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Post by Sara on Mar 26, 2007 8:56:43 GMT -5
From salon.com:The Man Behind "Battlestar Galactica"Ronald D. Moore, creator of TV's smartest sci-fi show, talks about the creative freedom of serialized drama and how to comment on the Iraq war in a story set in outer space. By Laura MillerMarch 24, 2007 | "Battlestar Galactica," the celebrated, Peabody Award-winning SciFi Channel drama, will conclude its third season on Sunday night, with a climactic human rights trial featuring some downright spooky resonances with today's headlines. Although the challenging and unconventional series commands a devoted following, its ratings have been anemic, and so fans received the announcement earlier this week that the SciFi Channel has picked it up for another 22 episodes with much rejoicing. Salon spoke by telephone with executive producer and show-runner Ronald D. Moore about what it's like to comment on the Iraq war in a show set in outer space, the fear-based mentality of the entertainment industry, and the difficulty of making TV that doesn't pretend to solve the world's most vexing problems in 60 minutes. [Warning: Spoilers for Sunday night's finale will follow.] One of the things people like about "Battlestar Galactica" is the way it seems to touch upon the issues of our time without stooping to obvious connect-the-dots political commentary. In last week's episode, the lawyer prosecuting the big human rights trial in the season finale told an aide to President Laura Roslin to back off, and then added, "Of course, I do serve at the pleasure of the president." I thought you either had to be working much faster than is humanly possible, or "Battlestar Galactica" has become prophetic.Wasn't that wild? We wrote and filmed that line months ago, before it became part of the current conversation. That was shot in November or October. It's a phrase I've been familiar with and I put it in the show because that's the expression used about people who serve for the president. Do you often find the show echoing current events even when you didn't intend it to, or is that pretty rare?It happens. It's an odd confluence of events sometimes. When we're working on a show and developing the story lines and scripts we're certainly keenly aware of what's going on in the world. You can project some things out to where the world might be when the show airs. But with some things, like that line, there's a bit of serendipity that happens. What's especially weird about it is that the situation is so similar to the ones that led to the Alberto Gonzales scandal.Yeah, it is. It's Laura trying to tell the prosecutor what to charge, what crime to prosecute. It's been interesting to watch that. How hard do you try to link what's going on in "Battlestar Galactica" to real-world politics? Or do you find yourselves trying to resist that impulse?It's part of the brief. The premise of the show lends itself to those topics so naturally. It's about an apocalyptic attack, a group of survivors on the run and they're dealing with issues that are inherently about freedom and security. There's the civilian and the military, and lots of issues it seems very natural for them to grapple with that mirror events in the real world. We talk about it at length in the writers' room and with the cast and directors, trying to figure out where the lines are for us. We never want to go into direct allegory for today's events because there's nothing really interesting about that. What is interesting to you?It's interesting for me as a writer when we can move the chess pieces around a little bit, when you're dealing with suicide bombing on the show but suddenly it's not those other people who are doing it, but your characters. You're able to examine the moral questions of it in a different context because you're not burdened by the direct analogy of saying, "If Laura is George Bush and the cylons are the enemy, how do you deal with it?" That to me isn't great drama because everything is so loaded and so apparent. Science fiction gives you the opportunity to mix and match the elements and the circumstances. You can deal with the deeper themes and issues because you've scrambled the chess pieces. You're coming at it from a different point of view. I get the impression you want to avoid parroting a boiler-plate political position, whatever your own politics might be.I do try not to do that. I'm not naive enough to think my politics don't influence the show. I'm certain that they do, but the show's mission is not to present answers to what I think are really complicated, difficult questions. One of the mistakes TV often makes is that it tries to tackle complicated moral and legal issues and wrap them up in an hour and give you a neat, tidy message by the end: "And here's the way to solve Iraq!" I don't think that's helpful, and I don't think that's good storytelling or great to watch. Our mission is more about asking questions, asking the audience to think about things, to think about uncomfortable things, to question their own assumptions. I like the show best when you get to a place where you're not sure who you're rooting for anymore, you're not sure whose side you're on. And you're confused and you might even be angry about what we're doing but at least it's forced you to a place of trying to define your own point of view on something. Moral ambiguity is unusual not only in television, but in pop culture in general. You worked on several of the "Star Trek" series, which I associate with moral stances that are a lot more pat. What's difficult about making a TV series that aims for something different?The challenge is that TV wants to bend you and your characters to neat moral decisions and arguments. Ultimately, the forces of television want your heroes to be heroic. It wants the leading characters to make the "right" choice each week and it wants there to be a clearly defined "bad" person in the show. Or at the most, the character does the right thing and maybe at the end he looks wistfully off-camera and ponders how it might have been different. There's a certain phony-baloney quality to a lot of the moralism on TV. It does serve up pat answers to difficult questions. And when you try to make it more morally ambiguous, you immediately run into the buzz saw of "It makes the characters unlikable. There's no one to root for. The audience won't like the character if they can't say he's making the right choice and that's what separates him from his enemies." We set out to make a very different kind of show. The difficulty is that when you go into these morally ambiguous areas, you have to have morally questionable decisions and motives for all your characters. (continued)
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Post by Sara on Mar 26, 2007 8:58:10 GMT -5
Moore continued:
The objection that this makes the characters unlikable doesn't even turn out to be true. I'm sure you're well aware of that after seeing the response to what you've decided to do with Starbuck, a person who consistently made bad decisions for bad reasons but who was very popular with viewers all the same. To say she's "unlikable" sounds like an executive's objection.
