Magic in Marvel Movies
The internet is buzzing with rumors about the casting of Marvel's Doctor Strange. While some really great names have been linked with the role of earth's Sorcerer Supreme, there is another reason that I am thrilled to hear that Stephen Vincent Strange will be appearing on the silver screen.
It means REAL magic will be appearing in a modern comic book movie universe for the first time.
Yes, I know that Loki has been using his hologram-like tricks since his first appearance, but Marvel has been very careful to explain away magic. Asgardians aren't gods, they are super advanced aliens who occasionally come to earth to pretend to be gods. It's not a Soul Forge, it's a Quantum Field Generator. Jane Foster lays it out for us when she explains, "Magic is just science we don't understand yet." While they have been pushing the envelope with each new film, there still hasn't been anything that has been expressly described as magic. Doctor Strange's power is completely based on magic and I don't think that they will risk the wrath of fans to try to explain it away with some advanced science. The technology-ruled Marvel movie universe is officially going to cross the line that they've been so careful to tiptoe with Thor.
This is a huge deal when many people claim that some characters, like Wonder Woman, can never appear on screen with their magic-based powers and backstories intact. These people argue that the modern audience won't accept magic in comic book movies, and so these iconic characters must be altered to fit neatly into the expected norm. It's refreshing that Marvel doesn't agree.
This adds a huge number of amazing possibilities for upcoming DC and Marvel movies! Scarlet Witch, Wonder Woman, Zatanna, John Constantine (for real this time), Enchantress, and so many others now have hope of appearing on screen intact. While adding a few technological advances to the Amazons might smooth the transition (maybe a cloaking device hides Paradise Island instead of magic?), I believe that the magical foundation to Wonder Woman's powers and her magical items can succeed on the big screen. DC's movies have had a very different tone than the Marvel movies, but I believe that they can build upon the foundations laid by the successful Marvel franchises. The average moviegoer isn't going to separate the DC and Marvel movies into exclusive categories. If they accept Loki and Doctor Strange in an Avengers movie, they will accept Wonder Woman or John Constantine in a DC movie.
Gal Gadot is Wonder Woman
It has finally happened. Wonder Woman is going to appear in a major motion picture. Gal Gadot wasn't on my short list for the part. She wasn't even on my long list for the part. To be honest, she hadn't crossed my mind at all. I was hoping for Lynn Collins, who screamed Wonder Woman with her performance in John Carter. Lynn has the look and the acting chops to bring Diana to life, despite the fact that she'd need an apple box and some movie magic to make her appear taller. In contrast, I really don't know anything about Gal except how she looks physically, because she's never been in anything that required much acting.
The movie I have been dreaming of has arrived, and I am filled with a mixture of joy and fear that only comes with being a fanatic... er... fan.
JOY: DC movies are really well cast.
I may not like all the choices or stories, but I have almost always liked the casting in DC movies. Every time I nerd-rage out about someone being cast, I have (almost) always been proven wrong. I ate my words with both Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker, and Ann Hathaway's spot-on Catwoman. Man of Steel and Green Lantern were both well cast, and their actors did their best despite terrible scripts. The casting people at Warner's 
obviously have a good eye for this, so maybe Gal will knock it out of the park.
FEAR: DC movies have really crappy scripts.
DC movies have a history of terrible scripts that are filled with cornball jokes or gaping plot holes. I think George Clooney could have been a Batman for the ages if he had been given the right script. Ditto for Jim Carrey as the Riddler. Can you imagine him playing a creepy, puzzle-crazed Riddler in a more realistic way like Heath Ledger's Joker? These problems have continued into more recent projects. Batman Begins started the new DC movies off strong, but both The Dark Knight Rises and Man of Steel suffered from bad pacing, lack of character development, and moments that simply didn't make sense! I am terrified they will completely miss the mark with Diana's appearance in Batman & Superman, which will be the death sentence for any Wonder Woman movie in the works.
JOY: Gal has actual military experience!
I love this! My sister joined the US Army a few years ago, and even her weeks of boot camp gave her an impressive amount of training. Israel is the only country in the world where service 
is compulsory for both women and men, and two years of military service in the Israeli Defense Force is nothing to sneeze at. Women can be assigned to infantry combat service and be directly in the line of fire. Even if Gal didn't experience that, Israel is far from a peaceful place and the training would have prepared her for all possibilities. She has been closer to real combat than most action stars in Hollywood.
