Category: Films

Dead Like Me returns with “Life After Death”

The long overdue and eagerly awaited follow-up to Dead Like Me, "Life After Death" will be available on DVD February 17, 2009
The long overdue and eagerly awaited follow-up to Dead Like Me, "Life After Death" will be available on DVD February 17, 2009

Bryan Fuller is a genius. A self-professed Star Trek geek, he was such a huge Star Trek: Deep Space Nine fan that he set out to write for Star Trek. Because he had the talent and imagination to match the desire, he made his dream come true.  When DS9 came to an end, he ended up working on Star Trek: Voyager but he felt restricted in his writing because the syndicated format prevented deep multi-episodic story arcs and he longed to write more emotional depth into his characters. During his tenure with Star Trek, this desire drove him to write Dead Like Me, which he quickly sold as a pilot. Dead Like Me is a deeply emotional and sometimes disturbing fantasy (what could be referred to as Urban Mythology) full of layered, ongoing storylines and flawed people.

I first saw Dead Like Me in reruns on SCI FI channel. I loved the story, the characters and the macabre events and how they entwined and unfolded to tell a very solid and entertaining story. I was disappointed to learn that it wasn’t getting picked up for a third season, another blow to sci-fi and fantasy fans like me who had just dealt with the loss of Stargate SG-1. In hopes of not only supporting the show (and praying maybe SCI FI would pick up a Season 3 if there was enough fan interest), I bought the DVD box sets. I was surprised when I watched them because of the mature content that I was seeing for the first time, some of which seemed to distract from the story for me. (The producing network Show Time is notorious for this though, even forcing Stargate SG-1 to put nudity in its premiere episode, something that has never been done since without harming its success as it went on to show for ten seasons before making its move back to direct to DVD films in 2008.)

While Bryan went on to other projects soon after production on Dead Like Me began, the show went on to gain a cult following that is still begging for more several years later.

Dead Like Me follows the life and after-life of smart mouthed and deeply antagonistic Georgia “George” Lass. Disillusioned with life at a very young age, she has estranged herself from her mother (whom she loves to offend and annoy) and her sister (who worships her but is virtually invisible to George) as her father drifts emotionally further away from the family. At the age of 18, her philosophy is basically that bad things happen to you whether you are a good or bad person, so why bother to be anything special. While drifting listlessly through life, feeling no particular desire or value for it, she suddenly loses it when struck by a toilet seat that fails to burn up during reentry from a de-orbiting Russian space station. Moments after her death, she meets Rube. He’s a Grim Reaper and the team leader of a group of Reapers. He explains to her that taking souls is a public service of the afterlife and, until her time comes to “go into the light”, she, too, will now have to fulfill that public duty. Reluctant and rebellious as always, George struggles with her new reality while trying to come to terms with the life she left behind and the new afterlife she’s facing.

In Life After Death, we catch up with George five years after her death. While she seems to have finally grown up and come to terms with her afterlife, suddenly everything changes again. It’s great to see a return of so many familiar faces. Rube, their no-nonsense team leader who hands out their daily assignments on yellow Post-its each morning at breakfast at Das Waffle Hause has gone missing and is replaced with a new leader who has a completely different approach to running the business of death; Roxi, the tough-as-nails cop and former dancer who was strangled in the 80s by an overly ambitious friend who wanted to steal her invention that would later go on to become an icon of a generation; Mason, a young man whose ambition in life to remain on a constant drug-induced high led him to drill a hole in his own head, seeking euphoria; Daisey, the Hollywood starlet-wanna-be who “died tragically in a fire on the set of Gone with the Wind“. While dealing with this new set of changes, George is suddenly confronted with her old life once again when she unexpectedly crosses paths with her mother, Joy, and sister, Reggie.

Once again, the show is heavily laden with examination of the themes of life, death, love, family, ambition, temptation and a myriad other conditions of being human. For anyone who loved Dead Like Me, Life After Death will not disappoint. It is full of the same dark humor and wit that made the television series hugely entertaining. While Rube’s presence is sadly missed, they handled the absence well and the plot allows for it to stand alone or springboard into a new series or series of movies.

