Skydance Television to Develop Faster Than Light Based on Best-Selling Augmented Reality Comic Book Series
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Skydance Television today announced that it will develop Faster Than Light, the best-selling augmented reality comic series that tells the story of humanity’s first thrilling and terrifying adventures to the stars, set in the present day. The story is by Brian Haberlin and artwork is by Haberlin and Geirrod Vandyke.
.@Skydance Television to Develop Faster Than Light Based on Best-Selling Augmented Reality Comic Book Series
In the very near future, we discover the secret of faster-than-light travel. Suddenly the universe is wide open to us, but are we ready for it? Each issue of Faster Than Light features Anomaly’s cutting-edge augmented reality app, which allows readers to turn the pages of their comic book into realistic 3D animations. It is published by Image Comics, Shadowline and received two Unity Vision Award nominations for best Augmented Reality. Volumes #6 and #7 will be released on May 11, 2016 and June 8, 2016, respectively.
“The exhilarating sci-fi universe that Brian Haberlin has created in Faster Than Light features a living, breathing narrative that we believe is very well suited for television audiences and is precisely the kind of big, bold story we love to tell at Skydance,” said Marcy Ross, President of Skydance Television.
“I’m incredibly excited to be working with a creative group as innovative and imaginative as the team at Skydance Television,” added Haberlin. “They have already done such great things and I know they’ve only just begun to scratch the surface ... I can’t wait to dive in with them on Faster Than Light!”
Brian Haberlin is a comic book artist, writer, editor and producer. Haberlin began his career at Lorimar/Warner Brothers TV, after which he pursued comic books with Image comics’ Top Cow Productions as Vice President of Creative Affairs. There he co-created the Witchblade franchise, which has had both a live action and animated series. He then founded Avalon Studios and served as Editor-in-Chief for Todd McFarlane Productions. Currently, he is partner in Anomaly Productions, producer of graphic novels, comic books and interactive apps. Haberlin attended Loyola Marymount University.
About Skydance Media
Skydance is a diversified media company founded by David Ellison in 2010 to create elevated, event-level entertainment for global audiences. The Company brings to life stories of immersive worlds across platforms, including feature film, television, gaming and digital. Among Skydance Media’s commercially and critically successful feature films are Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Terminator Genisys, World War Z, Jack Reacher, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Star Trek Into Darkness and True Grit. Its 2015 feature films, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation and Terminator Genisys, together grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. Skydance’s feature film slate includes Star Trek Beyond on July 22, 2016, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back on October 21, 2016, Geostorm on January 13, 2017 and Life on March 24, 2017. Skydance Media’s rapidly growing and critically acclaimed television division launched in 2013. The Company’s television slate now features a variety of projects across a number of networks, including Emmy-nominated Grace and Frankie and Altered Carbon on Netflix, Red Mars on Spike TV and Jack Ryan on Amazon.
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Saturday, April 9, 2016
VIZ Media Has Digital Manga Updates for the New Spring
WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP Digital Issues To Feature HUNTER X HUNTER And NARUTO One-Shot; Digital Manga Update Includes New Series MONSTER HUNTERTM: FLASH HUNTER And Additions To 19 Other Titles
VIZ Media begins the spring reading season with a brand new digital manga update and details notable WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP content for the month of April 2016.
Manga fans can dive into creator Yoshihiro Togashi’s critically acclaimed fantasy adventure series, HUNTER X HUNTER, as it makes its return to the world’s bestselling manga magazine, WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP, starting in the April 18th issue. The April 25th issue of WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP will feature a special NARUTO manga one-shot by creator Masashi Kishimoto. Visit http://shonenjump.viz.com/ for more information and access to WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP content.
New VIZ Media digital manga titles for April include the launch of MONSTER HUNTER: FLASH HUNTER, a brand new action series, written by Keiichi Hikami, with artwork by Shin Yamamoto, which is inspired by Capcom’s Monster HunterTM, one of the hottest RPG video game properties.
This month, readers are also invited to browse April’s selection of Digital Manga Bundles that offer the opportunity to dive into multiple collected volumes from a selection of acclaimed food related manga series, including FOOD WARS!, OISHINBO A LA CARTE, TORIKO and YAKITATE!! JAPAN at special savings over buying the volumes individually. Bundles are available to readers for a limited time exclusively from VIZManga.com, Amazon, and comiXology.
