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genericpuff · 1 year ago

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The LO TV show isn't happening, and here's why.

Now, before I begin, courtesy to /u/Princess_Space_Goose because they're one of the driving forces behind these observations concerning stuff in the entertainment sector and they were the first ones to make a comprehensive post about it over on reddit shortly after we got into it in the Discord and compiled everything we knew. But I also REALLY wanna talk about this and I'm surprised to see I haven't yet. They've covered reddit, so I'm covering Tumblr LMAO

Disclaimer: Long post ahead. Much of what I say below is speculation but there's a lot of damning evidence to support it. Take it with grains of salt.

Rachel has vague-posted about the show a couple times over the past few years, but very sparingly so, always stating that it's "in the works" without anything to actually show for it. This would have been fine back in 2020 or even 2021 (the pandemic did bring a lot of television/movie development to a crawl) but we're over halfway through 2023 now.

So where's the show? Who's running it? What is it gonna look like? Which streaming service is it going to be hosted on?

We literally do not know any definitive answers to these questions because nothing has been revealed and at this point in the game, that's basically a death sentence. LO has been on a noticeable decline in stats over the past year, while we obviously can't access the backend numbers (and neither can Rachel as far as I know because WT guards them with an iron fist which is a whole other topic for discussion) it's still very clear by the comic's rating slowly but surely dropping and the like count average lowering (obv the like count isn't indicative of view count but if the ratio has remained the same, that means if the like count lowers, the viewership is likely lowering too). There's also been certain behavior from WT over the past year that hints at the comic not doing well, such as its VERY aggressive ad campaigning which often undercuts other series on the platform that are far better than LO and deserve the spotlight, but lose it anyways because WT just wants to keep its golden goose on life support even after its heart has stopped beating.

So the fact that we don't know the answers to these questions still after 4 years is NOT good. We don't know anything and while that was excusable 3 years ago, at this point, it's more indicative of the project being at a standstill or dropped completely, and what we dug up and discussed in the ULO Discord (and what was later posted to reddit) proves it with some very telling information dissected from LinkedIn and other sources.

So far, the only people we know connected to this project are Rachel Smythe (the creator of LO) and Stephanie K Smith (the appointed showrunner). Showrunners are the lifeblood of television series, remember this. Here's a little bit about her:

Lore Olympus still doesn't have a network, this means it has no definitive spot to air, which is not good at this point, because the network is what primarily funds these projects. Think of "Netflix shows" - they're not necessarily made by Netflix, they're made by studios that Netflix funds and as such they're given the Netflix branding because Netflix is their proprietary distribution network and benefactor. So LO has no network or streaming service funding its production. All of her other credited works have affiliated networks/distributors, but LO doesn't.

"But what about Jim Henson Company?" Jim Henson Company bought the rights to LO in 2019 to produce it, that doesn't necessarily mean they were onboard to fund the entire project. Again, these studios need networks to back them, not just for monetary purposes, but with the promise that their project will have a place to go when it's finished, whether it's Netflix, HBO, etc. Think of it like a movie theater - the movie theaters aren't the ones making the movies, but they have deals with the studios to air those movies with the agreement that both sides will be making money.

Jim Henson Company is a production studio, not a network. Not only that, but they're primarily for-hire for puppetry/animatronic projects, they're not the same kind of studio as, say, Laika, or Disney, or Warner Bros. Much of their work is done on the backend, creating animatronics and puppets for kids' productions, monster movies, etc. Currently they're working as the animatronic designers for Five Nights at Freddy's, but that movie isn't a JHC movie, it's a Blumhouse production, which has hired JHC to create animatronics for them.

So, the fact that they were the ones to buy out LO for production rights is... very odd. Because for starters, they don't tend to buy out production rights like major studios, they're typically for hire, but they're also not an animation studio. Any animation projects they've worked on were for concept art and design, such as Word Party, but the folks at JHC primarily specialize in conceptualization and practical effects. That's their whole shtick, it's what they're selling, it's what they get hired for.

That's all early stuff though, stuff we've been speculating on for ages. What came to light recently that spurred on this whole essay was discovering this one section on Stephanie K's LinkedIn:

There are a couple things we can glean from this. First, we know this has to be LO even if it isn't being named, because LO is the only one that was bought by JHC.

