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October 25, 2007

Season Five?

YES! Season Five is a go. Get set for launch. After we heard the news (actually we heard the news just before it was published in Variety magazine), the writers went right back into the writer's room. They erased the list of episodes from last year, wrote down the numbers 1 through 20, stared at the blank spaces for at least a half an hour, and then went home. You see, it's pretty daunting. The elation that comes with getting renewed for another 20 episodes is always tempered by the fact that... there's 20 more episodes to produce! But we're excited. And employed.

I had the privilege of attending the mix screening of the SG-1 DVD feature "The Ark of Truth" at Sharpe Sound last Friday, which was a great time. The big sound mix studio is like a small theatre (not that small - like a miniplex theatre) with the very best sound system you can imagine. So for me, I wasn't there to give sound notes as the producers were - I was really just there to enjoy the film. And, as I told Rob, it's a rollicking good time of an adventure. SG-1 fans are going to love this movie. Now I can't wait to see Brad Wright's movie "Continuum", although that's still a ways off.

Tomorrow night, you'll see one of my favourite SGA episodes of the season entitled "Travelers". This episode guest stars Jill Wagner, who you might know from Blade: The Series, or Punked!. She plays Larrin, the commander of a group of Travelers who capture Sheppard for nefarious reasons. As it turns out, Jill Wagner and Jason Momoa are good friends who met in LA. And I had the good fortune, along with Ivon Bartok, of running into them and sharing some drinks last year here in Vancouver, long before Jill was cast for this part. I can tell you that she is a classy woman and a serious beauty.

Paul Mullie wrote "Travelers" and he was actually in the office today so I got to speak to him, albeit briefly, about the show. The other writers, it should be noted, are home brainstorming. Paul was on his way out, so I kind of felt like papparazzi, trying to get him to sit down and wax poetic. No dice. Paul did mention the amazing set that was built for this episode: the junked out space ship the Travelers themselves fly around in. The only problem is it was only used for an act or two of the episode, and in no other episodes. They planned on reusing it but it never happened. So keep in mind this is an expensive episode as a result.

I also asked him about the idea for the episode. He explained that, aside from the fact that everybody loves a sexy alien (especially McKay), TPTB have wanted to do a story about another technologically advanced race in the Pegasus galaxy for a long time and he finally figured out a way to do it. You see, because the Wraith are so dominant, they can simply destroy any race that gets too big for it's britches technologically. So the only way societies can develop past a certain level in the galaxy is by hiding or running (see Underground from season one, for example). So this is introduces another technologically advanced race to add to the mix.

Enjoy the episode. I did!

ATL

Posted by Alex Levine at 07:50 PM

October 18, 2007

All quiet on the Burnaby front

It’s very quiet in here these days. Some might say... too quiet. Yes, it’s that time of year, when the production season is over, and we haven’t found out if the show is going to be picked up for another season yet. The result: empty halls. As soon as we know we’re going forward with season 5, the writers get on their planes, trains, automobiles, motorcycles, skidoos, skateboards, segways, or what have you, and get their butts back in the writers’ room and start breaking season 5. So keep your fingers crossed, so they can get back to work.

Luckily, Rob Cooper was in the office today, so I ambushed him and made him talk to me not only about Doppelganger, tomorrow night’s Stargate Atlantis episode that he wrote and directed, but also The Ark of Truth, the SG-1 DVD feature he also wrote and directed.

Doppelganger was actually the first episode shot this year, even though it’ll be the fourth episode aired. That posed some interesting problems, according to Rob. For example, Carter is settled and in charge of Atlantis now, but Rob and the actors had to sort of guess at how the relationships between her and the other team members would have evolved by this point in time. I think they had some scripts to read, but not all. And even so, things can change from the page to the screen. They also had to think of practical concerns. For example, what’s her office look like now? That sort of thing. So that was a challenge.

As for the story idea – it’s horror based. Here’s a window into Rob Cooper. When he was a little boy (maybe too little?), his Dad took him to see JAWS, and it had a big effect on him. He was lying there in bed that night, probably scared out of his wits, and thought to himself that some day he wanted to control the power that gripped him the way JAWS did. So that’s why he decided to become a filmmaker. And now he’s turned that power on you people in Doppelganger, a story about nightmares and people’s fear of dreams.

Rob also told me he found some conflicts between his two roles as writer and director. For example, as a director, he was excited because he thought he would have many opportunities to use interesting camera techniques in the dream sequences. But then he discovered that, in order to maintain the story, he has to keep the audience guessing as to what is a dream and what isn’t. Apparently the technical term for that is a “goof”. So he wasn’t able to go crazy, using wide lenses and making it look very surreal, or else that would tip the goof too soon and the audience wouldn’t be fooled. But here’s a little hint. When Sheppard, who is the common thread in all the dream sequences, breaks the fourth wall and looks directly at the camera, i.e., at the dreamer, you know you’re in a dream. But you would have guessed that anyway, I bet. At least now you’ll be able to talk about it with your film teacher.

Also, there are some cool stunts in this one. In fact, this was the first episode that we used a 3D flying rig for stunts. And the stunt in which Sheppard is kicked off the balcony – well that’s really Sheppard. Joe Flanigan did his own stunt there.

Rob also told me that The Ark of Truth is winding up post-production. Apparently there are 240 VFX shots (240!) that will be finals in the next week or so. And the Final Mix is Friday. So get ready.