It's a very fear-driven culture, the entertainment business. It's all about fear. You're afraid the audience isn't going to like it. You're afraid that they'll be turned off and that they're not as smart as you are. They won't get what you're going for. Can't it be safer? Can't it be happier?
It's also got to be difficult to go that route in a show that's substantially about the military. The armed services is an aspect of society people tend to be absolutist about. Was the military setting one of the things that got you interested in the project to begin with?
Well, that was in the concept itself. The original show was a war show. From my point of view, updating it meant that I wanted to treat the military aspects differently. I wanted to make it clear that the people who are serving are human beings, not exalted icons. They do have flaws and make bad judgments and are afflicted by the same curses as everyone else. There are drunks and womanizers and all kinds of different people who go into the military because they're just people.
It was important to me to portray it like that partly because of working on "Star Trek" for so long. One of the central ideas of "Star Trek" is that the people on the Enterprise and in Star Fleet were the best of the best. They were better than you and I, a better breed of human beings who were not torn with petty differences, jealousies and all the things that make people human. That stuff was almost bred out of them at Star Fleet, and that made the drama hard to convey. You were more distant from them as characters.
So I wanted the people on Galactica to be a very different crop. It wasn't going to be the best ship in the fleet crewed by an elite crew. It was going to be an old ship getting ready to go into retirement, and there were going to be a lot of misfits on that ship. What happens when the fate of humanity rests on their shoulders? That's a far more interesting question to me.
Again, science fiction gives me a lot of license. This is not an aircraft carrier. I don't have to be so careful not to offend people who serve in the Navy or have relatives in the Navy, or people who just want to posture about what people are really like in the Navy and you're besmirching the names of our fair soldiers and sailors and all that crap. This is a made-up universe. It's certainly modeled on the U.S. military and we do a lot of the interior character work centering around military culture and how they treat each other, but it's not meant to be a direct representation of the people who are serving.
But before this you weren't sitting around thinking about how much you wanted to do a show about fighter pilots?
No, but it is one of my lifelong interests. My father was a veteran. He was a Marine officer in the Vietnam War. He had a library full of military books. I had an interest in history and read a lot about the military. I was briefly in Navy ROTC [Reserve Officers' Training Corp] in college. When I was at "Star Trek" I jumped at opportunities to do things like go on an aircraft carrier for a weekend, and when I was in ROTC I spent a week on a nuclear submarine. I've always been fascinated by the military culture. It was one of the things that appealed to me about the project, but no, I wasn't setting out to find a military project.
"Battlestar Galactica" is a bit like "Lost" in that it's what's called a highly serialized drama, with a long continuing plotline. If someone misses a few episodes, they may stop watching entirely, thinking they'll never be able to catch up. At the same time, once you get past the first season, new viewers can be put off by how much they don't know about what's going on. So you can lose the viewers you already have much more easily than you can acquire new ones, and both shows have suffered dips in their ratings. Yet this also seems to be one of the most fertile and exciting formats in the medium. How do you deal with those challenges?
I don't. It's a genuine problem I have no solution for. We have long conversations with the network about the extent of the serialized nature of the show. It's certainly not something they're in love with. We the writers are always pushing to make it more serialized because it makes for better storytelling. We've done a few stand-alone episodes here and there, and they're almost never very successful for our particular series. They're not what the audience tunes in for. But the network's legitimate concern is just what you were saying: The audience tends to attenuate over time. It's hard to bring new people on board. There's the hurdle of them having to catch up on all the old episodes, and any hurdle you put in front of the audience is just a bad thing. I don't know what to say. This is the kind of show I like to do, and we're just going to keep doing it. Hopefully, we can persuade people to buy the DVDs and catch up at home and keep watching the show, but the show is what it is.
The availability of DVD sets seems to have made it more possible to do this kind of series.
I think it has. It's really changed the landscape. People are much more comfortable getting on to shows like this because they can pick up a boxed set and catch up.
