Posted: September 9th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | No Comments »
I posted this on farscapenow.net and am repeating it here.
Fifteen years and one week ago Farscape fans gathered in a chat room run by the SciFi Channel and rallied to save our show. We formed groups around the world that used various means to show our dedication. We got a miniseries to close out a chapter of the story. Most of us felt like series creator , Rockne O’Bannon, that there were many more stories to tell. The actors, producers and crew were very vocal in their support. They were fighting for their jobs and a job they were proud of. Today they are in a different position with regards to speaking out. Even we non-industry people know it is a fickle business that is likely to pick up a show for revival and turn it in to something unrecognizable! I know many of you want to hear from those at the top publicly. Hopefully that day will come.
Last night we saw another cancelled SYFY show follow our lead at the behest of their producer and trend on Twitter with 100,000 tweets. Yes the actors also got involved. Remember they are still under contract and fighting for a job in a profession where only 5% or so are working at any time! So please do not compare them to our actors as caring more. Farscape has accrued more fans as the years have gone by.Many never use social media or think to search it. If we want more Farscape we have to earn it. The world of television has changed over the years and there are more shows than ever and so many more outlets! This is good and bad. Netflix is losing the Marvel and Star Wars franchises. I am guessing this frees up money for other projects. Game of Thrones has only a few episodes left to produce so HBO will be looking for another drama that attracts people who want something complex and unique. STARZ fans also like different as the success of Outlander. Amazon Studios is another possible source. We may know soon if the SYFY show gets new breath from one of these. It is cheaper for a studio to invest while all the sets intact and everyone still under contract. Farscape is in a much different situation though I suspect investors that are approached will check the show’s social media footprint as it is real time eavesdropping on viewers trends. Facebook is not usually monitored closely like Twitter and Instagram.
I understand those who are discouraged and I will remind you of the Star Trek fans who prior to the internet worked tirelessly and many thought foolishly for more Trek from June 1969 until December 1979. I don’t plan to give up just yet and hope you don’t either!
#farscapenow
Posted: September 6th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Adelaide Kane, Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Farscape, farscapenow, gigi edgley, Lesly-Ann Brandt, Megan Follows, Rachel Skarsten | 1 Comment »
I want to thank all those working to help us get more #farscapenow !! More names showing up all the time and the internet is a better place with all those photos of Ben! Keep it up! There have been retweets by Ricky Manning and Gigi Edgley. Likes by Claudia Black and Anthony Simcoe. To those who oppose the campaign I would like to ask you to go to Netflix (as well as Amazon and Hulu) and just ask for Farscape back on their menu as well as PK Wars which they never showed.
I attended Dragon Con 2017 last week and was happy to see some Farscape cosplays and even a grumpy guy who wore different saveFarscape shirts each day but opposes the campaign :p
Action John was busy photo opping with Gigi Edgley, Lesly-Ann Brandt, and the Queens of Reign — Adelaide Kane,Megan Follows, and Rachel Skarsten. All were great sports ! All I ever say is do what you want 🙂
Posted: August 29th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Being film, Ben Browder, Farscape | 1 Comment »
Being producer Rickey Perez posted a couple of set photos of Ben. The independent film is due to be released next year and no distribution details yet. Apparently Ben charmed which is no surprise to his fans 😀
Don’t forget to hashtag #farscapenow nightly at 8 pm ET —- feel free to do so anytime your schedule permits if you want more Farscape! Getting some notice from entertainment sites so maybe a feature on Farscape will happen. Try targeting @SYFYWIRE, @DEADLINE , @IGN or @GIZMODO or any favorites you have!
Posted: August 14th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Being, Being film, Ben Browder, Farscape, farscapenow | No Comments »
Filming Being begins today ! Looking forward to this independent film which I hope makes it to theaters. I prefer the theater experience for most films as I feel it draws the audience in more. Farscape and X Files are the two shows that drew me in so that I forgot about the laundry and vacuuming that surrounded me! That said this story intrigues me so I will watch no matter the format and likely would even if Ben wasn’t in it.
To all participating in the hashtag-a-thons keep it up!! Each days we see some new names! Don’t do social media? Go old school look up email addresses or physical addresses of the streaming companies and send your wish for more Farscape. Give them demographics and mention if you are a subscriber or would become one. Same with the various blogs who all seemed excited that James Gunn mentioned Farscape but have not followed that up with a look back. I have found many of these writers prefer social media contact so good luck and post your successes! I have sent some emails and have had no luck but our online presence is still just a tiny blip. There are Facebook groups with 3000 members yet only a handful posting if that. I realize many people just check pages now and then and it doesn’t reflect what kind of fan they are BUT it does send a message that yea people say they want more but where is the interest? All of you that say you don’t see why there is no kickstarter and you would donate I have to wonder if you really would since it is more effort than posting or emailing. For me this provides a great distraction from all the negative news —- take an hour now and then and think about Farscape and the emotions and positive moments either alone or with fellow fans. The social media campaigns are what they look at —- Everwood, Jersey Shore response to articles or blurbs motivated fans.
