Review: State of Syn (Ep. 1-3)

This review is about State of Syn, a multiplatform sci-fi webseries that was released along with an App. It stars David Hewlett - of whom I am a fan, check out my review of another his films Nothing, and hence how I found it - along with his Stargate Atlantis co-stars Jewel Staite, Rainbow Francks and Torri Higgson, who does the opening voice-over. Currently there are only three episodes available in the UK, but it hopefully it should be made internationally available.

Unlike other series, State of Syn is not life action per se, but an animated graphic novel with the story told in panels and shots, with some animated movement - such as hands, expressions, walking etc. The effect was created by photographing the actors in front of green screens and then adding backgrounds.

I must admit, I wasn't so keen on the style at first - some of the movements look a little odd, especially character's running feet - but a second viewing has made me appreciate the 'comic that come to life' look, and the series truly does feel like some dark, science fiction graphic novel come to life. The settings have an atmoshperic contrast of darkness and neon colours, and the environments look sleek, whilst being detailed - it just looks great. And let's not forget the cast, who pull off their character's emotions and personalities brilliantly, in the snap shots and through their voice performances. 

Meanwhile, from a production point of view, I think the comic and green screen photography concept is brilliant. It opens up so many possibilities for webseries creators, as you can literally put your actors in any setting you want - as long as you have the time to create it. You could even re-use the same shots, but just change the settings and order to create a new story. 

Anyway, now I should probably explain the story. Basically, its your typical futuristic dystopia, with a giant gap between the rich and poor, and corporate companies now in charge. A new type of drug - or rather techno drug, it looks like a pair of ear buds - called Vibe is being released. It's developer is the father of our hero Annika, and when he dies she begins to uncover secrets surrounding Vibe and her dad. 

This is solid sci-fi stuff, but its not particularly new, in fact its rather typical. The really interesting concept, for me, is what Annika and the drug can do. Annika has synesthesia, a neurological condition where if one sense is stimulated, another sense also kicks in - for example, people with synesthesia see specific colours along with specific numbers, so when they look at 4 it always looks green. I think this is fascinating, and I love it when sci-fi shows use real science concepts.

The other thing I enjoyed about State of Syn was following and getting involved with the series through social media - and I must say, the show engages with its audience really well. They respond to tweets, they've run competitions, they've asked for what people want to see on merchandise, and even got David Hewlett to do an Ask Me Anything interview on Reddit that anyone could participate in. 

Obviously this benefits the webseries, but its also really fun for fans too, so basically everyone wins. I recommend you check them out if you're intending to start your own webseries, as they have come up with some nifty ideas to get people involved - meme competition? Genius!

In summary: State of Syn is a stylish, sleek sci-fi webseries with an excellent cast, a fascinating real life science idea at its core and an engaging online presence. Definitely one for Stargate Atlantis fans (and Firefly fans) to check out - and lets hope the next five episodes reach the UK soon. 

Review: Eat, Pray, Love

We're already a month into the new year and if you're like me, most of your resolutions may have just dissipated into your usual habits. Do not despair though! Instead, let us look for inspiration in a film about travelling, spirituality and discovery - Eat, Pray, Love (2010). 

Based on the best-selling memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert, the film stars Julia Roberts, along with James Franco, Viola Davis, Javier Bardem and many other fine actors. The film was directed by Ryan Murphy, who also co-wrote the screenplay along with Jennifer Salt - who have recently both been writing episodes of American Horror Story according to IMDb. 

The film follows Liz, a woman who realises she is unhappy in her marriage, and after a painful divorce and rebound relationship decides to go travelling for a year - living in Rome, India and finally Bali - in the hopes of discovering more about herself.

Now, I'm just going to dive in here and say my main problem with this film is it wasn't quite what I expected it be. I thought it was going to be an enlightening, life-affirming but jolly jaunt - basically feel-good fluff. 

Instead, the film is more serious - or at least takes itself more seriously than that - as the emotional journey of a woman who, frankly was possibly depressed, and decided to try and find herself through food, spirituality and love. 

