of-Stargate/

(Please follow the link for the complete article.)

SCI FI PI

Live From Vancouver - Home Of Stargate



CAPTAIN'S BLOG

Thursday, May 15
by Captain

This marks the 200th post since SCI FI PI hit the blogosphere, and what better way to celebrate than to announce that the next few days of manic ramblings, recommendations and reviews will be coming from downtown Vancouver, just minutes away from the set of Stargate:Atlantis.

Not only will SCI FI PI be gathering crucial info on Stargate: Continuum (at the first ever screening) but we'll also be talking to the stars of Stargate, both SG-1 and Atlantis, as well as the 'God' of Stargate himself, Brad Wright. We'll be getting the scoop on Atlantis Season 4, and possibly even Season 5!

Now that Stargate SG:1 has gone on for a decade, and Atlantis for five seasons, and a new show, Stargate:Universe announced, we're visiting Stargate at a time where the unthinkable has happened - a genuine rival for Star Trek in the 'all time' Sci Fi stakes. We'll try to bring back as much info as possible and share it round in as many forms as possible in the coming days, weeks and months.

For Gaters, a real treat - we'll be trying to add photos from the actual sets - not just the usual slick good-looking 'DVD making of' press release kind of photos, but touch it, feel it, smell it, tourist-style up close and personal happy snaps of puddle jumpers, the Daedalus, and of if we can, Atlantis Base.

**snippage**

Battlestar Galactica - Total SciFi: Aaron Douglas Interview

From Total SciFi:

http://www.dwscifi.com/interviews/1977-aaron-douglas-hail-to-the-chief

(Please follow the link for the complete interview.)

Posted on Wednesday 14 May 2008

Aaron Douglas: Hail to the Chief



Vancouver-born Aaron Douglas has played Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol since the first season of Battlestar Galactica, and the season three finale featured some dramatic revelations about the character. “Our last episode will be the most depressing show in the history of television,” he tells Bryan Cairns.


The season three finale was a jaw dropper. How did you discover the Chief was a Cylon and what was your initial reaction?

We shot that at the end of November/beginning of December. I actually saw a piece of paper that talked about that in maybe September, a paper I wasn’t supposed to see. The person whose house I was at quickly snatched it and said, “Don’t say anything!” I had a fit because I really didn’t like the idea of it. I thought they were taking a character fans really love and suddenly making them hate him and marginalise everything we’d done with him.

I had to keep my mouth shut so I would go months asking Ron [Moore] and David [Eick] if there was anything coming up with the Chief. Then I’d walk away going “Liars!” Finally, right before the read through, they took us in one by one and told us about it. I felt it was terrible, so I called Ron and spoke to him on the phone for an hour and a half. He explained his reasons for it and just asked us to trust him. By the end of the conversation, I had bought it and thought if you wanted to take a character that would humanise the Cylons, you couldn’t find anyone more humanising than the Chief. Seeing what we’ve done with it in season four really makes sense.


**snippage**



How would you sum up the Battlestar Galactica experience?

It has been a hell of a ride, that is for sure. It has been some of the most challenging work of my career, both professionally and personally. I have loved it, met some wonderful people, and made some long lasting friendships.

I am pretty proud of this show and the Chief. It is a great piece of television medium that will stand up for a long time and something we can fondly look on and share with fans for years and years to come...People will look back in 30 years from now and go, “Boy, that was really fun!”

Ellen Dubin - SciFi Talk: Audio Interview

From SciFi Talk:

http://scifitalk.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=338359

Wed, 14 May 2008

Ellen Dubin - The '08 Edition



Great to catch up with this talented actress as Ellen Dubin discusses a new project that she's working on plus some of her latest movies that are being show. Ellen is candid about how the writer's strike has affected Sci-Fi shows. She is always fun and insightful. Special thanks to Bill Wanstrom of Wanstrom And Associates. Music is by Victor Stellar.

