Burbank SG Creation con report, part one.
Jul. 16th, 2004 04:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tenaya...is very long so:
On July 10 and 11, CreationCon put on the first of many Official Stargate: SG-1 conventions, in Burbank, California. Our festivities started the night before, though. Being a local, I taped the Season 8 premiere of the show and brought it with me to the con hotel because that hotel does not get the SciFi channel. Once I met up with some other fans, we settled down to view what had brought us all to Burbank. Overall, the response was quite favorable to the premiere and we had an enjoyable time.
The con started at noon on Saturday. The dealer's room was 8 to 9 vendors, all of who had official SG products. Photos, T-Shirts, desert camo shot glasses were there along with Lightspeed and Avatar Press (they do the SG comic books.) Gold pass members received a big wooden plaque with a photo of Jack O'Neill in it and a poster for Spider Man 2. Registration ran smoothly and one could still buy more autograph and photograph tickets if you so desired. I ran those items upstairs to our room and still got back in plenty of time for Carmen Argenziano, who plays Jacob Carter.
Carmen Argenziano seems like a really sweet man. A story both he and Amanda Tapping related was about their first scene together. They met in the makeup trailer, looked at each other and knew it was going to be okay. During filming, he was blowing his lines and she just took his hand and held it, calming him. Both he and AT had spoke adoringly of each other. CA stated he would be going up to Vancouver in the second week of August do an episode. When an audience member mentioned that Sam was dating Pete, CA stated he'd like to meet Pete, that Sam was getting a little…and it was time for her to settle down and give him grandkids. A shipper shouted out "Jack!" and CA was quick to say he didn't trust him at all. I'll take this moment to say that the shipper behind me squealed loudly and squealed often, sometimes right over opinions of the guest on stage and I had a pounding headache by the end of each day. The people sitting on either side of me were also quite annoyed with her childish behavior. His favorite scene was in Tok'ra. Just before he gets his symbiote, Jacob tells Sam that he is proud of her, and Sam became tearful. CA said it is for moments such as those that as an actor you pray for. He stated he grew up in suburban Pennsylvania, Sharpsville and saw a lot of movies as a kid. He will be performing at the Geffin Playhouse in Westwood, CA from September 22 to November 6 in a play called Last Man Out. It's about a baseball team and he plays the skipper. At the cocktail/dessert party I believe he said it concerned a player that came out about being gay. When asked about humorous stories from on the SG set, he mentioned all the flatulence. He told an amusing story about a convention in Paris that he, Terryl Rothery, Don S. Davis and Christopher Judge went to. They decided go out on the Avenue des Champs Elysees at 4am and they were recognized by the passerbys. He did a French accent of people calling out, "Teal'c! Jacob!"
Tony Amendola was next up, and he plays Bra'tac on the show. He related a lot of insight in the craft of acting and seemed to be very sharp and fast-witted. He said his favorite episode was Threshold because of all the backstory in it. He admires Brad Wright, who wrote it, and really likes Peter DeLuise, who directed it. Since PDL was an actor himself, he can really help out if you get stuck. Apparently, Christopher Judge thought it would look really good if he and TA were both bare-chested while they were sparring up in the snowy forest, but TA convinced CJ that it would be much better if only Teal'c was bare-chested. At some point during the filming, when CJ was lying on the bare-chested on the cold snow and realizing that maybe it wasn't a good thing after all, TA just gave him 'the smile.' TA said another reason he liked working with PDL is that after they have a take in the can, he is willing to do one take of an actor's idea of the scene, and that many times, that is the one that is used. When asked about embarrassing moments on the SG set, he said it was more embarrassing offset and that he drinks too much with the cast, especially a big guy with a bald head who was a very bad influence on people! He said he developed the "Hammond of Texas" move and he liked it so much he kept it. He said that skull cap he has to wear is very hot and the nails they put it on with hurt (joking!) The makeup lady Jan puts icy cold washcloths on his head to cool him down, and when they take it off, the sweat pours off of him. Another questioner asked him what turned Bra'tac against Apophis. He thought it was that Bra'tac knew instinctively something was wrong with that setup and it troubled him like a food that doesn't set well - it's a physical thing as opposed to an intellectual thing.