ATL

Posted by Alex Levine at 11:49 PM

October 12, 2007

Vegas, Golf and Reunion

Well, this is going to be off the cuff, so don't hold it against me. Because I am in Las Vegas golfing with a bunch of guys from Stargate! Yep, Brad Wright and Rob Cooper (who had to miss this one) are avid golfers and have been organizing these trips for years, and I'm blessed to have been invited. So yes, I'm a spoiled script coordinator. And also really busy, between golf and dinners and the occasional blackjack table (I'm UP), there's not a lot of time to thoroughly organize the blog this week... In attendance on this trip with me are none other than Executive Producers Brad Wright, Paul Mullie and John Smith, actor Christopher Judge (Teal'c, of course), Andy Mikita (Director), James Robbins (Production Designer), Pete Woeste (Director, DOP), Lawren Bancroft-Wilson (Producer's Assistant extraordinaire), Ivon Bartok (Special Features Producer), and Mark Davidson (Set Dec). Well, Lets hope I got that all correct... but a little known fact is... I can edit this blog! Thank goodness, because I've been known to blab.

And blab is what I was going to do! Except that I ran by all the things I wanted to blab about with Joe Mallozzi (yep, I'm blaming Joe) and he put the gag order in effect. So suffice it to say that there are a bunch of cool behind the scenes things I wanted to share with you but Joe told me I couldn't. BOOOOOOO!

But Joe did tell me some cool stuff about tomorrow night's episode "Reunion" that I can share with you. He told me that the first half of the Atlantis season contains episodes that key on specific characters, and this one is really about Ronon, as he runs into some old Satedan comrades-in-arms. He's torn, because they're out there battling the Wraith their own way, and he feels like he should be loyal to them and perhaps leave Atlantis. Well when the first script came out, one of the notes was that the beginning of the script was too much character stuff as the action doesn't start up right away. But Joe stuck to his guns, and I think rightly so.

As Joe explained, you really get to see how the friendships and characters have developed when all the other characters are talking to Ronon about potentially leaving Atlantis. You also get to see Samantha Carter (now a full bird Colonel) take control of Atlantis. And a special guest appearance by Teal'c (Chris Judge, of course, who can hit the driver at least 400 yards in this Nevada air). So we'll see how much you the fans like it. I think it's a great episode, with a big OP (read: combat operation) and tons of fights and stunts. Maybe even the best fight sequences we've ever done (big ups to James Bamford, our fearless stunt coordinator and fight choreographer).

Okay, I'm out from Las Vegas. Enjoy !

ATL

Posted by Alex Levine at 02:22 AM

October 05, 2007

Office Politics and Lifeline...

I walked into Carl Binder’s office to talk to him about tomorrow night’s episode, “Lifeline”, but was immediately sidetracked when I noticed was that he was wearing a really cool new Stargate Atlantis fleece jacket. Waves of envy washed over me. But I can’t go running around demanding things. I mean… Carl’s a Co-Executive Producer of the show, for goodness sake, and I’m just the script coordinator. So I played it cool and just said, “Nice jacket, Carl. Where’d that come from?” Well he gave me that superior look of his and explained in his usual deadpan delivery: “Set Dec made them up for the people they like.” Ha ha. Good one Carl. See – he was trying to make me feel bad. It’s really just seniority. The producers get them, and us plebes don’t.

Well, in walks show-runner Joseph Mallozzi, eyebrows raised. “Nice jacket,” he says, with a look that suggests an interior monologue along the following lines: “Why is Carl Binder wearing a new Stargate Atlantis jacket and I’m not? That Carl Binder is so fired.” Strangely, Carl didn’t tell Joe that Set Dec had the jackets made up for the people they like. Rather, he immediately jumped out of his chair, took the jacket off and tried to press it on Joe. But Joe politely declined, backing towards the door. You see, he didn’t want Carl’s jacket. After all, Carl’s was now… all stretched out and ruined. Joe wanted his own new jacket, with tags still attached.

Well, this is where the story gets crazy. Apparently, Paul Mullie told John Lenic earlier that Joe wouldn’t want one because he’d never wear it! Come to think of it, I’ve never seen Joe in anything so unfashionable as a Stargate Atlantis fleece jacket, but (and this is me speaking) is it really Paul’s place to say?

More good news: the gang here decided on our costumes for Chris Judge’s Halloween party – we’re going as the guys from the hip hop Pepto Bismol commercial. I’m going to be Indigestion, Mallozzi is going to be Heartburn, Lawren is going as Upset Stomach. No word on who’s going to be Diarrhea.

Now, onto tomorrow night’s episode “Lifeline.” This was the first episode Carl wrote in Season 4, and it came out of a general idea he had in the off-season that he wanted to do a ‘heist’ episode. But of course, the writers had no idea where it would fit in the overall season arc. It was just a vague idea. But as soon as they broke “Adrift,” they realized that the heist story flowed quite naturally out of that, so it became the second episode.

Here’s another little known fact. Even though Martin Wood is credited as the director of the episode, Andy Mikita actually directed much of this episode because Martin Wood was busy with one of the Stargate SG-1 DVD movies. And he did a great job. So if it feels a little more Mikita than Wood, well… now you know why.

Lastly, Carl wanted me to say how thrilled he is with the performances of Torri Higginson and Joe Flanigan, especially Torri. As this episode is sort of a send-off episode for Weir, Torri’s performance was all the more meaningful, and difficult. I know Carl, and this compliment wasn’t mere puffery.

Enjoy!

ATL

Posted by Alex Levine at 12:00 AM