Babylon 5 in 3D???

[Truth66]

Jan raised an interesting point in another thread with regards to a possible B5 feature film. Does anyone know if JMS has approached another studio, considering WB hasn't made up their minds about a B5 feature by now. My thinking, (of course it's just that my thinking), is that with the success of Avatar, studios would be more inclined now to back a big budget Sci fi feature film than say a year ago. After all, we all saw that back in the 70's with the success of Star Wars.
Numerous Sci fi films were made after Star Wars and many of them were, let's say pretty crappy. Yet, it didn't stop these various studios from trying to cash in and ride the success of Star Wars.
With Avatar being a film in 3D, what type of B5 film could be done in 3D? Thinking back to some of those space battles from the series and the television movies, many of them would look really cool in 3D. Then again I think seeing a few Shadow vessels coming at people in 3D on the big screen might scare the crap out of them.

[Jan]

Does anyone know if JMS has approached another studio, considering WB hasn't made up their minds about a B5 feature by now. My thinking, (of course it's just that my thinking), is that with the success of Avatar, studios would be more inclined now to back a big budget Sci fi feature film than say a year ago.

The last thing I heard is that WB did at least ask JMS how much he'd need to do a feature. As for JMS approaching other studios, he's said that that would be his ace-in-the-hole once he thought of a story he really wanted to tell in the B5 universe if WB turned him down.

With Avatar being a film in 3D, what type of B5 film could be done in 3D? Thinking back to some of those space battles from the series and the television movies, many of them would look really cool in 3D. Then again I think seeing a few Shadow vessels coming at people in 3D on the big screen might scare the crap out of them.

Sounds like fun! Just remembering how the station looked on the big screen, I can only imagine how cool it would be in 3-D.

Jan

[spuzzum42]

I imagine that the success of Avatar would probably bode well for Forbidden Planet and/or the Lensmen projects that jms is working on.
Forbidden Planet in 3D? I'd buy a ticket for that right now!

[Dan Dassow]

The last thing I heard is that WB did at least ask JMS how much he'd need to do a feature. As for JMS approaching other studios, he's said that that would be his ace-in-the-hole once he thought of a story he really wanted to tell in the B5 universe if WB turned him down.


Sounds like fun! Just remembering how the station looked on the big screen, I can only imagine how cool it would be in 3-D.

Jan

Yes, B5 would be cool in 3D. JMS's Forbidden Planet and Lensman films should also look cool in 3D.

Dan Dassow

[Garibaldi's Hair]

Nothing looks "cool" in 3D ... at least not to those of us with only one fully functional eye.

[Truth66]

As I'm sure everyone has heard, 3D Tv's have been released in the last couple of days. After viewing some of the websites like Best Buy, the cost of a full upgrade will be quite expensive (3D TV, 3D Bluray, 3D glasses, New HDMI cable).
After reading this article, it appears that there's the capability of 2D programs being converted to 3D. Does this mean that we will be able to watch B5 in 3D afterall? Personally I'd like to go down to one of these stores with one of my B5 disks to see if this coversion is actually possible. If anyone else does, let us know.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_television

[Marsden]

Nothing looks "cool" in 3D ... at least not to those of us with only one fully functional eye.

I hear that, unfortunately.

My Wife is blind in one eye, so 3D is just blurry to her.

[Truth66]

Nothing looks "cool" in 3D ... at least not to those of us with only one fully functional eye.

My heart goes out to those with any kind of impairment. I know a co-worker of mind is colour blind while another collegue of mine has really poor hearing and not able to enjoy the audio quality of a program/movie in full surround sound.

[DGTWoodward]

As for JMS approaching other studios, he's said that that would be his ace-in-the-hole once he thought of a story he really wanted to tell in the B5 universe if WB turned him down.

Now this is where the legalities of the situation really confuse me . Let me see if I have it straight...and I am placing this in the "I need help here" category!

1) JMS has some form of ultimate say in what happens to B5, because he created it, intellectually it belongs to him, right?

2) WB paid alot of money to make it (about $15 million per season?) so they too have some large degree of control, right?

So if WB ultimately turn JMS down, how can he just go to another studio? Me brainy hurty!

Being the higher-functioning-well-above-average-intelligence wiley and shrewd person that JMS is, I'd wager that he already has an idea as to just what B5 story he'd tell in a movie (given the chance to do so).

My personal pick would be for us to see the TELEPATH WAR, though that would need the back story in too, so would either be a very long film or would just leave people new to B5 a bit confused. Or perhaps JMS' way of finishing off the CRUSADE story but in such a way that it is not the TMOS script.

We all know that his is more than capable, just look at the expert way in which he reworked all of his plot elements to take on board the fact that Sinclair is abscent from series two.