This also confirms that LO did end up with a distribution network, specifically HBO Max.

But it also confirms that Stephanie K Smith, the showrunner, is no longer on the project, either due to willingly quitting or being removed. According to the time stamps, she left in April of this year.

This is especially not good because without a showrunner, there's no leader. Showrunners are essential to these projects. So without a showrunner, and without any sort of announcement of a replacement, LO's television show is a ship without a captain, a car without a driver, a Hell's Kitchen without a Gordon Ramsay.

There's mention of an "animated presentation" but as mentioned in that reddit post above, that's not necessarily a pilot, it's more likely it was this. Which can't even really be called "animation", it's just video editing, rigging and tweening, but I digress.

There's a lot more in that reddit thread that dives into some of the details of Stephanie K's stuff, including the HBO Max affiliation and how that potentially connects to the Sydney Sweeney trailer, but ultimately, all of these breadcrumbs add up to one of two things:

LO's television show is in severe development hell which it likely will not come out of for quite some time, especially right now with both the writer's strike and streaming services gutting their animation connections.

LO's show isn't happening at all but with LO's numbers declining and its audience growing more fed up with the series (look no further than the comments on Instagram about LO's recent Eisner win, people are PISSED) Rachel and WT are trying to do as much damage control as possible by dangling a carrot in front of the audience they have left in the hopes that they'll stick around long enough on the promise of a TV show happening to keep siphoning cash and views. After all, there are two things many readers are still sticking around for - the SA plotline, and the TV show, and both of those things are being unnecessarily dragged out in the vaguest way possible with no real resolution in sight.

Neither of these are good, but I think what's even more telling is that, since that post was made on reddit, Rachel has attended SDCC and taken part in a new interview from Girl Wonder Podcast, and when asked about the show, all she had to say was this:

"Um, it’s been really interesting. It’s been educational for me. So, what I—what has been done so far is beautiful. Like, if I could share it, I would. But I can’t. Because it’s very naughty."

IDK if the "naughty" bit is referring to the show or just her revealing info about it, but the fact that NOTHING was shown at SDCC is just. Y'all, I'm sorry, but the show is not happening. If you're gonna show off previews for television ANYWHERE, it's SDCC. It's like the E3 of comics and entertainment media. So the fact that she's STILL VAGUE-POSTING ABOUT IT EVEN AT A MAJOR EVENT WHERE IT'S COMMONPLACE TO REVEAL TRAILERS AND PREVIEWS OF NEW PROJECTS, like... it's just not happening. Jim Henson Company bought the rights to produce LO as a TV show in the summer of 2019. Since then, we haven't seen a SHRED of news, if you google "Lore Olympus TV show" it'll still be the same 2-3 articles from 2019 talking about JHC buying the rights and that's it. If you do further sleuthing, all you'll find is Rachel saying "yeah it's still happening but I can't say anything!" which means fucking nothing at this point. The only 'hope' I have left is that they'll announce it at NYCC which has Rachel in a top billing spot in its advertising, but I'm really not holding my breath at this point.

Animated productions take a while, sure, but LO wasn't the only comic bought for TV production in that late 2010's/early 2020's era. Heartstopper was bought in 2019, and it made it to Netflix by April 2022. And it was live action, a medium SEVERELY affected by the pandemic, unlike animation, which wasn't affected as much because a lot of animation development can be done from home. What did affect the animation sector was streaming services like Netflix gutting their connections to animation studios and putting animated projects on the chopping block... which also doesn't bode well for LO.

It's 2023 now and we still don't even have anything beyond those initial announcement articles and Rachel making empty promises. It's not happening. Don't fall for the "it's coming soon but I can't say anything" nonsense. It's far less genuine now than it was 3 years ago and it has nothing to support those claims that it's actually in development, and ironically far more to support mere speculation that she's lying or doing damage control.

And, if it actually is happening, on a shred of belief in that being a possibility, then it sure as shit isn't being marketed well. Knowing how to build hype in a product is an entire course of knowledge. Marvel is practically the king of building hype, they're why people sit until the very end of the credits now in the hopes of seeing an after-credit scene, even in movies that aren't made by them. LO's numbers are bleeding right now, so to not show anything at even the major events like SDCC is a blatant misfire. Almost like there isn't anything to show in the first place.