A young girl asked him how old do Jaffa get, and he answered, "I hope very old!" He asked her who her favorite character was and she answered Apophis! TA looked up at her dad and exclaimed, "What are you doing to this child?!" and the father said, "If you saw her at home you'd know why." Another questioner asked if he required a lot of takes. TA said that he met CJ the first time during the episode Family. And he looked at him and thought, "thank god I'll get what I want from him" but they he realized he'd also have to work with Richard Dean Anderson. (As an aside, he said towards the end of the season 8 premiere when Jack has a scene with Dr. Weir, he expected him to say, "Weren't you a blonde?") TA says he likes the energy and being surprised and that RDA gives that. It's gold. TA instinctively bit Michael Shanks' hand in Family from that energy. Directors manipulate actors to get an actor surprised. It's gold. Another questioner asked how much of TA was in Bra'tac and he replied that acting is an art, and what takes place between and actor and the audience is magic. He mentioned a fellow by the name of Barrie, who I think he was a stunt coordinator he met early on. He said this guy used to say, "to hear is to forget, to see is to remember and to do is to know."
TA said he grew up in New Haven, Connecticut and moved out west in 1978. A questioner stated that there weren't many classically trained actors in SF and he was quick to counter that. He said SF actors tend to be classically trained because you need that to get your mouth around those scripts. His agent has him hide a lot of his theater work because when you audition, people are looking for a reason to cut you, "oh, he's too theatrical." When asked if he was doing an more SG episodes, he said he'd one already, two more in August and hopefully one more after that. AT has taught acting and he rattled off 6 - 8 titles when asked what his favorite Shakespeare play was. He asked the questioner what her favorite play was and she said Taming of the Shrew, and then TA proceeded to quote extensively from that play; it was delightful. He was going to answer another question but it had to do with Season 8 and the spoiler phobes in the audience shouted him down (and personally, I think that is so rude to be immature enough that it is preferable to silence the conversation of hundreds of people instead of simply dealing with it, yourself.) TA mentioned a theater group he is a founding member of here in LA called the Antaeus Company.
TA mentioned that in The Serpent's Lair, part 2, he felt quite claustrophobic when they used the wrench guns to bolt down the canopy on the death glider he was sitting in, but he took solace in the fact that RDA was in there with him, so he knew he'd be well taken care off. The costume he wears is about 60 pounds if you add in the staff weapon, but that the robes he wears are quite comfortable. He said that RDA was quite puzzling. Executive Producers are always on about not wasting time and money but RDA is very irreverent and feels everyone should have a good time. Then he shouted out, "Jaffa! Kree!" and took his bows, signed those big posters that were the backdrop and left.
David Winning was next up. He is one of the directors for Stargate: Atlantis, though he has worked on many other genre shows, including Andromeda. He said he was currently prepping for an episode of Andromeda that was to being on Thursday July 15, 2004, so that would answer those that persist in stating Andromeda was cancelled. He couldn't say much about Atlantis due to the spoiler phobes, nor could he talk about any up coming shows, so I'm afraid I left in the middle of his talk.
Next on the schedule was William Chrisensen of Avatar Press, followed by Peter Williams who plays Apophis, and lastly Doug Yellin, who helped produce the Stargate SG-3000 ride for Six Flags Amusement Parks. I missed all of those except for the last part of Yellin's talk. Apparently that ride cost 5 million to develop and 1.5 million to build. The first one was in Bremen, Germany, and three on in the States (Chicago, Louisville, and San Francisco.) It takes place in the future, the year 3000. The Stargate has been closed down for quite some time, and Apophis' daughter is the antagonist of the piece. It was very heavy on the Egyptian motif.
Don S. Davis was next up and he was wonderful. He was quite proud that he was down to 205 from 250 pounds and while he looked substantially different, the voice was still the same. He told us The Maggie Rose, a story he and Michael Shanks have the rights to. Apparently, it's set in New Foundland in the 1950s and it's about a fishing village. He describe it as having some of the same elements as Local Hero and Waking Ned Devine. Being a bit long winded, he pretty much describe the whole plot, complete with the history and socioeconomic repercussions. It sounds like a delightful film. He is very firm in his belief that Michael has a career in film and has hopes that this film will be his big break.
