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Author Topic:   SMAC the Movie

Slaine posted 12-21-98 09:44 PM ET
I've heard about the Tomb Raider, Wing Commander, and Quake movies that are being planned, but I thought that if someone actually thinks spending multi millions on those movies, whose plot could not be more complex then a 'very special baywatch' that maybe, just maybe an SMAC Movie would be interesting: depth + special effects. (I'd perfer an animated weekly series)
DHE_X2 posted 12-21-98 09:46 PM ET
That would kick ass. It'd probably end up being a cult-classic type thing, or end up on at 6am on mtv(aeon flux, anybody?)
Octopus posted 12-21-98 10:01 PM ET
Maybe it's sacreligious to say this, but I don't think SMAC would play too well as a movie. Giant epics with lots of characters seldom do. For a good movie, you need a real plot with a few good characters. If you're going to narrow things down that much in order to make the movie, it doesn't make a lot of sense trying to license the names from Sid and Brian then, does it? I mean, would it really be SMAC anymore, or just a movie that happened to be set on a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri?
Slaine posted 12-21-98 10:14 PM ET
What I was actually thinking of was more like an animated series, sort of like a soap opera cartoon that was on when I was a kid, big giant robots and the fighter pilots who would fly around the planet on them. Oh yea the characters all had really big eyes.
I think the backdrop and atmosphere of SMAC would play well out in that type of format.
Yo_Yo_Yo_Hey posted 12-21-98 10:22 PM ET
Naw, I think it would give Japanese kids seizures
It would be cool to see a continuous SMAC animation series. It would last a while though, if it made it through the first couple of seasons. A movie would be too long & complex for many of the dumb people to like. Movies seem to need dumb people to get money, as is shown by a majority of the movies out lately.....
Your faithful & hell-bent NIMadier general,
YYYH
Slaine posted 12-21-98 10:41 PM ET
Movies do seem to count on the lowest common denominator. So crap movies are just a reflection on how good or bad our society is. We're all only as good as the weakest link.
I think thats the appeal for SMAC, a universe where we can overcome ourselves.
Kurn posted 12-22-98 05:15 AM ET
I hope they dont make it into a movie. Most sci fi stuff is killed at the movies a la Contact.
Gord McLeod posted 12-22-98 06:33 AM ET
A SMAC movie wouldn't really work too well, since at its base it's the story of humanity's progress and evolution. That's too complex a subject to make a good movie. MAYBE a miniseries, but I think the idea of a cartoon series would do it more justice. Even a regular television series these days, now that technology is progressing to the point where it's possible to do it without having it look terrible.
Movies have other requirements though, they need to either appeal to the lowest common denominator, as has been said already, or they need to tackle a very simple, strong subject. Myths make good movies, as Star Wars proves - it's really just a modern retelling of myths we've all heard before. The new trilogy will tell the first part of the same classic story - the Hero's rise to glory, his fall from grace, and then the trilogy we all know and love tells of his ultimate redemption at the hands of his son. If we could reduce SMAC to something on that level maybe it would work, but it really wouldn't be SMAC anymore either...
Zorloc posted 12-22-98 03:37 PM ET
Just get JMS (producer/writer of B5) to do it. He is great with large multithreaded stories. Of course we will have to wait until there is a B5 movie and the spinoff series finishes.
"A Call to Arms" (the fourth B5 TNT movie) is only 12 days away!!!!
Victor Galis posted 12-22-98 05:36 PM ET
It could be written into a series of books. Books can handle multiple main characters and multiple plots.
ThRiLL posted 12-22-98 06:20 PM ET
Comic books?
Naw. I gotta vote for animated series. IMHO there has been a huge gap in good cartoons since transformers and GI Joe.
They could have one of those wonderful worlds where everybody is at war and blowing things up, but nobody dies! People just miraculously parachute or eject out of every single vehicle that ever gets shot.