You can take all of this evidence as you will. Some of it you may dismiss as "overthinking" or whatever have you. And a lot of it is speculation based on the crumbs we've picked up along the way.

But let me pose you this as a final thought: how can it be a good sign when everything being asked about the show, by fans and critics alike, comes down to "Is the show still happening?"

The best time to reveal proof of the LO television show was 3 years ago. The second best time is now.

#lore olympus critical #lo critical #antiloreolympus #anti lore olympus #long post #analysis post #essay post

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flanaganfilm · 2 years ago

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Mike, can you tell us your experience premiering Oculus at tiff 2013? I recently saw Perri Nemiroff’s interview with you (looking like a baby btw- so young) and it made me think about what your mindset must have been as in getting yo experience the launch of your career, post Absentia, at one of the most prestigious festivals.

Oh, I remember that very well... a lot changed in a very short amount of time. And I think I know the interview you're talking about, I keep trying to link to it here but it doesn't take...

So there are few things to point out about Oculus and about what was happening in my life at the time. When Oculus got greenlit, I was working full time as a reality television editor. I used to sneak out of my job at lunch to go to "doctor's appointments" whenever I had to come for production meetings or casting sessions (they started to think there was something really, really wrong with my health).

Making the movie was an amazing learning experience - it was my first "real" movie, and full of lessons. It was the first collaboration with people who would become pillars of my career moving forward, like producer Trevor Macy (who is now my partner at Intrepid Pictures and who has produced everything I've ever made since) and my DP Michael Fimognari, who is one of the most important collaborators of my life. It was also the first time I worked with a young actress named Kate Siegel, who played the spooky ghost in the mirror.

We went into TIFF with distribution already in place. FilmDistrict had committed to the project during the Cannes market before we shot the movie, so we thought we were set. It was going to be my big theatrical debut.

Just before we premiered at TIFF, FilmDistrict abruptly and bafflingly dropped the film. I still don't really know why. They had committed to a worldwide theatrical release for the movie, but for reasons that were never made entirely clear to me, they dropped us just before the festival. Suddenly the whole enterprise was in jeopardy, and I didn't know if anyone would pick the movie back up.

I was absolutely terrified.

Being my first "real" movie, I didn't really know how this world worked and couldn't understand why our distributor didn't want to release it. We'd made the movie they had been excited about, they seemed to really like it, and we'd done everything they asked - it was a shock to the system. So when we rolled into tiff, we were homeless and trying not to let FilmDistrict's abrupt change of heart poison our chances of another sale.

I had never been to TIFF before but heard about Midnight Madness, which had seen huge sales from Cabin Fever and Insidious. Bidding wars had broken out while the films were still screening. But being part of the program was absolutely no guarantee of distribution - in fact, this might be the highest this movie would ever rise.

Trevor Macy and I went to the world premiere of The Green Inferno, which was playing the night before we played, and the audience was ROWDY. Like, shouting and hollering throughout the movie. We looked at each other with wide, nervous eyes - if this was the Midnight Madness audience, they were going to hate our movie the next day. We were considerably slower, ponderous, and atmospheric in a room that seemed to demand visceral, overt entertainment. I left the screening feeling dejected and a little doomed. Trevor was more upbeat, citing conversations he'd had with the programmer, Colin Geddes, who assured us he'd put our movie in the best possible spot for its success.

Our screening was September 9th, 2013 at midnight. I was petrified, and we were sold out. I remember walking into the theater feeling like this was the most important screening of my life. I wasn't alone, thank goodness. Trevor Macy, Michael Fimognari, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff, Rory Cochrane, and James Lafferty were on hand. The film seemed to play well. It was the opposite of the screening the night before, which Colin had told us would happen - "watch," he had said. "The Saturday night slot is the big crazy one. You guys are Sunday, and it's going to be completely different. They'll plug right in."

He was right. You could hear a pin drop for most of the first half, and then there were moments of scattered applause that picked up as the film progressed. By the end, people were jumping in their seats and cheering for young Tim and Kaylee. There was an audible gasp when the anchor swung. And the applause at the credits seemed heartfelt and loud.