DSD was a captain in the US Army during the Vietnam period, in Korea on the 38th parallel with the 7th Infantry division at Camp Kasy (Kaiser?) He's proud of this, and he took pains to say that the politicians start the conflicts and the military has to resolve them. He said politicians are not completely honest and unfortunately, we tend to shoot the messengers. He said his wife's son is currently serving in Iraq and then discussed some of those current events.
One questioner asked him to give a YeeHaw! which he was more than happy to do. He said during that scene, he was just hoping CJ wouldn't break wind. Someone else asked why he pronounced Gou'ald as gould and he said it was because Hammond was from Texas and had molasses on his tongue and if he said it the right way it would take so long they'd have to cut the scene short. He then demonstrated how a good actor finds switches within themselves that allow them to bring strong emotion to the surface for their performance and he became teary eyed immediately. He said one had to learn how to stop the emotion and that letting the camera see you holding back the emotion was much more powerful than acting it all out.
As for how much improvisation is allowed on set, he said they are all required to say the script exactly except for one person. He also repeated what TA had said about the directors allowing the actors to try it their way once they have a good take in the can.
He said he used to carve cigar store Indians and duck decoys for a living and sell them at a craft mall in Dallas. As for his favorite episodes, he said he likes to laugh and loved Wormhole Extreme. Other favorites where when Teal'c tried to keep his son from becoming a Jaffa, or when the alien took the shape of O'Neill's son, or when Sam reconciled with her father. But hands down, his favorite was Heroes and that he'll flood the room with tears if he has to watch it. He thought her eulogy was remarkable.
Then he related a long story how he went from teacher to a stunt double for Dana Elcar on MacGyver. A very long story! Lastly, he said he was trying to set up a home here in LA, but then he was going to be doing a lot of art. If memory serves, he had a goal of over 70 painting in the next two years. This man is a wonderful story-teller and seems like a great guy.
The last guest was Todd Master's of MastersFX and that is the company that does a lot of the physical effects, like Thor and the super soldiers. They are up to version three on Thor, and he was quick to point out the pulsating brain in the super soldier (he's right, I hadn't see that on the show.)
Autographs of all these gentlemen followed, after which I went to dinner with my friends. The last event of the night was the Dessert Party and Cocktail Reception (a simple make it yourself ice cream sundae, and a cash bar.) There were 11 tables that seated ten each. The guests were DSD, CA, TA, Peter Williams and David Winning. They split up and socialized at each table for maybe close to 4 or minutes. They were very available to ask questions off, but mostly it was just a lot of flirting at our table. All were very nice and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. Many photos were taken.
Later, we met up with more friends and watched a tape someone had of the Atlantis premiere. It didn't have the SFX in yet, but I think we got a fair idea about it. Everyone had the same opinion of it and that wasn't a favorable one. Watch tonight and decide for yourselves.
Brunch the next morning had 16 tables of 10 each, and the breakfast was your basic scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, muffin, fresh fruit self serve buffet. The guests this time were Michael Shanks, Christopher Judge and Amanda Tapping. Unfortunately, they stayed together at first as they moved from table to table. It seemed like they were at the first table for about one to two minutes before they swept up to our table. The reason why it was unfortunate, because you might be talking to CJ, while MS is chatting to someone behind you and then they were gone to the next table. I noticed the pace did slow up by the time they got to the middle of the room. Towards the end, CJ's mom, two of his aunts and two cousins showed up. There was a family reunion happening in town and he was missing it. She hid while she spoke into a microphone and chastised him for not answering his phone calls. He looked very surprised, then rushed over to hug her. Then he made her listen to her voice messages and got one reluctant admission that he had called her back, but that didn't stop her from teasing him the rest of the day about it. Later, in his Q&A, his family stated they were very proud of him. His mother added that he'd been 'like this' since he was two and she never knew what he was going to do. At the buffet, Chris laughed and asked if folks would watch him get a spanking from his mother and the crowd shouted out he should auction that off. Anyway, there were at least three tables left when they started shooing us out, saying it was past time for them to clean up. There were two memorable bits for me here. One was getting to watch someone give MS a Leah Rosenthal cartoon that she'd had especially made up for him (I'm sure it will eventually get posted on the Ashton Press website.) The second thing was looking over and seeing MS holding a long neck bottle to his cheek. As he listened intently to a question, he slowly nuzzled the bottle with the side of his face. It was…ah…extremely sensuous and an utter delight to behold. That cerulean haze/pheromone thing was in full force. Again.
