Lie-Bots From Bay, CG Meatballs, & Chopper Zombies To Ride Big Screen...

Lost Planet Found By Warner Brothers

(AWN.com)                Warner Bros. and Capcom will develop a feature film based on hit video game LOST PLANET from the Japanese publisher, according to VARIETY.

Capcom will co-finance the project, which will be written by David Hayter, who most recently penned Zack Snyder's WATCHMEN for WB.

Avi Arad, Ari Arad and Steven Paul will produce via Seaside Ent., their fantasy-fare shingle.

Released in Japan in 2006 and North America in early 2007, LOST PLANET has sold more than 2 million units, and a sequel is expected.

Warner Bros. will have worldwide distribution rights to LOST PLANET, which is about an expedition to an ice planet that harbors an energy source with the potential to save mankind.

Capcom recently turned RESIDENT EVIL into three films, with a fourth on the way. They are also partnered with Hyde Park Ent. on a live action version of STREET FIGHTER and is working with Paramount for ONIMUSHA.

The financing details for LOST PLANET are in the works, but Capcom is expected to contribute, much like it did for STREET FIGHTER.

Seaside made a deal with DreamWorks recently for a 3-D live action adaptation of Steven Spielberg's passion project GHOST IN THE SHELL, a futuristic Japanese manga classic.

Hayter is known in the gaming world for voicing Solid Snake in METAL GEAR SOLID from Konami and has had a long association with Avi Arad from when the producer ran the film arm of Marvel Comics. He scripted early drafts of superhero movies for Arad, but is mostly known for his work on the first two X-MEN films.

Dreamworks Rubs The Lamp

(darkhorizons.com)                Dave Guion and Michael Handelman will adapt British author P.B. Kerr's children's fantasy novel "Children of the Lamp" for DreamWorks says The Hollywood Reporter.

The "Lamp" series includes four children's fantasy novels about a family of djinn (a kind of genie) who disguise themselves as humans but can still grant wishes.

Former Disney president Nina Jacobson will produce and "Billy Elliot" scribe Lee Hall penned the earlier draft of the script.

What Can We Really Believe About "Transformers 2" ?

(comingsoon.net)                    Entertainment Weekly talked to Michael Bay who didn't reveal much about Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, but did say the following:

When we were writing the script, I said to the writers, "I hate sequels that try to make it to the third movie. Pretend like we're never having a third movie, so let's go for broke on the second one. I hate those cliffhangers! Let's just make this movie stand on its own." I really feel this movie is not a forced sequel. I think the script is really good, and I think it's got a lot of new stuff in it. There are a lot of rumors out there, but we've released a lot of fake stuff. We've done a really good job of keeping things secret.

Speaking of which:

(scifi.com)           Megan Fox, who reprises the role of Mikaela Banes in Michael Bay's upcoming sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, told SCI FI Wire that the movie is crazier than the first one in terms of action "by like a hundred."

"I'm doing good," Fox said in an interview in Santa Monica, Calif., on July 14. "I've had like four injuries so far. So I'm accumulating the injuries and just going on with it. It's fun. It's what it is. It's a Michael Bay movie."

Part of that is being tossed around in the same yellow Camaro as in the first film, Fox said. "There's a different Bumblebee, the yellow one that you see in the movie, that we drive," she said, adding: "I don't drive it, but it drives at like 120 miles an hour, and we're in it with no seat belts or harnesses or anything. It's, if we die, we die, all in the name of Transformers (laughs)."

CG Meatballs For January 2010

(AWN.com)               Sony Pictures has confirmed that its first stereoscopic digital 3-D animated release CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS will come out on January 15, 2010.

Sony Pictures Animation most recently released 2007's SURF's UP and the 2006 release of OPEN SEASON, which included 3-D IMAX screenings.

"Food falling from the sky lends itself so well to 3-D," said Bob Osher, president of Sony Pictures Entertainment's Digital Production division.

CLOUDY has the same 3-D pipeline team used for BEOWULF, MONSTER HOUSE, OPEN SEASON and THE POLAR EXPRESS.

Per THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER, Sony Pictures Animation's other upcoming release, HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA, which had been scheduled for September 25, 2009, is still not on the official release schedule. COMINGSOON.net reports that HOTEL will also have a 2010 release, specific date TBA.