Although I appreciate that this is based on a real person's experiences and this film is probably being honest in its emotions - but for me the film, and Julia Roberts, felt very muted, and the constant emotional stuff, honestly got a little depressing, with moments that could have been warmer, funnier and more uplifting lacking enegry and being dampened by the protagonist's lonely mood. 

For example, at the Thanksgiving meal where Elizabeth gives thanks for being around such happy people. The way she says it, looking at the lovestruck couples in the room, she seems wistful. 

Even the cinematography, though I enjoyed the realism and colour in bustling Naples and India, occasionally looks a little drained from time to time - the sunlight seems to appear to harsh and cold. Unlike say the warmth of To Rome With Love (2012). 

Not that there weren't things I enjoyed about it the film. The settings are lovely, and there is some brilliant acting and quirky characters - my favourites being Felipe, Ketut and Richard. 

I also found learning bits and pieces about the different cultures in Rome and Bali fascinating - particularly the scene where the Italians talk about the concept of 'dolce far niente' or the sweetness of doing nothing. 

But in the end, the film was not as fun as I thought it would be, and left me feeling rather unsatisfied. 


In summary: Eat, Pray, Love is an interesting film, with some wonderfully quirky characters, that charts one woman's quite painful journey of self-discovery as travels for a year. Worth checking out at the least for the cultural titbits and the scenery, but its not as light-hearted as the pink boarder around the DVD cover suggests. 

Scene 71: 2014 - The Blog has Changed

It's the beginning of a new year, and as you can see I've given the blog a new look for the new year - and I don't just mean making the background look a different kind of pretty. I'm talking about a serious overhaul. 

Looking at a few old post titles recently, confirmed for me how erratic my posts are. I think the problem is that I have tried to be too inclusive. The whole media industry is so vast, attempting to write about it all is far too much. I've also kept having ideas for regular themed posts, and introduced them, only to not keep them up, which does not help keep things consistent. 

Not only that, but a load of posts start with apologises for missed weeks or sometimes even months of posting. I realise that life does get in the way, and that regular bloggers and vloggers may not post every week, but I still feel this does not give out a good impression. 

In short, I feel that as a writer, this blog could and should be better - and I think in this case, less is definitely more.

So, from now on this blog will concentrate on - film reviews, television reviews and scriptwriting. 


Thanks,
GWAGM

Scene 70: Frozen Review

I saw Frozen the other day. I hadn't intended too. When I saw the trailer it looked like it was going to be typical Disney fare - and I was rather put off by the jokey sidekick snowman, which  I thought would probably only appeal to younger kids.

I was also rather disappointed that they'd just done it in same animation style as Tangled, even though I had loved the look Tangled and its characters had. I guess I had kind of expected Disney to use a different animation design for its next film - was this style going to be their trademark design for every CGI film from now on?

However, that was until I came across the film's song Let It Go - a rip roaring, want to sing it out loud, stuck in your head, show stopping sort of song that was so good, I had to see the whole film.

I wasn't disappointed - Frozen is a delightful and enjoyable family film, that manages to change up and challenge some of the old tropes.

Based loosely on the Snow Queen its main protagonists are two princesses called Elsa and Anna. Elsa has the ability to create snow and ice, a power she enjoys as a child until she accidentally hurts Anna. Afraid that her powers might become dangerous, her parents decide to keep her shut away, whilst Anna now with no memory of Elsa's power, grows up with a distant sister and no one to play with.

Inevitability tragedy strikes, when their parents are killed. Elsa now must become queen, but on the day of the coronation things go wrong when Anna meets a prince, and thinking she's in true love and agrees to marry him that night - much to Elsa's horror. During the ensuing argument between them Elsa accidentally reveals her powers, and scared by people's reactions flees into the mountains - leaving the kingdom in an eternal winter. Of course Anna immediately goes after her, acquiring help from a kooky ice deliverer, his reindeer and a snowman called Olaf along the way.

I really enjoyed this film for several reasons. First off, its main protagonists are two sisters who completely drive the story, and the film focuses more on them and the idea of family. Secondly, the queen in this movie is not a villain, as she so often is in other films and television shows - think Snow White, the Red Queen, Once Upon A Time and the original Snow Queen etc. In the fact that Elsa starts off as a princess and then takes on the responsibility of queen, without needing to marry anyone - surely a first in Disney history?