FEAR: Gal isn't built like Wonder Woman.
Yes, I'll admit that this is a bit shallow, but Wonder Woman's physique is part of what drew me to her as a child. I was always one of the tallest kids in my class. Combine that with my athletic build from years of competitive swimming and the rude comments prepubescent boys made, I could often feel out of place. Wonder Woman helped young Kimi deal with that. She showed me that a woman could be physically imposing, while still being feminine! While there is certainly a lot of depth to Wonder Woman, her physical build shouldn't be ignored. I hope Gal hits the gym.
JOY: Zack Snyder's movies look cool.
There is no disputing that Zack Snyder has great style. Man of Steel and Watchmen were visually stunning interpretations of comic publications. Most importantly, 300 proved that a movie based 
on ancient stories/myths (like Wonder Woman herself) could succeed and be accepted by the modern audience.
FEAR: Zack Snyder sucks at creating good female characters.
This is the director who HONESTLY thought Sucker Punch was a story of female empowerment. That's right, the movie about girl who is trapped in an insane asylum and repeatedly raped, but mentally escapes to a fantasy world where she is a sex slave, who mentally escapes to another fantasy world where she is a scantily clad fighter trying to find random objects, but in reality, she just gets lobotomized in the real world and stays a victim. Wow. Way to empower women Zack. Create a Russian nesting doll of victimization and assault for your female characters on all levels of their psyche. While I have no doubt that Mr. Snyder will make fight scenes that will be worthy of Wonder Woman (just look at Faora in Man of Steel), I believe he is utterly incapable of capturing her character and motivations.
When it comes right down to it, the actress is not my biggest worry with Wonder Woman appearing on film. I'm much more concerned about the writers, and the director. That being said, I'm trying not to judge too harshly until there is something to be judged. I can't wait to see the costume they come up with... or can I?
*worry*
Rainfall's Wonder Woman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XATiV3gmy-Q
A few months ago, I was asked to help bring my hero to life. I thought I was dreaming when Sam Balcomb of Rainfall Films brought the initial idea to me. Was it possible that Wonder Woman might finally be represented well on screen? Would I really get to help make that dream into a reality?
Since that fateful day, I've been able to talk about Wonder Woman even more than usual. Breaking down everything from Diana's history and motivations, to classic comic poses and ancient Greek myths. We decided to heavily base our short on the Perez-era Wonder Woman, complete with Them
yscira and monsters out of Greek mythology. We poured over my collection of Wonder Woman comics to capture all the details, even if they would go unnoticed by most of the audience. Through it all, the Rainfall team was adamant about being true to the character, and making a truly kick-ass female superhero.
Then there was the most daunting task of all: designing the outfit. Costuming is a huge part of my life, and I've tried my hand at Wonder Woman's costume before, but we really wanted something unique that would pay homage to Diana's Greek and warrior roots. It had to be functional, but still capture the iconic look that is so familiar to pop culture. We finally settled on two distinct looks, a more armored suit for the flashbacks to Paradise Island and a sleeker look for the city scenes. Our incredible costuming team, Heather Greene and Sarah Skinner, were able to create the entire costume from scratch, including the leather armor and steel scale maille. Yours truly braided the Lasso of Truth!
The days on set were incredible. Everyone was thrilled to be a part of the project. Rileah Vanderbilt, who plays Wonder Woman in the short, was incredibly dedicated and a huge Wonder Woman fan! The stunt team was incredibly talented and we all watched in amazement as Wonder Woman, with their help, flew for the first time. America Young, Clare Grant, Alicia 
Marie, Christy Hauptman, and myself filled out the rest of the Amazons. It was so much fun getting to know these wonderful women while dressing up and playing with swords. It was even more fun to reconnect with all of them at Comic-Con 2013 a few weeks after shooting. Rileah and I even hit the convention floor cosplaying as Wonder Woman and Big Barda, also from DC Comics.
This was truly a labor of love. By combining our talents and passion for this character, I believe we were able to create something worthy of the Amazon Princess. I will be posting more info about this project in coming weeks, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy our passion project!
Justice League Dark: The Answer to DC's Movie Problem
News of a Justice League Dark movie emerged last week, linked with director Guillermo Del Toro. I have really enjoyed the Justice League Dark book (despite the lame title) since it was introduced with the New 52, and it includes some of my favorite characters, including John Constantine and Zatanna. They really have captured the disjointed team of misfits well, with love triangles, mistrust, temptation, and heroism. It is an occult team, drawing their power (and villains) from magic and religion rather than super strength or speed. It may also be the answer to DC's superhero team movie problem.
