Narnia News

Apted to Address College (Britain)

2008-02-21T14:18:00.000-08:00

From How-Do: Hollywood director Michael Apted to deliver David Plowright lecture in Salford

Acclaimed film director Michael Apted, the man behind films such as Gorillas in the Mist and The World is Not Enough, has been signed up to deliver the first annual David Plowright lecture in March.

English born Apted, who is also responsible for the recent big-screen interpretations of the world of Narnia (the third of which, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, launches later this year), worked at Granada under the late Plowright prior to his Hollywood success.

As such he is planning to delve into the issue of whether his former boss’ dreams of ‘bringing Hollywood to Salford’ could be set to come to fruition with the much-lauded Mediacity development.

As he explained: “I called my lecture ‘Hollywood on Irwell’ because that was David’s witty yet serious sound bite on his dream to build a creative hub of media talent that would be the envy of the rest of the world.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader Begins?

2008-02-12T19:30:00.000-08:00

From MoviesOnline: Narnia the Voyage of the Dawn Treader Begins Production

There's no word if this is a picking up of the pre-production already in progress, or if this is old news.

Disney Releases Mobile Phone Game

2008-02-12T19:21:00.000-08:00

From TechGadgets: Disney Brings Five Brand-New Titles for Mobile Phones

Walt Disney Internet Group has unveiled a bumper line-up of mobile games along with customized content. These are developed for all-aged users thanks to the easily playable and highly enjoyable nature of the game.

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Narnia Prince Caspian mobile game, which is based on the classic books by C.S. Lewis is introduced. Playing the role of the prince, you have to clear out the enemies and restore the golden age. The land has been controlled by evil king Miraz, known for its [SIC] rule over the land without mercy.

Centaur stage for reluctant star

2008-02-08T13:26:00.000-08:00

From The Scotsman: Centaur stage for reluctant star

Profile of White Witch actor Tilda Swinton

Narnia Effects Guru Judges Contest

2008-01-13T20:47:00.000-08:00

From Ninja Crayon: Antics Contest!

Antics is hosting a contest to be judged by 3-time Oscar Winning VFX Sup., Jim Rygiel.

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Whether you are a filmmaker, Machinimator, animator or simply anyone with a creative vision, now is your chance to show off your storytelling skills in the Antics Medical Shorts Competition.

Judging the submissions will be 3-time Oscar Winning VFX Supervisor Jim Rygiel.

Former Disney Exec Could Join Fledgling Walden

2008-01-12T21:35:00.000-08:00

From the Los Angeles Times: Former Disney executive could join Walden Media

Walden Media, the producer of family films backed by billionaire Philip Anschutz, is in discussions to hire former Walt Disney Co. executive Nina Jacobson in a senior post amid a restructuring of the company.

The moves follow a spotty track record for Walden's films, which, despite the firm's 2005 blockbuster "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and its ambitions to compete with Disney in family entertainment, have had limited success at the box office.

Jacobson is under contract as a producer for DreamWorks SKG. People close to Anschutz cautioned that an agreement had not been reached and that Walden Media was talking with other candidates about the post.

Jacobson's Disney experience, which included oversight of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "National Treasure" movie franchises when she headed production at the studio, gives her a strong background in family movies. She did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Cary Granat, chief executive of Walden Media, is expected to stay at the company to shepherd the upcoming "Narnia" sequels, as well as other special projects. Disney is scheduled to release "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" in May.

"We are restructuring, not retrenching," said David Weil, chief executive of Anschutz Film Group. "I think we can do it better than we have. Sometimes we have done it very well. Other times not as well."

Strike Impacts Narnia Production Anyway

2008-01-08T21:26:00.000-08:00

From Variety: Warner sets layoffs due to strike

The pinkslips just keep coming -- even though film production remains robust.

Faced with the death of scripted TV production and ongoing uncertainty over the WGA strike, showbiz continues to trim jobs.

...