The Life After Death DVD is available for pre-order on Amazon.com with a release date of February 17, 2009. Also available on February 17, and available for pre-order, is Dead Like Me: The Complete Collection, which includes all of Season 1 and Season 2 in one box set.

Other Bryan Fuller productions I highly recommend are Wonderfalls, Heroes and Pushing Daises.

Tom Konkle: Evil Potatoes and Time Traveling Documentaries just the beginning for Dave and Tom

Writer, Director and Funny Man Tom Konkle
Writer, Director and Funny Man Tom Konkle

In the age of YouTube, comedy shorts are popping up in droves. With mostly lowbrow humor in these videos, Dave and Tom (David Beeler and Tom Konkle) stand out from the masses with their wit and writing, and performances that are carried primarily by dialog rather than sight gags. The fact that they’ve had over 12 million views might be because their sketches are filled with clever double entendres in the style of Monty Python’s Flying Circus. One half of the comedy troupe, Tom Konkle, answered a few questions for us about what they’ve accomplished so far and where they hope to take Dave and Tom next.

ÜberSciFiGeek (ÜSFG) I read on your website how the two of you met during a production. If you were both characters in one of the sketches you now write, what would that first meeting have been like?

Tom Konkle (TK) Well, it would have been a fairly looney occurrence I am sure. We’d probably have been like those two silly British old beans in our sketch The Secret to Happiness is a Bad Memory. A sketch where Dave would say “Hello.” And I would reply, matching his jovial quality like this:

Tom: Hello, as well. Funny meeting you like this, isn’t it?

Dave: What, in character?

Tom: Yes, I mean, here I am as Tom 2.0 and there you are as… sorry, I haven’t caught your name.

Dave: Haven’t thrown it actually.

Tom: I’m sorry… I don’t understand.

Dave: It’s a joke.

Tom: Not following you.

Dave: You said didn’t catch my name and I said I haven’t thrown it.

Tom: Ah. No. Nothing. Anyway, strange us meeting during one of our own productions and not even knowing each other yet, isn’t it?

Dave: Yes, that is odd.

Tom: (suddenly laughing deep and disturbingly) Hahahahahaha!

Dave: What?

Tom : Haven’t thrown it. Your name. HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Dave: Yes, I still haven’t.

Tom : I always enjoy a good joke as soon as I am made aware of it. Uh, what’s you name?

Dave: Dave.

Tom: Yes. Of course, what’s your name, Dave?

Anyway, you meeting as characters from a sketch might be a bit like that.

(ÜSFG) You both seem to be fans of British comedy, especially Monty Python. How did that come about and how does it influence your sketches?

(TK) Well, I think its more a matter of finding kindred spirits in British comedy, especially Monty Python. I can remember as a boy seeing the first episodes on TV and thinking, there’s someone who thinks the way I do about the world. The craft of writing and acting your own material interested me as I grew older, working in the profession of acting or writing other people’s things, so again Python was a blueprint for that. Sprinkle in my own flavors and Dave’s and my other influences, and hopefully a unique voice can develop.

(ÜSFG) You recently worked with John Cleese on The Art of Football. What was that like?

(TK) Amazing. Highlight of my acting career. He got me into sketch and, frankly, was my major influence, so going and working with him in a two-man sketch show on TV was a dream. Cleese was a great person, gentleman and mentor who bothered to keep in touch. Wonderful time.

(ÜSFG) Do you work with your network of friends or do you hold auditions?

(TK) Both. Of course you work with friends in the business over and over or people become your friends as a result of working together so you go back to them but also, we are auditioning people now, particularly actresses, to expand our pool of talent we want to work with for the new web series Safety Geeks: SVI.

(ÜSFG) You’ve recently announced that Season 1 of Safety Geeks: SVI is on its way. What’s going on with SVI? When can we expect to see Season 1 rolling out, and what can we do to help?

(TK) We shoot at the end of February and hopefully we will be finished a few months after that and have it out as a complete season.

(ÜSFG) You’ve appeared a few times on Comedy Gumbo for C-Spot. How did you get involved in that group?

