INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR MARCUS HEARN

This is a very exciting release for horror fans isn’t it?

It’s an exciting release for Hammer fans and, as you say, anybody interested in classic horror films. And if you’re a beginner this is a great place to start.

Dracula is one of the most portrayed characters in film. Why is Christopher Lee’s the one that is perhaps best remembered?

I think his interpretation is definitive. Lee transformed our perceptions of the character, suggesting the character’s danger and cruelty in a far more subtle way than had ever been suggested before. He quite rightly interprets Hammer’s Dracula as an urbane sexual predator, and I think every subsequent portrayal owes something to his performance here. He dominates this film with remarkably little screen time.

Why is this such an important version of the classic story?

This was the film where the formula for classic Hammer horror was perfected. Everything came together with Dracula, both on screen and behind the scenes. Its creative and commercial impact inspired almost 20 years of Gothic horror films from Hammer. It’s possibly even more important for the way it influenced cinematic interpretations of Bram Stoker’s novel. Here is Dracula presented as a story about sex. The influence of that decision is still felt today in modern films and TV series about vampirism.

What is your favourite thing about this film?

Its production values are modest but flawless. The lighting is beautiful; the performances – especially from Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee – are detailed and sincere. It’s eerie, erotic and surprisingly savage in the final act. This is not an explicit film by modern standards, but it’s a horror film for grown-ups.

You have to take into account the film’s age, or rather the conservative era in which was made. But I think that’s pretty much the only concession you have to make. Anyone expecting torture porn, explicit sex or a bloodbath is going to be disappointed. It’s carefully paced, erotic, unsettling, occasionally shocking and even thought-provoking. The restorations on these discs – especially the Blu-ray – really enable us to fully appreciate the craftsmanship that went into the making of Dracula.

It’s pretty incredible that the additional footage was found in Japan. What can you say about the footage that has been reinstated into the film?

It’s nothing short of a miracle that it survived and that it’s been so brilliantly restored and integrated. The classic formula for Hammer horror basically comprises sex and death, and the reinstated footage provides more of both. The original version of the sequence where Dracula seduces Mina can now be seen for the first time outside Japan. The unspoken interaction between Christopher Lee and Melissa Stribling carries a powerful erotic charge which alarmed British censors in 1958.

The extra death comes in a now complete version of Dracula’s disintegration at the end of the film. This is a remarkable special effect by the standards of the day (no CGI in 1958!) and is not only startling but also restores the original rhythm of the editing in that sequence. This is surely one of the most iconic moments in post-war cinema and now we can finally see it as director Terence Fisher intended.

The film is notable for its beautiful colours, presented here for the first time in accurate, High Definition. What is your favourite thing about the restoration?

It’s not been discussed much, but this is the first time the film has been released in any home entertainment format in its correct aspect ratio of 1:66.1. I think that’s a cause for celebration. The picture is incredibly sharp for a film of this age, and the colour palette is just as lush as you would expect from a Hammer horror. These films weren’t supposed to look realistic – they were nightmarish fairy tales.

You have provided a commentary for the film with Jonathan Rigby. What was this experience like for you and why would you urge fans to listen to it?

The commentary was great fun. Jonathan Rigby (writer and film critic) and I were principally there to provide behind the scenes information, but quite often we lapsed into ‘fan mode’ and simply discussed our favourite scenes as they appeared! This was the first time Jonathan had seen the 2012 restoration and you can hear how surprised and impressed he is on the commentary. Or rather commentaries, because at the appropriate moments you’ll hear us say different things about the 2007 and 2012 restorations.

With Twilight, TV’s True Blood and Hammer’s own Let Me In, Vampires have had a boom in pop-culture in recent years. What do you think it is about the mythology of the vampire which is continually attractive to audiences?

Vampirism is a metaphorical vehicle to portray so many of the ideas that we find disturbing, such as the loss of humanity and sexual violation. The films and series you mentioned present this in a seductive way, and I think that continues the reinvention that began with Hammer’s Dracula. This seductive quality is partly what the censors objected to in 1958, and this is what has been reinstated to the film now. Dracula may be 55 years old, but in that respect it’s now more relevant than ever.

DRACULA

RELEASED ON 3-DISC DOUBLE PLAY ON 18TH MARCH 2013

Episode 75:David Zayas Interview

In which Martyn chats to David “Angel Batista” Zayas, about his role in the new DVD ’13’. They also discuss Dexter, acting and sports.



