Celebrate Your Geekdom
from Weta:
Bag End has launched!
Available in two versions:
One ultra-desirable limited edition of 1,111 pieces that includes a supremely detailed interior of Bag End. This is set to be a hugely popular piece among The Lord of the Rings collectors the world over. Available to Pre-order Now!
And one open edition without the interior detailing.
from Shout! Factory:
Gabba gabba hey! Two hugely popular Roger Corman rock films that have long been out of print will hit the home-entertainment shelves on May 4, 2010: the Rock ’N’ Roll High School 30th Anniversary Special Edition DVD and Suburbia Collector’s Edition DVD, the first two titles launching the highly anticipated Roger Corman’s Cult Classics home entertainment series from Shout! Factory. Newly remastered and available for the first time in Anamorphic widescreen (16:9), Rock ’N’ Roll High School Special Edition and Suburbia Collector’s Edition provide the outrageous candor of teenage angst and nostalgic reverie of a counterculture rock movement that captured the hearts of many generations. With explosive musical performances from the Ramones, T.S.O.L., The Vandals and D.I., and extensive bonus content including all-new interviews and commentary with cast and crew, rare behind-the-scenes footage and much more, these two definitive home entertainment releases from Shout’s Roger Corman’s Cult Classics line are a must-have for Roger Corman fans and film aficionados as well as anyone who remains young at heart. Each DVD title is sold separately and has a suggested retail price of $19.93.
Executive produced by Corman and directed by Allan Arkush (Heroes), Rock ’N’ Roll High School boasts performances by the Ramones and stars P.J. Soles (Halloween) in the lead role of Riff Randell, Vince Van Patten (Hell Night), Clint Howard (Grand Theft Auto), Dey Young (Spaceballs), Mary Woronov (Death Race 2000), Dick Miller (Piranha) and Paul Bartel (Hollywood Boulevard).
Based on Arkush’s own high school fantasy, the 1979 cult film takes place at Vince Lombardi High School — the wildest, most rockin’ high school around! That is, until a thug of a principal, Miss Togar, comes along and tries to make the school a totalitarian state. With the help of the Ramones, the students of Vince Lombardi battle Miss Togar’s iron-fisted rule and take their battle to a truly rockin’ conclusion!
Rock ’N’ Roll High School quickly developed a devoted following after its release in 1979 and became a mainstay of the midnight movie cult circuit. As with films like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, audience members began to dress up like the cast and the Ramones for screenings. Arkush, a self-described “unabashed rock ’n’ roll fanatic,” chose the Ramones to star as the film’s musical heroes, as he felt they epitomized pure rock ’n’ roll. As Arkush remembers, “We staged a live, marathon show at the Roxy Theatre that consisted of 22 hours of nonstop Ramones,” and the tireless quartet also wrote two songs for the film: “I Want You Around” and “Rock ’N’ Roll School.” The Ramones were fans of Corman as well. Johnny Ramone said in an interview at the time, “When we found out Roger Corman was behind the picture, we said, sure, we’ll do it because we knew he had a reputation and we knew he made good movies.”
Rock ’N’ Roll High School 30th Anniversary Special Edition
Extensive Special Features Include:
Written and directed by Penelope Spheeris (Wayne’s World), featuring live performances by T.S.O.L., The Vandals and D.I., and starring Bill Coyne, Chris Pederson, Jennifer Clay and Christina Beck, 1984’s Suburbia deftly explores the punk rock generation and follows the unforgettable journey of two teenage boys who escape their unhappy home and join a group of runaways, punks who have banded together to form their own family. Dubbing themselves “The Rejected,” (aka T.R.), the teens have taken squatters’ rights in a filthy, abandoned house, and are bound together by tragedy and punk rock until they’re confronted by the “Citizens Against Crime,” a group of irascible adults from the suburbs who blame the punks for the ruin of their town. During the course of filming, the production used real kids for many parts in addition to professional actors (and includes the acting debut of Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea).