Most of that is a blur for me. I found this grainy pic from the Q&A after the film. I still had no idea how it had gone, or what was going to come out of it. I remember having hard time putting words together, and I vividly recall feeling like I sounded like an absolute moron whenever I talked, and trying to pass the microphone over to the actors as often as I could.

It's tough to see everyone in the pic, but from left to right it is Colin Geddes, Michael Fimognari, myself, Trevor Macy, Katee Sackhoff, Brenton Thwaites, Rory Cochrane, and James Lafferty.

When I stepped out of the theater, though, I became aware that everything had changed. I was immediately surrounded by people who had seen the film, suddenly shaking a ton of hands and realizing that it had been a hit. I walked into the theater by myself, utterly anonymous, and feeling every bit like an imposter. But everything was different when I walked out. I remember someone from the press talking about it years later, and saying "I was there that night - you walked into the theater with nothing, and walked out with a career."

People were asking me to sign stuff. That had never happened in my life. People wanted to get pictures. It was SO. FUCKING. WEIRD. Someone snapped a picture during that little whirlwind, and you can see it on my (young, skinny, hopelessly naive) face - an overall bewilderment, a gentle disbelief that this was happening:

I loved my experience at TIFF. And it absolutely started everything. Relativity, Blumhouse, and WWE Films joined forces to make an offer on the movie at the festival, and we left with a theatrical distribution deal. My career had officially begun. Now, I wouldn't feel like it had for several more years - I remained in fight/flight/survival mode well through Gerald's Game - but in retrospect, yes, that's when it happened.

Thank you for asking this question, it's been a while since I've looked back at this period of my life. It kinda makes me want to watch that movie again. It has been a LONG time, and I owe it a lot.

Maybe everything.

#oculus #tiff #toronto film festival #midnight madness #I cannot and will not accept that this was only ten years ago

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go4distributors · 2 years ago

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covid-safer-hotties · 23 days ago

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Also preserved on our archive (Daily updates!)

Vax and relax with no access to the vax. I'm sure that will work out just fine.

By Teri Fikowski

(Follow the link to watch the news segment)

Alberta rolled out its fall immunization campaign on Tuesday, but people hoping to get both a flu and COVID-19 vaccine at the same time might have to wait, with many pharmacies yet to receive a shipment of the new COVID shots.

"We were expecting to get flu and COVID shots together, so that was the plan initially, but just prior to the launch, we were told the vaccines would be a little delayed for COVID," said Nisma Shaukat, the pharmacist at Copperfield Pharmasave.

In September, Alberta Health announced both vaccines would be available on Oct. 15(opens in a new tab).

While many pharmacies are unable to open bookings until delivery of the shots, others were forced to cancel bookings on Tuesday.

"It's certainly inconvenient for people, especially when a lot of them heard through radio commercials and things like that that everything would be available together on the 15th," Shaukat said.

"So, many are coming in together, expecting to do both and we have to tell them, 'No, we only have one available at the moment.'"

Health Minister Adriana LaGrange says a "glitch" involving a distributor, McKesson, has led to the delay in shipments.

"I'm assured they are rolling out the vaccine products and vaccine themselves to pharmacies and AHS clinics and will have everyone full-supplied by the end of the week."

Previously, the province blamed distribution problems(opens in a new tab) for family doctors not getting access to flu shots to administer.

Now, it's pharmacists who worry the delay may make it difficult to get people back through the doors for another appointment, citing a slowdown in vaccine uptake in Alberta.

During the 2023-24 flu season, 1.1 million Albertans received a flu shot, the majority through pharmacies and clinics.

That's about 140,000 people fewer than the previous year.

"It slowed down some, no question there. Last year, I think the flu numbers were half the peak and that's also why we had a really bad flu year," said David Brewerton with Lukes Drug Mart.

He describes the delay as a minor inconvenience but said Albertans shouldn't hesitate to get the shot as soon as they can, with a new strain of COVID-19 circulating.

"They should get it soon," he said.

"The fellow I just gave it to now has a person at work already and they've got other people with it. There is certainly COVID going around, there is no question there."

Health experts worry about what kind of impact a delay in vaccines will have on the upcoming respiratory virus season.

"The problem is low uptake today is going to a lead to a problem not tomorrow, not three weeks from now, but Christmastime when we're going to have all the hospitals overflowing," said microbiologist Jason Tetro.