Another thing: I don't know how reliable the ratings are anymore. I'm among those who cast a skeptical eye at the Nielsen Co. and the demographics and ratings they deliver. The fragmentation of the audience is so profound I don't know how the samples can even tell me how many people are watching my show anymore. It seems like such a crap shoot. It's like where the music industry used to be a few years ago, before they got -- what's that thing called? -- SoundScan. Before they got that it was like Nielsen; they called up store owners and asked them what was selling and what wasn't. When they shifted to a legitimate way of tracking each and every sale, it upended the charts. Suddenly, country music was huge, much bigger than anyone had thought. I think TV is in the same ballpark. We're relying on a really old system based on this sample of people, and it's not really accurate anymore. God knows how many Nielsen families are sci-fi fans.
(continued)
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Post by Sara on Mar 26, 2007 9:00:19 GMT -5
Moore continued:
Creatively, serialized dramas are tricky because you can plan some of it out in advance, but not all of it. Do you have story arcs plotted out over the whole series or over the season, and how much of it do you decide as you go along?
A good amount of it is improvised in terms of how we develop story, which is how I like to do it. At the beginning of the season, we arc out about 10 episodes. I can think in groups of 10.
Then we break all the interior shows. But as those shows get translated into teleplays and we get into production, things will change. We'll get different ideas or get inspiration in the middle of a scene I'm writing and think, "Oh, know what? We should make a hard left turn here." Then all the planning goes out the window and we have to make a change on the fly. But we still try to maintain that goal. We still aim to get to that same place by the end of the 10th episode, but the path to get there I consider much more flexible.
As you get deeper into the series and start planning the next 10 and what's the season finale, it's the same process. You think you've laid out a path, but as you do it you find that there's this other more interesting path to get there. It causes chaos and you have to scramble to change things that you've already set in motion. But I find that it's just a more organic way to do it. It's more interesting, it's more fun, it allows the writers' creativity to come to the fore. It certainly has its downside, because sometimes you make big mistakes. Something that sounded really good at that moment, and you grabbed onto it, doesn't really pan out. Then you have a bad episode.
What's an example where that process really worked well for you?
In this season's finale, I decided on the fly to give Laura her cancer back. It's been bubbling in the back of my mind for a while. When we cured her cancer in the second season, I knew I didn't want that to be a permanent thing. I knew at some point I wanted to bring it back, because we'd changed her character in a way I wasn't happy with. But it wasn't until I was sitting down doing a rewrite of the finale that I decided this is the moment, let's do it. Tigh losing his eye was done in the same way. I was writing the teaser for the season opener and I decided on the fly that Tigh's lost an eye. That became a huge thing for the character and shifted a lot of things in the show. It just worked.
And when did this method not work so well?
We'd developed a whole story line this season about a colony called the Sagitarions, and they were going to be an issue in the trial of [former president] Gaius Baltar. During the missing year on New Caprica, when Baltar was president, a massacre had taken place among the people from this one colony that had isolated themselves from the rest of the people. It was this long intricate back story built into a lot of the previous episodes of the show and it just didn't work. And I basically decided to throw it out while I was writing the finale, on the spur of the moment. We then had to go back into previous episodes and take that out, reshooting and re-editing. Some of those episodes suffered from that decision. It was important because it saved the finale and made it much stronger, but certain episodes in the second half of the third season are weaker as a result of that.
One of the delicate issues with serialized dramas is that they can run out of gas.
Well, you can argue that daytime soap operas never seem to run out of gas -- they go on for 20 years! But we're not really set up to do that. Ours has a beginning, middle and end. Our main title every week says "A Search for Earth," and at some point you gotta find earth, or it becomes "Gilligan's Island." The audience loses faith that you're ever going to get anywhere and the cylons are never going to destroy the Galactica and what's the point. We've always felt that there's an end to this show, and we've moved into the third act of a three-act structure. Especially after this season's finale, we've moved the story to a place where we're talking about conclusions and climaxes and what's it all about -- getting into the endgame. How long it takes to finish out the saga is another matter.
So you couldn't say now whether you think of Season 4 as the last of the series?
I'm considering that right now, to be honest. It's in the air. I don't know. It hasn't been formally decided and I haven't made my own decision. It's a possibility.
The worst thing that could happen to us is if we overstayed our welcome and got to a place where we had not finished the story and then we got canceled. I'd rather go out on my own terms creatively and go out strong.
We won't be seeing Season 4 until January 2008, but I understand there's going to be some kind of miniseries or movie coming before then?
There is something that they're calling "extra episodes" or "extended episodes" -- they keep shifting the nomenclature. Essentially, we are shooting two hours of "Galactica" that will be broadcast on SciFi Channel sometime in the fall. Let's say they broadcast it on a Friday; then, on the following Monday, it will be available on DVD.
That story will not pick up our cliffhanger at the end of Season 3. That didn't seem right. The story will be set on the Battleship Pegasus and will take place in the past, relative to where we are in Season 3. But the events set up in that story will then pay off in Season 4.
What was the reasoning behind doing that?