(TK) I had met Payman (Benz) and Sean (Becker), the two guys behind Gumbo (Awkward Pictures), a while ago at a film festival. Their film was showing and mine, called Who Makes Movies?, that I did with Chris Luccy was part of the festival and they liked the performance. We stayed in touch and it worked out that we could do a few sketches together in Gumbo. We also did a short, Behind the Cup: Two Girls One Cup, where I play the cup and Dave was the host.

(ÜSFG) You’ve created quite a collection of characters over the years. Where do you find inspiration for characters like Sir Reginald Bo-Hey No and Baxter Smalls?

(TK) I sort of channel them in the writing and rehearsal process. I know them very well and I like to play with these characters. Sir Reginald Bo-Hey No of the Invention with Brian Forbes series is finally taking off, mostly due to Koldcast.TV and their distribution of the show on Tivocast and iTunes, as well as their own website. Baxter was a labor of love with a director named Marcus and DP named Doug who I had shot a commercial with as Brahms, called Raisin Brahms, a very silly PSA for music arts education, and so it was a natural progression.

(ÜSFG) Speaking of Baxter Smalls, you’ve created a wonderful premise for a series with a great pilot episode and website to promote it. Can we look forward to more adventures with our favorite Time Traveling Documentarian?

(TK) Yes. Baxter Smalls continues to be in development. I look forward to playing him in a series again.

(ÜSFG) Are potatoes really evil? Do you eat potatoes in your house? What dark secrets are they the key to?

(TK) Well, potatoes can certainly be used for evil, they can be turned. For all the answers you must look for Beyond the Known online, about the potato conspiracy. It’s a sketch I used to do live and Gino C. Vianelli, who plays Art Gong in it, was always a champion of that sketch even when no one else was, and we finally did it for the cameras which was vindicating and fun. I like that bit.

(ÜSFG) You’ve been in several commercials recently, such as the Epson Artison series (Monkey, Bling and Art Critic). What’s been the most fun for you so far?

(TK) I just did a Coke commercial with my 3-year-old son that was special. It was a hard shoot as it was a night and, being three, he was a tired trooper. The Quiznos spots where I played silly British characters in scenarios was fun. A LOT of the commercials I have done have been strange, silly fun. I rarely do a “straight” product commercial so it’s great. I did a Carrier commercial directed by Christopher Guest that was incredibly rewarding to work on.

(ÜSFG) I thought your Star Wars: The Fate of the Duel parody was hilarious. What made you decide to add sci-fi to your list of comedic genres?

(TK) Love science fiction, HUGE library of books and DVDs. Star Wars got me into filmmaking, really. So it was a natural fit.

(ÜSFG) Who or what, exactly, is McFwap?

(TK) McFwap was my sketch troupe for many years. Very talented, funny people in there, many became lifelong friends and all of them had such funny ideas and performances. I loved it.

(ÜSFG) You have so many brilliant deadpan deliveries and one-liners, but so far I think my favorite is from Breaking the Language Barrier: “While some might drink from the fountain of knowledge, I merely gargled.” What have been some of your favorites?

(TK) That’s like picking a favorite child, really. Each line at the time is a snapshot of where I was comedically and what I was trying to accomplish, I can see when I see it again. I love the “Impossible as the proportional camel toe would be six inches across…” line that I wrote and got to deliver in the Safety Geeks web series promo. Invention has SO many. Lots in the television shows where my one or two lines were a deadpan line stuck in because they were part of helping make a larger project funny.

(ÜSFG) I’ve noticed a certain Biblical theme in some of your work. Is there some inspiration behind those? Do you have any fear of “divine retribution”? Are they mostly ad-lib or scripted?

(TK) The Biblical theme is there sometimes because it remains a sacred cow, which is intrinsic to comedy. Everything I do is very tightly scripted. I rehearse my improvs (no joke!)

(ÜSFG) What else are you working on right now, and what would you like to do in the future?

(TK) A feature called EMTs. I have several web series I would like to do, a few television scripts and work on some projects with others. Hopefully the auditions keep rolling in, as well, while I do my own thing.

Check out more of Dave and Tom at their website and at YouTube, Funny or Die, Atom.com and Blogspot. The Art of Football (or soccer, as they call it in America) is available now at Amazon on DVD.