The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

Socials:

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INTERVIEW WITH ANDREW STANTON

Filmmaker Andrew Stanton is no stranger to success. He directed and co-wrote the screenplay for Disney/Pixar’s WALL•E, which won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature in 2008. He made his directorial debut with Disney/Pixar’s Finding Nemo, garnering an Academy Award-nomination for Best Original Screenplay and winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2003. Stanton also worked on a host of successful Disney/Pixar movies including Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Ratatouille and Up before turning to live-action with the epic action-adventure John Carter.

With the Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD of the heroic tale, John Carter, about to be released, we catch up with the acclaimed director to find out more on the epic project…


How would you describe your first directorial experience away from your comfort zone at Pixar?

It’s been extremely exciting to work on John Carter. The best analogy I can use to describe the experience is to say that it was like deciding, ‘Yeah, I’m going to get on a boat and sail across the ocean!’ Half the people in the world wouldn’t want to do anything like that, but some people consider a voyage out to sea to be an incredibly attractive journey. It’s an exciting adventure for some people, but it also sounds incredibly hard. You know there will be a lot of labour involved and you may see some really pretty things, but you may also get stuck in a horrible storm. I feel like that’s a pretty good comparison because I knew making this movie wasn’t going to be necessarily easy, but there’s a sense of fulfilment and a thrill that you wouldn’t get any other way. It was the adventure of a lifetime.



What’s the biggest difference between making an animated film and a live-action movie?

I thought, at least intellectually, that the biggest difference would be the physical stamina of creating a live-action feature, the standing around all day for 100 days. It didn’t matter if it was hot or cold or wet, we never stopped standing – and that can be tough at times. However, I think a lot of people thought the biggest difference would be the fact that I was working with actors rather than computers. On the set of John Carter, I’d have tons of people asking me, “So what’s it like to work with people now?’ And I’d laugh at them and I’d say, “I don’t talk to computers when I work at Pixar. I’ve been talking to 200 people on movie projects for the last 20 years! I talk to them about where to put the camera, what costumes we should make, where the lights should go and what the motivation of the scene is. It’s not very different at all.” It’s funny because I have all the same conversations at Pixar as I do on a live-action project. I just don’t have them all at the same time. On an animated project, I have these conversations in separate meetings over the course of several weeks or months. On a live-action set, it happens all at once.

How much of the movie was shot using a green screen?

We tried really, really hard not to use too much computer generation in John Carter. I watched a lot of movies where it can look incredibly pretty, but the more CG a movie uses, the more cold and antiseptic it feels. You can sense it; you are distanced.

Were there any other reasons why you decided to veer away from green screen as much as possible?

I had spent all my life reading the books of Edgar Rice Burroughs and imagining what it would be like to stand in the desert talking to the 9-foot tall creatures he wrote about so distinctively, so I wanted this movie to feel as real as possible. The Ape Arena in John Carter is a perfect example of this. We went all the way to Utah and found a big patch of sand where we built the throne area and the dungeon area for the scene. Everything else was green screen, but we built enough for Taylor Kitsch, Willem Dafoe and all of the other actors to feel like they were really there in the arena. We were always trying to strike a balance by building enough so that if we had to have green screen, the actors didn’t feel like they were standing in the middle of nothing.

What were the conditions like in the desert when you shot John Carter in Utah?
We got to Utah in April thinking it would be really warm, but it was freezing. It warmed up just enough for when we shot the scenes on the river – but then we got hit with sandstorms. The only thing that was helpful is that in Utah you can see for almost 100 miles, so you can spot any bad weather coming and you can plan for it. You can aim to get the shot done before the storm hits because you have a certain amount of warning. I was so adamant about staying on schedule and on time that I said, “We’re just going to shoot it whatever happens. If Clint Eastwood can do it, I can do it. If Clint Eastwood does one take, I can do one take. Let’s go for it!” And we’d jump in and do it. It was great.

So what’s next for you and Pixar?
I’m not working on any Pixar features right now. However, I have a Pixar short that I’m working on with Pete Docter. Plus, I’m working on a couple of other options. I’ve had lots of ideas over the years, so there’s always something bubbling around in my mind. We’ll just have to see where that takes me next.