Guillermo Del Toro is the PERFECT director for this project. He is no stranger to comic book movies (Hellboy, Blade II), and he is a master with directing the supernatural (Pan's Labyrinth, The Devil's Backbone, Cronos). I think he would be able to balance the humor and sarcasm of the Justice League Dark team with the dark flavor of horror needed to put the audience in suspense. He is also really good at directing fight scenes. My only misgiving is his tendency to take on too many projects at once. If he sees the project through to the end, he will make it something worth our box office money.
Obviously, this team is full of the B and C list characters in DC's lineup, but despite the lack of mainstream heroes this movie could be the perfect start to DC's superhero team movies. Yes, the Justice League is easily identifiable, but so were The Avengers. Marvel knew better than to just toss their audience into a full blown team of incredibly super-powered characters without taking the time (via other movies) to set the stage. Warner Bros and DC should use Justice League Dark as the introduction to their world, in much the same way that Marvel used Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America to set the stage for The Avengers. It will set up the universe's rules, and start us off with a team that the mainstream audience will have an easier time identifying with.
The biggest advantage that Justice League Dark has is that all the characters are human. This may seem like a small matter, but when you are trying to get an audience to relate to your team, it can be a big deal. This team doesn't wear spandex (other than Deadman who wears his old circus uniform), and if they were walking down the street you probably wouldn't notice them (again, except for Deadman). They all deal with personal desires, flaws, and pain in every issue, and we can relate to all their emotions because they are feelings we all share. Superman, Wonder Woman, while more familiar, are harder for the normal audience to identify with because of their extreme powers and strange origin stories... and the crazy outfits. The Justice League Dark can tap into the super natural, but they also have to go to the supermarket if they want to eat or buy a pack of cigarettes. This team can gently introduce the mainstream audience to the DC Universe, setting us up for the more extreme spandex and cape wearing Justice League team we all know and love.
The timing may not work out, and Justice League may end up setting the stage for Justice League Dark, but I hope that both teams hit the big screen in coming years.
The Music Behind Batman: The Animated Series
Batman:The Animated Series was a brilliant show that forever left its imprint on the Batman universe. With its film noir style, it was the gateway for a new generation to discover comics and the Caped Crusader. Each character was captured perfectly, from the Mark Hamill's brilliant rendition of The Joker to the re-imagining of Mr. Freeze's history (which was eventually adopted by the comics and movies)! And, let's not forget that this was the series that brought Ms. Harley Quinn into being!
Stuart Balcomb is an accomplished movie score composer and was part of bringing Batman:The Animated Series series to life. He scored some of the most memorable episodes in the series, and I was lucky enough to interview him about his time working on the show.
Kimi: How did you join the Batman: The Animated Series team?
Stuart Balcomb: At the time, I was Supervising Copyist at the Universal Studios Music Library. My counterpart at Twentieth, Jo Ann Kane, recommended me to Shirley Walker, who at the time was assembling a team of composers for a new animated series. Shirley called and I went to her house for an interview. There were a LOT of people involved, and we all were given a few cues each to orchestrate for Shirley, who was already writing some shows. She had a very specific format we were to follow using very commonsensical procedures that I still use today. She liked my work, so I made the first cut. Next, she gave me a show (The Underdwellers) to split with Lars Clutterham. She evenly assigned cues to each of us to write. When I had written a few cues, I drove to her house and she'd play through them on the piano, making suggestions if needed. She was very hands-on in that manner. I'd go back, make the fixes and then send the score to Warners. Shirley conducted that session while Lars and I read the scores in the booth. She again liked my work to then give me a full show of my own (Appointment in Crime Alley). I really liked the Main Title I wrote, which consists of rising and falling sequences of sixths. If I remember correctly, she conducted the first half and I, the second. I scored one more episode, my favorite (Almost Got 'Im), which I conducted. That was a real treat because all Batman's enemies were in a nightclub, talking about how each almost got him, so each time the scene cut back to the club, they needed some jazz music playing. Being from a jazz background, I was in my element. At the session, we saved all those cues for last. Shirley had hired a real jazz bass player and we had a ball. One musician remarked, "Geez, we're getting PAID for this?"