Both the women are great characters. Neither are perfect and have a distinct personality and motivations. Elsa is the responsible, sensible one, desperately hiding her true self, believing she is dangerous. Meanwhile Anna is more bubbly and optimistic and though more naive, her agreement to marry the first prince she meets is understandable, considering that she's grown-up without anyone much for company and probably has been rather lonely.

That's not to say the male cast aren't great. Kristoff, an ice cutter who Anna hires to help her, is an odd but lovely guy. Whilst Olaf the snowman manages to pull off being genuinely sweet and rather funny, instead of annoying, forced or just plain redundant as some cute sidekicks can be.

Finally there are the songs, which are done in a Broadway musical style and are all pretty damn good. Let It Go is definitely the best, and will get stuck in your head, whilst my second favourite is Fixer Upper, an amusing song that reminds us that's no-one's perfect.

To top it all off, this is also the first film in Disney history to be directed by a woman, Jennifer Lee - who directs along with Chris Buck according to IMDb - and who incidentally also wrote the screenplay!

In short, I thought this film was a refreshingly different princess story and a well-told family film. I definitely recommend Frozen this Christmas!

Scene 69: Pills Short Film

I've been involved in quite a few short films for the last few years - as a producer, extra, runner, editor etc. However, the latest film I've been involved in - not including my community film editing work - is particularly special. Pills is a short sci-fi about time-travel and trust, with a script written by me!

Yes, my very first script translated to the screen. And as with many scripts, it took a while to get there. I came up with idea at least a couple of years ago, and first pitched it in a session with Jon Reiss on a Second Light Lab for Producers.  A few months later I wrote the script, but it wasn't until earlier this year, after failing to get funding for it from a competition, that I decided, I'd produce it myself.

So, I got together with a couple of guys I've worked with before at Red Dog Film - a young cinematographer called Ben Groves who I also had as director, and a young director/actor called Will Jones who played the main protagonist George. I then cast along with an actress who been in Coins, a short film written and directed by Will Jones, as the second main character Izzy. Finally a new actor who is part of a film club I help run for RDF called ReBrand rounded off the cast as George's friend Mike.

The film was shot over a weekends towards the end of the summer, and is currently still in post-production - I've seen a rough cut and I'm rather pleased with it.

So, what did I learn whilst making the film? Well, I discovered first hand what it's like to have actors and directors taking your precious script and causually change lines or throw in new ideas, and though it was a little disconcerting, I knew that it was the way it was meant to be. Scripts as they say, are blueprints for films, and films are all about collaboration - everyone throws in their ideas, and hopefully expands and augments the original idea, making it better and bigger.

Or as I put it - a script is like a cake recipe. You perfect it, then give it to someone else - and yes, they aren't going to make the same cake as you did, but they might add things you never thought of and improve it.

In short, I enjoyed making the film and I'm intending to make more in future.

If you want to check out a few pictures from the shoot for Pills here's a link to the Facebook page: Pills on Facebook.

Scene 68: Doctor Who FanScript Extract

So, I was sorting out all my stuff on my computer today, trying to get enough space to render this footage I needed when I came across an old script of mine I never thought I'd see again - Swarm Science, a Doctor Who script I actually tried to send to the BBC! 

It's not that great - re-reading the beginning I'd probably get the action going much quicker now if I rewrote this  -  but I actually did a lot of research on the 1920's for this script, and spent quite a bit of time on it, so despite it not going anywhere I guess it was good practise for future scripts. 

Anyway, I thought I'd share some on the blog since I've been so  busy and uninspired to write, which has meant I haven't written a proper post or review in ages. I hope this bridges the gap and makes up for it a bit - and its a bit of fun for all the Doctor Who fans out there!

EXT. CITY STREET: DAY 

March 1925 - a busy high street.

A fashionably dressed girl on a bicycle LOUISE ’LULU’ HEATLEY (26), in a cloche brakes in front of a cafe.

She locks up the bicycle and goes inside. 