They came to us. It gives Home Video something to sell in the stores. Since we won't be back until January, which is a long time to be off the air, it gives the fans something to see and keeps the show alive. So it serves multiple masters. There was no way we could pick up the cliffhanger in that format, and then ask people to wait to really start the season later. One of the story lines everyone had really liked was the Pegasus story and the character of Admiral Cain, so we decided to go with that.
There's been talk of you doing another series called "Caprica," set before the cylon attack on the colony of that name. Is that still happening?
It's possible. It's been in development at SciFi for a while and they haven't picked it up. And I don't know if they're going to pick it up at this point. There's talk of doing it as a TV movie and seeing how that works, as a back-door pilot, much as we did with the "Galactica" miniseries. Right now there's nothing telling me that they're going to move on it anytime soon, so I'm starting to feel that it's going to remain on the development shelf.
It was a different kind of show. Instead of an action-adventure sci-fi piece, it was more of a prime-time soap, a sci-fi "Dallas." It was about a family, the Adamas, and a company, and it was about the creation of the cylons 50 years ago. It was not going to be space-based, but set entirely on the planet of Caprica. But it would have sci-fi touches, and it would deal with issues like artificial intelligence and the various schemings and backbitings that you get in the traditional soap opera.
Are you already at work on Season 4 of "Battlestar Galactica"?
Yep, we've broken the first eight episodes. We're pretty happy. There are a lot of things coming; a lot of things change in the season finale of this season and propel us into the story lines of next season.
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Post by Spaced Out Looney on Mar 31, 2007 14:26:23 GMT -5
From Battlestar_Blog (lj community). Galactica's Musical Genius I'm extremely proud to present Battlestar Blog's 5th exclusive interview! Bear McCreary is the composer behind all three seasons of "Battlestar Galactica." He has won awards, earned rave reviews, and moved us with his unique and powerful scores week after week. Bear was kind enough to take questions from the members of Battlestar Blog and provide us with this great Q&A.
Thank you to everyone who submitted a question, and a huge thanks to Bear for taking the time to do this.
Without further ado:1) First of all, thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions, and for writing absolutely amazing music. Now, to my question... From what I've gathered, the society of BSG is sort of Greek-ish (based on the religion, anyways). You've used Greek modes in your pieces, but you also use Eastern, Middle Eastern and Celtic influences, among others. I love the sound of BSG, and I think all these different styles fit together wonderfully, but what I'd be curious to find out is how you pick the ethnic stuff, and how do you decide which sound goes with which character/situation. Also, have you ever considered creating a new musical scale for the Cylons themed compositions?Great question and observations! The toughest decision with BG was about the initial concept of using ancient music. We decided to score the show with music from early cultures from around the world. This includes the Japanese taikos, middle eastern woodwinds and Celtic whistles and pipes. Honestly, deciding when to use what was sort of arbitrary after that. The taikos are great for war. Being half Scotch/Irish and half Armenian, I brought in the duduk and bagpipes respectively, simply as a way to represent my own heritage. The duduk has a mournful quality and the bagpipes fit perfectly in “Hand of God.” I basically adapt freely with each new episode and see what kind of music the story requires. As for a new Cylon theme, the “Number 6” theme is pretty effective, I can’t imagine needing to create a new one. But you never know. We’ll see what happens next season. 2) How much time between final shooting for an episode and when the episode airs do you have to compose the music?This window of time has been getting shorter and shorter. For season one, I used to get about 15 days per show. What a luxury! Average time for season three was probably more like 6. Sometimes, for exceptional episodes such as “Exodus II” or “Maelstrom,” I’ll work my schedule to allow for a full two weeks just to make sure that the episode gets the score it deserves. 3) Do you listen to heaps of Satie? He is one of my favourites and your compositions have the same lovely qualities.Yes, I love Satie. I don’t know all his work, but his piano music is gorgeous. 4) You mention Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata being a starting point for "Battlestar Sonatica". If someone were to make a playlist of specific songs that have inspired your Battlestar Galactica work, which songs would be on it?The Moonlight Sonata was Ron Moore’s idea. He knew he wanted a solo piano piece echoing throughout the basestar sequences. So, it wasn’t necessarily “inspiration,” but more of a guide track for me to figure out what kind of music he had in mind. However, the music that inspires me personally is a little different. Probably the score that inspired me the most for “Galactica” is Basil Poledouris’ “Conan the Barbarian.” I was deeply saddened when Basil passed away last year. 5) Having worked on the show for so long I would imagine you’ve developed quite an emotional relationship with the show’s characters. Can you tell us which characters you feel closest to, which ones you enjoy writing music for the most, etc? Are there any character deaths or major story arcs that really impacted you on a personal level?I’ve become very wrapped up in these characters. For me, writing music is a little like method acting. I need to put myself in the emotional mood of the scene I’m trying to score. So, scenes like Starbuck’s death or Tigh poisoning his wife are incredibly traumatic. I get exhausted, upset, depressed… it takes me a full day just to get through these scenes! But, I always end up with music I’m proud of when its all done. At least that way, I know the music is honest. I’m not trying to fake the emotional impact. It’s real for me, so hopefully it makes it that much more real for the audience. 