Podcast link

And from the archives:

Mon, 19 February 2007

Ellen Dubin - The '07 Edition

Catching up with this talented actress is always fun. Ellen is starring in Bull as a psychiatrist, in the tele-movie, Abducted: Fugitive For Love, She will play a shape-shifter in the new Lifetime vampire series, Blood Ties.She recently played a school teacher in Hank William's First Nation with Andrew Jackson.We look back at her Lexx reunion at Timeless Destinations in 2006 plus look ahead to the 2007 edition and what makes this convention so special.

Podcast Link

Sun, 28 May 2006

Ellen Dubin

Host Tony Tellado always enjoys talking to this talented and engaging actress. She will be appearing in two recent tele-movies. Ellen has also appeared on several TV series like Mutant X, The Dead Zone, and also has a lead in The Collector.

Podcast Link

Buck Rogers - Video: 'Planet of the Amazon Women'

Courtesy of HULU, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century's 'Planet of the Amazon Women,' starring Gil Gerard, Erin Gray and Tim O'Connor. Guest stars include Ann Dusenberry, Jay Robinson and Anne Jeffreys.

Buck is auctioned to Ariela, the daughter of the planet's Prime Minister, who informs him about the planet's male population being held as prisoners of war.

Moonlight - Nashville City Paper: Claudia Black on 'Moonlight'

From the Nashville City Paper (Nashville, TN):

http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/news.php?viewStory=60180

(Please follow the link for the complete column.)

TVision: Key characters exiting on several television shows

By Ron Wynn, Wednesday, May 14, 2008 12:38 am

The strangest, least distinguished network television season in recent memory concludes this week, and several shows are featuring the exit of pivotal characters to spice up the programs for the fall. Some familiar faces are leaving amicably, and some are getting the boot, but there will be some major changes on some audience favorites when they return in the fall.

**snippage**

In Moonlight, which is sandwiched between these two, the vampire private eye Mick (Alex O’Loughlin) may not be fated to enjoy a romance with Beth (Sophia Myles) after all. A murder investigation not only threatens to expose his identity, but that of all the other vampires in town, among them guest star Claudia Black on loan from Stargate SG-1.

**snippage**

Smallville - TV Guide Online: Ausiello on Smallville

From TV Guide Online's Ask Ausiello column:

http://www.tvguide.com/Ask-Ausiello/080514

(Please follow the link for the complete column.)

Ask Ausiello

Ausiello on Smallville

**snippage**

Question: Any additional info on the casting of Doomsday or the new female villain on Smallville? — Eric

Ausiello: As luck would have it, the official casting breakdowns went out last week, and here are the highlights:

Doomsday
• Real name: Davis Bloome
• He's in his mid-20s.
• He works as a bartender at the hip new Metropolis lounge Ace of Clubs (get it?).
• He plays down his smoldering good looks with a self-effacing wit and down-to-earth soulfulness. But he has long felt like an outsider (hence his nickname). And beneath his charismatic, easy-going demeanor lies a brooding sense of isolation and insecurity. When he begins to delve into the haunting mysteries of his true origins, a darker truth begins to emerge, one of blood and serial murders, one of survival and utter destruction — one in which he is forced to confront the true evil inside of him."

Tess
• Drop-dead gorgeous (duh)
• Roughly 28 years old
• She's determined, sexy, vengeful and has super-strength.
• "While Lex is away, she is in control of his estate and rules it with aggression. She's had intellect and the confidence all her life, though it's obvious she's had some training from Lex as well. But as much as Lex has helped fortify her power, he is also her biggest weakness. She harbors an undying devotion to Lex, claiming he saved her life a few years ago. She carries out his wishes with coercion, force, seduction — anything to get what she wants. And no one can resist her beguiling ways. Even Clark Kent. She doesn't remember anything before the day she met Lex. Once she realizes her previous life is buried below the surface, she's desperate to dig it up."

**snippage**