He accuses the province of doing little to encourage Albertans to get vaccinated, citing what he describes as a lack of a fall immunization campaign, due to ideological reasons.

"Politicization of the vaccine has made a huge impact, so now we have right versus left but at the end of the day, getting a jab in your arm shouldn't be political," he said.

LaGrange said the province invested $500,000 to immunization campaigns, the same as the previous year.

A delivery date for the COVID-19 vaccine is dependent on pharmacies, so Albertans are encouraged to check in or check online for appointments.

#mask up #covid #pandemic #public health #wear a mask #covid 19 #wear a respirator #still coviding #coronavirus #sars cov 2 #covid vaccines #covid vaccine #covid vax #canada

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vishalmishra · 9 months ago

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tallaxia · 9 months ago

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Death Machine article with director Stephen Norrington, Brad Dourif & Ely Pouget

Cinefantastique #26 - 1995

Brad Dourif creates the mother of all rampaging robots.

The mother of all psycho robots roamed the corridors of Pinewood Studios, England from September 2, 1993, for 12 weeks. But the 20-foot tall, cable-controlled star of DEATH MACHINE mav look vaguely familiar. Like a giant metallic version of the Alien from Rid¬ ley Scott’s 1979 science-fiction classic? "Well sort of,” replied director Stephen Norrington adding, "It’s like ROBOCOP, TERMINATOR and HARDWARE too! That’s why it got financed in the first place. But while DEATH MACHINE is in the same area as all of those genre movies, it has emerged from that place with a unique style and humor to become its own separate entity.” Trimark Pictures has picked up the film’s U.S. video and technical rights for release later this year.

Norrington makes his directorial debut with this selfpenned chiller after years of gaining a formidable reputation as one of Britain's best special effects masters. He began as Rick Baker’s runner on GREYSTOKE and has since worked on numerous blockbusters including ALIENS, RETURN TO OZ and YOUNG SHERLOCK HOLMES. "After GREMLINS 2 I began losing interest in effects,” explained Norrington. "I started writing scripts with effects twists and the third one I came up with was DEATH MACHINE.” By 1990 however, Norrington hadn't got very far in attracting any financial interest in his new ambition so he joined the ALIEN special effects crew “just to keep my hand in” and then accepted an offer to supervise SPLIT SECOND. While working on that futuristic actioncr, producer Laura Gregory showed interest in one of Norringlon’s other scripts. SPEEDER, as a possible sequel for Rutger Hauer. (The script: Norrington’s TERMINATOR meets A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, is now planned as a follow-up to DEATH MACHINE.) The interest led Norrington to meet future DEATH MACHINE producer Vic Bateman (Japan's Victor Company head), who handled the world sales for SPLIT SECOND.

Noted Dominic Anciano, who produced DEATH MACHINE with Bateman and had a massive European success with Peter Medak’s THE KRAYS, "Vic thought Norrington ’s writing and ideas were very commercial and urged me to take him seriously. Because SPEEDER was apparently all tied up with Laura Gregory, I asked Stephen what else he had written and was given DEATH MACHINE. I thought it was so unusual for a British writer to be that succinct in his writing, that passionate about directing, 1 felt I had to give him the chance and let him make it his way. DEATH MACHINE is the sort of movie audiences worldwide want to see and we seem to have a commercial knack for making them in Britain.”

Co-financed by Japan’s Victor Company and Britain’s Entertainment Film Distributors (the latter produced SLIP STREAM), the $3 million DEATH MACHINE is set in the 21st century and focuses on nightmare events taking place behind the closed doors of the Chaank Weapons Corporation. The company has appointed a new female Chief Executive, Hayden Cale (Ely Pouget), to ensure they remain the leader of the techno-armament pack. But she wants to fire their number one asset Jack Dante, a neo-hippie whose dark genius for weaponry design is the envy of the industry. However, Dante is a childlike psychopath incapable of making the distinction between right and wrong after years of watching hardcore cartoon violence on television and decides he isn’t going without a fight. The result is the invention of his most destructive instrument ever…the unstoppable DEATH MACHINE.