Suburbia Collector’s Edition
Special Features Include:
Following the release of the Rock ’N’ Roll High School 30th Anniversary DVD and Suburbia Collector’s Edition DVD, Shout! Factory will continue to present Roger Corman’s Cult Classics home entertainment releases on a monthly basis. Upcoming highlights include Death Race 2000, Battletruck (aka Warlords of the 21st Century), Deathsport, Forbidden World, Galaxy of Terror, Attack of the Crab Monster, Not of This Earth (1957), Piranha and Humanoids from the Deep, among others.
Independent filmmaker-producer Roger Corman’s storied career ranks as one of Hollywood’s most amazing success stories. Having produced more than 350 films and directed 50 others, his influence on American film goes far beyond his own energetic, creative low-budget movies. He is arguably one of Hollywood’s most gifted and masterful filmmakers.
Noted for his keen ability to spot young talent, Corman’s most lasting legacy will undoubtedly be the legion of producers, directors, writers and actors he has fostered, among them: Jack Nicholson, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, Ron Howard, Peter Fonda, Jonathan Demme, Gale Anne Hurd, Diane Ladd, Tommy Lee Jones, Sandra Bullock, Bruce Dern, Talia Shire, Charles Bronson, Joe Dante, Peter Bogdanovich and Sally Kirkland.
from Project London:
As the final touches of independent, feature-length effects marvel Project London are now underway, the film is quietly gaining attention among special effects experts and social networking communities all over the world. The virtually no-budget, live action movie features more than 650 vivid, intense visual effects and animations that help drive a compelling story about a boy battling with a moral dilemma in a present day sci-fi epic. Unique to the film’s production is the use of the open-source software, Blender, for the core of all animated visual effects in the film. As Jawbone.tv called it, Project London is likely one of the “most ambitious no-budget effects movie ever.”
“The entire concept of Project London is enough to make anyone excited, from science-fiction fans to software engineers, from movie buffs to post-production artists, and it has,” said Phil McCoy, Project London Executive Producer and founder of Spiral Productions LLC. “An undertaking like this film wouldn’t be possible without a storyteller like Director Ian Hubert, the support of many talented Blender artists, and the more than 250 worldwide volunteer artists and craft people who joined our team.”
Progress and new reveals of Project London are chronicled on the movie’s Web site at projectlondonmovie.com, where, today, the newest teaser clip has been released to the public. The clip introduces fans to the world of Project London and its two significant forces: the London Underground and the Joint Command. The song showcased in the new teaser clip, “Multiply,” is a brand new song by Half Acre Day. It will be featured in the film and available exclusively on the Project London soundtrack.
PROJECT LONDON SYNOPSIS
This is a story about Nebraska Higgins plunging into a world of intrigue and struggle when the Joint Command kills his father, a hero known by his exosuit, Arizona. Seeing a prime opportunity, the London Underground, a rugged band of revolutionaries, recruits Nebraska to join the resistance against the Joint Command. Will Nebraska, who is dealing with the loss of his father, help the government and rat out his father’s associates or join their cause and work to put an end to a secret initiative sponsored by the military wing of the government? Earth’s fate depends on the potential in this young man’s heart.
THE TRIUMVERATE
Project London is led by three entrepreneurs who are feverishly devoted to producing brilliant visual effects around a great story:
Director Ian Hubert
Hubert both wrote and directed Project London, coining the film’s notable tagline, “This movie will eat your planet.” Ian is now leading the post-production charge. While pre-production and production lasted just a few months, post-production with the 650 visual effects has taken nearly two years with help from volunteer artists and the Blender community.
“This massive undertaking would never have been possible without the incredible support of all the artists lending their skills and creativity to the project,” Hubert said. “I’ve been surrounded by so many talented people, and each one brought their own piece of life and creativity to the film. It’s a really organic process. It’s great seeing all of these pieces come together from so many different avenues. We’ve thrown everything we have into making this a really fun movie experience, and I can’t wait to be able to watch the finished product with everyone.”
Hubert first started making films in the fourth grade when he adopted an old Japanese camcorder and started playing with CG effects and movies. By the time he reached high school, he was making a feature-length film each year.