C-3PO Plays a Pivotal Role in “Trespass” on Star Wars: The Clone Wars

from StarWars.com:

A never-before-seen ice planet is the setting for “Trespass,” an all-new episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 30, on Cartoon Network
A never-before-seen ice planet is the setting for “Trespass,” an all-new episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 30, on Cartoon Network

Anthony Daniels and his alter ego C-3PO play a pivotal role in “Trespass,” an all-new episode of the hit animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 30, on Cartoon Network.

While investigating the disappearance of a clone security force on a fiercely inhospitable ice world, Anakin and Obi-Wan are caught in the middle of a conflict between the planet’s natives and the greedy representatives of a nearby moon. In an effort to broker a tentative peace, Anakin turns to C-3PO for help — and finds his fluency in more than 6 million forms of communication to be most useful.

Daniels has played C-3PO on screen in all six Star Wars movies, and has continued in the role since the inception of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. With the animated series, Daniels becomes the only actor to play the same role in every on-screen incarnation of the Saga. He has also become a spokesman and host for the popular Art and Science of Star Wars exhibition around the world, and has written extensively about his experiences as a part of the Star Wars phenomenon.

“I’ve never left the character or, rather, he’s never left me,” says Daniels. “I put him in the cupboard for a while, but people call and I take him out again. There was a time many years ago when I thought I should move on to other things, but then I thought that was stupid. I’m very fond of Threepio.”

Daniels says the voiceover performance of Threepio is a welcome respite from the rigors of bringing Threepio to the screen in live-action productions. He finds the animation process offers “quite a lot of freedom.”

“When you’re reading lines by yourself, it’s not always as easy to ad-lib,” Daniels says. “But what Dave (Filoni) and I do is to go over my lines before we start because, sadly, I am the world’s greatest expert. And I say that with a kind of wry fun, because Threepio is kind of like my best friend, and you know your best friend better than anyone.”

Filoni says, “It was important to have Anthony as Threepio because I wanted to learn as much from him as I could. Anthony has incredible insight into every word and phrase that he says. There’s rarely a line that he won’t adapt to Threepio’s cadence, so we’ve developed a good vocabulary. We’re both excited to do new things with Threepio, and hopefully in the future, viewers will see us expand our view of the character. After all, Threepio is as much an icon of Star Wars as Darth Vader.”

In “Trespass,” Threepio presents his most proper, most effective side — that of translator. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t provide a moment or two of levity, as is usually the case with the protocol droid.

“The thing I always liked about Threepio is that he wasn’t a hero — he was somebody who had no sense of humor and no sense of irony,” Daniels says. “He doesn’t know that he’s funny. We think he’s funny because he’s ridiculous, he’s uptight and a bit critical and it makes us laugh at him. But his saving grace and the reason that we like him is that he’s very thoughtful and very loyal. If he’s on your side, you would have a friend to the end of your existence. Or probably to the end of his existence, because he’s loyal to a fault, to his last nut and his last bolt.”

Daniels has a clear memory of the original reference to the Clone Wars, and the curious impression it had on the cast — though, he admits, nobody had any idea it would grow to the proportions it has achieved within the Star Wars universe.

“I was amused the other day to remember Mark Hamill going through his lines with me one day, and we both kind of looked at each other regarding this casual one-liner about ‘the Clone Wars,’” Daniels recalls. “And then of course, it got picked up in the prequels and now it’s its own TV series. Animation has grown up. It’s become very, very honorable, and I think Clone Wars has taken the next step.”

Coraline Movie Tie-In Books

Coraline: The Movie Collector's Edition

The Coraline movie premieres on February 6, and what better way to count down the days than to read, or reread, the award-winning children’s book by Neil Gaiman?

When Coraline explores her new home, she steps through a door and into another house just like her own… except that it’s different. It’s a marvelous adventure until Coraline discovers that there’s also another mother and another father in the house. They want Coraline to stay with them and be their little girl. They want to keep her forever.

Coraline must use all of her wits and every ounce of courage in order to save herself and return home.

