Sit Back, Relax And Enjoy the StarShipSofa

Take a voyage on the StarShipSofa if you dare? Travel into the far realms of the Sci-fi world. Calling at such destinations as Philip K. Dick, Dark Star, Alfred Bester, Silent Running and all the other great writers and films out there. All wrapped up and inspired by the great Ronnie Corbett.

Intrigued?

Want to find out more …

In their weekly show they talk about aspects of the SciFi world they like and so far, the guys have covered Alfred Bester, John Brunner and Algis Budrys.

StarShipSofa iTunes link.

SF and Fantasy Masterworks Full List

B.D.O. (Big Dumb Object, not the British Darts Organisation) pointed out that Wikpedia has a list of the SF Masterworks, including link to authors and books.

I did a quick count and my current scoring is: I own 32 and I’ve read 29 (out of 80 listed).

The unread ones I own are Bring The Jubilee (Ward Moore), The Complete Roderick (John Sladek) and The Stars My Destination (Alfred Bester).

The most recently read one is Tau Zero (Poul Anderson), which I thought was a neat idea of people stuck in a space ship, partner swapping - checking each other out ready to colonise a new planet - left, right and centre, but not being able to stop accelerating towards the speed of light because of damage to their ship’s drive system.

Wikpedia also has the Fantasy Masterworks list. The last one I read was The History Of The Runestaff (Michael Moorecock).

An Interview With Greg Bear: 27 July 2006

I believe that Blood Music was originally a short story which was expanded into a novel and, in turn, was your first major break through. Where do you get your ideas from, in terms of the science side, and also the characterisation?

GB: Ideas come from all over–we swim in them. Characters are partly from inner voices, mostly from observing other people with critical affection. The idea for Blood Music was originally sparked by an article on biochips in a 1982 issue of New Scientist. That led to a cascade of thoughts, and the conclusion that DNA must be in some sense computational–a fairly radical idea at the time, old hat today. Blood Music as a short story won both the Hugo and the Nebula awards in 1984, and my novella, Hardfought, one a Nebula that year as well.

Could you tell us a bit about who influences your work and have they changed over time?

GB: That’s a book-length essay in itself! Not at all answerable in the length of this interview. I read widely– nonfiction, journals, and fiction–watch lots of movies, a fair amount of the very best television (plus news on all the news channels) and even play a few games now and then on the computer. Every novel, as I write, I refer to one or more exemplars–novels that I really admire. They give me the energy to keep plowing on, whatever mood I may be in day to day.

The Forge Of God and Anvil Of Stars, The Movies: Do you have any upto date news on these?

GB: Warner Bros. still has them under option. No news at the moment.

How did this movie project come about?
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This is pretty daft : The Monopoly “Lord of the Rings” Edition.

Daftest thing is it’s still got “free parking” with a picture of a car on it and “go to jail” with the angry policeman!

I don’t remember cars and policemen being in the film. Maybe they were in the books and I forgot?

They would have been easy enough to change anyway:
Instead of jail they could have had the goblin’s dungeon or something.
And instead of free parking they could have had “sitting around at Rivendell talking for three bloody hours”.

Although, if you like LOTR and like Monopoly, you’d probably like this.

And to actually keep this post scifi to some extent, there’s also a Monopoly “Star Wars” Trilogy Edition.

Cool - just mix and match. Endless variations.

Internet Movie Database Users continuously Vote For The All-Time Top Fifty Science Fiction Movies

Interestingly enough, they calculate the top 50 (and bottom 10) using a formula based on ratings from their site, rather than just a straight vote from a list of movies.

Weighted rating (WR) = (v ÷ (v+m)) × R + (m ÷ (v+m)) × C

R = average for the movie (mean) = (Rating)
v = number of votes for the movie = (votes)
m = minimum votes required to be listed in the Top 50 (currently 1000)
C = the mean vote across the whole report (currently 6.6)

For the Top 50, only votes from regular voters are considered. In order to appear in the Bottom 10 Titles chart the title must have received at least 50 votes.

The only problem I can see is that some of the films are suspiciously un-scifi: Wallace & Grommit In The Curse of the Were-Rabbit? (That’s probably because they just happen to be put into the genre of ’scifi’ and lots of people voted highly.)

Nevertheless, some of the movies on the list are worthy of a place: Bladerunner, StarWars, Donnie Darko and Brazil to name but a few.

And no Star Trek movies to be seen anywhere. (That’s a positive in my opinion). But where’s Cube and Cube Zero?

Note that the page is dynamic; as more people vote and movies are added, the list might, and probably will, change.

The bottom 10 scifi movies list is worth looking at too.

Related Link: Bollywood Movies Bollywood Movies

4815162342 I think it’s possibly quite obvious really… maybe.

When any LOST website accumulates 4815162342 visits, time starts to flow backwards.