K: Were there any musical themes that you had to include or stay away from in your compositions?
SB: I was given some established character themes to use if I wanted. When I did use a theme, I indicated on the score what percentage should be credited to that composer. I actually came up with my own Bat Mobile theme in "Crime Alley," which I really liked. I've since wanted to expand on it, but it's the property of Warner Bros., so what's the point?
K: What was it like working with Bruce Timm, who has been involved in nearly all the DC animated projects?
SB: Bruce was great. Very friendly, very astute, and right on the money when it came to where music should go, where music should not be. I don't remember whether it was Bruce or Shirley, but it was decided that we all should stay completely clear of explosions. Build the music right up to it and stop dead about a heartbeat or two before. Let that little silent vacuum suck you right into the massive sound effect. It worked brilliantly. Since then, I've been acutely aware of the error of so many scores that bludgeon us over the head with crash cymbals, massive bass drum, and the works, on top of all the mayhem that the sound department so skillfully crafted.
K: You conducted your own scoring sessions for Batman: The Animated Series. Was that your choice, and if so, why do you prefer to conduct your own compositions?
SB: I do love to conduct. It is an art, and I feel that a good conductor almost paints pictures with the hands. I conducted a church choir for ten years, and I really appreciate the ability to "shape" a sound with even an intimate gesture. Because of that, I would almost rather conduct an orchestra with no baton. I remember one famous Hollywood conductor who did a lot of A-list film sessions, and he was simply a human metronome—no expression, no entrance cues—he just mechanically waved the baton with the click track with his head buried in the score. That's not conducting!
K: How did you keep each episode fresh and still use the recognizable themes for each character?
SB: ... I have never found it a problem to come up with new ideas. Sure, we all recycle ourselves from time to time, but our musical language is who we are. Motifs evolve, are reborn, and emerge sometimes as cousins of previous material. Frank Zappa said that he only ever wrote one piece. He considered that his entire output over his lifetime, from beginning to end, was really just one continuous piece of music.
K: From start to finish, could you walk us through the process of creating the score for a single episode?
Every TV show and film starts with the spotting session. I met with Bruce and Shirley and the music editor, Tom Milano. We viewed the raw episode (sometimes there were placeholders because the animation wasn't finished), discussed where music should start and stop, and sometimes the musical nature of each scene. Tom took notes which he later mailed to me, listing each cue and its timings. It was up to me to 
translate all those into notes on a score that would support the scene ... I wrote out the score by hand. Yup, those days were still pencil on paper. I still really just compose in my head and write down what I hear, with an occasional reference to a keyboard.
As I would finish a few scores, I'd call Warners and tell them to send a courier to pick up what I had done. The music library could copy the parts and bind the scores for the session, then the next day I'd send more in.
I had worked for about a week on "Almost Got 'Im," and it was about midnight before the recording session. All the other scores had been delivered to Warner Bros., the parts copied and booked up for the players, and I had only one last cue to write. The problem was that I was completely drained. Exhausted and creatively spent, I could not go any further. I stared at the empty score pages that I had prepared and wondered what to do. I briefly entertained the idea of running away, booking a flight somewhere.
It then suddenly hit me that A.) the earth turns and tomorrow will come, and B.) at 10:00 tomorrow I will be standing on the podium in front of an orchestra with a baton in my hand, ready to give a downbeat, and all those pages will be filled in, black with notes. I visualized the future. It was tomorrow and the task was done. All I had to do was get from here to there. And at that moment all the ideas started to flow. That visualization made the process much easier, and I've used it ever since—I even once applied it to weeding the lawn...
Well, that was another digression, but very key to my experience with that particular episode. To continue, after a session, perhaps a week later, I'd get a call to attend the dubbing session in which dialog, sound effects, and music tracks are all mixed for the final output. It's very important for the composer, or someone who has the composer's interests at heart, to attend the session, because sometimes it's important to speak up for oneself and say that such-and-such music theme must remain on top of the mix at a certain moment where maybe the sound effects editor is keen on pumping a sound that someone had worked a week to create, thus burying an important musical moment. A fine balance must be maintained so that the maximum service is done to the film, be it music, a spoken phrase, a sound effect, or even silence. The music editor and mixer were very good, though, because only once did I have to chime in and say that the music was a bit too low at that point, to which everyone agreed.
