Revealed: Samuel L. Jackson as the Octopus

The cover of the new issue of Comic-Con Magazine includes a first look at Samuel L. Jackson as The Octopus in Frank Miller's film adaptation of "Will Eisner's The Spirit." The free mag includes an interview with Miller should be easily found at your local comic shop or in the mail if you're a regular attendee of the show.

"Iron" a precious metal for Marvel

Who would have thought iron would be worth so much gold?

As you've likely already heard, "Iron Man" was a smash hit its debut frame taking in $104 million domestically and about $97 million abroad for an impressive total north of $200 million. Not a bad start for a movie that Reuters (via Yahoo!) says cost Marvel about $150 million to make and $75 million to market.

The movie itself is remarkable for a number of things, most notably it being perhaps the purest adaptation of a comicbook superhero to screen ever accomplished. The little things that drive fans nuts are all in the right place — everything from the armor A.I. being named "Jarvis" to seeing a "Roxxon" building in the background of the freeway fight and Terrence Howard's Rhodey looking at a suit of armor and saying, "Next time." As critics have been saying (mostly), the big stuff all works too, with Robert Downey Jr. making an ideal Tony Stark, the writers turning in an entertaining script and excellent visual effects that avoid looking too much like a videogame about 95 percent of the time. In all, it's excellent as an "Iron Man" film and very good as an overall movie.

If you didn't stick around through the credits, you missed a very cool tag scene featuring a certain SHIELD director, played by Samuel L. Jackson. If you did miss it, then Marvel's 1st quarter report this morning contains some relevant spoiler material, as the company announced "Iron Man 2" will come out April 30, 2010, with "Thor" to debut on June 4, 2010, followed in 2011 by "Captain America: The First Avenger" on May 6 and "The Avengers" in July. While that means Marvel itself won't produce any pics for 2009, Fox's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" will ensure a steady stream of Marvel movies at the box office.

Meanwhile, that financial report shows Marvel beating expectations on its 1st quarter results. The report shows a drop in revenues attributed to a decline in Spider-Man licensing over last year, when "Spider-Man 3" was gearing up. Publishing results were down $1 million, or about 4 percent, based largely on strong sales last year of Civil War and the death of Captain America.

NYCC: "The Spirit" and "Hellboy 2" posters

These both look pretty cool. Look for "The Spirit" trailer online later today, after its NYCC panel.

Just try and escape "Iron Man"-ia

"IRON MAN" ROUNDUP: The impending release of Marvel's "Iron Man" is generating tons of interest as fans and the industry see the possibility of the first big hit of 2008. In checking out some of the new clips available online, including this one of director Jon Favreau touring the set in a classic Iron Man T-shirt and this clip at Apple, more interesting bits are coming out. I particularly like the twist of Tony Stark naming the computer in the armor "Jarvis." Not only does it give Tony someone to talk to in action sequences, it's a cool way to work in the name of the Avengers' long-suffering butler, Edwin Jarvis. ... Reports have snuck out that Samuel L. Jackson's cameo as Nick Fury has been cut from "Iron Man."

MORE MARVEL: Another pic from "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" shows a worm's eye view of Logan's claws. ... Ed Norton, star and co-writer of "The Incredible Hulk," is downplaying the creative differences he had with Marvel on the film.

"THE SPIRIT," "DARK KNIGHT" AND MORE: The first stills from "Will Eisner's The Spirit" came out at IGN, though they depict Scarlett Johansson as Silken Floss and Samuel L. Jackson as the Octopus rather than Gabriel Macht's titular hero. An image of an action figure based on the lead character has leaked out — as have a bunch of unofficial pics Lionsgate has been quick to take down — show The Spirit's all-black suit with red tie look. ... Check out "The Dark Knight" viral site I Believe in Harvey Dent. ... Pics of action figures from Zack Snyder's forthcoming "Watchmen" have been released, while Snyder himself has lined up the animated "Guardians of Ga'Hoole" as his next film.

DEALS: David DiGilio has been signed to adapt Oni's "The Damned" into a feature film. ... Stan Lee has teamed up with Brighton Partners and Rainmaker Studios to develop "Legion of 5," a new superhero project they plan to turn into a series of CG animated films.

FANBOY DEBATES: A new poll anoints "Batman Begins" as the best superhero movie of all time. ... Is Superman the best superhero or the worst ? Two columnists take sides. ...

Platinum's "Atlantis Rising" at DreamWorks

Platinum has sold its second major project to DreamWorks, again working with the rising-star duo of Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci ("Transformers," "Star Trek").

Full PR follows:

DREAMWORKS STUDIOS OPTIONS RIGHTS TO PLATINUM STUDIOS’ “ATLANTIS RISING”

Los Angeles, CA (April 16, 2008) - DreamWorks Studios has optioned the rights to make a feature film from Platinum Studios Inc.’s (OTCBB: PDOS) comic book “Atlantis Rising,” it was announced today by Adam Goodman, President of Production for DreamWorks Studios. 

Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, who brought the project to the studio, will produce through their DreamWorks based company.  Platinum Studios’ Chairman and CEO, Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, will also produce.  The Greenberg Group CEO and former Universal Pictures senior executive Randy Greenberg will executive produce and Platinum Studios Rich Marincic will co-produce.

Created by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, “Atlantis Rising” is a five-part mini series first published by Platinum Studios Comics in November of 2007.  The fifth and final installment in the series is due on comic book shelves in late April 2008.

In “Atlantis Rising,” seismic disturbances at sea force world militaries to investigate the deepest part of our ocean, where an underground civilization emerges to do war with planet earth.