The main con space had about 600 by my count on Saturday, but on Sunday, there was standing room only around the walls, so I'd put it at over 800.
This is where I end part one of this. I'm off to visit a friend for a few days, so I'll post the next part sometime next week.
On July 10 and 11, CreationCon put on the first of many Official Stargate: SG-1 conventions, in Burbank, California. Our festivities started the night before, though. Being a local, I taped the Season 8 premiere of the show and brought it with me to the con hotel because that hotel does not get the SciFi channel. Once I met up with some other fans, we settled down to view what had brought us all to Burbank. Overall, the response was quite favorable to the premiere and we had an enjoyable time.
The con started at noon on Saturday. The dealer's room was 8 to 9 vendors, all of who had official SG products. Photos, T-Shirts, desert camo shot glasses were there along with Lightspeed and Avatar Press (they do the SG comic books.) Gold pass members received a big wooden plaque with a photo of Jack O'Neill in it and a poster for Spider Man 2. Registration ran smoothly and one could still buy more autograph and photograph tickets if you so desired. I ran those items upstairs to our room and still got back in plenty of time for Carmen Argenziano, who plays Jacob Carter.
Carmen Argenziano seems like a really sweet man. A story both he and Amanda Tapping related was about their first scene together. They met in the makeup trailer, looked at each other and knew it was going to be okay. During filming, he was blowing his lines and she just took his hand and held it, calming him. Both he and AT had spoke adoringly of each other. CA stated he would be going up to Vancouver in the second week of August do an episode. When an audience member mentioned that Sam was dating Pete, CA stated he'd like to meet Pete, that Sam was getting a little…and it was time for her to settle down and give him grandkids. A shipper shouted out "Jack!" and CA was quick to say he didn't trust him at all.
Tony Amendola was next up, and he plays Bra'tac on the show. He related a lot of insight in the craft of acting and seemed to be very sharp and fast-witted. He said his favorite episode was Threshold because of all the backstory in it. He admires Brad Wright, who wrote it, and really likes Peter DeLuise, who directed it. Since PDL was an actor himself, he can really help out if you get stuck. Apparently, Christopher Judge thought it would look really good if he and TA were both bare-chested while they were sparring up in the snowy forest, but TA convinced CJ that it would be much better if only Teal'c was bare-chested. At some point during the filming, when CJ was lying on the bare-chested on the cold snow and realizing that maybe it wasn't a good thing after all, TA just gave him 'the smile.' TA said another reason he liked working with PDL is that after they have a take in the can, he is willing to do one take of an actor's idea of the scene, and that many times, that is the one that is used. When asked about embarrassing moments on the SG set, he said it was more embarrassing offset and that he drinks too much with the cast, especially a big guy with a bald head who was a very bad influence on people! He said he developed the "Hammond of Texas" move and he liked it so much he kept it. He said that skull cap he has to wear is very hot and the nails they put it on with hurt (joking!) The makeup lady Jan puts icy cold washcloths on his head to cool him down, and when they take it off, the sweat pours off of him. Another questioner asked him what turned Bra'tac against Apophis. He thought it was that Bra'tac knew instinctively something was wrong with that setup and it troubled him like a food that doesn't set well - it's a physical thing as opposed to an intellectual thing.