Coraline: The Movie Collector’s Edition is a new hardcover edition of the 2002 novel. It retains the original book’s interior illustrations by Dave McKean, but now has a movie art cover and an eight-page insert of full-colour images from the film. A section at the back of the book, entitled “Extra Delights for the Coraline Reader”, features a note from Neil Gaiman about director/screenwriter Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach), a note from Henry Selick about author Neil Gaiman, and an excerpt from Henry Selick’s screenplay for Coraline. Even if you have the first edition of Coraline, the Movie Collector’s Edition is well worth getting for these bonus materials.

Coraline: A Visual Companion

Serving as a bridge between the novel and film is Coraline: A Visual Companion by Stephen Jones. This weighty coffee table book, with a foreword by Neil Gaiman, is a comprehensive guide to the making of the Coraline movie, divided in four parts:

  • The Book
  • The Movie
  • The Characters, and
  • The Other Coralines, a catch-all category covering Coraline‘s related projects:
    • the 2004 short student film of Coraline that combined live-action and cut-out animation.
    • the 2006 Neil Gaiman tribute CD, Where’s Neil When You Need Him?, with three songs inspired by Coraline.
    • the 2006 touring stage production of Coraline by Irish theatrical puppet troupe Púca Puppets.
    • the 2007 touring stage production of Coraline by Swedish children’s and youth theater group Mittiprickteatern.
    • the 2008 Coraline graphic novel adaptation by P. Craig Russell.
    • the 2009 Coraline: The Game, D3Publisher of America’s game adaptation of the film for PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS, and Wii.
    • the 2009 Coraline musical, a theatrical adaptation with music and lyrics by Stephin Merritt and book by David Greenspan, produced by MCC Theater and True Love Productions off-Broadway at The Lucille Lortel Theatre in New York, set to have its world premiere on May 6.
    • movie tie-in marketing campaigns, such as in-store promotions with American fast-food restaurant chains Macy’s and Carl’s Jr., cards and gift-wrap at Hallmark, and toys created by NECA.

Glossy pages trace Coraline‘s path from novel to stop-motion film in lush detail, accompanied by a wealth of behind-the-scenes production photos, preliminary sketches, illustrations, character designs, conceptual art, and completed images from the movie. Interviews with cast members Dakota Fanning (“Coraline”), Teri Hatcher (“Mother/Other Mother”), Ian McShane (“Mr. Bobinski”), Jennifer Saunders (“Miss Forcible”), and Dawn French (“Miss Spink”) — John Hodgman (“Father/Other Father”) curiously absent — and the film’s crew, including Neil Gaiman, add further insight into the film’s creative process. Coraline: A Visual Companion is a peek behind the animated curtain “that will appeal to Gaiman fans, cinema buffs, visual art enthusiasts, and all those who fall in love with the inquisitive young heroine of Henry Selick’s extraordinary film.”

Once you’ve read Coraline, and spent time in its Other World, you’ll never look at buttons the same way again. (Trivia Note: The fear of buttons is known as “koumpounophobia”.)

Order now at Amazon.com:
Coraline: The Movie Collector’s Edition (Canada)
Coraline: The Movie Collector’s Edition (US)
Coraline: A Visual Companion (Canada)
Coraline: A Visual Companion (US)

Coraline: The Movie Collector’s Edition and Coraline: A Visual Companion are distributed by HarperEntertainment and William Morrow, imprints of HarperCollinsCanada and HarperCollins Publishers. For more information on Coraline, visit the Neil Gaiman website and its related website for young readers, Mouse Circus. Neil Gaiman may also be followed on Twitter.

Town of Vulcan adds its Trekkie flair to Edmonton Symphony Orchestra’s Sci-Fi Spectacular

from Vulcan Tourism & Trek Station:

Representatives from the friendly, Star Trek obsessed Town of Vulcan, Alberta were invited to add their Trekkie Flair to the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra’s Sci-Fi Spectacular concert at Edmonton’s Winspear Centre on January 23 & 24, 2009.

Narrated by George Takei, Mr. Sulu of Star Trek fame, this concert will feature a laser light show and musical selections from Star Trek, and other well known science fiction movies and TV shows.