K: I know that your son was a huge fan of Batman: The Animated Series, were you a Batman fan before you started composing for the show?
SB: No, I was not necessarily a Batman fan. [My son] Sam was a comic collector—in fact, we both bought the first Youngblood that came out ...We also collected the Spawn comics from the very beginning. After awhile, I think Sam stopped but I continued, and eventually stopped at #100. For Christmas one year I gave him all 100 issues. But I digress.... Tim Burton had put out two films by the time the Animated Series came around, so I had seen those. I wasn't thrilled with the over-the-top, almost slapstick violence, especially with the absurd fight between Batman and the Joker on the top of that bell tower. I did, however, like Danny's score.
I'd like to thank Stuart for taking the time to indulge my fangirl questions. I truly credit Batman: The Animated Series for introducing me to the world of comic books, and it was an honor to quiz him on a topic so near and dear to my heart.
Visit www.stuartbalcomb.com to hear samples of his work from Batman:The Animated Series and his other incredible projects.
The New Hobbit Trailer
The new trailer for The Hobbit movie was released last week, just in time for the 75th anniversary of The Hobbit. I'm currently reading the book with my middle school English classes, so I've been spending even more time than usual contemplating Middle Earth. We just finished the "Riddles in the Dark" chapter, and the kids are loving it. The first trailer was wonderful and the dwarven music gave me goosebumps. This time, I was only left with worry lines in my forehead. Maybe it's my students' new-found delight in these characters as they are written, or perhaps it is just that the story is so fresh in my mind, but the trailer seemed to stray from the book a bit too much for my liking.
While The Hobbit is a much more lighthearted book than The Lord of the Rings, it worries me that some of the scenes with the dwarves seem to be inspired by The Three Stooges. They are the principle heroes in The Hobbit, and I really hope they are treated with the respect they deserve. It's bad enough that Gimli ended up being comic relief for much of the trilogy, do all the dwarves have to be goofy? It seems that only Thorin is treated with any respect. These are capable warriors from a noble race of artisans, and while there should be comedic moments in The Hobbit, they shouldn't simply be comic relief.
Another thing that is worrying me is the amount of obvious CGI in the trailer. I realize that it was a hug part of the LOTR movies too, but when combined with miniatures it was usually very seamless (other than a few very annoying green screen shots). Some of the shots in both trailers look very fake. The one moment that made me cringe in the first trailer was when Bilbo held up Sting, and it was very obviously a CGI sword instead of a real one. Perhaps they are not finalized effects yet, or maybe they will look better when they are all in context. A girl can hope, right?
The amount of content that has been added has always been something I was worried about. There were a lot of scenes that seemed to be drastically different than the book, or flat out created for the movie in spite of the book. I realize that some adjustments have to be made when a book is brought to life on film, but I've been nervous since I heard they were going to turn it into three movies. They brought all three books of The Lord of the Rings to life in three movies. Why are they taking three movies to recreate The Hobbit when it's only one book and a more simple story?
I'm holding out hope and reminding myself of a bit of wisdom from the man himself. "Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
The Geek Girl Problem
The problem with the geek girl subculture is the unrelenting expectation of uniformity.
I have seen countless articles and posts about the problems with the geek girl subculture. Some are written by geek girls and some are simply commenting on us. Many cast stones at select groups of female geeks for a huge variety of transgressions. Girls are too sexy, not sexy enough, too specialized in their interest, not specialized enough, too fake, too judgmental, too obsessed, not obsessed enough, too mainstream, too antisocial, too popular, not popular enough, and on and on and on. Somehow, people have the idea that if geek girls took their specific advice, we will become a unified army of geekdom.
Are you flipping kidding me? REALLY? Despite our different backgrounds, ethnicities, body types, religions, knowledge, skills, and interests, we are expected to share the same point of view because we have vaginas?
Geek girls are free to dress up as Wonder Women at every convention they can get tickets to, and other geek girls are free to think that they are disrespecting themselves by showing off so much skin. Who has the right to judge others for their opinions? You did no share their excitement at getting a Wonder Woman lunchbox in 2nd grade, or their deeply religious upbringing in a small town. Hopefully both sides behave themselves and respect the other geek's freedom of choice, but neither is better or worse for their opinions, and neither should be expected to change their minds due to peer pressure.