A young girl asked him how old do Jaffa get, and he answered, "I hope very old!" He asked her who her favorite character was and she answered Apophis! TA looked up at her dad and exclaimed, "What are you doing to this child?!" and the father said, "If you saw her at home you'd know why." Another questioner asked if he required a lot of takes. TA said that he met CJ the first time during the episode Family. And he looked at him and thought, "thank god I'll get what I want from him" but they he realized he'd also have to work with Richard Dean Anderson. (As an aside, he said towards the end of the season 8 premiere when Jack has a scene with Dr. Weir, he expected him to say, "Weren't you a blonde?") TA says he likes the energy and being surprised and that RDA gives that. It's gold. TA instinctively bit Michael Shanks' hand in Family from that energy. Directors manipulate actors to get an actor surprised. It's gold. Another questioner asked how much of TA was in Bra'tac and he replied that acting is an art, and what takes place between and actor and the audience is magic. He mentioned a fellow by the name of Barrie, who I think he was a stunt coordinator he met early on. He said this guy used to say, "to hear is to forget, to see is to remember and to do is to know."
TA said he grew up in New Haven, Connecticut and moved out west in 1978. A questioner stated that there weren't many classically trained actors in SF and he was quick to counter that. He said SF actors tend to be classically trained because you need that to get your mouth around those scripts. His agent has him hide a lot of his theater work because when you audition, people are looking for a reason to cut you, "oh, he's too theatrical." When asked if he was doing an more SG episodes, he said he'd one already, two more in August and hopefully one more after that. AT has taught acting and he rattled off 6 - 8 titles when asked what his favorite Shakespeare play was. He asked the questioner what her favorite play was and she said Taming of the Shrew, and then TA proceeded to quote extensively from that play; it was delightful. He was going to answer another question but it had to do with Season 8 and the spoiler phobes in the audience shouted him down (and personally, I think that is so rude to be immature enough that it is preferable to silence the conversation of hundreds of people instead of simply dealing with it, yourself.) TA mentioned a theater group he is a founding member of here in LA called the Antaeus Company.
TA mentioned that in The Serpent's Lair, part 2, he felt quite claustrophobic when they used the wrench guns to bolt down the canopy on the death glider he was sitting in, but he took solace in the fact that RDA was in there with him, so he knew he'd be well taken care off. The costume he wears is about 60 pounds if you add in the staff weapon, but that the robes he wears are quite comfortable. He said that RDA was quite puzzling. Executive Producers are always on about not wasting time and money but RDA is very irreverent and feels everyone should have a good time. Then he shouted out, "Jaffa! Kree!" and took his bows, signed those big posters that were the backdrop and left.
David Winning was next up. He is one of the directors for Stargate: Atlantis, though he has worked on many other genre shows, including Andromeda. He said he was currently prepping for an episode of Andromeda that was to being on Thursday July 15, 2004, so that would answer those that persist in stating Andromeda was cancelled. He couldn't say much about Atlantis due to the spoiler phobes, nor could he talk about any up coming shows, so I'm afraid I left in the middle of his talk.
Next on the schedule was William Chrisensen of Avatar Press, followed by Peter Williams who plays Apophis, and lastly Doug Yellin, who helped produce the Stargate SG-3000 ride for Six Flags Amusement Parks. I missed all of those except for the last part of Yellin's talk. Apparently that ride cost 5 million to develop and 1.5 million to build. The first one was in Bremen, Germany, and three on in the States (Chicago, Louisville, and San Francisco.) It takes place in the future, the year 3000. The Stargate has been closed down for quite some time, and Apophis' daughter is the antagonist of the piece. It was very heavy on the Egyptian motif.
Don S. Davis was next up and he was wonderful. He was quite proud that he was down to 205 from 250 pounds and while he looked substantially different, the voice was still the same. He told us The Maggie Rose, a story he and Michael Shanks have the rights to. Apparently, it's set in New Foundland in the 1950s and it's about a fishing village. He describe it as having some of the same elements as Local Hero and Waking Ned Devine. Being a bit long winded, he pretty much describe the whole plot, complete with the history and socioeconomic repercussions.
DSD was a captain in the US Army during the Vietnam period, in Korea on the 38th parallel with the 7th Infantry division at Camp Kasy (Kaiser?) He's proud of this, and he took pains to say that the politicians start the conflicts and the military has to resolve them. He said politicians are not completely honest and unfortunately, we tend to shoot the messengers. He said his wife's son is currently serving in Iraq and then discussed some of those current events.