John Carter is out on 3D Blu-ray™, Blu-ray ™ and DVD from 2 July
©2012 Disney

Thanks to Disney and Thinkjam for the interview

Episode 59: Jacqueline Pearce interview

In which Martyn and Pete talk about the latest Doctor Who news, including the casting of the new Companion.

Pete and The Pharos Project interview actress Jacqueline Pearce at the launch of her autobiography from Fantom Films.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf



Laura Patch Interview

Martyn and Paul from The Pharos Project recently had the pleasure of interviewing Laura Patch, an accomplished actress who has graced both the small and big screens with her talent. Fans of the hit TV show Being Human will recognize her as the giraffe-hiding expert in one of the episodes.

She’s also starred in popular shows such as Star Stories, The IT Crowd, and The Bill, as well as the TV movie Dolly & Laura. Her impressive range and versatility as an actress make her a sought-after talent in the entertainment industry.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Socials:

Twitter:

Laura Patch- @Laura_Patch

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf



An Evening With Eve Myles

Along with Paul and Chris from The Pharos Project, I travelled to North Wales to catch up with Torchwood’s Eve Myles. We got drunk by an open fire, talked Doctor Who, Torchwood, carpeted bathrooms and working with Zach Braff. Eve also told us about the time she went “Bongo’s up”.

Eve Myles is a Welsh actress from Ystradgynlais. She graduated from the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in 2000. Later that year, she began portraying Ceri Lewis in the BBC drama series Belonging, a role she would play until the end of the series in 2009. Myles’ early UK-wide television credits included the 2001 miniseries Tales from Pleasure Beach and the 2003 television drama Colditz. In 2005, she auditioned for a part in the revived series of Doctor Who, and landed the role of servant girl Gwyneth, in the Series 1 episode “The Unquiet Dead”, alongside Billie Piper and Christopher Eccleston.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf

 

Twitter

Martyn-@BadWilf

Eve Myles-@TeamEveMyles

Pharos Project-@PharosProject

Nina Sosanya interview

I was lucky enough to take part in an e-mail interview with Nina Sosanya, about her role in Sky One’s adaptation of Treasure Island.

What attracted you to this project??

I love dressing up! I’ve done a lot of Shakespeare and his contemporaries on stage, and I get to dress up in corsets and big wigs quite a lot for that. But on television, a lot of the stuff that I do is contemporary, where I’m wearing stuff from Next. This is just right up my street really and it’s a great adventure. The whole genre is incredibly romantic. It’s fun, though not in a Pirates of the Caribbean way – it’s quite dark, it’s quite earthy and I kind of liked all of that. I wish I could have played a pirate and I think Alibe is the next best thing.

Can you describe your character?

She is talked about very briefly at the end of the book when they’re talking about what Silver does and they say that he goes off with his ‘mulatto’ wife. She has no name and it’s about as much mention as she gets. I’m playing Alibe Silver who is that wife.

Continue reading Nina Sosanya interview

Episode 45: Entertainment Media Show

Martyn and Pete from Bad Wilf and, Chris from the Pharos Project talk to:

  • David Prowse (Star Wars, Hitchhiker’s, Tomorrow People)
  • Eve Myles (Torchwood)
  • Arthur Darvill (11th Doctor companion ‘Rory Williams’)
  • Paul McGann (8th Doctor)

EMS: collectormanialondon.com

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

@pharosproject

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf

More pictures – most are courtesy of Tim Drury (Tim’s Flickr)

Dr Who talk
Dr Who talk
Barber, Moffett, Blackwood
Cosplayers
Cyberman
Martyn & Cyberman
Angel & Silcence
Angel & Silence
Future Amy
TARDIS headgear
TARDIS dress
Peg Doll
David Tennant
With Paul McGann
Classic Who talk
Kate O’Mara
Classic Who talk

Episode 43: Whooverville Three

Martyn and the Doctor Who Podcast Alliance interview Frazer Hines and Sarah Sutton.

Martyn and the Pharos Project look at Doctor Who: Night Terrors. Martyn begins the podcast by announcing (an attempted) retirement.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf

Whooverville 3: whoovers.org.uk

DWPA: www.doctorwhopodcastalliance.org
The Pharos Project: thepharosproject.libsyn.com

More pictures from the event:

Nicola Bryant and Martyn
With Ian McNeice
With the Head of Pertwee
With the TARDIS