Or maybe god actually has 4,851,162,342 names (not 9 Billion as Arthur C. Clarke thought), and once they’re all found, the stars will start to go out.

Or maybe the optimum population count for Planet Earth (all things considered)  is 4,851,162,342.

Or maybe I should watch Series 2 incase it’s been answered already.

I’ve been informed that Anne Minni’s blog has been moved from where it was originally (pnwa.org) over to where she has her own domain now at http://www.annemini.com.

I’m pointing you over there as it should be up and running now.

I’m not sure if you remember but Anne Mini is the child of Philip K. Dick’s second wife. Apparently they formed an odd (not my words) bond and hence she wrote a book which included her talks with Phil.

The book was verily chastised by the PKD Estate which means it might not be released.

Have a look at her site and give her support - you can’t copyright memories? Am I right?

At the time of writing, Amazon said, “Availability: we are currently unable to offer this title. It may be out of stock with the publisher or out of print. If you would like to purchase this title, we recommend that you occasionally check this page to see if it has become available.”

Through Big Dumb Object I’ve finally got to see the trailer for The Prestige, adapted from Christopher Priest’s novel of the same name.

From acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan (Memento, Batman Begins), comes a mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

In the starring roles are:
Hugh Jackman
Christian Bale
Michael Caine
Scarlett Johansson
Rebecca Hall.

And also, David Bowie apparently.

And it looks pretty awesome (but, as we all know, trailers normally are). Fingers crossed it’s pulled off.

If you have trouble on the Apple site link above when viewing the trailer (as I did, I think it was the QT plug which seems to be broken), then you can see it on the official Prestige Movie site from Touchstone.

“The Planet: A Dead World, Ten Survivors, One Last Chance”

You can read the full review here.

Stirton Productions - Their Background.

Stirton Productions, founded in 2003, is a privately owned digital film company based in Aberdeen, Scotland. The company produces original screenplays and features, as well as documentaries, corporate videos and “on-demand” digital effects.

Stirton Productions CEO, Mark Stirton, has over 12 years experience in drama and television production; producing his first short horror film, Spooked, at the age of 25. Mark studied broadcast media at Aberdeen College and worked as a cameraman / vision mixer for a local television station before setting up his own company.

With The Planet, he hopes to show that a low budget film with good story and characters, can still be entertaining to an audience used to Hollywood ‘blockbusters’.

The Planet: Synopsis.

A group of mercenaries are forced to evacuate their dying spacecraft and find themselves stranded on a desolate, barren world. They discover that no signals can get through the atmosphere of the planet, the only option they have is to find a way to launch one of their escape craft into space and try and send an SOS.

Unfortunately, others have plans for the survivors and the group have to fight not only for their own survival, but for the safety of the entire universe. There is however one more problem on The Planet, the souls of the dead have their own agenda.

The Mercenaries’ Spaceship Is Attacked By Unidentified Fighters And Destroyed, Forcing Them To Evacuate.

Genre: SF / Horror

Year of Production: 2006

Budget: £8.000 GBP

Location: Aberdeenshire, Scotland (exteriors and interiors)

Original media: MiniDV digital

Camera: Canon XL-1

Presentation media: DVD region 2 PAL

Subtitles: English

Running time: 75 minutes

Sound: Dolby stereo

The Team Defend Themselves Against The Enemy.

Mike Mitchell (Lead Role as Captain Morgan)
Overall WFF Mr Universe and World Champion 2003, 2004, 2005/6 successfully defended World Title November 2003. Successfully defended the WFF Mr Universe and world Title 2005, and a competitive body builder for 15 years. Mike has appeared in several film productions, “The Planet,” is his first lead role.

As Captain Morgan, Mike quickly gained respect from the rest of the cast and crew with his intelligence, charm and huge gun.

Patrick Wight (MacNeal)
An entertainer and radio presenter in the North of Scotland for over 15 years, Patrick has appeared in several short films and documentaries. Although he is primarily known for stand-up comedy he is also a keen local historian and writer.

Patrick Plays MacNeal, the captain’s right hand man, a tough uncompromising character.

Scott Ironside (Vince)
A professional and very experienced actor, Scott has appeared on stage all over the UK as well as several short films. A trained swordsman and martial artist, he has run several stage fighting workshops and worked as a fight arranger in television and film.

Scott’s portrayal of Chief Engineer Vince is perfect, an unassuming, straight talking, mechanical genius.

Shawn Paul Hastings (Layton)
Shawn’s work includes the feature film Rosslyn (2004), regular appearances on BBC’s Monarch of the Glen and a growing number of high profile commercials.

Perhaps one of the more difficult characters to play, Shawn brought real empathy to Layton, a man who goes through some radical changes in the story.

Steve Tomas (Marsh)
A busy actor, Steve has appeared in many productions, recent work includes parts in the feature films The Last Rainbow (2005) and Worldliner (2006).