Executive Producers, The McCoy Brothers
The McCoy Brothers, Phil and Nathan, teamed up to produce Project London, as their unique skills and passions created a solid working foundation for the film. Nathan finally has a vehicle to let his inner sci-fi geek take complete control. Outside of his day job, he tapped into his thousands of hours watching sci-fi masterpieces by acting as location manager and volunteer staff recruiter during the production phase of Project London. Before founding Spiral Productions LLC to produce Project London, Phil joined the world of showbiz as an ambitious young entertainer by producing a number of neighborhood magic shows before honing his skills as a broadcast producer writing, producing and directing radio and TV commercials and industrial films, earning several industry accolades along the way.
THE RESISTANCE
While details of anticipated Hollywood films are generally kept quiet then strategically leaked by direction of expensive marketing firms and focus group surveys, producers of Project London are taking a more sensible, yet bold approach to promoting the film.
“We want to share the build up of the movie’s release with the fans of Project London and, in turn, let them share their experiences with their friends and so on,” Phil McCoy said. “In fact, we are working on a program that will reward the fans that help spread the word through articles, blogs, etc. by giving them a film credit. It’s a way to involve the people who want to be involved with the film.”
Upon its release, The McCoy Brothers are planning to release the film on iTunes and Netflix, and sell Blu-ray and DVD disks directly from the official movie Web site, projectlondonmovie.com, along with other merchandise and exclusive packages aimed at filmmakers and film lovers. Spiral Productions LLC has also just given creative license to artist Branson Anderson to create a graphic novel based on Hubert’s script of Project London. This will also be available through the Web site.
“I’m totally pumped to see this thing come together!” Hubert exclaimed about Anderson’s novel. “Everything I’ve seen so far has just been brilliant. Branson’s a master of subtlety, but also knows when to bring out the big guns — this is going to be an incredible piece of art, able to stand on its own as an exemplary piece of work in the medium.”
from RiffTrax:
Greetings riff-fans!
We’ll be hosting a streaming webcast of our panel from last year’s Comic-Con for FREE!
All you have to do is point your browser to rifftrax.com/live/sdcc09 at 6pm Pacific Time (9pm Eastern)! You’ll need to login to the site (or register if you don’t already have an account) in order to watch the show and chat with other fans!
The show itself runs just over an hour, and includes the “live” riffing of Shake Hands with Danger that the guys did to a standing room-only crowd of 1000 people. After the riffing, there was a question-and-answer session where the audience got to suggest one of the next movies for the guys to riff. (Spoiler alert: the winner was Dragon Wars, available at rifftrax.com/rifftrax/dragon-wars-d-war.)
All of this was MC’d by the lovely and talented Veronica Belmont.
Set your calendars for 6pm Pacific / 9pm Eastern and join us for the RiffTrax: Comic-Con 2009 webcast!
from StarWars.com:
The original princess with an attitude, Carrie Fisher is slated to appear at Star Wars Celebration V during the show weekend of August 12-15 at the Orange County Convention Center. Fisher, who portrayed Princess Leia Organa in the original Star Wars trilogy, will be greeting fans and signing autographs in the Celebration Autograph Hall, and is scheduled to appear on stage for an interview and a question and answer session. Fisher is the first of a number of upcoming, exciting guest announcements for the huge fan festival.
Prior to Celebration, Fisher’s fans can meet her in the Celebration V pavilion at C2E2, the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) taking place April 16-18th. C2E2 is managed by Reed Exhibitions, the company producing Celebration V in cooperation with Lucasfilm. Fisher will be signing autographs in the pavilion with Official Pix, Lucasfilm’s licensee for authentic Star Wars photos and autographs.
An audience favorite for both her film and stage roles, Fisher was 19 years old when she became a cultural icon as Princess Leia in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. Her film career started when she was even younger, playing opposite Warren Beatty in Shampoo in 1975. She is the daughter of actress Debbie Reynolds and singer Eddie Fisher. In addition to A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi, Fisher has performed in numerous movies and television series, including The Blues Brothers, The Man with One Red Shoe, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Burbs, When Harry Met Sally, Austin Powers, Heartbreakers, Smallville, Family Guy and Fanboys, as well as in her own series of television specials, Conversations from the Edge with Carrie Fisher, and her live stage show, Wishful Drinking.
Though she is famous for her film, television and stage roles, Fisher devotes much of her time to writing. She has penned several novels, including the semi-autobiographical Postcards from the Edge, which was made into a successful movie starring Meryl Streep. Three additional best selling novels — Surrender the Pink, Delusions of Grandma, and The Best Awful — followed. Her new memoir, Wishful Drinking, is published by Simon & Schuster.