6) I hope this question isn’t too generic, I was wondering how you got into the business of soundtracks and writing music. And second question, how did you get involved with Galactica. Thank you for being a major inspiration, you bring the show to life for me. :-)Well, that is a bit vague, but I’ll give it a go. I’ve always wanted to be involved in film music, for as long as I can remember. As for getting involved with “Galactica,” I worked for composer Richard Gibbs when I got out of college. I wrote with him on the miniseries and when it came time to do the regular series I eventually got the gig. 7) The English Horn is neither English or a Horn, discuss.Ah, an instrument joke, huh? Try this one: A bass player and an accordion player are on their way home from a gig. They decide to stop for coffee at a diner. They park their car and get out. The bass player brings his bass inside with him, but the accordion player leaves his instrument in the backseat of the car, in plain view. “You should bring that inside. Somebody might steal it,” says the bass player. The accordion player assures him it’ll be fine and they go inside. Within a matter of minutes, they hear the sound of breaking glass. In a panic, the accordion player runs out to the parking lot. Sure enough, the backseat window is smashed and the car alarm is blaring. He runs to the car, swings open the door and looks in the backseat to see… … two accordions! 8) Have you ever listened to a contemporary rock/pop song that you took cues from for the show?Not anything specifically. Though, I’m a big fan of Oingo Boingo, Pink Floyd, Queen, Guns N’ Roses and Rage Against the Machine, and I think you can hear influences from all of them in tracks like “Black Market” and “Something Dark is Coming.” 9) I noticed a disimilarity between the album version and the episode version of the track Baltar's Dream, noticably the woodblock is buried on the album version. I am curious, did it just get lost in the mastering somehow or what?Wow, you are listening VERY carefully. 10) What kind of things are you into outside of music? Do you read a lot of books, watch movies, other TV shows.. ? Any recent favorites? I’d love to know what a Day In The Life Of Bear McCreary is like. I’m also wondering if you get to visit the set a lot. If so, I’m jealous because I’m in love with literally every female on the show. Lol Thanks, Bear.Unfortunately, “A Day in the Life of Bear McCreary” would be pretty boring these days. As a certified work-a-holic, I spend a lot of time doing music. Good thing I enjoy it so much! I also love movies and try to get out to see them as much as possible. I also play video games. Big fan of the entire “Metal Gear Solid” franchise. I’ve played them all through at least twice! 11) What is the ratio of digital instrumentation you use versus actual instruments? Has this changed over the course of BSG? If yes, how so, and if not, do you think it will?The general rule of thumb with the BG score is, if it sounds real, it is real. I’d say the ratio is about 60 / 40 favoring live instruments. As the series goes on, the number of music tracks has been increasing immensely, especially in Season 3 where using the string orchestra became more common. But, that ratio has remained fairly constant. 12) Okay, this is not original, but if you could write the soundtrack for any movie/series, what would that movie/series be?This is a really tough one. Chances are, if I love a movie or series, it already has good music, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it. I can’t say “Lord of the Rings” because I can’t imagine seeing those movies without Howard Shore’s music. So, I’d need to answer with a movie that I love, except for the music. I’d have to say “Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid.” It’s not that I hate the music. Burt’s a great songwriter, one of the best. But I loathe it as a “score.” If that movie had a great score, I’d probably watch it once a week! 13) I have noticed your music has a very tribal almost primal even at times sound and feel to it my question is what inspired you to go that way with the music for bsg?The decision to use taiko drums and other tribal percussion instruments came from Michael Rymer, director of the miniseries and many subsequent episodes. Since then, I’ve just been developing the sound and expanding it as the show evolves. 14) To date, which scene was the most difficult scene for you to score?As I mentioned earlier, the deaths of Ellen Tigh and Starbuck take the cake. You think seeing Starbuck die is tough? Try going through that emotion for 15 hours a day, over and over for two weeks. I’m thrilled with the score I got out of the process, but it wasn’t exactly fun for me. 15) My two favorite episodes of season 3 have been “Unfinished Business” and “Maelstrom.” I think they hit emotional chords that few television shows ever can or will. When you approach an episode, do you look at it as a whole and develop an overall musical theme, or do you tackle it scene by scene? And I’d love to hear what your personal thoughts were on those two episodes. I’d also love to hear your thoughts on Starbuck’s character arc this season. Thank you!I take on each episode as an independent story. I’ll bring in as many recurring themes as possible, but I let each story dictate its own musical needs. The two episodes you named are certainly among my favorites as well. The show is often very dry, and cold, only allowing for sweeping, emotional music at very specific times. “Maelstrom” and “Unfinished Business” were unabashedly lyrical and romantic. Great fun to score. 16) Some of the tracks with a more exotic sound feature a twangy, strummed instrument... is that a mandolin, or something else?What you’re hearing is a combination of several guitars, all played by Steve Bartek. There are many instruments in there. Occasionally mandolin, but more often a Portugese guitar, Bajo Sexto and Balalaika combined with more common acoustic guitars as well. Lately, we’ve been adding in yialli tanbur and cumbus saz to the texture as well. So many cultures have a variation of the guitar, it makes it easy to find different instruments to play around with. 17) Does Kara have a theme? If so, which pieces is it featured in?Yes, virtually every character has a theme. Kara alone has three! Check out my blog on my website (www.bearmccreary.com). I’ve done several entries covering every theme in detail and even citing examples from episodes they appear in. 18) What unique world/folk instrument would you love to use for scoring a BSG episode but haven't yet?Accordion, of course! I want to play on this score myself! 