Steve gives the role of Marsh an ‘edgy’ quality, a soldier who sometimes works by his own rules.

Tim Branston (Mitch)
Now a respected Architect working in Aberdeen, Tim’s earlier life saw him as the lead in a 70’s ‘Glam Rock’ band and actor in many noted television productions, including Alan Bleasdale’s The Monocled Mutineer (1986).

Tim plays the part of Mitch, the disgruntled and weary medic for the mercenary group.

Michael G. Clark (Taylor)
As an actor, Michael has appeared in many of the Stirton Production films, including Removals (2004), which he also produced.

For the role of Security Chief Taylor, Michael played a character with more than a few surprises up his sleeve.

A Strange Signal Is Detected.

Daniel: Mark Stirton
Daak: Mark Wyness
Roberts (the Kid): Ashley Branston
Williams: Graham W. Robertson
The Prisoner: Colin Morrison
Computer Voice: Nicky Fraser

Crew.

Mark Stirton (Director / Writer / Cameraman / Editor / Digital and Character Effects)
Mark Stirton, Stirton Productions ceo, has over 12 years experience in drama and television production; producing his fi rst short film, Spooked, at the age of 25. Spooked, was nominated for an award at the 1996 Glasgow film festival. Mark studied broadcast media at Aberdeen College and worked as a cameraman / vision mixer for a local television station before setting up his own company in 2003. An experienced writer, Mark produces most of the material for Stirton Productions, as well as original screenplays for outside development.

Michael G. Clark (Producer / Art Director / Props / Animation)
A professional graphic designer and photographer, Michael has been involved in many of Mark Stirton’s projects over the years, both as an actor and crew. Michael created the designs, props and 3D textures for The Planet. As well as his commitments as a producer for Stirton Productions, Michael is responsible for all of Stirton Productions advertising output - from website to film posters.

Kerwin Robertson (Co- Producer / 3D Model Maker / Particle Effects)
Kerwin Robertson is a CAD Manager for an Architecture practice in Aberdeen, he has over 18 years experience in 3D modelling and 2D drafting on CAD systems. The 3D cad models for the movie were created by Kerwin, who also collaborated in their design process. Many of the computer hardware systems used to produce the film were also made by him.

Nicky Fraser (Composer / Sound Designer)
All the original music in ‘The Planet,’ was composed by Nicky Fraser, an Aberdeen based musician and DJ. Nicky was involved throughout the entire production process and many of her atmospherics and ambient sounds were used to enhance the mood of the movie. A good, powerful soundtrack is crucial for any action film, Nicky’s heavy tympanic beats and oppressive rhythms help get the audience to the edge of their seats - then the visuals push them over.

Contact Details.

Website: http://www.stirtonproductions.com/

Director : Mark Stirton
E-mail: mark@stirtonproductions.com
Mobile: +44 (0) 7784031818

Producer : Michael Clark
E-mail: mike@stirtonproductions.com
Telephone: +44 (0) 1224 748614
Mobile: +44 (0) 7720092934
Fax: +44 (0) 1224 746676

© Stirton Productions 2006

Read the full review here.

A.R.Yngve has pointed me in the direction of Sf writings and illustrations:

In his words:

I’m a Swedish SF writer/illustrator, but I mainly write in English and have published short fiction in magazines and webzines outside Sweden.

On my website I have posted several of my short stories and older novels (in English) for free reading.

The site also features serialized previews of published and upcoming novels, artwork, humor, essays, a writing blog… and more.

An interview with Gerald Libonati, author of Blue Nights In Atlantis

Q. In Blue Nights in Atlantis you are saying that modern man was created by a race from another planet who came here during man’s infancy, is that right?

A. Basically, yes, although I’m not necessarily saying they’re from another planet. I am saying they’re far more advanced than us. So much so that the Greeks and the Romans called them gods. Even the Aztecs and the Mayans had legends of gods who came down from the sky to teach them how to plant and how to live.

Q. In the book, you have modern man living side by side with ape-like beings.

A. Yes, Neanderthal did live at the same time as Cro-Magnon or modern man for a time. Some say they may have inter-bred but Cro-Magnon is said to have won out and eventually replaced Neanderthal. The mystery is, what happened to create that sudden jump in evolution. They’re still looking for the missing link.

Q. But you say the evolutionary jump was arranged by these beings?

A. In the book, I say that, yes. There is some genetic engineering going on.

Q. Where does Atlantis figure in all this?

A. Atlantis is a legend about an advanced civilization that preceded Egypt. It’s interesting to note that Egypt started out at its peak and declined as opposed to most other civilizations that build up to a golden age and then decline. But if Egypt was the remnant of Atlantis that would be perfectly logical. And it would have declined because it no longer had Atlantis to supply it.