Anschutz Film Group shingles Walden Media and Bristol Bay shuttered the majority of their creative departments and laid off much of the physical production staff as well. Exec veep of production Alex Schwartz was among those let go. Walden will retain the key players on its "Narnia" team.

Despite the delay in the production of Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the strike nonetheless impacts Prince Caspian work as well. And with the last-minute FX hustle that LWW was forced into, one wonders if the quality will not suffer as well.

Caspian Tie-in Features Lewis-designed Timeline

2008-01-08T10:24:00.000-08:00

From Fox Business: 'Prince Caspian' Movie Tie-In Edition Features Exclusive Narnia Timeline Originated by C. S. Lewis

For the first time, readers can experience Narnia in a collectible edition featuring an 8-page, fold-out insert based on C. S. Lewis's own timeline conceived for Narnia. The stunning cover artwork from 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian' movie introduces a dashing new hero-actor Ben Barnes ('Stardust') as Prince Caspian.

The full-color timeline, recreated from C. S. Lewis's original and paired with Pauline Baynes' classic full color illustrations for the first time, provides the key to the passage of time in Narnia and Earth by laying the two worlds side by side. Never before has C. S. Lewis's timeline been included in a complete edition of all seven books of Narnia. Readers can now enjoy the beloved stories and use the timeline as a guide to orient themselves within the epic work.

The work releases April 1st.

McAvoy Declines "Prince Caspian" Prank

2008-01-04T15:10:00.000-08:00

From PR-Inside: McAvoy Refused Narnia Prank

Actor JAMES McAVOY refused to participate in a prank on the cast of THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN, because he "couldn't be bothered" to dress up as his character in the original movie to surprise the crew.

The star played the role of Mr Tumnus, who is half-man half-goat, in the original film - The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - but won't be reprising his role for Prince Caspian - the next big screen adaptation of the C.S. Lewis novels.

McAvoy was filming in Prague, Czech Republic, at the same time as the Prince Caspian cast and was asked to get into costume as the famous character to play a joke on the crew - a request he denied.

He says, "They really wanted to do me up as Mr Tumnus and take me on set and just stand by the director and just go, 'Hey, how're you doing?' "But I couldn't be bothered with three hours of make-up."

Makeup Artist Recalls Ups, Downs of Caspian Shoot

2007-12-29T20:07:00.000-08:00

From Canada.com: Mastery of makeup opens vistas for ex-bank teller

Then, like a scene straight out of a fantasy movie, [Vincenza Sharpe] got a call to work on the Disney sequel The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Suddenly, the one-time bank teller was en route to Prague.

Not that the call had come completely out of the blue. She had decided to apply for a job by sending an e-mail to Howard Berger, winner of an Oscar for best achievement in makeup for the first Narnia movie.

"I said if he ever wanted to give someone a chance to prove themselves, I would be that person." She got a positive response but no job offer. She persisted, even offering to fly to Los Angeles at her own expense to meet him. "He laughed at me and said he really liked how ballsy I was." Then the call came.

She spent five months working under Berger's tutelage with some of the makeup artists who had worked on the first Narnia movie.

"I learned so much. Howard is such a fantastic man. He gave me a chance."

The job was gruelling, with 20-hour work days and a scarcity of good food on the catering truck. The hardest part was leaving her children, who were then eight, 14 and 16. But the payoffs were great.

She recalls spending three and a half hours creating a centaur. She had to apply ears, a forehead piece, nose, wig and tons and tons of makeup. "My proudest moment was bringing him on set. Howard told me he was so impressed."

Sharpe, who is now working in Vancouver on the NBC comedy series Interns, said she has no real complaints about her job, but if there were one thing she could change, it would be the amount of time makeup artists are given to work on actors.

"It is really frustrating because they give camera time and the lighting people time, but when it comes to hair and makeup, it's like not a big deal, but it really is a big deal. We don't get the time we need with our actors sometimes."

She has big plans to go on the road again and to work on future Narnia shows in a job that has taken her far from Surrey to the land of stardom.