MONSTER HUNTER: FLASH HUNTER Vol. 1 · Rated ‘T’ for Teens · DIGITAL MSRP: $6.99 (U.S. / CAN) · Available April 12th
It is an age when monsters rule the world, soaring through the sky, treading the earth and filling the seas. Humanity survives on the fringes, relying on a special kind of hero to defend the people from danger—the Monster Hunters!
April Digital Manga Bundle Promos (Available April 11th – April 25th):
FOOD WARS! BUNDLE I · $20.00
· Vols. 1-5
FOOD WARS! BUNDLE II · $35.00
· Vols. 1-10
OISHINBO A LA CARTE (Entire Series) · $21.00
· Vols. 1-7
TORIKO BUNDLE I · $12.00
· Vols. 1-4
TORIKO BUNDLE II · $20.00
· Vols. 1-10
TORIKO BUNDLE III · $30.00
· Vols. 1-15
YAKITATE!! JAPAN BUNDLE I · $40.00
· Vols. 1-10
YAKITATE!! JAPAN BUNDLE II · $70.00
· Vols. 1-20
YAKITATE!! JAPAN BUNDLE III (Entire Series) · $78.00
· Vols. 1-26
Additional digital manga updates for April also includes new volumes for 19 other continuing VIZ Media series. Notable releases include not-to-be-missed volumes for ASSASSINATION CLASSROOM (Vol. 9), DOROHEDORO (Vol. 18), FOOD WARS! (Vol. 11), ITSUWARIBITO (Vol. 17), MAGI (Vol. 17), SCHOOL JUDGMENT (Vol. 2), and TWIN STAR EXORCISTS (Vol. 4), as well as shojo manga additions including HONEY SO SWEET (Vol. 2), MY LOVE STORY!! (Vol. 8), and SO CUTE IT HURTS!! (Vol. 6). Also catch the exciting series finales of LIBRARY WARS: LOVE AND WAR (Vol. 15) and YU-GI-OH! 5D’S (Vol. 9).
The free VIZ Manga App continues to be the top application for reading digital manga and features a massive library of the most popular series in the world. Through the innovative VIZ Manga digital platform registered users are able to use one account to view their purchased manga across more devices than ever. New series and volumes are added every Tuesday. Fans can also find these titles and more for the NOOK, Kindle Fire, and Kobo eReaders, as well as in the ComiXology, iBooks and Google Play Stores.
Most manga volumes are available for purchase and download in the U.S. and Canada within the VIZ Manga application starting from only $4.99 (U.S. / CAN) each. Readers can also explore free Chapter 1 previews of every series. For more information, please visit VIZManga.com or www.VIZ.com/apps.
To learn more about VIZ Manga, please visit www.vizmanga.com.
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Friday, April 8, 2016
Lord of the Apes Goes to the "Planet of the Apes" in New Comic Book
Dark Horse Comics and BOOM! Studios deliver an action-packed crossover
FOR EMERALD CITY COMIC CON: Announced today at Emerald City Comicon, Dark Horse Comics will publish a new Tarzan tale with the help of BOOM! Studios, taking Edgar Rice Burroughs’s iconic hero to the Planet of the Apes in Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes.
Heavyweight writers Tim Seeley (Revival) and David Walker (Power Man and Iron Fist) will script a five-issue miniseries with Fernando Dagnino (Suicide Squad) on interior art and Duncan Fegredo illustrating stunning covers, making this a crossover event readers won’t want to miss!
“It’s a rare opportunity to get to work with two great properties, one great artist, and one hell of a cowriter, but Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes does just that for me,” said Tim Seeley.
In Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes, Tarzan and his ape brother Caesar, raised as brothers but separated by slave traders, reunite when the war between man and ape takes them from the jungles of Africa to the center of the Earth.
“Planet of the Apes was crucial in sparking my imagination as a child, and remains my favorite film franchise of all time. The creative challenge of combining that world with Tarzan, and the opportunity to do so with a great cowriter, an amazing artist, and a supportive editorial team was an offer I couldn’t refuse,” added David Walker.
This stunning crossover hits stands following the summer’s blockbuster film The Legend of Tarzan. Discover Edgar Rice Burroughs’s original superstar hero of the last century all over again at your local comic shop this September!
Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes #1 (of 5) is in stores September 28, 2016. Preorder your copy today at your local favorite comic shop.
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Judge Dredd Takes on Aliens and Predators in Summer Comic Book
Dark Horse, IDW, and 2000 AD team up for galactic mayhem
FOR EMERALD CITY COMIC CON: Announced today at Emerald City Comicon, three of the universe’s most feared figures cross paths this summer in the ultimate science-fiction crossover: Predator vs. Judge Dredd vs. Aliens!