Q. How did you come up with a concept like this?
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Journalist Gerald Libonati raised more than a few eyebrows with his newest book, Blue Nights in Atlantis. This plot-driven novel suggests that in ancient times when
human consciousness was in its infancy, evolution got a helping hand. When Neanderthal roamed the earth, someone or something was responsible for the sudden and inexplicable appearance of Cro-Magnon or modern man.

A writer for Tribune’s Sun-Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Libonati spins a fictional tale about an impressionable young man, Damio Abydos, who travels to the mysterious Atlantis where he falls in love with an elusive woman and meets the enigmatic High Priest of the Sun Temple who gradually reveals his disturbing secrets.

The legends of antiquity are full of stories about gods coming down from the sky to teach us about agriculture, astronomy and morality’ Libonati said. ‘They may have done even more than that.’

Although set in a pre-Egyptian world, it is written in the language of today. The characters are strong; they react to their emotions and each other as the mystery unfolds.

Blue Nights in Atlantis, released by Windstorm Creative in Port Orchard, Washington, is a novel of personal and planetary transformation that is sure to spark some heated debate. But, more than that, it’s an entertaining read.

Shockingly Shockingly Weird

2000AD do an occasional story line which are just weird, very much like the Twilight Zone called Future Shocks or Time Twisters. It’s a place for new artists and scripters to showcase their imagination. Alan Moore has put together a compilation which will - just - weird - you - out.

One memorable one which I recollect is where a guy notices a strip of clear white paint on the roof of his house. He’s bewildered, and wonders what it’s about. No conclusion comes until maybe 15 years later. He’s finally painted his house and low and behold a strip of paint has disappeared. He vaguely remembers something which happened before…

To me these are probably the most thought out story lines, or at least the most weird and thought provoking story lines which have appeared in 2000AD.

If you like weird and thought provoking stories, then simply go get it.

Prey Interview
31/01/06

Interview courtesy of Totally360.com / News0r.com and waytoblue.com

1) Hi Tim, it was great meeting with you during the European leg of 3D Realms/Human Head Studios press trip; from what the press has seen of Prey so far, what is the overall impression members of the press have walked away with?

Overall the press response we’ve received has been tremendous. Usually press play things pretty close to the vest when showing a game, but every time we demo Prey fro the press, we get lots of responses during and afterwards. During our recent multiplayer demonstrations, there were many instances where we had to pretty much kill the servers to get them to stop playing for the next group, and even then we’d have to intervene in a few cases to get the journalists moving on. That’s pretty high praise and humbling to us.

2) Can you tell us how the whole concept of Prey came about? And is Prey the longest game ever to be in development?

First off, I’ve seen several articles claiming that we’ve been working on the game for ten years, and that’s not really true. 3D Realms had been working on Prey during the late 1990s but shelved it in 1998. When Human Head began production late in 2001 we were working pretty much from a clean slate, so you can’t really say that the game we’re about to release is the same game as was begun a decade ago. Though they share the same name and some of the original features you can’t really say they are the same game or that it was one continuous production.

That said, I think 3D Realms other game, Duke Nukem Forever, is probably the longest game in continuous development in the history of video games, and Prey is probably not far behind.

3) We played the multiplayer aspect of Prey for as much as we could during the European press presentation and we’re blown away with the amount of fun that can be had with Prey’s multiplayer - how did 3D Realms/Human Head Studios define such a unique aspect of LAN/online play?

Our multiplayer was a gamble of sorts. Despite the amount of time we’ve worked on the game, our resources aren’t limitless, so we made the calculated decision to concentrate on DeathMatch as the primary mode of play from multiplayer, but to really do it right by bringing each of the single player features into multiplayer and focus on designing fun environments in which to play them.

I was honestly quite sceptical that even a killer DeathMatch experience would be enough to make our multiplayer catch the eyes of jaded gamers. I was concerned that with all the innovative elements we were concentrating on for single player that the multiplayer would just seem like a tacked on experience. I’m happy to say I was quite wrong in that. By concentrating on playing to the strengths of our single player features in multiplayer we ended up with an experience that really seems to reinvigorate the DeathMatch game. Several of the testers and press who have played told me that it ‘makes DeathMatch fun again’ and one journalist even told me that it reawakened something he hadn’t felt since he played the original Doom multiplayer. That’s high praise to me.
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To WIN a copy of Prey on either Xbox360 or PC all you have to do is answer this question:

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

THE WINNERS HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED.

See more competitions!

3D Realms produced Prey. Which of the following games was also produced by 3D Realms?

A) Alternate Tomato Induction.
B) John Fanzine Joke Attack.
C) Duke Nukem Series.
D) Escape From Phobos.

Send your answer in through the competition form stating your answer, name, email address, age and preferred format (PC or 360).

No correspondence can be entered into. Details will be kept private.