Don’t miss Carrie Fisher at Star Wars Celebration V, and coming up next at C2E2 in Chicago!
Organizers for C2E2 note that tickets for the show continue to sell quickly, and so all fans are encouraged to buy tickets in advance! For more information on guests, tickets, or C2E2 in general, visit C2E2.com or check out the show’s official blog, MediumAtLarge.net, or follow C2E2 on Twitter. For further information about Star Wars Celebration V and to buy tickets, go to starwarscelebration.com.
For more information about the Celebration Autograph Hall, prices, tickets, and process, please go to OfficialPix.com.
from Weta:
The End is near… Bag End!
Check out the third installment in Daniel Falconer’s article series about the creation of a miniature collectible of Bag End from The Lord of the Rings. It’s getting near launch… keep an eye out before Easter!
Only one left: Strider’s Sword Edition #10 — Will it be yours?
Your last chance to own this incredible piece of art as well as fully functional weapon from The Lord of the Rings. Made at the hands of Weta Master Swordsmith Peter Lyon. The other nine swords have already been reserved by collectors. Will number 10 be yours?
New Lord of the Rings merchandise
A New Zealand Map of Middle-earth and a The Dark Lord Sauron T-shirt are available at the Weta Cave and to NZ customers on our website. (Unfortunately our licensing agreement only permits us to sell these to New Zealand customers.) Daniel Falconer designed both! Check them out! AND… The Miniature shields have started arriving in our warehouses. We are experiencing a few customs delays in our US and UK warehouses, but rest assured — we’re processing the orders as soon as we have the all clear!
The Art of District 9 — new book from Weta this year
We’re very pleased to reveal that we are working on an Art Book cataloguing the awesome work Weta’s artists and craftspeople did for Neill Blomkamp’s District 9. We promise to bring you ongoing updates on the progress. In the meantime — please join the friendly crowds in our online forum and tell us what you would like to see in the book! As a member of the forum (did we mention it’s FREE?), you can also Win District 9 Goodies in our forums in a fun competition by our friend and king of the forums, Charles Song.
The Exceptional Exhibition opens in Hong Kong
Richard Taylor and Greg Broadmore are currently in China for the opening of Dr. Grordbort’s Exceptional Exhibition at Cyberport. See the photos we just received!
Easter at the Weta Cave? Or at WonderCon in San Francisco?
Weta’s friend Phil Davis will be at WonderCon at the Moscone Center in SF 2-4 April. Go see him! For those of you who find Miramar, Wellington an easier place to get to, we have a fantastic line-up of guests at the Weta Cave:
See the WotWots in person!
Here’s a free activity for parents who are wondering what to do during the school holidays. Take your no doubt grateful kids to see the WotWots in person at a selection of shopping malls in New Zealand and Australia. Check out where and when.
from WBShop.com:
The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy on Blu-ray April 6th
Free Shipping!
on orders of $60 or More*
The Original Theatrical Films… for the First Time in Stunning Blu-ray!
Theatrical Release Collector’s Edition Blu-Ray
Theatrical Release Collector’s Edition Blu-Ray plus “Prancing Pony” Shirt
Save $5 on this exclusive shirt when you pre-order the Blu-ray. Available only at WBShop.com! Created to celebrate The Lord of the Rings on Blu-ray, and based on the pub where Frodo first meets Aragorn!
Lord of the Rings Boutique!
Visit our boutique for the trilogy in all formats, plus jewelry, posters, and other collectibles.
Follow us on: Facebook | Twitter
*offer expires 4/5/10 and may be withdrawn at any time
from J!NX:
New J!NX Classic Tee: Replicant
They look just like us, only they’re stronger, faster, and have no emotion. Previously, the only way to tell the skin-jobs from the humans was the Voigt-Kampff test, but we’ve simplified things a bit — no questions or machines needed now, just this handy T-shirt!
All that’s Blizzard’s is not WoW!