#farscapenow
Posted: August 11th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Farscape, farscapenow, john crichton | No Comments »
#FarscapeFriday
Join in the hashtag-a-thon nightly at 8pm ET(US). This weekend Europeans at 2000 London time. Australians,New Zealanders, Asia, Pacific Rim —you choose which one suits your schedule! Post images,memories,desire for more new Farscape. Target entertainment bloggers/sites like Gizmodo,Nerdist,EW,IGN and SYFYWire and any you follow. Also tag streaming services that produce there own shows like Netflix,Amazon,Hulu,Starz, and HBO. Use the social media you prefer whether it is Facebook,Twitter,Instagram, tumblr or whatever! Just use the hashtag #farscapenow. Remember you can post with the hashtag on the Farscapenow Facebook page if you don’t want it on your own timeline.
The November after Farscape was cancelled at the Farscape con David Kemper’s idea was take out a full page ad in USA Today to show we were serious fans. I raised enough money, $28,000, to get a 1/3 page ad that ran in the weekend edition the Friday the last of the season 4 episodes began airing. The advantage to social media is we can keep Farscape’s name out there and hope it reminds fans who have moved on that they miss that quality, they miss the characters that they cared about. As more join it will hopefully trigger the journalist/sites to do a feature or two on Farscape. Interest in something will have the studios/investors weighing it’s future. So take a few minutes each evening or do some retweeting during the day.
#farscapenow
Posted: August 8th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Ben Browder, Farscape | 1 Comment »
Let us flashback to early September 2002. Farscape was wrapping filming on season 4. We were all relaxed having received an unprecedented at the time 2 season renewal. My daughters were at the Friday night movies/sleepover stage so it was hectic after I got off work. I finally sat down (during soccer practice went home as cel phones weren’t as smart!) and checked my emails. I was stunned by 2 from Ben telling me to get as many fans as I could to the Dom chat that night. There was no social media. The actors and producers got hold of as many webmasters as they could to gather a crowd. Later after my Mom duties over I went to chat. I had called an industry friend who was a Scaper and she checked around. By then I had received a reply from Ben that yea it was bad news. Chat started with hundreds of people (it was always big on Fridays but as no episode on that night this was a bigger crowd than usual. The announcement made. I found an old transcript here . I had heard via my friend that there were issues and not all had to do with money are rating but both of those could be used as justification. Fans were galvanized. It was amazing because of technology we could make our reaction be known much faster than the Star Trek fans of the 1960s. Many lurkers suddenly stepped up and had ideas and were speaking out. I get that time has passed and priorities change and the world is a mess. For me life is less complicated personally. However we had had an election here in the US that was controversial and had a president many of us felt wanted war in Iraq based on his campaign talk and that would come to pass by the time Peacekeeper Wars aired. Unrest for many of no matter where we lived but we found time and heart to fight for this trivial thing we cared about. I see post after post saying people want the show back. It usually makes the lists of shows fans want revived in some form. People say they would give money to a Kickstarter campaign. This is going to sound pissy but I am skeptical. I know people don’t want to Tweet or tag an instagram photo for various reasons but I have a hard time believing they would log in and donate money. Ok what can you do if you want to avoid social media? Google HBO,Amazon,Netflix and Hulu and get a physical address and send a letter. Just put a hashtag #farscapenow. Fax if you prefer old school. Feel free to be a Debbie Downer as well. If the show comes back we won’t taunt you with “I told you” 🙂
Posted: August 6th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Farscape, farscapenow, gigi edgley, john crichton | 1 Comment »
First I want to thank all who are getting active in the #farscapenow campaign. It is easy to do, free and takes just a few minutes a day. On any social media you use just post something about Farscape and use the hashtag #farscapenow. It can be a photo, a retweet, or a reblog. Instagram pic a favorite photo or personal art and hashtag it. There is a surge today at 6 PM ET(US/Canada/South America). There is also a surge at 1800 London (UK) time. Get out your dvds and tweet or post a rewatch during that time if that works for you. If you don’t want people to see on your Facebook feed then you can post on the Farscapenow page.
Second to all those who think the actors too “old”. Star Trek made a comeback over a decade after being cancelled in an era without the Internet.Shows like Everwood, Gilmore Girls and Full House being given new life. Yes these are far cheaper to produce. The X Files (my first fandom and one of the first shows to value the internet fan interaction) had a successful short season last year and begins filming another soon. Yea Gillian Anderson looks older as she should as much time has passed (she is still beautiful and still Scully). Duchovny has aged a bit less gracefully but is still Mulder. Ben and Claudia Black have aged little but enough to believe time has passed. Gigi Edgley looks like she was frozen in time. If one wants pretty faces and abs then Farscape was never the show for you (and I bet our actors have the abs but can also act!).
