Return to Magna

In May we returned to Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham, near Sheffield. The location is based in a disused steel works and is superb for filming. We'd previously used their car park for a city bottom scene. This time we utilised their vast storage area and cooling pits to film two scenes based in the Cursed Earth, for once it was nice to get undercover.

Photo by Barry Renshaw

It was a productive, if some what hectic, couple of days, with everyone having to pull together to get the required shots filmed in such a short space of time.

Highlights included, young actor, Matthew Beddows in a new character created especially for him, a purely visually roll, which he embraced and breathed life into. Model Integra Fairbrook produced a very touching performance which allowed us to dwell on a few very important shots, which we were originally concerned may be a problem. Thanks to her work the shots will probably be some of the best in the film.

As well as a very energetic death scene, which nearly maimed two crew members (including myself), John Burdis provided invaluable technical advice. After only a brief appearance in North Wales, Steve Longdon had the opportunity to flesh out his slightly disturbing character and it was great to finally call on Mark Watson's physical acting abilities, even if it did have to be done at breakneck pace!

As always we are eternally grateful to the remaining 'Minty Players' - Peter, Jenny, Guy, Simon, Darren, Dale and Jason. Just a few of the cast regulars, who traveled from the four corners of the country to reprise their roles, often for only a few seconds of screen time. I don't mind repeating myself when I say that their enthusiasm is often what keeps us going.

Again, Steve Green produced some amazing shots, with very little time to prep, I think the general reaction when reviewing the footage was "F**K YEAH!" Story board artist Barry Renshaw, also proved invaluable for continuity as well enjoying himself with the smoke machine. Daniel Carey-George was kept insanely busy assembling four new costumes and rigging two sets, completing in hours what should usually take days.

Edmund Dehn's performance, as always, was a highlight when viewing the rushes and provided the required presence to ground our story.

What's happening with Minty?

First off I'd like to apologise for not updating this blog recently. I've been stacked out with work and have only just had time to post snippets of stuff on facebook and twitter, but this blog has become very out of date. So, over the next few days I will be trying and bring it up to date, with what may be old news to some.

Kapow memories

Old news now, but as we were gearing up for our next location filming session, we thought we'd take some time out for a trip to Kapow Comic Convention in London. Nothing official, though cast regular John Burdis did agree to spend most of Saturday on patrol as a Judge, dishing out beatings and chatting to 2000AD creators about the project.

A brief chat with Pat Mills was very encouraging and allowed us to present him with one of our customised prop badges and get this nice photo with Dredd.



One of the main reasons to attend was to meet fellow filmmaker Matthew Giffen, who has agreed to come on board and help with the project. Welcome aboard Matthew!

Blog catch up part 3 - Interviews

Over the past couple of months we've been fortunate to be asked to do a few interviews. It's just occurred to me that I didn't post them here! Thanks again to Fan Film Follies and Escapist Magazine. There are a couple more in the pipeline, which I'll make sure to post once they're online.

Fan Film Follies Interview

The Escapist Interview

The 'catch up' trilogy is complete.

Blog catch up part 2 - Judge Ezquerra!

We recently sent our hero, and co-creator of Judge Dredd, Carlos Ezquerra one of Dan's prop badges as a thank you for... well.. being Carlos Ezquerra!

"Hey, Steven, thanks for the fantastic shield, I love it! it brightened my last session of chemo... by the way, do I look a bit like "Him" ?? ;))"
Carlos.

Great guy that he is, he sent us this superb photo AND in doing so put to bed the question of what Judge Dredd looks like under his helmet! Needless to say all the team got a huge thrill from the picture. Thanks again Carlos and get well soon.

Blog catch up part 1 - Jonathan Ross at BICS

A quick catch up of things which have been posted on Twitter and Facebook.


Although we didn't attend the British International Comic Show in an official 'Judge Minty' capacity, we did ask the help of our friends at Hollywood Heroes costume group to get this nice photo op with Jonathan Ross, who was there to promote his comic 'Turf'.

Daniel Carey-George put together a nice Judge ROSS presentation badge and when he stopped by the Hollywood Heroes stand 'Wossy' was presented with it by two Judges. He was very friendly and stayed for ages. Lots of people got photos as he chatted about nerd stuff.

Well done Dinorwic cast & crew!

I'm extremely overdue with this latest update. So, like double decker buses, expect a few more to come along soon after it. First off a massive thank you and well done to everyone who came to help us in North Wales (quite a while ago).

The shoot represented the bulk of live action filming for the project and was quite a task, logistically, mentally and physically. Four days and three nights in Llanberis, filming Cursed Earth scenes at Dinorwic slate quarry. The location has had it's fair share of film crews and was recently used for the remake of 'Clash of The Titans'.

We had a great deal to and fit in if we were to make the most of this superb location. Thanks again to the people at First Hydro Power Station for allowing us to film on their private property.


The day before the main cast arrived we scheduled a couple of simple scenes, to warm us up. The mountatin gave us a tiny taste of it's fury, but we naively thought (probably just me) that we'd hopefully seen the worst of it. The next day we were given a boost by the arrival of the 'Mutants'. After first calling off at the 2000AD Nerve Centre "to show them what they needed to be doing", John Burdis arrived along with a number of cast regulars.

We had some rough ideas for the Mutant Gang, but we were completely reliant on the actors who arrived on the day. This was possibly the only bit of good luck we had, as all the actors quickly found a character to fit with their costume and began adding depth and history to the gang. So when 'action!' was eventually called most people already had an idea how their character would act without the need for detailed direction.

Conditions for the next couple of days were grueling with regular wind and rain showers. Despite this we were completely blown away by the professionalism and enthusiasm shown. I couldn't get over how 'happy' everyone seemed hanging around for hours, to spend only a few moments in front of the camera, usually whilst freezing cold and wet. The majority of people had also traveled a great distance for the privilege.

Dale Jackson and David Rigby produced some very convincing work allowing us more freedom with their characters. Mark Watson's measured body language and movement worked perfectly with his character. In contrast Guy Robbins' performance was a real scene stealer. After a stressful couple of days I honestly hurt myself laughing so hard at his disturbingly funny performance. Without exception every actor produced something great for the camera.

Dan created some superb 'hero' props especially for the shoot and put together some crazy costumes for the Mutant gang. John Burdis also gave some very useful military advice on weapons props as well as doubling for Minty in some of the more 'dangerous' scenes.

As usual Edmund Dehn's performance was faultless in some very uncomfortable conditions. Catching a glimpse of Edmund's work on the playback was a real tonic. Amazing work from Steve Green under some ridiculous weather conditions and a very stressful schedule. I was amazed by the footage he managed to capture under the circumstances. A number of people commented on how harsh the landscape looked on the dailies. No CGI - just good old fashioned 'orrible weather.

Once again, well done everyone.