Written by New York Times best-selling and Eisner Award–winning author John Layman (Chew, Mars Attacks: Occupation) with stunning interior artwork by Chris Mooneyham (Five Ghosts, Predator: Fire and Stone) and iconic covers by Eisner Award winner Glenn Fabry, this series will be the wild ride of the summer for readers everywhere.
“Predator vs. Judge Dredd vs. Aliens is just the sort of concept that would have Teenage John Layman wetting his pants with excitement…just at the possibility of reading it. Here, many, many years later, Old Man Layman is writing it, and it’s still every bit as thrilling,” remarked writer John Layman.
The crossover pits the legendary lawman Judge Dredd against the universe’s supreme hunters, the Predators, as they both try to survive an onslaught by the galaxy’s ultimate killing machines, the Aliens.
Judge Dredd and Judge Anderson have tracked a criminal cult across the Cursed Earth and into the Alabama morass, where a mad genetic scientist with destructive designs has acquired the best genes that evolution has to offer—a xenomorph skull!
A Predator, attracted to the warm climate and superior prey, has declared hunting season as he calls for backup. All paths will cross in a mind-blowing sci-fi showdown with the fate of the Earth at stake!
“This really is a dream-come-true project for me. I got to work on Aliens once before—a super cool experience, and one that was always on my creative bucket list. Dredd’s been on the bucket list as well, and you throw Predator into the mix, and it’s a trifecta of awesome. I’m loving every minute of this project so far,” added Layman.
Predator vs. Judge Dredd vs. Aliens #1 (of 4) is in stores July 27, 2016. Preorder your copy today at your local favorite comic shop.
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TV One Announces April Debut of "Second Sight," Starring Tatyana Ali
Radio One Founder Cathy Hughes Executive Produced New Original Movie Also Starring Edwina Findley, Sharif Atkins, Texas Battle and Denise Boutte
SILVER SPRING, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Starring as a young teacher plagued with visions, Tatyana Ali (Zoe Ever After, Love That Girl!, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) returns to TV One in the new made-for-television movie, Second Sight.
Premiering Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 8 p.m. ET, Ali plays Clara Randall, whose gift of “prophesy” leaves her haunted by premonitions of horrific kidnappings. Despite people’s unwillingness to believe her “second sight,” Clara takes it upon herself to search for one of her students who has gone missing. Shot on location in Los Angeles, this suspenseful thriller marks the third project executive produced by Radio One Founder Cathy Hughes and Executive Vice President of Special Projects Susan Banks.
@TVOne’s new thriller #SecondSight premiers Saturday, April 23 @ 8 PM/ET starring @TatyanaAli
“First with horror, and now suspense, Ms. Hughes and Susan Banks have once again ushered TV One into an entirely new genre for the network,” stated D’Angela Proctor, TV One’s Head of Original Programming and Production. “Driving the network into fresh and unexplored territory is exactly what our new brand promise represents – taking chances and defying expectations.”
Living in a constant nightmare, Clara (Ali) has trouble understanding her abilities as well as convincing others – specifically her boyfriend Tony Prescott (Texas Battle, The Bold and The Beautiful) – that the visions are not just a figment of her imagination. After “seeing” the abduction of a student from her school, she realizes she must take matters into her own hands by following the clues from her visions. Along her mission to save this innocent life, Clara discovers disturbing secrets and lies surrounding those she trusted most.
Denise Boutte (Meet The Browns, For The Love Of Ruth) also makes her network return in the role of Tamara Johnson, Clara’s best friend. Rounding out the cast of stellar actors is Edwina Findley (Get Hard) as Donna Gray and Sharif Atkins (White Collar, Rizzoli & Isles) as Richard Gray, the parents of the kidnapped student Mary Ann, played by Jessica Pressley (For The Love of Ruth).
Second Sight is produced by Digilab Productions for TV One. Radio One Founder Cathy Hughes and Executive Vice President of Special Projects Susan Banks serve as executive producers. Second Sight was written by Susan Banks and Michael Scott serves as Director and Producer. For TV One, Jubba Seyyid is executive-in-charge of production, Robyn Greene Arrington is vice president of original programming and production, and D’Angela Proctor is head of original programming and production.