“The Town of Vulcan is honoured to be invited to participate at the Sci-Fi Spectacular event. I think that when organizations, such as the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, host this type of event, it shows that Star Trek and science fiction really do have a universal appeal.” said Dayna Dickens, Tourism Coordinator for the Town of Vulcan.

Vulcan’s Tourism & Trek Station crew will be at the Winspear Centre in full uniform on both nights of the concert, taking pictures of guests posing with life sized cutouts of Capt. Kirk, Dr. McCoy and of course Mr. Spock.

The Town of Vulcan will also be supplying fun prizes for the best sci-fi costumes worn to the event.

Already on the international radar for its famous name and for its homage to Star Trek and Science Fiction, the Vulcan Tourism office is hoping to bring the World Premiere of Star Trek XI to the Town of Vulcan, Alberta for its May 2009 release.

The campaign to bring the movie premiere to Vulcan follows in the wake of 2008’s unveiling of a large Star Trek Memorabilia Collection and the 2007 launch of the “Vulcan Space Adventure” virtual reality game. Vulcan has a long Trekkie history, including opening the Vulcan Tourism & Trek Station — a spacey tourist information centre, in 1998; the unveiling of the 5-tonne Vulcan Starship FX6-1995-A in 1995; and the town’s first Star Trek Convention held back in 1993. Tributes to science fiction are everywhere from space murals and alien signage that grace the walls and street corners of this little town on the prairies to a Star Trek grave stone in the local cemetery.

The Town of Vulcan, Alberta is a “logical” year-round destination for science fiction enthusiasts from across the galaxy.

Join the Facebook Group called: Star Trek XI: Help Bring Spock Home to Vulcan, Alberta to show your support for Vulcan’s quest to bring the World Premiere of Star Trek XI to Vulcan for its May 2009 release.

Live Long and Prosper…

Kim Evey: Catching up with Kiko

Kim Evey of Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show
Kim Evey of Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show

The beautiful and multitalented Kim Evey took some time out of her busy schedule to speak with ÜberSciFiGeek recently. She’s a writer, producer and actress, going easily back and forth from drama to comedy, and stage to screen (film, TV and PC). She’s appeared in such television dramas as JAG, ER, Crossing Jordan and Judging Amy, and starred as the romantic lead in the film Nowheresville, but she’s better known to millions of adoring fans as part of the driving force behind such viral video hits as Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show, The Guild and Mating Season (also known as Sexy Panda). We tried to find out a little bit about the woman behind the pigtails and the results were side-splittingly funny, as well as enlightening.

ÜberSciFiGeek (ÜSFG) Did you have an active imagination when you were a kid?

Kim Evey (KE) Always. I used to construct intricate cardboard furniture pieces for my neon pink and green clear plastic chess pieces. Mostly the pawns because they were the cutest. You’d think my parents would have gotten me Barbies. Or taught me to play chess.

(ÜSFG) How old were you when you decided you wanted to be an actor?

(KE) I don’t remember how old I was but I remember seeing Quinn Cummings on Celebrity Family Feud and I reasoned that the only way I was ever going to get on Family Feud would be as an actor because I asked my Mom if our family could be on it and she said “no.”

(ÜSFG) Lots of artistic people struggle with other things considered normal, like sports, academics and social interaction but then thrive when they discover the arts. Did you have a similar experience?

(KE) I was completely shy and socially retarded when I started high school so I did drama because it was the only way I could talk and get people to look at me at the same time. The fact that they couldn’t talk back unless their words were already scripted out was perfect for me. For some reason, in my high school class in particular, drama was where all the social misfits found solace. It wasn’t really like that in any of the other grades, just ours. Not to say that everyone in my class who did drama was a social misfit but those of us who were were particularly happy to have a place to go.

(ÜSFG) There is a brief biography on you on IMDb.com. In it, several shows were mentioned including the film Nowheresville and the one person show Within the Silence. You’ve done a lot of drama. What made you decide to turn to comedy and what inspired you to create a parody of a Japanese talk show?