19) What Battlestar piece are you most proud of right now? That is to say, if you could choose a particular song or scene that is your favorite, which would it be? Or if that’s too open, maybe what season are you proudest of? My personal favorite is probably your music in Flight of the Phoenix, and most of mid-season-2 as a whole. On the flip side, which scenes or episodes do you wish you could go back and do over, if any?Right now, I’d have to say I’m the most proud of “Crossroads, Part II.” Then again, maybe that’s because it’s the one I just finished. I don’t know. As for going back and doing things again, it’s a dangerous thought to entertain. Sure, it’d be nice to re-do your earlier work with the knowledge you’ve gained over years of experience… but that’s how Greedo ended up shooting first. It’s better to know that the work you did reflects the person you were at the time, and should be appreciated for that. 20) If there was one instrument that you could deem the main "BSG Instrument", the one that the show couldn't have music without, what would it be? Drums? A certain woodwind instrument? Also, I just wanted to thank you for being the next John Williams. It would be impossible to pick one instrument. Every instrument in “Galactica” has been used in a million film scores before. I like to think that the reason the score stands out is that their combination is unique. 21) What is your process when it comes time to score very emotionally driven scenes?I think I pretty much covered this one already, right? 22) What was the first music/album that you bought with your own money?Ok, I just have to say that I’ve done this kind of thing a lot, and you guys are asking the BEST questions I’ve ever been asked. These are really out of the box! The first music album I ever bought with my own money was the soundtrack to “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” on cassette. When I was a kid, I loved all the cartoon craziness in the score. As an adult, I listen to Eddie Valiant’s theme and appreciate it not only as a subtle parody of film-noir clichés, but as a gorgeous melody in its own right. 23) Hi! How do you personally find a balance between the more traditional elements of orchestra and the more modern elements of synthetic sounds when you actually sit down and plot the score?I try to only use the orchestra at the most emotional, human, dramatic moments. If you over-saturate the score with big orchestral passages, it just fades into the background. But, if the orchestra is used sparingly, then the scenes where it does appear automatically have more impact. 24) Do you think it would be appropriate for me to walk down the aisle to "The Shape of Things to Come"? My fiance is dubious about this, but I'm sure I could convince him if I had your approval!Believe it or not, you are far from the first person to ask me about this. I say go for it. Tell him it's a test of how much he loves you. 25) Are there any instruments or styles that you've wanted to incorporate into BSG but haven't had the right opportunity yet?I think I answered this one too. 26) Were there pieces in your BSG scores that you felt worked better than originally anticipated? Were there pieces that you thought would work well that ended up disappointing you in some way?When I first heard about it, I was convinced that “All Along the Watchtower” would be a disappointment. However, once I talked with Ron Moore in detail about his vision, I started thinking it could work. Now that it’s done, I think it’s the most kick-ass thing I’ve ever done for the series, and it's not even my own song! 27) Do you anticipate the music in season four will be more of the same styles, instrumentation, and themes we've come to know and love, or will you be branching out even more? If so, in what ways?I never decide in advance what the score will do. I follow the story. If the narrative requires new styles, then I’ll come up with something. 28) Is there a genre of film/television that you haven't worked on any projects in yet, but you'd particularly enjoy the opportunity to do a score for?Sure, I’m open for anything at this point. It would be really fun to do a comedy, since I rarely have the chance on “Galactica” for anything light-hearted. Since I’m starting Sci Fi Channel’s “Eureka” this summer, I’m sure I’ll get my chance. 29) Hi Bear! I was at the ost show at the mint for the s2 release! So amazing! I was wondering if you could talk about your inspiration for the celtic-ish theme (like in wander my friends) we hear for the adama's, and any plans for use in the future? thx!Hey, glad you were there! That was an incredible night. We’ll be doing it again this August, so hopefully we’ll see you there (bring your friends!). “Wander My Friends” was originally written for “Hand of God.” The producers knew they wanted something different, something celebratory for the victory scene on the hangar deck. The Celtic sounds were a great way to accomplish that, but still retain a sense of military nobility. Then, as the series went on, it became clear that the theme would function as a father / son identity for Lee and Bill. 30) My wife and I love your music, Mr. McCreary. The show would NOT be the same without you. Can you tell us what you’ll be working on between seasons of Battlestar Galactica? Are you going to start on the fourth season right away, or the 2 hour movie, or will you have a project in between? Best wishes - MikeAs I mentioned earlier, I’ll be doing “Eureka” for Sci Fi Channel this summer. This summer will also be the release of a great horror movie I did called “Wrong Turn 2.” But, the first thing on my plate is getting the Season 3 album together for you guys. I think it’s going to be the best one yet. 31) What kind of insights or comments can you give us regarding the music in the season three finale, “Crossroads Part II”?The season three finale features the most important use of music to date in the series. Check out my blog on my website (www.bearmccreary.com). I went into great detail about “Crossroads, Part II” and how the music was put together. There are some great shots from the scoring sessions in there as well. Thanks for the great questions. You guys rock.