Yes I'd bet that JMS has only put his baby on a slow back-burner, at the back of the oven, until the time is right, but I am certain he has a strong idea of what it will be when we finally get to see it. As has been expressed by spuzzun42, I too would buy a ticket (sight unseen) for a film (3D or otherwise), and the Delux BluRay that would follow, and the accompanying models and action figures right now if there was a 100% certainty of it happening.

He is just biding his time until LENSMAN comes out - but to me...FORBIDDEN PLANET will be the make-or-break one for WB. A major SF motion picture offshoot/sequel written by JMS for Warner Brothers. When that is a success he will have mega strong hand to show to the "suits" at WBMOVIES with which to say "come on now, what about it?"

The frustrating thing about it is that these positions seem to be filled by a different face every 6 months or so. Is it really that fickle an industry? I suppose it must be.

I well remember Kevin Smith's story about his involvement with the SUPERMAN relaunch movie some years back. Someone asked him in to pitch as to how he would do it, given a chance. He did, they began to get it. He pitched it to more suits and they too got it. Then the man that initially 'got it' moved on and someone brought Jon Peters in as producer and that was that. That was when the giant spider, space pets, gay robots and polar bear fights came into the picture.

All it needs is for the one right person to "get it" on the day and to keep it on track and it will happen. Just look at what Alan Ladd Jr (then head at FOX) did for that little space thing George Lucas wanted to do in the 70's.

Our day will come.

Or not.

Wake up WARNER BROTHERS.

[Jonas]

Personally, I'm not too fond of 3D, so I have no problem with B5 in 2D.

But a B5 movie would be wonderful - if it's a story worth telling.

[Jan]

Now this is where the legalities of the situation really confuse me . Let me see if I have it straight...and I am placing this in the "I need help here" category!

1) JMS has some form of ultimate say in what happens to B5, because he created it, intellectually it belongs to him, right?

Fans like to think so but legally, nothing but the movie rights actually belong to him. What he's said is that he has to 'be involved' but we have no way of knowing exactly what the extent of his involvement would need to be. It could be a situation like he described with 'Jeremiah' (you thought your brain hurt before...):

JMS:
><<If there were a third season, the studio would have to pay me a consultancy
>fee
>but there would be no requirement to actually consult.>>
>
ME:
>Ignorant question here: Why?
>
JMS:
A very well written contract.

One suspects that that sort of clause is why agents are worth their ten percent.

2) WB paid alot of money to make it (about $15 million per season?) so they too have some large degree of control, right?

Figuring about $900,000 per episode, not quite $20 million per season. They own it, lock, stock and barrel, from cargo stabilizers to the station reactor and destroyers to white stars... *except* for the movie rights, which they let JMS keep back when he sold them the series because they thought they wouldn't be worth anything.

So if WB ultimately turn JMS down, how can he just go to another studio? Me brainy hurty!

Only when it comes to a feature film, nothing else. If JMS wanted to make B5: The Next Generation and a Half TV series and WB turned him down, that would be it. But if JMS wants to make a movie, WB can't stop him.

As an example (and this may be very flawed information but it's the only real-world example we've got) what killed 'The Memory of Shadows' was lack of financing, with the battle over the original cast only a side issue. A group came to JMS, optioned the right to make a movie (which I believe was good for a year) and commissioned a script--two financial transactions with no WB involvement. Then they went to try to finance it, which of course is no small thing. Not achieving this on their own, they eventually approached WB who had some conditions (this is where the recasting debacle comes in) and in the end, the option expired (even after a no-cost extension from JMS) without the funding ever being worked out. Thus died TMoS leaving fans (and probably JMS) frustrated and that group with a script they can't make (unless they paid JMS for the option again--IF he'd sell it to them). BUT, if that group had successfully worked out a deal with any other studio, there would have been no need for WB at all.

Our day will come.

Hope springs eternal.

Jan

[Trollheart]

The problem with a B5 movie is that you'd have so many people saying "What? Have I missed four prequels to this movie? Ah hell! I ain't goin!"

(Remember the troubles they had with "The madness of King George V"? I kid you not!)

[Truth66]

The problem with a B5 movie is that you'd have so many people saying "What? Have I missed four prequels to this movie? Ah hell! I ain't goin!"

(Remember the troubles they had with "The madness of King George V"? I kid you not!)

I agree, which is why I'm personally (as a few others) leaning towards the hope that JMS would actually write a movie trilogy. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy for example has a definite begining, middle and end. The original B5 series also had a definite begining middle and end.
A single stand alone film, unless it was a long movie (over 3 hours) may not create the same type of story arc that a trilogy would. As we all know that's one of JMS's strong writing points is the creation of these story arcs.
Any how, that's my two cents.

[Morden]

Well, I wouldn't vote against three 180-minute-movies...