(KE) In college I joined a comedy improv troupe and moved with them from Albuquerque to Seattle. I’ve always been the most comfortable with that Christopher Guest-ian type of comedy — parody so achingly real that it hurts to watch. Trying to make a living as an actor, I’ve really done whatever I could to pay the bills. Within the Silence was an educational touring show — most of the acting I did in Seattle was either educational or corporate video. Nowheresville was a romantic comedy indie feature that I’m convinced would have been a giant hit if it had starred actual celebrities instead of me and Henri Lubatti (who is actually much more of a celebrity than I am now). So I’ve always had my roots in comedy but now I really only get the opportunity to audition for television dramas. Gorgeous Tiny was actually the first sketch I ever wrote in Los Angeles. I wrote it for a class and we were supposed to write a real character in a non-real situation. Hence, Rick Pope and Kiko were born.

(ÜSFG) We’ve seen some great guest stars this season. Any other special guests lined up for the rest of Season 2 or for next season of Gorgeous Tiny?

(KE) Pretty much all the guests I’ve gotten are friends or friends of friends, with the exception of Ron Jeremy who we contacted through his agent. I think everybody assumed that we got access to celebrities because of our Sony affiliation but actually the opposite was true. Every celebrity we approached through Sony assumed we had a TV-sized budget and wanted to be compensated accordingly. So, for the next season, I need to hurry up and make more celebrity friends or I’m really screwed.

(ÜSFG) Will Panda or Unicow ever speak?

(KE) They speak the language of love in every episode. Just lean in real close and you’ll hear it.

(ÜSFG) Lick Poop… er… Rick Pope has really become a break-out character on Gorgeous Tiny, even being featured in his own Vlog. Was that planned or was it in response to on-screen chemistry and fan reaction? Will we see more Rick Pope Vlogs? Will Kiko ever return his feelings?

(KE) If we do get a season three pickup, that story line is definitely something I’d like to continue further. Part of the Vlog idea was just that Ryan Smith is one of the funniest improvisers ever, so letting him go as Rick was just excellent comedy. Ryan is really one of the best comedic actors I’ve ever met. He can actually play a funny straight man.

(ÜSFG) What happened to Episode 21? I can’t find it!

(KE) Yes, it’s strange that it seems to have disappeared from YouTube. You can see it on Crackle. Use the pull down menu to get to Season 2. It’s called “Episode 9” on Crackle, “The Taming of the Unicow.” Starring Phil Proctor of The Firesign Theater.

(ÜSFG) Have you thought about doing more films?

(KE) I like the way you phrased that. It makes it sound as if not doing more films is a personal decision that I have made for myself. It’s true. Every day, I wake up and think, “hmmm, should I spend the next few hours in bed, vacillating between showering or going back to sleep, ORRRRR should I do a film?” Invariably, I make myself feel better by calling my dreams “films” and going back to sleep. Please tell more film directors to put me in their movies. And then please tell me not to suck at my auditions for said movies. Thank you!

(ÜSFG) Your IMDb profile says you’re also an artist. Did you do any of the artwork we’ve seen in GTCMS or The Guild? Where can we see your work?

(KE) Who is responsible for these heinous lies?… I mean, um, yes, yes I AM an artist. You can see my work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Seriously, don’t they have people to check these things?

(ÜSFG) Any more 2 Hot Girls in the Shower planned? What other projects have you been working on?

(KE) Yes, we’re shooting more this week. I just got so busy with The Guild that I didn’t have time to do anything else. Or, rather, the time I had was spent oozing around in a little gelatinous puddle of my own tears. I’m not currently working on anything else. STOP TORMENTING ME WITH YOUR HORRIBLE QUESTIONS!!! I’m not working on anything else, nobody will put me in their films and I have no artistic talent! SATISFIED?!?! Actually I have another series I want my husband to shoot but he’s too busy painting God on our dining room ceiling.

(ÜSFG) Are you a Whedonite?

(KE) I’m half Whedonite, half Korean. The whole Buffy phenom passed me by but I loved Firefly and I love Dr. Horrible so I don’t know what I’m waiting for. Why don’t I just go right now and buy and watch all of Buffy?

You can catch Kim as Japanese talk show host Kiko in Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show, currently airing its second season on Crackle.

Growing Up Star Wars: 1977-1985

Flickr: Growing Up Star Wars: 1977-1985

Glen Mullaly (a group admin) says: Welcome to Growing Up Star Wars!