Of course, a more adult themed series would be cool, but lets be realistic. If it's gonna make money, and therefore run more than a season or two, it's gonna have to have Saturday Morning appeal. Too bad.. I'd love to see animated shredder pistols. =)
Slaine posted 12-23-98 04:31 PM ET
Am I the only one who remembers the epic feel of Robotech? Macross? I was never a huge fan, but I knew some fanatics out there, and I thought there would be some in SMAC fans. The series had it right in turms of the epic feel. I could see the SMAC universe being used like that, different series from different faction's perspetive. Eposides on exploration, wars, social change, technology.... Seems unlimited to me.
CClark posted 12-24-98 12:09 AM ET
Oh darn. Slaine, you found me out.
CClark raises his hand, clears his throat and says "I am a Robotech (and anime in general) fan. Yes, I own the Macross series on tape, but haven't been able to find Southern Cross or Genesis."
And for the record, I also remember G-force (the Phoenic crew was: Mark, Kyop, Tiny, Jason, Princess just in case nobody believes me. ) Voltron was so-so, didn't quite like it as much though.
As for a movie, no, SMAC would make a lousy movie. It could make a great cartoon series through. Maybe we could get Todd MacFarlane to pick it up. If anyone could do justice to the debris of a Shredder pistol...
(And just in case nobody knows who TM is: Spawn.)
Slaine posted 12-24-98 01:13 AM ET
Ah ha, found one!
I've always like Biz, (comic artist.Judge Dredd, and well the comic Slaine...) if you know of his art type, then you'd know the SMAC universie would/could be nice and dark. No PC super friends in this world...
for the record I own no robotech videos and no the name of no characters, wait, the abnoxis singer... what was her name...
CClark posted 12-24-98 10:04 AM ET
Minmei.
Thenomain posted 12-26-98 11:09 PM ET
SMAC the Movie? SMAC the TV Series? Babylon SMAC? DuneSMAC? SMAC: The Final Frontier? Brothers SMACakozov? Star SMAC: The Prequel? Really, there are many good modern and classic epics and many halfway decent attempts that with many main and reoccurring characters. And many that are failures. For now, I'll be happy with reading good FanFic and leave the Hollywood dreams with people who have a few billion lieing around.
Mortis posted 03-08-99 01:23 AM ET
I thing that an epic animated series about SMAC would be great... Anybody seen Neon Genisis? The launch of the Unity anf the journey to AC would be the frist few weeks, then it would go on to planetfall and end at trancsendace.
I'm flying to Japan to get some animators, somebody get the character rights off FIRAXIS. And someone else provide the funding. Nahh, I;m not going to pay for it (but I'll take the profit when it becomes a hit )
Shining1 posted 03-08-99 09:00 PM ET
CClark: Yeah, but knowing Todd it would probably all go on baseballs in the end...
The Original Red Dog posted 03-10-99 12:30 AM ET
You people are pathetic.
Sinapus posted 03-10-99 08:24 AM ET
So it's pathetic to spend a little bit of your free time talking about a game you play as a hobby, but not pathetic to spend your free time going to several places in a forum just to throw insults?
Methinks you have a problem, Red Dog.
anoona posted 03-12-99 03:07 PM ET
I totally agree with Red Dog you people are pathetic. Your just the type of suckers that buy into this commercialism. OH, MAKE A MOVIE OUT OF OUR FAVORITE GAME. Why don't you people go out and see what the real-world is about or take some classes on real-topics not this crap the Brian Reynolds is trying to dish out to you in his Eurocentered, plagarized, nonsensical gameplay of a game. AC is an insult to anyone and everyone, then it has the audacity to pose itself as a philosophical inquiry into the possibilities of a future of "humankind" on another planet. Oh, yes good idea let's just hop off this planet with all it's problems then bring the problems to another planet. How convenient.
Brian Reynolds is an Idiot.SMAC would be a great movie for ignorant fools who think these factions represent people.
Sinapus posted 03-12-99 03:48 PM ET
If you're through ranting, anoona, would you mind actually trying to support your claims instead of repeating them often? One might think you were repeating it so that people might actually believe it.