VARIETY reported last week that Sony will release the animated feature PLANET 51 on November 20, 2009.

Beowulf MoCap Studio Opens L.A. Studio

(blog.digitalcontentproducer.com)                 Perspective Studios, a leading creator of animation and motion capture for feature film, television, commercials and video games, announced Tuesday the opening of a West Coast studio in Santa Monica, California.

In a significant expansion for the company, which also has state-of-the-art motion capture and production facilities in New York, the new facility will provide top-quality 3-D animation and motion capture on the ground in Los Angeles and support Perspective Studios' rapidly expanding portfolio of clients, production attachments and original IP.

The Santa Monica studio features full-service motion capture in a setup designed and run by veterans of the motion capture industry, including Tom Armbruster, who joins Perspective Studios from VICON Motion Systems as vice president of business development, and Matthew Bauer, formerly head of Motion Analysis Studios, who has been appointed Perspective Studios' animation VP.

"We see Perspective Studios as a new breed of animation company that will thrive on creating end-to-end animation for publishing and production partners while also developing and co-producing our own stories," said Steven Lehrhoff, CEO, Perspective Studios. "Our custom-built facility in L.A. is helping us reach this goal by augmenting our capabilities, team and geographic reach."

"We see Perspective Studios as a new breed of animation company that will thrive on creating end-to-end animation for publishing and production partners while also developing and co-producing our own stories,\u201d said Steven Lehrhoff, CEO, Perspective Studios. "Our custom-built facility in L.A. is helping us reach this goal by augmenting our capabilities, team and geographic reach."

Aimed at in-house as well as client work, the new studio is outfitted with 50 high-speed, high-resolution VICON F40 motion capture cameras in a configurable volume for real-time, multiple performer motion capture. This ups the company's total motion capture camera count to 100 across two locations.

Several technology advances and processes engineered by Perspective Studios and implemented at the facility make motion capture more seamless, transparent and user friendly for new productions. These include the ability to supervise live motion capture sessions remotely from any location with simultaneous live data feeds, and the use of accurate virtual cameras and pre-vis environments to more effectively frame shots and actors in both marker-based and markerless motion capture scenarios. The new space also features innovative audio systems, data and reference video projection, stunt rigging capabilities and a range of creature comforts and amenities.

Tom Armbruster comes to Perspective Studios from VICON Motion Systems, where he managed feature film and television accounts from 2001 to 2007 and grew the company's entertainment business by more than 300%. Among many notable client collaborations, he worked closely with Robert Zemeckis' ImageMovers Digital studio to develop and deliver the performance capture solution used on such ground-breaking films as The Polar Express, Monster House and Beowulf.

Mummy Man Resurrects Monster Squad

(moviehole.net)              The cult classic "The Monster Squad" is – not surprisingly – about to get a contemporary makeover.

"Mummy 3" director Rob Cohen tells Bloody Disgusting that Paramount have purchased the rights to the Fred Dekker flick. What isn't known is whether or not the remake is in development, pre-production or… merely just an idea at this stage. Interestingly enough, Dekker mentioned last year that he'd be keen to do a sequel to the movie - - but guess that idea dies with the transfer of ownership?

Much to everyone's surprise – particularly its cast and crew. "The Monster Squad", a huge flop when it was released theatrically in 1987, is now considered a straight-up out-and-out cult classic because, well, it's so infectiously tacky and incontrovertibly culpable fun. Written by Dekker and Shane Black and directed by Dekker, it's a "Goonies" like romp about a bunch of kids that team up to bring down all the movie monsters – including Dracula, The Mummy and the Wolfman.

Unlike a lot of the so-called kid's films today, 1987s "The Monster Squad" actually gives its audience – in this case, youngsters – what they want, and not just give in to what the studio executives believe kids want. Thanks to the ingenuity of its young writer/director Frank Dekker ("Night of the Creeps"), this one spoke straight to the kids – in the same way say, "The Goonies" did. But more so, this one let the kids swear… not many kids movies these days even feature a single 'shit' let alone an 'asshole' or 'bitch'… and it's not often you'll find references to 'virgins' in the family film, either. It truly was a landmark film for its time – something that was seemingly made whilst big brother (in this case, Mr. studio head) turned his back.

Cohen ("The Mummy : Tomb of the Dragon Emperor", "XXX") says he'd produce the remake, not direct it.