This uniformity expectation also applies to geek knowledge. We keep banging our heads against the misogynistic opinion that there are only a few "real" geek girls, and the rest of us are using geekery to get male attention. Once again, in spite of our innumerable differences, women are all expected to be experts in every aspect of geek culture to PROVE that they are geeks. I have seen it time and time again, especially at public events and conventions. Usually, it's in the form of a seemingly innocent question about a geeky topic. If the girl fails to answer correctly, *POOF* there goes all her credibility. Suddenly, the woman who spent 74 hours sewing a cosplay outfit, 9 hours in line for a panel, four days writing a Dr. Who blog post, $200 a month on comic books, or maybe is just visiting her very first convention, is lowered to the level of attention-seeking "fake" in the mind of the quizzer (who can be male or female).
Our knowledge on any subject, geek or not, is going to be as varied as our skin color or favorite foods. I hate to break it to everyone, but there aren't merit badges for knowing more nerd trivia than everyone else. Go ahead and whip out your geek fanboy (or fangirl) penis and prove it's the biggest in the room. It's the geek version of driving an inconveniently huge truck or car, everyone knows you're compensating. Judgmental showing off only drives people away from the culture. Ask yourself honestly, is that your goal?
There is no problem with geek girls, the problem is with geek girls not being accepted and respected for who they are as individuals. People desperately want to belong to a group. Sadly, the easiest way to do that is to exclude others. As geek culture rapidly becomes pop culture, we have to embrace the diversity that inevitably comes with a surge in population. Old stereotypes have to change to accommodate new faces, new interest levels, and new ways of expressing one's passion.
If Whovians, tabletop gamers, video gamers, comic readers, Trekkies, Potter Heads, Guildies, LARPers, and so much more are considered "geek," than surely there is room for a huge diversity of women to be considered "geek girls". We ALL have the right to march in the geek parade, even if we don't all march to the same drum... or trumpet... or tuba... or baton... or agree there is a parade at all...
Framing The Hobbit
The Hobbit is one of the most anticipated movies of all time. After the bar was set so high by the Lord of the Rings trilogy (except for the horrific abomination that is the battle of Helm's Deep... don't get me started) Tolkien fans are champing at the bit to see how this big-budget prequel turns out. With an amazing cast and proven source material, how could it fail? The answer may be held in a fraction of a second.
As all followers of The Hobbit movie know, Peter Jackson is pushing the film to be viewed in 48 frames per second. What does this mean? Well normal movies and TV shows are shown at 24 frames per second and our minds naturally fill in the missing bits. We don't even realize that it's happening. However, soap operas, home movies, 
and other videos are shot at 30 frames per second. This is why you can instantly tell a soap opera or reality TV show from other programs just by looking at it for a few seconds. In general, our minds link video and high frame rates to low budget programs. Despite Peter Jackson's assurance that it will revolutionize movies, many fans are worried about him using The Hobbit as a guinea pig.
Jackson has been praising the new frame rate for months, claiming that it was "more attractive" and "more lifelike." He sings its praises and never fails to mention how it will improve the 3D experience for movie goers (how thrilling..not). In April, Jackson and Warner Bros debuted about 10 minutes of footage at CinemaCon. This footage was shown at 48 frames per second and was met with a resounding "Ugh" by pretty much everyone in attendance. The consensus seems to be that it looked TOO real. It looked like a home movie and wasn't "cinematic" enough. The level of detail and realism distracted people from the movie rather than adding to the experience. Even directors like Chris Nolan and Neill Blomkamp (considered by many to be Peter Jackson's protege) have gone on the record as hating footage shot in 48 frames per second.
Last week at San Diego Comic-Con, Jackson debuted twelve minutes of footage at The Hobbit panel. (No, I didn't wait in the ten hour line to see it in person, I had too much cosplay stuff planned this year and am uncomfortable sleeping overnight on public sidewalks.) This time the footage was shown at 24 frames per second and the crowed went crazy for it! Peter Jackson stated, "With our 48 frames per second presentation, negative bloggers are the ones the mainstream press runs with and quotes from. I decided to screen the Hobbit reel at Comic-Con in 2-D and 24 frames per second, so the focus stays firmly with the content and not the technical stuff. If people want 3-D and 48fps, that choice will be there for them in December."
