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Sam Raimi discusses why he's not doing the World of Warcraft movie
If you're of the mindset that a World of Warcraft movie directed by Sam Raimi would be a nice thing, Blizzard Entertainment is the reason you can't have nice things. That's Raimi's story, at least. He discussed his withdrawal from the project in a recent interview regarding other films and several projects he's no longer involved with, but the World of Warcraft departure merits a lengthy aside. According to Raimi, he had read the script that Blizzard had put forth and wanted to put together something better, so he enlisted the aid of screenwriter Robert Rodat. Rodat wrote the story, but when the story was pitched to Blizzard, the company wasn't terribly enthusiastic. He and Rodat continued to work on refining the script, only to find out later that Blizzard had completely rejected what they had done and wanted to go in an entirely different direction. You can read more details on the story from Raimi in the full interview.
Film buffs will want the free Kubrick app for iOS
I love film history and the classic films from the 1960s and '70s. I had some interest in seeing the Stanley Kubrick exhibit currently at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, but I didn't wind up making the trip. Fortunately, there is a new free app that gives me a terrific taste of what's on offer. Kubrick is a universal iOS app that contains a treasure trove of information, videos, photos and correspondence from the iconic director of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Dr. Strangelove, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, Spartacus, Eyes Wide Shut and more. The app features an interactive timeline of Kubrick's career, production documents with Kubrick's handwritten notes, interviews about Kubrick's work and excerpts from a rare audio interview with Kubrick from 1965, where he says other than the gladiator school part of Spartacus, he didn't care much for the film. %Gallery-172377% There are a lot of rare photos taken behind the scenes, and some pretty fascinating letters Kubrick got, including a note from actor Richard Widmark about how much he enjoyed 2001. The Kubrick app is a real find if you're interested in film, and at a price of free, it's really a must-have. Kubrick's untimely death in 1999 was a loss to the industry and the people who loved his movies. The app requires iOS 5.0 or later, and is a 184 MB download. The videos are streamed, so you will need an internet connection for those. I'll be digging into Kubrick over the weekend, and hope you'll do the same. Check the gallery for some screen shots.
BFI to digitize 10,000 British films as part of Film Forever investment plan
The British Film Institute plans to digitize and provide easier access to 10,000 British flicks as part of a new £500 million (approximately $800 million) "Film Forever" initiative. In addition to driving growth in the UK industry by investing in education, filmmaking and the like, the institute wants to put a mixture of free and paid content on its website, YouTube and VoD services. A BFIPlayer app will be providing a similar service to Samsung Smart TVs, PCs and mobile devices. Cinemas, DVDs and TV channels will also play host to the films, selected for digital rebirth by a bunch of experts and in part, by the general public. And, in the spirit of digitization, full details of the ambitious Film Forever enterprise (slated to run from 2012-2017) are available in e-brochure format at the source link below.
EVE Evolved: Four great new EVE videos
If there's one thing the EVE Online community is well known for (apart from the occasional colossal scam or game-breaking exploit), it's producing great videos. In its nine-year history, EVE has birthed some very talented video editors who have produced everything from political propaganda and instructional videos to amazing cinematic stories and machinima. The official game trailers have always turned heads, but I'd bet a significant number of current players were first introduced to EVE through player-made works of art like Kyoko Sakoda's War Has Come or Mercenary Coalition's Lacrimosa Tortuga. It's easy to fixate on only the best EVE videos ever made, but in reality, dozens of new videos are released every month. Some are cinematic story pieces or alliance propaganda videos designed to motivate the troops, but most are just compilations of good PvP fights. While PvP videos are unlikely to grab the universal acclaim of incredible films like Clear Skies or Future Proof, they arguably show the very core of EVE at its best: good fights, solid strategy, and pretty explosions. In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at four great new EVE Online videos produced just in the past few months.