(scifi.com)               Producer Bob Ducsay told reporters that he is actively developing a feature film based on Terry Brooks' best-selling fantasy novel Magic Kingdom for Sale for Universal.

"I would say there's nothing that we have in development that we are more interested in making than Magic Kingdom," Ducsay said in a group interview on July 15 in Beverly Hills, Calif., where he was promoting The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. "It's a fantastic story, fantastic material. We actually think that we have a very strong screenplay, also. And we're trying very hard to get the movie made. I mean, it's complicated to get any movie made."

Stephen Sommers, who directed the first two Mummy films and served as a producer on the third, is attached to direct and co-produce Magic Kingdom.

Ducsay said that the book's complex premise is difficult to explain, but attempted to provide a simple description of the plot.

"Basically, it's about a man whose life has fallen apart because of the death of his wife who is met with an opportunity to buy what turns out to be a literal magic kingdom," Ducsay said. "And when he enters this magic kingdom with his family, he discovers that the magic kingdom was not what it was sold to be and in fact was in complete and total disarray. And over the course of the picture, he mends the magic kingdom and his family."

One obstacle to getting the movie made is its cost, Ducsay said. "Magic Kingdom is a very expensive movie," he said. "Lots of digital work. ... But the bottom line is, the studio actually likes the movie a great deal. So it's not like it's a complete uphill battle. It's just hard to get movies made."

The project is currently set up at Universal Studios. (Universal is owned by NBC Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.)

George Lucas Hearts Scotland's Schools

(timesonline.co.uk)                It seemed the most unlikely of joint-billings - the Star Wars director George Lucas and a modest Scots initiative to improve e-communication within schools.

In what must rank as one of the most heady compliments ever given to an education system, the film maker announced to members of the US House of Representatives that America should adopt Scotland's pioneering school websites as a way to improve pupil access to technology.

May the force, indeed, be with Glow, a scheme which sets up chatrooms and shared resources for pupils and is being held up as a shining international example of how ICT can help teaching and learning.

Mr Lucas, who heads his own not-for-profit education foundation and is on the quest for what he calls "cedutopia:", told representatives on the telecommunications and internet sub-committee that the US is lagging behind Scotland in using 21st century tools to teach its children.

More:     http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article4339834.ece

Industrial Light and Magic At The Constellation Awards

(marketwire.com)               The winners of the 2008 Constellation Awards, honouring the actors and producers behind Canada's favourite Science Fiction TV series and movies, were announced this weekend at ceremonies in Toronto.

The summer blockbuster "Transformers" also performed well, taking home two trophies. It won "Best Science Fiction Film, TV Movie or Mini-Series of 2007" as well as "Best Technical Accomplishment in a 2007 Science Fiction Film or Television Production" for the Special Effects produced by Industrial Light & Magic.

More:    http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/The-Constellation-Awards-878788.html

Tony Stark's Next Weapon:  "Iron Man: Full Throttle"

(Variety)            Marvel Studios' first production and this summer's current top-grosser Iron Man, has been so successful, grossing over $560 million worldwide, that it was a foregone conclusion that a sequel would happen sooner rather than later. What might be surprising is that according to Variety, they're changing writers for the second movie, going with actor/filmmaker Justin Theroux to pen the sequel, which is planned for a late April release in 2010.

While Marvel Studios negotiates with director Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. to bring them back for the sequel, they've hired Theroux, who some might know from his acting roles in McG's Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle and HBO's "Six Feet Under." He also wrote and executive produced Ben Stiller's upcoming war comedy Tropic Thunder (also starring Robert Downey Jr.), and presumably Marvel saw that he could write comedy and action suitable for shellhead's sequel. (Marvel Studios themselves haven't commented on any of the developments on the sequel as of yet.)

The Real "Deadliest Catch":  ZOMBIES!

(darkhorizons.com)              "Ice Road Truckers" and "Deadliest Catch" producer Thom Beers will produce the feature film "Chopper Zombie" reports Variety.

The story follows a motorcycle builder who refuses to sell his formula for a new superfuel to a dangerous corporation. When a team of thugs drowns him in his own toxic creation, he rises from the dead with a score to settle.

The project will start out as a comic book series launching at next week's Comic-Con, and the film will head into production sometime next year.