Michael Apted Reflects on Movie Industry

2007-12-29T14:39:00.000-08:00

From Newsweek: Film’s New Anxiety of Influence - Hollywood still sets the agenda, but increasingly relies on the innovation and cultural input of foreign-born filmmakers.

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"Today in Hollywood there is a different and unnerving kind of energy as we find ourselves facing new frontiers. We are now deep into a digital age that has begun to fundamentally alter the relationship between creators and the audience. Our industry faces many challenges in determining how to take advantage of new technology while still protecting the environment for our artists to work."

(Click here to read the rest of the interview)

Michael Apted not only presides over the Directors Guild of America and will be directing Voyage of the Dawn Treader, but in his spare time he's negotiating in the Hollywood strike and still finds time to reflect on his experiences for Newsweek.

Ben Barnes Makes LATimes' 2008 Faces to Watch

2007-12-28T20:27:00.001-08:00

From the Los Angeles Times: 2008 Faces to Watch: Ben Barnes

Barnes' starring moment is still five months away, but already more than 33,000 people have checked out a website devoted to the man who would be king, playing Prince Caspian in Andrew Adamson's "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," due for release in May.

"It's terrifying," says the 26-year-old British actor. "Everyone has been warning me about what I'm in for, but I think I still don't understand the half of it."

Until Barnes landed the starring part, his greatest claim to fame was a run in the West End production of "The History Boys" and a part in Matthew Vaughn's fantasy "Stardust." Then casting came calling, looking, Barnes says, for "a piratey-swarthy-everyman kind of prince," and three weeks later, the markedly un-piratey, un-swarthy actor was sitting astride a horse on the set in New Zealand.

Since completing production this fall, Barnes has been busy reading scripts and fantasizing about his future, even if he won't be free to take another role until 2009: He's signed up for the third "Narnia" installment, which will begin production next year.

Tidbits: Caspian Actor Nearly Sued, Shaves Twice Daily

2007-12-28T08:48:00.000-08:00

From ThisisLondon: Arts and Exhibition News

No one has actually seen Ben Barnes in his new film. But if The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is even half as successful as its precursor, he's about to become an extremely familiar face. This latest instalment of the CS Lewis saga is the fantasy epic the Catholic Church wants you to see - but more importantly, the trailer is already out and creating a huge buzz on the web. Barnes plays young Caspian: long hair, long sword, desperately seeking kingdom.

Born in 1981, the young actor ditched his role as Dakin in The History Boys to join the Narnians and, as a result, almost got himself sued by the National Theatre. He seems jolly enough now - and entirely resigned to the fact that he has to shave twice a day to keep that fresh-faced teen glow. As he says: "I've been playing 17 for the past four years!"

Tidbits: 60% of Dawn Treader To Be Shot in New Zealand

2007-12-26T12:28:00.000-08:00

From Xinhua: Int'l film makers seek out NZ's magical powers

Directed by Michael Apted, "The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is 60-percent sets in New Zealand.

The Bay of Islands, Coromandel, New Plymouth, Hawkes Bay and Gisborne are all featured in the film.

An increased presence of New Zealand on the silver screen is expected to prove a strong draw to tourists looking to enjoy the island nation's stunningly pristine natural scenery.

Exclusive Prince Caspian Trailer?

2007-12-21T22:15:00.000-08:00

From Business of Cinema: INOX unveils trailer of Narnia's sequel

INOX is all set to launch an exclusive trailer of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - the second in the series of movies based on C.S. Lewis children fantasy series. INOX, in association with Walt Disney will present the trailer exclusively at INOX, Nariman Point and INOX, Santacruz from 21-27 December, 2007.

Meanwhile, NarniaSpain (Via NarniaWeb) is reporting that a nine-minute trailer will debut on Spanish television, much like the 9-minute trailer for The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe debuted before its release.