Michael Fassbender starring in and co-producing Assassin's Creed film
When he's not playing a cold, conniving artificial man, Michael Fassbender is sharpening his hidden blade (and his hidden check book). Not because he's way into hidden knives (he isn't, as far as we know), but because he'll be playing the starring role in an upcoming Assassin's Creed film adaptation, says Variety.Fassbender's company DMC Film is co-producing the film as well, teaming up with Ubisoft Motion Pictures. It's unclear which part of the game's canon will form the basis of the film, if any. Variety says the "plot revolves around a man who learns his ancestors were trained assassins after he is kidnapped by a secret org with ties to the Knights Templar, and sent back in time to retrieve historical artifacts," which sounds like a game revolving around Desmond to us. It also sounds like the basic root of the entire game franchise, so ... do with that what you will.The new deal with Fassbender's DMC Film helps to put Ubi's previous Sony talks to bed. Talks last November apparently fizzled, though Ubi is still open to "re-discuss" things "once the production package is finalized." Ubisoft Motion Pictures will hire the project's director and writer before getting involved with any third parties – a response to the lackluster reception Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time got at the box office, which Ubi apparently attributes (at least in part) to a lack of creative control over its own property.[Pictured: Filming of Assassin's Creed: Lineage]
Lovefilm signs multi-year digital deal with NBCUniversal, looks Kick Ass
LoveFilm is living by its name, and snapping up more movie content for its online service. The latest signing? NBCUniversal. So, if you're a paid up member, this means you'll now get exclusive access to the latest Universal Pictures flicks during the second "pay window" (i.e. once the subscription movie channels have had their time with them.) So if you were hovering over the streaming only option, or undecided on which service to go for, maybe this will help you along with that decision?
NAB 2012 wrap-up
"That's a wrap!" Finally, an appropriate use for that industry cliché, since, ya know, we really are at a motion picture / television conference. As our first trip to the National Association of Broadcasters' annual event in Las Vegas fires its last frame, we're going to roll to the credits, honoring all those products that enabled us to justify spending a week in Sin City on the company dime. From Canon's 4K-capable 1D C (that'll sadly run you far more than $4k) to RED's Dragon sensor upgrade set to render "obsolescence obsolete," there's plenty to look forward to in the world of cinematography. We also happened upon a few consumer-facing gadgets, including Ceton's new DVR companion apps for Android and iOS, that Lenscaster SLR lens mount for iPad and a new Dolby 3D standard that could help propel glasses-free 3D into mass production. That's but a small sampling of the gadgets at NAB 2012, however, so jump past the break for all our hands-ons from the show.
Apple to offer filmmaker workshops for Tribeca Film Festival
Filmmakers in New York will want to be sure to stop by the West 14th Street and Soho Apple stores beginning April 20th through April 28th. The company is offering a series of filmmaking talks and workshops at the two locations in honor of the Tribeca Film Festival. The Apple Store, West 14th Street, and the Apple Store, SoHo, are proud to take part in the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. To celebrate the spirit of independent film making, we're hosting free events and workshops from April 20 through April 28. And everyone's invited to attend. Grab a seat for an exclusive Meet the Filmmakers session - presented by Apple and Indiewire - and hear the film industry's leading actors, writers, directors, and producers discuss their latest projects. The "Meet the Filmmakers" events will feature Q&A's with writers, directors, producers, and actors including Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Brad Hall, Emily Blunt, Morgan Spurlock, Chris Colfer, Jenna Fischer, Julie Delpy, Freida Pinto, and more. There will also be several "What's New in Filmmaking" workshops that delve into Final Cut Pro X, iLife and iWork for filmmakers, social media in film making, location scouting, lighting, effective story telling, and more. A full list of workshop schedules can be found here. Interested readers can also download the free Tribeca Film Festival app.
We're live from NAB 2012 in Las Vegas!
Three months ago to the day, we were packing up our CES trailer and making a run for the airport, expecting another year to pass before our return to Sin City. But now, as the National Association of Broadcasters' annual trade show has begun overlapping with the consumer electronics market -- from a gear perspective, at least -- we've decided to make our way back to the desert, calling this oasis home for another week in 2012. If you're a high-end camera buff, this is the show for you, with Canon, Sony and RED introducing products that are sadly priced out of reach of photo enthusiasts, but carry mass appeal among professionals with million-dollar equipment budgets, and a need to shoot with the latest and greatest digital devices. It's yet unclear what else we may see at this year's NAB, but rest assured that we'll be scouring the halls of the LVCC, bringing you updates from the floor throughout the week. Protip: Use the 'NAB 2012' for the latest show news and hands-ons.