Thirdly is this a waste of time? Who knows? I would like to think not. Everwood was a good show but who would have thought revival? Farscape fans, many new to the show in the last few years cosplay around the world at conventions. Ben Browder filled a room to standing capacity in Birmingham, UK the morning after a terror attack two hours away this past June. The people running the con thought there would be a drop in attendance but the room surpassed the crowd for Robert Patrick who was the guest before him. Mostly new fans fans since the show was cancelled. Plans I endorse will be posted or tweeted (@Action_John) or Instagrammed by me but it is a grassroots movement so if you have an idea run with it and hashtag it! Yes there is a little used Instagram account as I hate cel phones — benbrowdernet
Photo above from Twitter June 2017
Posted: August 4th, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Ben Browder, Brian Henson, Claudia Black, Farscape, Gillian Anderson, john crichton | No Comments »
#FarscapeFriday
I attended the first Farscape con with some trepidation. Would they have been “encouraged” to attend by SciFi and affect
ennui I had witnessed at Star Trek cons (these actors have since learned to embrace these events) or be enthusiastic like X File star Gillian Anderson and just enjoy the experience. It was the latter. Every guest from actor to writer had big grins and ran over their time. Five years later over 3000 sat in San Diego, most of us arriving early before the first panel jockeying for better seats as the day went on. We sat through many panels. Often these are quick sell deals for the network and flash thrills for the fans. The heartfelt pride the panel which featured Brian Henson, Rockne O’Bannon, David Kemper, Ben Browder and Claudia Black all felt over this project which they had four plus years to (more in the case of Henson, O’Bannon and Kemper) was still evident. All fans feel this about their panels I know but to this day no one involved mocks or makes light of the work they did on Farscape. Did things ever not go to plan? Of course. Antics? Anthony Simcoe — enough said 🙂 Never do you hear yea they didn’t care that the character wouldn’t say/do that or the producers said just say your lines. Fans like to hear that the characters they have invested time in have been respected by those who bring them to life, that producers/writers say the fans will take the ride with us as opposed to the fans will just have to accept what we give them (said by an exec producer writer of another cult show in an interview). The TV industry has changed. It is trendy to have the casts Tweet live during episodes. The Farscape people visited chats in 2001 and sometimes just dropped in or were there “cloaked”. They get it. Kemper and Manning would challenge fan statements and engage in dialogue over plot/character points. Farscape is a show that would do well in today’s TV world in my opinion as a viewer. We need, we want more #farscapenow
Special thanks to musicalgal for the photos above and surfwidow for the one below 🙂 CaScapers still rule!
Posted: August 3rd, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: Ben Browder, Farscape, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, James Gunn, john crichton | 1 Comment »
What a moment when two men who have admired each other’s work get to take a few minutes and discuss a shared passion — Farscape. I think we all would love to see James Gunn leave his mark on Farscape in the future! Thanks to Scaper Patricia for the spot! #farscapenow
12.3k Likes, 83 Comments – James Gunn (@jamesgunn) on Instagram: “#GotGPicoftheDay One of my favorite #scifi shows of all time was #Farscape. So when I ran into the…”
Posted: August 2nd, 2017 | Author: ath389 | Filed under: News | Tags: BeingMovie, Ben Browder, Farscape, john crichton, SG1 | No Comments »
Most of you may have seen this already on Ben Browder Network but in case you haven’t 🙂 I was asked for contact information from the Being people and received this message from one of the executive producers:
Hi Everyone,
My name is Rickey and I’m an Executive Producer for the film Being. It
has come to my attention that all of you have reached out in various
ways seeking answers on our project that popped up on your radar on
July 31st. If you have not yet heard already, the whole Being team is
not only excited to work with Ben Browder, but to also engage with his
extended family of passionate supporters in a very meaningful way
after we have finished shooting. Our priority is to provide the best
experience and environment conducive to success. In other words, we
hope you are okay with us being a little selfish by keeping news close
to the vest until we have carried out our Director’s vision. We care a
lot about the talent who have dedicated their time and energy to us as
well as their respective management and representatives who were quite
pleasing to work with. We don’t want to let any distraction get in the
way of delivering the product you deserve. We hope you can understand.
In the coming months, we will make ourselves available to answer
questions through various platforms and we can’t thank you enough for
your interest. This isn’t a press release per se, but rather a
courtesy response. Thank you very much!
—
Regards,
Rickey Gerard Perez
So now two Twitter missions for Ben fans : #farscapenow — retweet and share Ben or Farscape related messages,GIFs, or photos AND follow @BeingMovie and retweeet them (may be a bit as main filming begins August 14th).
