Wednesday, March 19, 2008

CAPRICA Press Release

Mo Ryan has posted the official Sci Fi Channel press release on the new BSG prequel CAPRICA. Some key excerpts below:

SCI FI GIVES 'CAPRICA' THE GREENLIGHT
Two-Hour Backdoor Pilot for 'Battlestar Galactica' Prequel Series To Begin Production this Spring

New York, NY – March 18, 2008 -- As the Peabody and Emmy-winning original series Battlestar Galactica heads into its fourth and final season, SCI FI Channel has greenlit production on Caprica, a two-hour Battlestar backdoor pilot prequel from executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick. Production on Caprica is slated to begin in Vancouver this spring.

"We couldn't be more excited to see this long-anticipated project get off the ground. It's an amazing script, and, though clearly inspired by the Battlestar mythology, it is not just a pale spin-off. This is a smart, thought-provoking, emotional, and compelling character drama in its own right," said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President of Original Programming.

Set 50 years before Battlestar Galactica, Caprica follows two rival families – the Greystones and the Adamas – as they grow, compete, and thrive in the vibrant world of the 12 Colonies. Enmeshed in the burgeoning technology of artificial intelligence and robotics that will eventually lead to the creation of the Cylons, the two houses go toe-to-toe. Caprica will deliver all of the passion, intrigue, political backbiting, family conflict and hardcore action that always leaves Galactica fans begging for more.

"I'm thrilled with the chance to expand on the Galactica world and get deeper into the origins of the story we've been telling," said Moore. "It's also great to have a chance at doing a completely different kind of science fiction series, one that's even more character-oriented and doesn't rely on pyrotechnics to carry the story."

"While Caprica will have its own personality, it will carry on Battlestar's commitment to pushing the boundaries of the genre, and we're thrilled that SCI FI has seen fit to giving us another opportunity to tell character-driven stories in challenging ways," added Eick.

Executive produced by Ronald D. Moore and David Eick (Battlestar Galactica), Caprica is co-written by Moore and Remi Aubuchon (24), and will be directed by Jeff Reiner (Friday Night Lights). Universal Media Studios will produce.

What a nice pedigree this show has; not only was Jeff Reiner a director on FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS - he was as Mo Ryan points out, a co-executive producer and one of the crew very much responsible for FNL's signature look and feel. Very cool news.

I wonder if we'll get to see the birth of the Tighbot in this one? Can Taylor Kitsch or Scott Porter do a cameo? ;)

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hate to throw cold water on Caprica, but it's not likely to be nearly as engaging as Battlestar. Hopefully Moore will have more success creating something worth watching than Eick did with his lame Bionic woman remake.

Set 50 years prior to BSG? That means it's ten years prior to the first cyclon war.

So no cyclons = no villians? Where will the conflict come from? Is it going to be a soap opera?

What will the stories consist of, shuttling between planets of the colonies?

What true old-school sci-fi fans love are the spaceships, aliens and lasers, let's face it. BSG had just enough of that to make it legit sci-fi and superior writing, production and acting to allow it to transcend the genre to be regarded simply as brilliant drama.

There are so many aspects of BSG that bear more scrutiny, but going back 50 years to the past before there are even cyclons as villians would be my last choice.

What would be far more compelling is the story told strictly from the cyclon perspective - from the time an AI consciousness arose with its own personality and agenda to the creation of the cylons, to their laying of their long-term plans, to the two wars.

Methinks Moore has less than a 50% chance that Caprica will draw an audience to keep it on air.

ProgGrrl said...

People, people...the announcement is still warm from the oven...and already with the negative vibes?

Why can't we all just get along. Sigh.

Christopher Levin said...

Because it kinda feels like Dallas in space, 2 poerful families, and in one swift stroke the adamas goes from any other 2 persons that survived the holocaust from being a power family.
Destined to rule, imo that makes the BSG adamas less interesting and more political...

ProgGrrl said...

Sigh.

Well if it makes anyone feel better, we now have these quotes from TPTB today.

It's not gonna please everyone, to be sure.