The Road to Mordor: Baggins of Bag End
It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years to the month since The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring came out in movie theaters. It's even harder to process that Peter Jackson will be bringing us back to Middle-earth with the two Hobbit films starting a year from now. The Jackson trilogy, while beloved by many (including, I assume, gamers), hasn't gotten a lot of space in this column to date. The general consensus from the community is that the films and the MMO are separate interpretations of the same source material, and never the twain shall meet -- nevermind all the other LotR games, like War in the North. While that may be true, they do meet in the hearts of those who simply love this franchise. I adore the movies, am a huge fan of the game, and like (yes, just "like") the books. But I think that it's worthwhile to go to the films for LotRO players because they do give a different perspective and perhaps clarify a few plot points that shoot over our heads in-game. If nothing else, if the movies can revitalize our excitement about exploring the lands of Lord of the Rings Online, then they've done well by us. I mention all this because this past week saw the release of the first Hobbit trailer, which I must have watched a good dozen times, and it got me pumped up once more for this game world. In today's column, I want to use this trailer to springboard a discussion of how LotRO and the films share a common bond and how the Hobbit movies use many elements that Turbine's been working on for years now. Plus, a bonus Hobbit Tribute Tour!
The Criterion Collection comes to iTunes
With virtually no fanfare -- or even a press release -- The Criterion Collection has made 46 of its 680 films available on iTunes. Among the films released are art house classics any lovers of cinema will recognize, including The Seventh Seal by Ingmar Bergman, Seven Samurai by Akira Kurosawa, and The 400 Blows by Francois Truffaut. Criterion is known for its releases of some of the world's greatest films (plus, strangely, this one by Michael Bay), and it publishes them with the utmost care and quality given to the film-to-digital transfer. The company first released films on Laserdisc in the 1980s before moving to DVD and Blu-ray in the following decades. However, with the move to iTunes, The Criterion Collection loses one of its most appealing features: the extras. Gone are the multi-track commentaries, behind the scenes featurettes and documentaries, and pretty much anything else that sets the collection apart. Perhaps it's that lack of extras that is the reason for the average US$14.99 price of each Criterion Collection movie on iTunes. That's in line with most other new releases on iTunes, and a far cry from the premium price a Criterion DVD or Blu-ray commands.
SEE Games confirms Total Recall browser MMO
A few months ago, we reported that SEE Virtual Worlds had acquired a number of well-known intellectual properties, including the upcoming Total Recall remake. At the time, however, it was unknown how the company would put those properties to use. Well, wonder no more. SEE has announced that it is working on a browser-based Total Recall MMO which will tie into the upcoming film remake. The game will be free-to-play and supported by microtransactions. No release date has been announced yet, but the movie itself is tentatively scheduled for August 3rd, 2012, so a similar release date for the game wouldn't be unreasonable.
Robopocalypse coming soon to a theater near you, Spielberg to smother it in PG
The Robopocalypse is coming -- just not in the way you'd dreaded. DreamWorks and Twentieth Century Fox have joined movie-making forces to reanimate Daniel H. Wilson's fictional (for now) literary account of a future, robot-helmed doomsday. The studios have thrown some guy named Steven Spielberg behind the lens of this cinematic cautionary tale, and plan to scare the bejeezus out of us all when it premieres July 3, 2013 -- that's if we make it past the Mayan end of the world. No casting was mentioned in the project's announcement, so we'll continue to cross our toes in the hopes a certain daytime show couch jumper and film star-turned-pilot don't join in on the blockbuster fear-mongering.