Tidbits: Anna Popplewell Appears As Talent Judge

2007-12-19T21:36:00.000-08:00

From Lynn News: Downham's Rosalind (14) wins herself a BAFTA

Children between the ages of seven and 14 were invited to submit original short films, the entries going through a stringent round of voting before coming in front of a panel of industry experts and well-known celebrities including Anna Popplewell from The Chronicles of Narnia and author Anthony Horowitz.

Tidbits: "Water Horse" Actor Auditioned for Narnia

2007-12-19T20:43:00.000-08:00

From CinemaBlend: Interview: Alex Etel Of The Water Horse

The actor playing in Walden Media's film "Waterhorse" mentioned in a recent interview that he auditioned for a role in Narnia, and is still interested in a role.

'Rings' FX Guru To Helm Dawn Treader Animation

2007-12-13T21:57:00.000-08:00

From The Movie Reporter: I Am Legend's Visual Effects Supervisor Jim Berney

IESB: Sony Imageworks is going to be working on Justice League. Is that something you're going to be involved with?

Berney: No, I'm not on that, actually. I'm currently working on, with Jim Rygiel. He and are working on "Eagle Eye" and then he's going to be doing Narnia 3, "The Dawn Treader". There's nothing official on this but I'm hoping to do "Dawn Treader".

IESB: That's my favorite of the books.

Berney: That's everybody's favorite of the books! It's going to be pretty cool. I did the first one. I didn't do the second one since I was doing this, but there's a chance -- that's what I'm kind of angling to do is part three.

IESB: Outside of that, do you have a dream project that you'd like to someday work on?

Berney: That's funny, I don't anymore. Years ago, actually, Narnia was it. I always thought that was the next Lord of the Rings type of thing so I was really happy to be able to get onto that. I always wanted to do digital humans at some point so I was actually glad to get a chance to do that. I'm glad they didn't have speaking roles just because of the short time-frame. The added animation of a speaking part would have probably pushed us to our boundary at the time.

HarperCollins Targets 'Narnia' Audiences

2007-12-13T21:18:00.000-08:00

From The Bookseller: Film focus for HarperCollins Children's

HarperCollins Children’s Books has the tie-in rights to three of next year’s most eagerly-awaited children’s films: the new Indiana Jones sequel, the latest Batman movie and the next C S Lewis adaptation, “Prince Caspian”.

Brand and properties director Claire Harding, who rejoined the publisher from Paramount Pictures this summer, said: “We want to position HarperCollins Children’s as the ‘home’ of blockbuster publishing.”

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HC intends to replicate its “read it before you see it” campaign for “Prince Caspian”, out in June 2008. The Narnia tie-in programme will kick off in May 2008 and HC will work with Disney on planned retail promotions focusing on high visibility in stores.

Ben Barnes' Dream Role

2007-12-07T09:23:00.000-08:00

From the Daily Mail: Grabbing the reins of my dream role

One minute he was in the play The History Boys in the West End — the next he was in New Zealand, learning which end of a horse was which, as well as mastering sword fighting and leading an army of 'Old Narnians' to unseat his evil uncle King Miraz.

'The original plan was to hire an authentic Spanish or Mexican to play Caspian. And to get someone younger,' he joked. He explained that in C.S. Lewis's Prince Caspian book, the hero is a teenager.

But Lewis also wrote that Caspian should be comparable in age to Peter Pevensie, and William Moseley (who played of my dream role Peter in The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe) is now 20 — so Ben's not that old.

'And in the end, they decided on an English actor using a Spanish accent,' he said.

But what about the riding? Well, although Ben had a riding double, he did the vast majority of horse scenes himself. 'The double was being me in the background shots somewhere else, while I was being me close up,' Ben confessed with a laugh.

Narnia Composers Win Awards

2007-10-16T19:12:00.000-07:00

From The Hollywood Reporter: BMI London awards film, TV music prizes

Golden Globe-winning composer Alexandre Desplat, Grammy-winning composer David Arnold, and composing brothers Harry and Rupert Gregson-Williams were among the winners in the 2007 BMI London Awards announced Tuesday evening.