Encores of Second Sight will also air on TV One on Saturday, April 23 at 10 p.m. ET and Sunday, April 24, 2016 at 8:30 p.m. ET. For more information about TV One’s upcoming programming, including original movies, visit the network’s companion website at www.tvone.tv. TV One viewers can also join the conversation by connecting via social media on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@tvonetv) using the hash tag #SecondSight and catch clips and promos on TV One’s YouTube Channel.
ABOUT TV ONE:
Launched in January 2004, TV One (www.tvone.tv) serves 57 million households, offering a broad range of real-life and entertainment-focused original programming, classic series, movies and music designed to entertain and inform a diverse audience of adult Black viewers. The network is the exclusive home of News One Now, the only live daily news program targeting Black viewers. In December 2008, the company launched TV One High Def, which now serves 14 million households. TV One is solely owned by Radio One [NASDAQ: ROIA and ROIAK, www.radio-one.com], the largest radio company that primarily targets Black and urban listeners.
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DC Comics and Gerard Way Announce "Young Animal" Imprint for Fall 2016
“The Umbrella Academy” Writer and My Chemical Romance Frontman to Curate New Mature Reader Pop-up Imprint for DC Comics, Debuting Four New Titles this Fall
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The DC All Access panel at Emerald City Comicon was crashed by none other than Gerard Way, Eisner Award-winning writer of The Umbrella Academy and former vocalist and co-founder of the alternative rock band My Chemical Romance. Way announced that he will be curating DC's Young Animal, a new mature reader pop-up imprint of DC Comics that will consist of four series and feature his creative direction.
“I am thrilled to help bring DC’s Young Animal to life, having been raised on experimental 80s and 90s takes on superheroes. I see Young Animal as a place to try new ideas- following the spirit of those books from the past but bring them somewhere else”
The flagship title for this monthly lineup is Doom Patrol, written by Way, which will set the tone for the other titles in the series, described by Way as “comics for dangerous humans.”
The lineup includes:
DOOM PATROL – This September, in the spirit of Grant Morrison's legendary run on the series, along with other classic incarnations of the characters, writer Gerard Way and artist Nick Derington will put their unique stamp on the world's strangest heroes taking on the universe's strangest villains.
SHADE, THE CHANGING GIRL – An alien takes over the body of a 16-year-old bully and must face the challenges of being a stranger in a foreign land, plus the consequences of a life she didn't live. Star Wars’ Moving Target writer Cecil Castellucci and artist Marley Zarcone explore themes of madness, alienation, and the bizarre in this sci-fi thriller, with covers by Becky Cloonan. The new series hits shelves in October.
CAVE CARSON HAS A CYBERNETIC EYE – Writers Gerard Way and Jon Rivera, along with artist Michael Avon Oeming take readers on a strange adventure with DC Comics’ Silver Age character Cave Carson, his cybernetic eye and his college–age daughter as they travel to dark places deep in the earth and mind. Catch this new series in October.
MOTHER PANIC – Meet Violet Paige, a celebrity heiress by day and brutal vigilante by night as she takes on the underbelly of Gotham City’s high society. Hitting shelves in November, the series is written by Gerard Way and Jody Houser with art by Tommy Lee Edwards.
"I am thrilled to help bring DC’s Young Animal to life, having been raised on experimental 80s and 90s takes on superheroes. I see Young Animal as a place to try new ideas- following the spirit of those books from the past but bring them somewhere else," explains Way. "I see it as an imprint where we can explore fine art, bold concepts, mature themes, and strangeness- with lots of heart."
"We’re excited about Gerard’s vision for DC’s Young Animal," explain DC Entertainment Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee. "Giving DC Comics characters different story tones and distinct art styles will result in a different look and feel for the line."
Check DCComics.com/YoungAnimal and follow #DCYoungAnimal for updates.
About DC Entertainment:
DC Entertainment, home to iconic brands DC Comics (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, The Flash), Vertigo (Sandman, Fables) and MAD, is the creative division charged with strategically integrating its content across Warner Bros. Entertainment and Time Warner. DC Entertainment works in concert with many key Warner Bros. divisions to unleash its stories and characters across all media, including but not limited to film, television, consumer products, home entertainment and interactive games. Publishing thousands of comic books, graphic novels and magazines each year, DC Entertainment is one of the largest English-language publishers of comics in the world.