Interesting. So now the big question, was it the frame rate or the people in the audience that made the difference? Would the CinemaCon critics have found problems with the unfinished footage no matter what? Would the hardcore Tolkien freaks have loved anything they were shown at ComicCon after being in the hot sun for 8+ hours, regardless of the frame rate? Just like 3D it will be a matter of personal taste. Jackson claims that 48 fps is the future and that once we get used to seeing such crisp, clear footage we will never want to watch 24 fps movies again.
Maybe Middle Earth is the perfect place to show at a higher frame rate, and I'm sure many fans (myself included) will see it both ways. We'll see how it goes. I have a Quenya-to-English dictionary on my desktop and have Elvish baby names picked out for my future children, but I seriously doubt that even Tolkien can make me like 3D.
Raya Yarbrough & Bear McCreary Performance
Bear McCreary is a very talented composer who is best known for his work on the rebooted Battlestar Galactica and The Walking Dead. He is also plays the accordion, which is the coolest instrument in existence. Needless to say, I was thrilled when I was invited to an intimate performance of Bear's at a local restaurant. Both the fangirl and the musician in me were giddy. I was very excited when he came out an announce the title of the show, North of Sunset, West of Vine, and then sat down at the piano. At that point I still assumed that Bear would be the main event of the show, but I was very wrong.
Raya Yarbrough, also known for her musical contributions to BSG, was the star of this performance. I came expecting the usual jazz club formula, but this show was something completely unique. An autobiographical story told through a combination of clever monologues and incredible music. Raya performed both acts (yes, BOTH... there were two of them) by seamlessly transitioning from spoken storytelling to singing, and then back again. The spoken parts are impeccably performed, with an instrumental soundtrack that accompanies every event and emotion that Raya portrays.
Raya's frank honesty about her experiences growing up in urban Los Angeles can be shocking. She does not sugarcoat the difficulties she faced as a young woman or the inappropriate situations she was placed in as a child. Her performance is so compelling that it is impossible not to be completely captivated by every moment. Her experiences are varied, but they speak to the human element in us. Whether it be her aspirations for success in Hollywood, her struggles with the instability of divorce as a child, or the descriptions of the colorful characters who kaleidoscope through her life, everyone will relate to something in Raya's story.
I was caught completely off guard by how invested I became in Raya's story. I had expected some great songs with the traditional segues and banter with the audience in between. Instead, I found myself so involved in the story that I sometimes forgot to clap at the end of songs (despite how amazing they were) because I was anticipating what she was going to say next. I was even moved to tears during one especially poignant song about a shabby, yet joyful Christmas in a single dad's apartment.
Raya was spellbinding. Even the presence of a famous Sci-fi composer playing an accordion (again, the coolest instrument in existence) hardly pulled my gaze from her. That's about the best praise I could possibly give a person. No really, she was fucking amazing. Plus, she cites Jem and the Holograms as a musical influence. You can't beat that.
Look for upcoming performance dates and learn more about Raya at rayayarbrough.com or on Twitter @RayaYarbough.
Why did I start Cosplaying?
It all started with a TV show... a really, REALLY BAD TV show.
As you have probably noticed by now, I am a big Wonder Woman fan. So when I heard that David E. Kelley was bringing her to the small screen in 2011, I was both excited and doubtful. How on earth were they going to pull off Diana with a small budget? I actually got my hopes up when they announced that Adrianne Palicki would be Diana. The woman is 5'11"! Maybe they were going to make a true Amazon Princess after all..
Then they released this image and I died a little inside.
This... shiny latex abomination killed all my hopes for the show. How could any self-respecting costume designer let this be photographed? Did they just grab whatever they could from a Halloween store and say "Fuck it"? Ms. Palicki is a beautiful woman, but she looks like a cheap hooker here. I hope that someone was fired for the horrible production quality of this photograph.
I eventually got a copy of the Wonder Woman pilot and OH MY GOD IS IT BAD. It is seriously the worst writing I have ever seen on any show, and I used to watch Xena and Hercules! Unfortunately, the costume (with a few changes) actually was one of the better parts of the show... THAT'S HOW BAD IT WAS! In the aftermath of the pilot never being picked up (because it was an abomination) many people on the interwebz were using it as proof that a Wonder Woman movie could never be made. They cited the impossible-to-please fans and the logistics of making the costume realistic as evidence of it's impossibility.
I wanted to prove them wrong. I wanted to make a Wonder Woman costume that made sense for a Greek Amazon and was made out of practical materials (ie. leather and steel) so it was more than just a bathing suit. And thus, I was born into the world of cosplay.