Just in case you missed it amidst all the new World of Warcraft items we launched last week, we released two other super-sweet designs for Blizzard, one for Starcraft 2 and one for Diablo 3. Get ’em while they’re hot!
from StarWars.com:
Autograph fans attending Celebration V in Orlando August 12-15 can look forward to meeting their favorite cast and crew stars from the Star Wars movies, particularly from The Empire Strikes Back, when Official Pix returns to Celebration with a great list of guests.
“We are once again honored to be chosen to produce the autograph program for Lucasfilm, and for Reed Exhibitions at Celebration V,” says Ben Stevens, co-owner of Official Pix.
Stevens and Philip Wise, partners in the company, plan to bring guests whose combined careers span all six episodes of the saga, with special attention to guests from The Empire Strikes Back to honor the 30th anniversary of the beloved movie, and from the popular television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Official Pix will use an efficient fast path system to minimize time spent waiting in line, allowing more time for fans to enjoy the abundance of Star Wars programming at Celebration V. The company is the licensed supplier of authentic Star Wars autographs, and have brought memorable guests to Celebrations II, III, IV, and Japan. Collectors can rest assured that they will get their autographs on high-quality prints of unique images of the stars.
The company plans to use a coupon system at the show, with details soon to be announced. In general, fans will purchase and use an appropriate number of coupons for each autograph. The coupons will be good for autographs on Official Pix Celebration V images, or can be used for autographs on items brought from home. Fans should note that licensed Star Wars products are typically acceptable, but signing non-licensed items, like homemade images or toys, is up to the discretion of each autograph guest.
Collectors who do not wish to wait may purchase previously-signed photos from many of the stars who will be signing in the Official Pix area in the exhibit hall.
Autograph guests who will appear at Celebration V will be announced soon, and new guests will be added and announced as the show draws near. Look for updates at starwarscelebration.com and officialpix.com.
from RiffTrax:
Twi-Hard. A once proud word that has been shockingly cheapened by over-use. It used to mean something. These days, any given twelve year old girl with Team Edward wallpaper on her iPhone can be the star of a “Vampire Fever” cover story photo in USA Today. It’s not right. Just because some soccer mom blows two months of grocery funds on an elaborate face tattoo replicating the iconic “Cullen baseball” scene, that DOES NOT make her a real Twi-Hard, okay? It’s something you earn. It’s something you live.
Forgive our emotion on this issue, but it’s just that Mike, Kevin, and Bill are probably the biggest Twilight fans on the planet. Just survey Kristen Stewart’s file of restraining order requests, and see which names pop up the most (Stephenie Meyer’s file is alarmingly similar). So it should surprise no one that these three sparkly warriors trekked to the theater dozens upon dozens of times to feast upon the sweet succulent cinematic nectar that is New Moon. After the fourteenth viewing, the girl at the ticket counter was unable to make eye contact with them, muttering something about “grown men” under her breath. The pimply popcorn vendor filled his friends’ inboxes with texts like “OMG third time today,” while the theater janitor constantly fought the urge to beat them with his mop. In a word: epic.
But the shame they endured, along with the suffering of their long-neglected wives and children, is your gain. Thanks to these endless, obsessive, life-destroying viewings, Mike, Kevin, and Bill are able to present this RiffTrax of New Moon on the eve of its DVD release. Let’s just hope that, now that the ride is over, they can put their lives back together once and for all (they’re not making any more of these movies, right?).
Get it here.
from RiffTrax:
What do ice-skating reindeer, pipe-smoking santas and a parade of aquatic champions have in common? You’ll see them all in the RiffTrax Live: Christmas Shorts-Stravaganza! The stars of Mystery Science Theater 3000 have a sackfull of delightful and demented shorts to riff live onstage. Some of the forgotten gems of Christmases past prove to be the perfect targets for the rapid-fire riffs of Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett. And if that wasn’t enough, they’re even joined by comedy legend “Weird Al” Yankovic for a musical short about the wonders of pork! It’s funnier than Ernest Saves Christmas and far less creepy than The Polar Express!
Get the new Live DVD here.
Cinematic Titanic continues their indefinite break from studio-produced DVDs with Cinematic Titanic LIVE: The Alien Factor, the follow-up to their debut live DVD, East Meets Watts.