CUT TO:

INT. CAFE, UPSTAIRS DINING-ROOM: DAY

Lulu dodges round the tables and the waitresses to a table by the window where EDITH MARSH (25) is lounging, as she fiddles with a cigarette case whilst talking idly to DENIS BARNES (27), who is picking a slice of lemon out his gin and tonic.

LULU 
Am I late?

EDITH 
No, no, you’re on time actually. I ordered a pot of tea for us to share.

LULU 
Oh, merci. 

Lulu pulls up a seat, putting down a bag and a green hardback volume of Vasari’s Lives. She pushes a pair of round glasses up her nose, and begins to pour herself a cup of tea.

LULU
Do we know when the train goes?

DENIS
Four.

LULU
Good. I’ll have time to fetch my luggage from home. I’ve been really looking forward to seeing you two, and going on this sojourn to London.

EDITH
Me too, dear. Wait til I show you

my rooms, I’ve had them decorated. And we must go and see that

new play, the Vortex.

DENIS
And that new dance club. But let’s eat first, shall we? 

Denis picks up a menu.

LULU
Yes, I’m as hungry as a wolf.

CUT TO:

EXT. FACTORY YARD: DAY

An abandoned factory yard, walled in, with a rusty gate hanging loose.

A couple of workmen are walking beside the wall. MAURICE SIMMONS, 42, with a slight limp, pushing a bike, and BILL WALKER, 25, with a burn mark on his face.

They pause by the gates and look up at the factory. A cloud of black is rising from one of the old chimneys.

BILL
Hey, there’s smoke rising from over there. Has that factory re-opened?

MAURICE
Don’t think so. (beat) It’s probably just a load of homeless people in there.

The smoke tails off.

MAURICE CONT’D 
Come on, we need to get a move on. We can cut through here.

BILL
Isn’t it shorter through town?

MAURICE
Nah, trust me. I used to work  round here before they started making tanks. 

Maurice opens the gates and they walk through. 

CUT TO:

INT. CAFE, UPSTAIRS DINING ROOM: DAY

The table is covered in the remnants of luncheon.

EDITH
What now? We still have a couple of hours.

DENIS
There’s the pictures I suppose. I mean, there’s not much else down here to do, is there? It’s all rather industrial and rural...

EDITH
Good idea. What’s showing?

DENIS 
I don’t know.

LULU
Take a look in the paper, theyalways have cinema listings.

DENIS
I never buy local papers.

EDITH
Ask to borrow someone’s then.

Lulu frowns. They look about the cafe. There are well-dressed ladies drinking delicately. A young couple smoking and flirting near the staircase. A pair of imposing looking older men are talking gruffly

about business.

And...sat alone at the table is a MAN in eccentric attire with his feet up on a chair, fiddling with what looks like a manual egg whisk.

His table is a jumble of stuff - a book in a foreign language, cups, plates with half eaten toast and scones, pots of jam, a pot of tea, a newspaper and several bits of wire.

LULU
Voila. Go on Denis.

DENIS(pulls face) 
Ask him?

LULU
Why not?

EDITH
Look at his table. He looks a bit odd.

DENIS
He is odd. I saw him stirring butter into his tea just before you arrived.

LULU
So?

DENIS
So I’m not talking to him.

LULU
Fine. I’ll go.

She gets up and walks over, faltering by the table for a moment.

LULU(shyly) 
Excuse me? 

The man doesn’t look up.

DOCTOR
Black coffee with two sugars and a slice of lime, and are you sure you don’t have any...

The man looks up.

DOCTOR
Oh, (big smile) g’day.

LULU
Good afternoon. Sorry to disturb you, but I was wondering if I might borrow your newspaper? I want to check the listings for the movies.

DOCTOR
Ah, good old silent movies.

He pulls the paper out from under a pile of plates, and hands it to her.

DOCTOR
Who’s your favourite? Buster Keaton, Lilian Gish, Charlie Chaplin...

LULU
Max Linder. I used to watch his movies when I was a child in Paris.

DOCTOR
Really? You don’t sound Parisian?

LULU
Oh, don’t be put off by my accent. I was born there, but my father was English, and we moved here when I was young...

Note: Original characters copyright KCS, Doctor Who belongs to the BBC.