With the creation of this group you now have permission to post that Polaroid of yourself as Princess Leia in 1977 (I’m talking to you, Bob) or that crayon portrait you did of the Death Star Droid that hung on your parent’s fridge for months in 1979 until someone spilled Kool-Aid on it. Even that great shot of your little brother meeting an off-model Darth Vader at some local in-store promotion in 1983.

Let your vintage Star Wars fan freak flag fly free!

About Growing Up Star Wars: 1977-1985

A nostalgic look back at the world-wide Star Wars phenomenon through the creativity of the first generation of young people to experience it. Vintage photographs and scans of childhood Star Wars drawings, costumes, toys, homemade crafts, birthday cakes, local showings and events (and local ads for such) and more. The focus is on the personal experience and the variation & customization that was common in the early days of Star Wars.

Only vintage (1977-1985) photographs, or scans/photos of vintage kid’s art & crafts please. Found photos are fine, but need to be from your own collection. No borrowed or swiped internet photos without express permission of the owner! Photos of toys need to be vintage, not just of vintage toys. Also — please be sure that the Star Wars elements of the photo or scan are large enough to see clearly and that you DATE THE IMAGE. Sorry, but images that do not fit within the rules of this group may be removed.

***** A quick note to all those visiting from outside of the Flickr community: We’re really happy you’ve stopped by, but just to let you know that not all images will be visible until you join the group. Most, just not all. Thanks!

Bond Between Anakin and Ahsoka Strengthens in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

from StarWars.com:

Ahsoka Tano (left) keeps watch over a wounded Anakin Skywalker in “Jedi Crash,” an all-new episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 16, on Cartoon Network
Ahsoka Tano (left) keeps watch over a wounded Anakin Skywalker in “Jedi Crash,” an all-new episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 16, on Cartoon Network

As Jedi Master and Padawan, the relationship between Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano is central to Star Wars: The Clone Wars — and it faces a difficult test in “Jedi Crash,” an all-new episode that premieres at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday on Cartoon Network.

With Anakin suffering from life-threatening injuries, Ahsoka needs to find medical aid for him on an unfamiliar planet. The task leads her to a village populated by friendly but devoutly pacifistic creatures. As she implores them for help, Ahsoka finds she needs to practice the Jedi philosophy that prohibits personal attachments.

The episode not only introduces a brand-new race of characters to the Star Wars galaxy — the Lurmen — but also brings a new dimension to the bond between Anakin and Ahsoka. Their relationship is one that Ashley Eckstein, who voices the young Padawan, says she understands.

“I wanted to be just like my big brother when I was growing up, and I really was just like Ahsoka — I was such a tomboy,” Eckstein recalls. She says she remembers “playing Star Wars” with her brother in their living room. Back then, she took the role of R2-D2 to her brother’s C-3PO, and Eckstein says their relationship helped her define Ahsoka’s interactions with her Jedi master.

“I was the only girl on the baseball team and proud of it,” she says. “I may not have been the best hitter or the best fielder, but I was the fastest runner, and I would outrun any boy on the field. I was close in age with my brother, and we played in the same league, but my mom insisted that we not be on the same team because she wanted that sense of competitiveness, and she wanted me to be able to flourish in my own light and not be in my brother’s shadow.”

It’s a challenge similar to the one Ahsoka faces, particularly since Anakin accepted her only begrudgingly. “Being a girl, and a younger sister, made me strive that much harder because I wanted to prove to my brother that I could hang with him and his friends. I really loved having an older brother, learning from him and kind of being his Padawan, in a sense.”

While Star Wars: The Clone Wars is packed with thrills and action, Eckstein is most enthusiastic about the series’ exploration of her character’s emotions and humanity. She says Anakin and Ahsoka’s relationship helps form the emotional core of the series.

“There are some really touching moments in the series between Anakin and Ahsoka, and you definitely see their relationship grow and mature,” Eckstein says. “In the beginning of the series, they’re still learning about each other. But as the battles go on and they go through all these trials and tribulations, their relationship just grows and blossoms. They learn a lot from each other.”