For those new to B-movie riffing, Cinematic Titanic is the successor project of Mystery Science Theater 3000. It features Joel Hodgson, the creator of both shows, and the entire original cast of MST3K: Trace Beaulieu (Crow, Dr. Forrester), J. Elvis Weinstein (Tom Servo, Dr. Erhardt), Frank Conniff (TV’s Frank), and Mary Jo Pehl (Pearl Forrester). As the Cinematic Titanic website states, “the CT crew is reconnecting with MSTies around the world as well as bringing new fans to the comedy art form first introduced by this group 20 years ago on television.” In pursuit of that goal, the Titans (as the cast is called) have toured extensively since the group’s founding in 2007, and released seven studio DVDs:
All of the DVDs are also conveniently available as downloads.
Cinematic Titanic LIVE‘s second outing has a script that brings just as much humour to the screen as East Meets Watts, which Cinematic Titanic says is “quickly becoming the runaway favorite CT ep!”, but The Alien Factor could very well abduct that distinction. The performers have had time to refine their live show since they were last taped, and are therefore noticably more relaxed in their new, less formal format, often straying from the script to improv an extra comment or tease one another. They sometimes get so caught up in the moment, laughing at their fellow riffers’ antics and responding to reactions from the appreciative audience, that they miscue or flub a line, which only adds to the hilarity. The overall result is a more interactive, personal experience that comes close to recreating the casual feel of hanging out with friends to view a cheesy movie while goofing off and eating pizza. It’s clear from their banter that the Titans are close friends who enjoy working together, and their playfulness is infectious, making anyone watching them want to join in the fun. As such, the Cinematic Titanic LIVE DVDs are a perfect gateway to entice fans to the live shows.
Like the first live DVD, The Alien Factor seats the five Titans on either side of the movie screen in roughly the same arrangement as the studio shows, the performers highlighted in individual spotlights instead of just appearing as black silhouettes. In the studio DVDs, it’s sometimes difficult to tell who’s saying what in silhouette, so having everyone in full view throughout the live films is a definite plus, especially as it allows facial expressions and subtler gestures to be seen. This is a novelty for Mystery Science Theater 3000 fans, who only saw the host and two robots riff from shadowy theatre seats at the bottom of the screen, and then only from the shoulders up.
The Alien Factor, a 1978 horror sci-fi that rates 4.0/10 on IMDb, is the sort of film that would have been right at home on MST3K, as it was seemingly made for the express purpose of being riffed on. When a movie opens with the cliché situation of “teenagers in a car at make-out point being attacked by an alien monster”, you know you’re in for an enjoyably predictable ride. Indeed, The Alien Factor quickly runs through the expected checklist of cheesy sci-fi tropes that are so much fun to roast, including rubber-suited aliens, special effects done on a less-than-shoestring budget, and a town populated by half-wits who make it painfully easy for the aliens to pick them off, like shooting fish in a barrel. The real proof of Cinematic Titanic‘s claim to fame as “The Masters of Movie Riffing” is revealed, though, when the female lead stumbles aimlessly through the woods for an interminable length of time, with not a moment of dialogue or plot development in sight, and the Titans still manage to make it entertaining. Their incisive critique transforms this unintentionally funny film into a first-rate comedy.
The production quality of Cinematic Titanic‘s DVDs remains on par with big studio releases, an impressive feat for a small, artist-funded project. They may not have bonus materials on their discs, aside from previews of other Cinematic Titanic titles, but with such an outstanding main feature, padding isn’t really essential. The one improvement Cinematic Titanic could make in future releases is to their menus, which are a bit plain and rough-edged, but unless you’re one of those DVD snobs who isn’t satisfied with anything less than fully animated, singing and dancing menus, that’s just a small quibble with an otherwise excellent DVD.
Cinematic Titanic has even posted the first five minutes of Cinematic Titanic LIVE: The Alien Factor on YouTube, so you can “try before you buy”:
The DVD comes with a photo postcard of the Cinematic Titanic cast, printed “Thanks for Watching!” Our pleasure, Titans! Please keep the live (and studio) DVDs coming.
Order directly through the Cinematic Titanic website.
Cinematic Titanic presents… and Cinematic Titanic LIVE DVDs are distributed by Cinematic Titanic.