The film and television music prizes were among honors handed out to members of Britain's Performing Rights Society and other European rights services for top play in the U.S. in 2006 at the American music rights organization's annual London shindig.
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Arnold, a Grammy winner for "Independence Day," was cited for his score to "Casino Royale." He composed the music for three previous James Bond films and is on board for the untitled "Bond 22" plus the animated "Agent Crush" and comedy "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People." Arnold, who is also very busy in the pop world working with such acts as the Kaiser Chiefs, has scored TV's "Stargate SG-1" since 1997.
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Harry Gregson-Williams won for the Aardman/DreamWorks animated film "Flushed Away" and Tony Scott's Denzel Washington thriller "Deja Vu." His credits include such DreamWorks hits as "Antz" (1998), "Chicken Run" (2000), and "Shrek" (2001) with John Powell. He scored "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (2005) and is working on "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" due in 2008, both directed by Andrew Adamson for Walt Disney.

Singer Spied With Narnia Book

2007-10-16T08:16:00.000-07:00

From TMZ: The Britney Spears Coffee and Gas Roundup

Because of technical difficulties (and irrelevant comments on the story itself), we are unable to post photos, but who cares anyway. The video on the website shows the indecently-dressed Britney Spears sitting in her car, and to fend off paparazzi, she holds a copy of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in front of her face.

Werewolves in Adamson's Future

2007-10-16T08:09:00.000-07:00

From In The News: Narnia director eyes werewolf pic

The long-haired Kiwi, currently working on Prince Caspian, the second film in the Chronicles of Narnia franchise, is rumoured to direct the werewolf thriller Benighted for Warner Bros.

According to Variety, Adamson will produce the adaptation of Kit Whitfield's novel with Martin Scorsese stalwart Graham King, while Patrick Smith Kelly (A Perfect Murder and Don't Say A Word) is likely to script.

The movie would be a world away from the glossy world of Narnia and Adamson's Shrek films, with its tale of a world 90 per cent werewolf and a minority human population responsible for keeping the peace when the lycanthropes get all riled up during the full moon,

(Incidentally, the publication inaccurately reports that Prince Caspian is due for release on June 27th, 2008. The real release date is May 16, 2008.)

**Update**
June 27th is the release date for the UK.

Idaho Theater Features Narnia

2007-10-12T17:31:00.000-07:00

From the Idaho Statesman: GREAT FAMILY SHOW OPENS IN NAMPA

The Encore Theatre Company will present "The Chronicles of Narmia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," by C.S. Lewis, for four performances this month.

It will run at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18, 19, 20, and at 2 p.m. Oct. 20 at the Nampa Civic Center.

Center director Bill Stephan says the show faithfully recreates the magic and mystery of Aslan, the great lion (played by Joe Peppley) as he struggles with the White Witch (Fern Gautier) and the four children who find their way into Narnia through an old wardrobe.

One of the finest actors/singers in the valley, Gregg Irwin, is playing Tumnus, and the director is Jodi Perry. Stacy Irwin, Gregg's wife, is the choreographer.

Jodi says this is a story of faith, courage and love, with its triumph of good over evil offering a true celebration of life.

Tickets are available by calling 468-555; $12 for adults and $8 for children 12 and younger.

Stephan said a portion of the proceeds for this event will benefit expansion of the center.

Link to The Encore Theatre Company

VDT Featured By BoxOfficeProphets

2007-10-12T16:06:00.000-07:00

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - Movie of the day, October 11, 2007

Numerous heavily-CGId battles will ensue, naturally. Along the way they learn lessons about greed, meet mermaids, and even visit an island where everyone's dreams come true, as long as they watch out for that mass of darkness near the back.

Only slightly correct...the mermaids never make direct contact with the crew of the Dawn Treader, and the island is not where dreams (wishes) come true, but dreams (including nightmares), setting each and every sailor but Reepicheep into a panic.