One questioner asked him to give a YeeHaw! which he was more than happy to do. He said during that scene, he was just hoping CJ wouldn't break wind.
As for how much improvisation is allowed on set, he said they are all required to say the script exactly except for one person. He also repeated what TA had said about the directors allowing the actors to try it their way once they have a good take in the can.
He said he used to carve cigar store Indians and duck decoys for a living and sell them at a craft mall in Dallas. As for his favorite episodes, he said he likes to laugh and loved Wormhole Extreme. Other favorites where when Teal'c tried to keep his son from becoming a Jaffa, or when the alien took the shape of O'Neill's son, or when Sam reconciled with her father. But hands down, his favorite was Heroes and that he'll flood the room with tears if he has to watch it. He thought her eulogy was remarkable.
Then he related a long story how he went from teacher to a stunt double for Dana Elcar on MacGyver. A very long story! Lastly, he said he was trying to set up a home here in LA, but then he was going to be doing a lot of art. If memory serves, he had a goal of over 70 painting in the next two years. This man is a wonderful story-teller and seems like a great guy.
The last guest was Todd Master's of MastersFX and that is the company that does a lot of the physical effects, like Thor and the super soldiers. They are up to version three on Thor, and he was quick to point out the pulsating brain in the super soldier (he's right, I hadn't see that on the show.)
Autographs of all these gentlemen followed, after which I went to dinner with my friends. The last event of the night was the Dessert Party and Cocktail Reception (a simple make it yourself ice cream sundae, and a cash bar.) There were 11 tables that seated ten each. The guests were DSD, CA, TA, Peter Williams and David Winning. They split up and socialized at each table for maybe close to 4 or minutes. They were very available to ask questions off, but mostly it was just a lot of flirting at our table. All were very nice and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. Many photos were taken.
Later, we met up with more friends and watched a tape someone had of the Atlantis premiere. It didn't have the SFX in yet, but I think we got a fair idea about it. Everyone had the same opinion of it and that wasn't a favorable one. Watch tonight and decide for yourselves.
Brunch the next morning had 16 tables of 10 each, and the breakfast was your basic scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, muffin, fresh fruit self serve buffet. The guests this time were Michael Shanks, Christopher Judge and Amanda Tapping. Unfortunately, they stayed together at first as they moved from table to table. It seemed like they were at the first table for about one to two minutes before they swept up to our table. The reason why it was unfortunate, because you might be talking to CJ, while MS is chatting to someone behind you and then they were gone to the next table. I noticed the pace did slow up by the time they got to the middle of the room. Towards the end, CJ's mom, two of his aunts and two cousins showed up. There was a family reunion happening in town and he was missing it. She hid while she spoke into a microphone and chastised him for not answering his phone calls. He looked very surprised, then rushed over to hug her. Then he made her listen to her voice messages and got one reluctant admission that he had called her back, but that didn't stop her from teasing him the rest of the day about it. Later, in his Q&A, his family stated they were very proud of him. His mother added that he'd been 'like this' since he was two and she never knew what he was going to do. At the buffet, Chris laughed and asked if folks would watch him get a spanking from his mother and the crowd shouted out he should auction that off. Anyway, there were at least three tables left when they started shooing us out, saying it was past time for them to clean up. There were two memorable bits for me here. One was getting to watch someone give MS a Leah Rosenthal cartoon that she'd had especially made up for him (I'm sure it will eventually get posted on the Ashton Press website.) The second thing was looking over and seeing MS holding a long neck bottle to his cheek. As he listened intently to a question, he slowly nuzzled the bottle with the side of his face. It was…ah…extremely sensuous and an utter delight to behold. That cerulean haze/pheromone thing was in full force. Again.
The main con space had about 600 by my count on Saturday, but on Sunday, there was standing room only around the walls, so I'd put it at over 800.
This is where I end part one of this. I'm off to visit a friend for a few days, so I'll post the next part sometime next week.