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Post by Karen on Jun 4, 2007 22:17:35 GMT -5
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Post by Sara on Jul 10, 2007 12:39:53 GMT -5
From zap2it.com:
Hanging With the Cool Kids on 'Galactica'
By Kate O'Hare
July 8, 2007 VANCOUVER, B.C. -- When asked about the Sci Fi Channel series "Battlestar Galactica," which airs on the same network as his series, "Eureka" (and films across town) actor Colin Ferguson smiles and says, "They're the cool kids."
He's not the only one who thinks that.
Although they'd been rousted out of bed early for a daylong session of set visits, it's a jubilant bunch of online journalists that troops into the hangar bay of the Galactica, as constructed in a huge soundstage at the Bridge Studios.
At that very moment on this late-June day, there are no doubt many famous Hollywood folks who would happily hock an award or two to be sitting in the same place where the human denizens of the beleaguered space cruiser jump in their Viper and Raptor fighter spacecraft to face the onslaught of the mechanistic Cylons (many of whom look like humans).
One can't even speculate what they might do to get their photo taken in a Viper, as some of the attendees do later on.
On this day, the bay is home to a panel discussion with cast members Aaron Douglas (Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol), Michael Hogan (Col. Saul Tigh), Jamie Bamber (Capt. Lee "Apollo" Adama), Grace Park (Lt. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii, and an assortment of identical Cylons), Tamoh Penikett (Lt. Karl "Helo" Agathon), along with line producer Harvey Frand and Sci Fi's chief of original programming, Mark Stern.
Also in attendance are Bonnie Hammer, president of Sci Fi Channel and USA Network, and Dave Howe, general manager of Sci Fi Channel.
"We're the coolest, no question about it," says Penikett.
He recounts how "Eureka" actor Ed Quinn tracked the "Battlestar" cast down when he first arrived in Vancouver. "We didn't know who he was," Penikett says. "He was, 'Welcome to town. Would you like to come over and watch the fights?' The guy couldn't shut up about the show. It was awesome."
Apparently, the relationship has continued.
"I've been a fan since the beginning," says Quinn, speaking in early May. "That show, the writing, it's just opera. It's so incredibly good. Aaron Douglas is a friend of mine, and I have been texting him, 'You are a bleeping, bleeping Cylon, you bleeping traitor.' He is so angry with me. He's probably going to punch me."
"I saw the first season," says Billy Campbell, star of USA's "The 4400," also in early May. "I will watch the rest of it. It's fantastic."
Campbell liked it so much that he cornered Hammer at the network's upfront presentation to advertisers. According to Hammer (and Campbell), he pleaded for an opportunity to be on the show, even offering to work without pay.
Since "Battlestar" is filming its fourth and final season (set to air in early 2008), time is running out, but says Stern, "I tell you, we are talking about trying to figure out Billy's schedule, and trying to get him into the show. Ron [series executive producer Ronald D. Moore] is looking into that, but I don't know if it's actually going to happen."
But it's not just other TV stars that watch "Battlestar." Douglas recalls an incident that took place, he says, on Jan. 10, 2007, when he passed Robin Williams on the street in Beverly Hills. Williams turned around, followed Douglas, and waylaid him on the curb to talk about the show.
"He goes, 'That's the best show on TV,'" Douglas says. "'I cannot believe it. I never miss it. You tell Eddie [star Edward James Olmos], I've known Eddie for years, you go up, and you tell everybody that's my favorite show -- the best show on TV. What are you shooting? Why are you here? Why are you not shooting? Is the Chief dead?'
"I'm going, I'm staring at this guy, 'This is Robin Williams.' All these people are walking by, going, 'Holy crap, that's Robin Williams. Who's that guy? Why is Robin Williams shaking his hand?'"
Bamber recalls a close encounter of "The Matrix" kind.
"I met [the Wachowski] brothers on the Warner Bros. lot," Bamber says. "I turned around and this - what's the word, the correct word for it? He's going through a gender change. He just bowed, put his hands together. These guys rule in terms of sci-fi, and here they are, worshipping our show."