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Author	Topic: SMAC the Movie
Slaine	posted 12-21-98 09:44 PM ET I've heard about the Tomb Raider, Wing Commander, and Quake movies that are being planned, but I thought that if someone actually thinks spending multi millions on those movies, whose plot could not be more complex then a 'very special baywatch' that maybe, just maybe an SMAC Movie would be interesting: depth + special effects. (I'd perfer an animated weekly series)
DHE_X2	posted 12-21-98 09:46 PM ET That would kick ass. It'd probably end up being a cult-classic type thing, or end up on at 6am on mtv(aeon flux, anybody?)
Octopus	posted 12-21-98 10:01 PM ET Maybe it's sacreligious to say this, but I don't think SMAC would play too well as a movie. Giant epics with lots of characters seldom do. For a good movie, you need a real plot with a few good characters. If you're going to narrow things down that much in order to make the movie, it doesn't make a lot of sense trying to license the names from Sid and Brian then, does it? I mean, would it really be SMAC anymore, or just a movie that happened to be set on a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri?
Slaine	posted 12-21-98 10:14 PM ET What I was actually thinking of was more like an animated series, sort of like a soap opera cartoon that was on when I was a kid, big giant robots and the fighter pilots who would fly around the planet on them. Oh yea the characters all had really big eyes. I think the backdrop and atmosphere of SMAC would play well out in that type of format.
Yo_Yo_Yo_Hey	posted 12-21-98 10:22 PM ET Naw, I think it would give Japanese kids seizures It would be cool to see a continuous SMAC animation series. It would last a while though, if it made it through the first couple of seasons. A movie would be too long & complex for many of the dumb people to like. Movies seem to need dumb people to get money, as is shown by a majority of the movies out lately..... Your faithful & hell-bent NIMadier general, YYYH
Slaine	posted 12-21-98 10:41 PM ET Movies do seem to count on the lowest common denominator. So crap movies are just a reflection on how good or bad our society is. We're all only as good as the weakest link. I think thats the appeal for SMAC, a universe where we can overcome ourselves.
Kurn	posted 12-22-98 05:15 AM ET I hope they dont make it into a movie. Most sci fi stuff is killed at the movies a la Contact.
Gord McLeod	posted 12-22-98 06:33 AM ET A SMAC movie wouldn't really work too well, since at its base it's the story of humanity's progress and evolution. That's too complex a subject to make a good movie. MAYBE a miniseries, but I think the idea of a cartoon series would do it more justice. Even a regular television series these days, now that technology is progressing to the point where it's possible to do it without having it look terrible. Movies have other requirements though, they need to either appeal to the lowest common denominator, as has been said already, or they need to tackle a very simple, strong subject. Myths make good movies, as Star Wars proves - it's really just a modern retelling of myths we've all heard before. The new trilogy will tell the first part of the same classic story - the Hero's rise to glory, his fall from grace, and then the trilogy we all know and love tells of his ultimate redemption at the hands of his son. If we could reduce SMAC to something on that level maybe it would work, but it really wouldn't be SMAC anymore either...
Zorloc	posted 12-22-98 03:37 PM ET Just get JMS (producer/writer of B5) to do it. He is great with large multithreaded stories. Of course we will have to wait until there is a B5 movie and the spinoff series finishes. "A Call to Arms" (the fourth B5 TNT movie) is only 12 days away!!!!
Victor Galis	posted 12-22-98 05:36 PM ET It could be written into a series of books. Books can handle multiple main characters and multiple plots.