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Thursday, April 7, 2016
Review: Halle Berry Stellar in "Frankie & Alice"
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
Frankie & Alice (2010)
Running time: 101 minutes (1 hour, 41 minutes)
MPAA – R for some sexual content, language and drug use
DIRECTOR: Geoffrey Sax
WRITERS: Cheryl Edwards, Marko King, Mary King, Jonathan Watters, Joe Shrapnel, and Anna Waterhouse; from a story by Oscar Janiger, Philip Goldberg, and Cheryl Edwards
PRODUCERS: Halle Berry, Vincent Cirrincione, Simon DeKaric, and Hassain Zaidi
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Newton Thomas Sigel (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: David M. Richardson
COMPOSER: Andrew Lockington
Golden Globe nominee
DRAMA/BIOPIC
Starring: Halle Berry, Stellan Skarsgard, Phylicia Rashad, Chandra Wilson, Alex Diakun, Joanne Baron, Brian Markison, Matt Frewer, and Scott Lyster
Frankie & Alice is a 2010 Canadian drama from director Geoffrey Sax and starring Halle Berry. The film received a limited theatrical release in 2010 in order to qualify for the 2010-2011 movie awards season. It did receive a wider theatrical release in August 2014. Frankie & Alice follows a go-go dancer with multiple personality disorder and the psychotherapist who tries to help her.
Frankie & Alice opens in Los Angeles in 1973 where we meet Francine “Frankie” Lucinda Murdoch (Halle Berry), an African-American female go-go dancer. During an attempted sexual encounter, Frankie experiences a personality change that throws her life into chaos. Eventually her manic episodes land her in a mental care facility. Frankie meets Dr. Joseph “Joe” Oswald (Stellan Skarsgard), a.k.a. “Dr. Oz.”
Dr. Oswald believes that Frankie suffers from multiple personality disorder (now known as “dissociative identity disorder”). He identifies that Frankie has two other personalities: “Genius,” a seven-year-old child; and “Alice,” a Southern racist White woman. “Genius” and “Alice” are aware of each other, but Alice wants control of Frankie. In order to discover a way to help Frankie, Dr. Oswald must uncover a terrible trauma in Frankie's past that is either forgotten or kept secret.
Halle Berry had apparently been trying to get Frankie & Alice produced since the 1990s. Serious movement began on the film around 2004, apparently, but it was another six years before the film saw even a limited theatrical release. That was reportedly almost two years after the film had finished production. That is a shame really, because Frankie & Alice is a good movie. In this film, Berry gives one of the best performances of her career, one that I think is on par with her Oscar-winning turn in 2001's Monster's Ball.
As a film, Frankie & Alice is not a fancy, big, prestige biographical drama in the tradition of such films as A Beautiful Mind and The King's Speech. However, it is not quite one of those infamous disease-of-the-week made-for-television movies. In some ways, the film is similar to a two-actor stage drama, focusing on the characters that Berry and Stellan Skarsgard portray. Although he delivers a nice performance, Dr. Oswald is not close to Skarsgard's best work, and that is mainly because the character is not that well developed. The movie gives us glimpses into him, but that is as far as that goes.
Watching the film and trying to follow its story, it is easy to see that eight different writers worked on it over the course of many years. Frankie & Alice does have a patchwork feel to it. There are so many other good characters with small roles, like Frankie's mother, Edna (Phylicia Rashad), and sister, Maxine (Chandra Wilson). These two characters could have enriched both their stories and Frankie's.
Still, Halle Berry, of whom I am a huge fan, is so good here. She carries this movie in a way that engages the audience with Frankie, but also with the characters, “Genius” and “Alice.” Quite frankly, Berry should get credit for giving three excellent performances. Her turn as the troubled and brittle “Alice” is superb; she sells that character as genuine, but she makes you believe that “Alice” could be a menace to Frankie. Her turn as the sweet, but fearful “Genius” is heartbreaking and borders on brilliant.
Berry does not give one of those showy performances that cries out for an Oscar nomination, which she deserved, but did not get for this film. She honestly plies her craft as an actor, and delivers a brilliant performance as an artist. In fact, whatever faults it has, Frankie & Alice is still a quality drama because Berry is at its center delivering stellar work.
7 of 10
B+
Saturday, December 19, 2015
NOTES:
2011 Golden Globes, USA: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Halle Berry)
2011 Image Awards: 2 wins: “Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture” (Halle Berry) and “Outstanding Independent Motion Picture;” 2 nominations: “Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture-Theatrical or Television” (Mary King, Jonathan Watters, Cheryl Edwards, Joe Shrapnel, Marko King, and Anna Waterhouse), and “Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture-Theatrical or Television” (Geoffrey Sax)
The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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