Norrington pointed out, "It’s a hybrid of a million things I love; maniacs, actor Brad Dourif [who plays Dante], psycho robots, corporate nightmares, DIE HARD action and huge hi-tech sets. And that’s only naming a few. It’s your average ‘Crazed cyborg on the rampage menacing great looking people' saga!” Added Norrington more seriously, "While DEATH MACHINE is grim with some blood and gore, it isn't a splatter movie. Underneath the surface it’s about losing one’s innocence and how you become dehumanized if you are involved in an industry dealing with destruction. Do such inventors ever think about what they’re doing in real terms? Does their judgment have a guilty edge? This is about that turning off point taken to the most horrifying extreme.”

It was this edge in Norrington’s script which stirred Brad Dourif’s stomach a little. "And when that happens, it’s a sign of good material,” noted the voice of Chucky from the CHILD’S PLAY movie series and star of BODY PARTS and GRAVEYARD SHIFT. "The main point of interest for me was the cartoon connection. Dante is so tuned into animation and the mass media, he mimics everything he sees. I m taking a lot of acting risks playing this part because his responses are all so unreal and based on recognizable things. Dante responds more to TV than people. He’s a villain but a hard one to hate."

Many of the crew have noted how Dourif’s on-screen identity resembles Norrington's own off-screen look. Dourif nodded sagely, "There arc numerous similarities between Dante and Stephen. It’s his personal story about the problems we will all face when the world becomes even more industrialized. 1 can honestly say that Stephen is the best director I’ve ever worked with. It’s the era of first-timers and I've had an incredible run of them. Stephen is better equipped than most to direct this sort of movie because of his visual eye, love of the genre and his special effects background."

For Ely Pougct, the attraction was the weird twisted logic of DEATH MACHINE. The actress who appeared in the recent DARK SHADOWS TV series noted, “In Hayden’s backstory, she was responsible for the death of a child. So hunting and trying to kill the ‘childlike’ Dante causes her major psychological traumas. However, I'm definitely the tough Sigourney Weaver figure in DEATH MACHINE. Despite the script's hard as nails exterior, Stephen has put in a softness, an underlying sadness allying it more to KING KONG and FRANKENSTEIN than the obvious hi-tech equivalents.”

“The fine acting from Brad and Ely has made DEATH MACHINE less derivative than I expected in truth,” admitted Norrington on the Pinewood soundstage where the glass Chaank offices have been created. He added, “Their unique characterizations have added some real potent surprises above those contained in the script. It's less reliant on hard-tech gimmicks than I anticipated and far more bizarre than I ever imagined. I see it as a more thoughtful cross between Sam Raimi horror slapstick and James Cameron energetic action."

Norrington loves those two directors. It’s the reason he included them in a script peppered with familiar names for the leading characters; Scott Ridley, Carpenter and, of course, Dante are other examples. Plagiarism as an art form!” said Norrington. "I wrote the script when I was still a frothing fan boy. Then someone pointed out Fred Dekker had done exactly the same thing in NIGHT OF THE CREEPS. How uncool! 1 ditched a few references after finding that out.”

Responsible for the special effects in Norrington’s feature debut is Creature Effects (CFX for short) an all-British outfit consisting of Dave Elsey, Cliff Wallace, Alan Hedgecock and Brendan Lonergan who together and separately have worked on numerous high profile movies including NIGHTBREED, RETURN OF THE JEDI and WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT. Norrington chose CFX mainly because he knew them, and their work, personally.

Constructing the Death Machine fell to Animated Extras, the prosthetic/ mechanics company owned by Daniel Parker and Nick Williams who worked on the Indiana Jones film scories, ENEMY MINE and MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN. They worked from Norrington’s design marquette for the killer robot. "The fullsize construction was so big and heavy it needed 12 people on the controls to make it move,” said Parker.

So was directing harder or easier than Norrington expected? He gave a wry smile and said, “I’d directed some award winning commercials and promos before DEATH MACHINE. Anyone could do it. I’m living proof that directing, in the words of the immortal, god-like James Cameron, is criminally easy. The only challenge I’ve faced had to do with time and money: staying at a consistently high quality on such a short schedule.”

#death machine #brad dourif #jack dante #interview #stephen norrington #magazine scan #ely pouget #hayden cale #90s sci-fi #90s horror #horror movies

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