After acting as co-host of the Asian Excellence Awards with "Lost" star Daniel Dae Kim, Park encountered director, and big "Battlestar" fan, Quentin Tarantino.
"In the after-party," she says, "he wouldn't stop gabbing about it. I felt like I had to baby-sit him, he was so excited. He just went on for about 10 minutes. I got so uncomfortable, I had to leave."
Later Park looked online and discovered that, before the show, Tarantino had singled her out as someone he wanted to meet.
"I think I'll have to download that," she says, "and burn it and save it for my grandchildren."
Last up, Penikett talks about meeting eyes at a party with actor/producer Seth Green, who co-created the stop-motion-animation show "Robot Chicken," which airs as part of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block.
"He looked at me with this weird look," Penikett says, "and I looked at him like, 'What are you looking at, Seth? What's going on, buddy?' ... I think it was a month and a half later, we got called for 'Robot Chicken.' It was great."
No exact word on when the "Galactica" parody might appear on "Chicken," which recently parodied "Star Wars."
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Post by Sara on Aug 7, 2008 8:43:38 GMT -5
From the LA Times:Battlestar Galactica: Edward James Olmos will direct Cylon-centric special feature Choire Sicha
Months before its final 10 episodes begin airing in January, we now know for certain that "Battlestar Galactica" will live on -- in the form of a two-hour special on the Sci Fi Channel to air in 2009 after the series concludes.
The unnamed feature will be directed by the show's co-star, Edward James Olmos, and written by "Battlestar" writer and former "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" brain Jane Espenson.
The stand-alone will document the Cylons' attempts -- those of two agents in particular -- to grapple with human survivors, both those aboard ships and those left alive on planets, shortly after the Cylons' destruction of human home worlds.
So it's a flashback, but not all the way back.
Three confirmed cast members are Michael Trucco (Sam Anders), Aaron Douglas (Galen Tyrol), and Dean Stockwell (Cavil, Cylon model No. 1) -- all Cylons. Shooting will begin promptly in Vancouver, Canada, and Sci Fi promises women regulars are being cast as well, with more names coming soon.
"Razor," the "BSG" event-movie that aired last November, was a successful test. "Not only did it do well on the air, it did phenomenally well in the international and DVD market," said Mark Stern, executive vice president of original programming for Sci Fi.
Produced by the newly-formed Universal Cable Productions (of which Stern is also a co-head), there is also "a disproportionately larger amount of money from foreign and DVD money," more than would be devoted to an average pilot, he said. (Both "Razor" and the two-hour event/pilot of "Caprica" have been produced in this fashion.) "I think it is the Holy Grail for us, in which we get high-quality programming for a lower license fee," Stern said. He declined to reveal the budget, saying that it was "expensive" and "very healthy," and that they were at first "skeptical" that the studio could get it.
"I was impressed with how high they were able to make it," he said.
So the transformation of Sci Fi and its related and parent entities into essentially a film studio was the hold-up to the deal. "What you don't want to do is do them in some half-assed way where they're not as good as they needed to be," he said.
The channel came to executive producer Ronald D. Moore once the finances were set. The story idea Moore brought back from the writers is the one indeed being made, although there was some back-and- forth, with the network's concern being that a new viewer could jump right in. "What was more of a burden to Ron in this particular case was the availability of who's out there," said Stern.
So did the cast, now more well-known thanks to "BSG," play hardball for their rates in the event-movie? "The cast are lovely," said Stern. "That's not to say we're not getting phone calls from their agents saying, 'They're huge now.' And we're respectful of that. We're not expecting anyone to do it because they owe us. There are actors that have come to some prominence; they're helping us out because they want to do it."
And, on the other side, have the news-hungry fans been driving the network crazy? "The short answer is absolutely not," said Stern, who has been a regular target of angry fans. (He was blamed for the death of "Farscape," even though he arrived at the network after it had been killed.) "The longer answer is all of our fans are kind of rowdy and invested," he said. "There's no question that there's an appetite for wanting more -- by the way, which started with us! We're all feeling, 'Does it have to be over already?' "
So, it does not entirely, though Stern said that more specials would not be produced at the same time as the first, even though some cast and crew would be assembled.
"I promise you that, not having shot a frame of footage, it will blow you away," Stern said.
Oh yes? Let's let the real experts decide.
"I'm a big fan of Edward James Olmos as a director," said Erica Blitz, co-editor of the blog Galactica Sitrep. "All his episodes have been highly unique and really wild, especially that one from Season 3, 'Taking a Break from All Your Worries'? That was wild!"
"I want to see more Jane Espenson," said Annalee Newitz, editor of sci fi blog io9, when consulted, pre-announcement, about her "BSG" future wish list. "I really like her, I like the episodes she's done. She does a really great job with dialogue and character development. She did the episode 'The Hub,' which was like super-amazing."
OK then, so it is on!
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