Visualized: Objet's 3D printer breathes plastic life into Hollywood creatures, layer by layer
It ain't easy being plastic, you know? Objet -- the 3D printing house that aimed to replace your office's all-in-one Epson back in July -- brought a few of its snazziest pieces here to SIGGRAPH, and we popped by to have a gander. Targeting the animation-inspired crowd that showed up here in Vancouver, the company brought along some Hollywood examples of how its multi-material Objet260 Connex helped movie makers craft prototype creatures before they were inserted into the storyline. Thor's Destroyer and Avatar's Na'vi were both on hand, as well as the two critters shown above. The hothead on the right was crafted in around 18 hours (and subsequently painted), while the cool cat on the left was built in three fewer. Wildly enough, that fellow required no painting whatsoever; so long as you're cool with shades of grey, you can program your object to be colored from the outset. Oh, and as for his cost? Around $80 for the materials -- slightly more for the printer itself. %Gallery-130291%
Report: King of Kong director bringing back WarGames
Guys, we're just gonna be honest -- we kinda really love the MGM hacking classic, WarGames. Alongside Sneakers, it's right up there at the top of our list of best films about computers. And apparently it's getting a reboot from King of Kong director Seth Gordon. Gordon took a break from documentaries since his 2010 adaptation of NYT bestseller Freakonomics, most recently directing a handful of NBC sitcoms (The Office, Community) and a feature film, Horrible Bosses. He's currently working on two other films, and his IMDB page has yet to even note the supposed reboot in his list of work. Deadline claims to have gotten exclusive news about said reboot, though unfortunately few details are provided beyond the director and production studio. Lacking details aside, we're taking a wild guess that there'll be at least one joke referencing thermonuclear war.
Netflix seals deal to stream Miramax movies, starting in June
Netflix has just gone and scooped up another big content deal for itself. The movie streaming service has tied the knot with Miramax on a multi-year agreement to allow streaming of films from the latter's extensive library. Pulp Fiction, The English Patient, Kill Bill, and hundreds of others will be added to the Netflix Watch Instantly catalog on a rotating basis, starting next month. This marks the first time Miramax flicks have been available on a digital subscription service. An agreement between these two companies was last rumored in March, with a five-year term and $100 million price being mooted as the likely parameters for getting it done. Neither outfit would disclose the cost to Netflix, but the benefit to you, dear subscriber, is pretty obvious. Full PR after the break.
The Anvil of Crom: Can Funcom capitalize on the Conan film reboot?
I don't know about you, Age of Conan-faithful, but I'm a hopeless film trailer junkie. I collect them. I watch (and re-watch) them on my computer, my phone, my television, and of course, at the cinema proper. A lot of the time, trailers are substantially better than the full-length films they're meant to sell, and I've even been known to pay full price for a ticket only to walk out after the preview (particularly when said preview concerned a long-awaited prequel and was inexplicably tacked on to the front of Meet Joe Black). Given that Conan already plays a significant role in my gaming life, I think deconstructing the recently released trailer for the upcoming film franchise reboot makes a certain sort of sense. Sadly, Massively isn't a haven for film criticism, but I'd like to get around that by doing a bit of theorizing on how the new flick could conceivably affect our favorite MMORPG.
Film recreation of Soviet cosmonaut Gagarin's historic spaceflight to be shown off next month
If you know anything about the history of spaceflight, you're probably already familiar with the historic journey of USSR cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who flew around the Earth in 1961, making him the first person to ever travel beyond our planet's atmosphere. While audio recordings of Gagarin's observations exist, there are no video recordings except for those recently shot at the ISS following a similar plot of his trip, directed by Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli, who currently lives on the space station. This video has now been matched up with Gagarin's audio, and made into a film to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his flight, which is on April 12th. The movie will be made available on that date for free download on YouTube.
Samsung adds Lovefilm streaming to UK Blu-ray players
Lovefilm, the closest thing Europe has to an answer to Netflix, was recently swallowed whole by the Amazon juggernaut, but that doesn't seem to have stunted its progress toward ubiquitous availability. Samsung has just announced its intent to include Lovefilm movie streaming as an app on all of its Blu-ray players in the UK, enhancing both the subscription service's profile and its own claim to providing the user with multifunctional, "smart" technology. It's disappointing not to see this rollout effective across all of Lovefilm's European markets, but we guess small steps are better than no steps.
Feature-length film, The Trashmaster, made entirely in Grand Theft Auto IV
If you're familiar with The Sims-style gaming, where actual life, art, and the game can easily blur, this little story may not come as a huge surprise to you. Grand Theft Auto IV player / enthusiast Mathieu Weschler spent two years making The Trashmaster, a feature-length 'film' made entirely in the game, about a garbage man who has another gig on the side. Now, we'll freely admit that we did not watch the entire thing (yet), but from what we have seen, it actually looks fairly engaging! The film is embedded after the break.