ThRiLL	posted 12-22-98 06:20 PM ET Comic books? Naw. I gotta vote for animated series. IMHO there has been a huge gap in good cartoons since transformers and GI Joe. They could have one of those wonderful worlds where everybody is at war and blowing things up, but nobody dies! People just miraculously parachute or eject out of every single vehicle that ever gets shot. Of course, a more adult themed series would be cool, but lets be realistic. If it's gonna make money, and therefore run more than a season or two, it's gonna have to have Saturday Morning appeal. Too bad.. I'd love to see animated shredder pistols. =)
Slaine	posted 12-23-98 04:31 PM ET Am I the only one who remembers the epic feel of Robotech? Macross? I was never a huge fan, but I knew some fanatics out there, and I thought there would be some in SMAC fans. The series had it right in turms of the epic feel. I could see the SMAC universe being used like that, different series from different faction's perspetive. Eposides on exploration, wars, social change, technology.... Seems unlimited to me.
CClark	posted 12-24-98 12:09 AM ET Oh darn. Slaine, you found me out. CClark raises his hand, clears his throat and says "I am a Robotech (and anime in general) fan. Yes, I own the Macross series on tape, but haven't been able to find Southern Cross or Genesis." And for the record, I also remember G-force (the Phoenic crew was: Mark, Kyop, Tiny, Jason, Princess just in case nobody believes me. ) Voltron was so-so, didn't quite like it as much though. As for a movie, no, SMAC would make a lousy movie. It could make a great cartoon series through. Maybe we could get Todd MacFarlane to pick it up. If anyone could do justice to the debris of a Shredder pistol... (And just in case nobody knows who TM is: Spawn.)
Slaine	posted 12-24-98 01:13 AM ET Ah ha, found one! I've always like Biz, (comic artist.Judge Dredd, and well the comic Slaine...) if you know of his art type, then you'd know the SMAC universie would/could be nice and dark. No PC super friends in this world... for the record I own no robotech videos and no the name of no characters, wait, the abnoxis singer... what was her name...
CClark	posted 12-24-98 10:04 AM ET Minmei.
Thenomain	posted 12-26-98 11:09 PM ET SMAC the Movie? SMAC the TV Series? Babylon SMAC? DuneSMAC? SMAC: The Final Frontier? Brothers SMACakozov? Star SMAC: The Prequel? Really, there are many good modern and classic epics and many halfway decent attempts that with many main and reoccurring characters. And many that are failures. For now, I'll be happy with reading good FanFic and leave the Hollywood dreams with people who have a few billion lieing around.
Mortis	posted 03-08-99 01:23 AM ET I thing that an epic animated series about SMAC would be great... Anybody seen Neon Genisis? The launch of the Unity anf the journey to AC would be the frist few weeks, then it would go on to planetfall and end at trancsendace. I'm flying to Japan to get some animators, somebody get the character rights off FIRAXIS. And someone else provide the funding. Nahh, I;m not going to pay for it (but I'll take the profit when it becomes a hit )
Shining1	posted 03-08-99 09:00 PM ET CClark: Yeah, but knowing Todd it would probably all go on baseballs in the end...
The Original Red Dog	posted 03-10-99 12:30 AM ET You people are pathetic.
Sinapus	posted 03-10-99 08:24 AM ET So it's pathetic to spend a little bit of your free time talking about a game you play as a hobby, but not pathetic to spend your free time going to several places in a forum just to throw insults? Methinks you have a problem, Red Dog.
anoona	posted 03-12-99 03:07 PM ET I totally agree with Red Dog you people are pathetic. Your just the type of suckers that buy into this commercialism. OH, MAKE A MOVIE OUT OF OUR FAVORITE GAME. Why don't you people go out and see what the real-world is about or take some classes on real-topics not this crap the Brian Reynolds is trying to dish out to you in his Eurocentered, plagarized, nonsensical gameplay of a game. AC is an insult to anyone and everyone, then it has the audacity to pose itself as a philosophical inquiry into the possibilities of a future of "humankind" on another planet. Oh, yes good idea let's just hop off this planet with all it's problems then bring the problems to another planet. How convenient. Brian Reynolds is an Idiot.SMAC would be a great movie for ignorant fools who think these factions represent people.
Sinapus	posted 03-12-99 03:48 PM ET If you're through ranting, anoona, would you mind actually trying to support your claims instead of repeating them often? One might think you were repeating it so that people might actually believe it.