“Atlantis Rising” marks the second property that DreamWorks has optioned from Platinum Studios.  DreamWorks, along with Universal Studios, optioned the rights to “Cowboys and Aliens” last year and is currently developing the sci-fi western adventure along with Kurtzman and Orci and Imagine Entertainment.

”We are excited about bringing audiences into the vast mysterious world of the ocean's depths for what we hope will be an edge-of-your seat experience,” said Adam Goodman, DreamWorks’ President of Production.  “Our team at DreamWorks looks forward to this new association with Platinum Studios, and Kurtzman and Orci.”

“Atlantis Rising is a provocative sci-fi thriller that at its core, echoes the global debate on our impact to the environment,” said Rosenberg.  “To again be working with the creative duo of DreamWorks and Kurtzman/Orci, I believe will give the project a bold and enthralling take on this classic myth.”
"No sea horses or tridents here," said producers Kurtzman and Orci, "The comic brings a fresh, techno-thriller approach to a story that holds all the tenets of a classic us-versus-them alien invasion movie."
Kurtzman and Orci currently have an overall producing deal with DreamWorks Studios.  They are currently producing the action thriller “Eagle Eye” for DreamWorks which will be released in theaters this September.  They have also written several screenplays for DreamWorks projects, including “Transformers” and “The Island,” and are currently at work on “Transformers 2.”  Among their other writing credits are “Mission: Impossible III,” “The Legend of Zorro,” and next year’s “Star Trek,” which they are also executive producing.    They also served as producers and writers on the hit TV series, “Alias,” and are executive producing the action/drama “Fringe” which is scheduled to debut on Fox in the fall.

'The Spirit' hype ramps up

Spotted this billboard for Frank Miller's adaptation of "Will Eisner's The Spirit" yesterday on Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock:

The countdown widget I talked about the other day can be found at a new site, www.mycityscreams.com.

The zero hour seems to be about 4 p.m. PT on Saturday, April 18. That's a few hours after "The Spirit" panel at New York Comic-Con, so I expect it'll be the online posting of the teaser trailer they plan to show at the con. Seems like a lot of promotion for a teaser trailer when the movie is still nine months away from release, so Lionsgate must be pretty confident that the film will meet the expectations this much promotion this far out will generate.

Deal memo: Stan Lee, 'Last Blood,' 'Afterburn'

Comics movie news from Variety and around the web:

* Stan Lee has set up three original pics at Disney through his POW! Entertainment company. The titles are "Nick Ratchet," "Tigress" and "Blaze." Lee and POW! partner are exec producing the pics, which all are based on stories by Lee.

* Tobey Maguire has picked up the rights to "Afterburn," a comic published by Canadian house Red 5.

* Benderspink has added the vampire title "Last Blood" to its slate of comics pics in development.

* Keanu Reeves tells MTV about turning the roles of Dr. Manhattan in "Watchmen" and Racer X in "Speed Racer."

'Justice League' out of Oz

Man, George Miller's "Justice League of America" flick just can't get a break. After running into the roadbump of the WGA strike and controversial casting, the film now has been refused a rebate by the Australian government and will have to shoot elsewhere — most likely Canada.

Perhaps the strangest thing, though, is the title that's being attached to it: "Justice League: Mortal." I can't figure out if this is a typo or the actual title for the film. Best advice to WB: Pretend it's a mistake and go back to "Justice League of America," "JLA," just plain "Justice League" or even the 80s-inspired "Justice League International."

WB grabs 'Cyclops'; Miller blogs; Cera as Pilgrim?

WB has optioned Alexis Nolent's sci-fi Euro GN "Cyclops" for "Walk the Line" and "3:10 to Yuma" director James Mangold.

Frank Miller blogs about the making of "Will Eisner's The Spirit" at the movie’s official site.

"Arrested Development" and "Superbad" star Michael Cera is said to be in final talks to play Scott Pligrim in a film adaptation of Bryan Lee O'Malley's popular Oni series.

Marvel strikes FX deal, sets toon outlet and may crossover

Marvel's struck a deal with FX for the TV rights to "Iron Man" and "Incredible Hulk." These is a big deal that has potential to pay off for the comics studio big time as evidenced by this passage from John Dempsey's Variety story:

As with most of the basic-cable pre-buys, the net agrees to pony up a license fee that hovers at around 11% of the domestic gross, a figure that cuts off at $200 million. If all five movies end up as $200 million-plus blockbusters -- a very big if, of course -- FX would pay the maximum $22 million apiece for a grand total of $110 million. That's a gigantic license fee, but lots of people watch big-hit movies on cable TV, so there wouldn't be any complaints from FX.

Over at MTV, Robert Downey Jr. talks about the crossover cameos between "Iron Man" and "Incredible Hulk," possibly paving the way for a crossover movie or the hotly anticipated "Avengers" pic.

Meanwhile, Marvel's "Iron Man" and "Wolverine and the X-Men" toons are set to air on Nicktoons in the first quarter of 2009.

Dark Horse, U strike prod'n, distrib deal

Oregon-based comics and movie house Dark Horse has signed a three-year production and distribution pact with Universal. The crux of the deal is this, from the press release:

Under the terms of the deal, Universal would have creative access to all Dark Horse characters and properties, as well as any material that Dark Horse might acquire on its own and want to develop as a motion picture. In addition, Dark Horse would have the opportunity to distribute movies through Universal.

Universal is distributing Guillermo del Toro's "Hellboy 2: The Golden Army" this July; the original pic was distribbed by Columbia.

The strength of Dark Horse is it's far less reliant on superheroes than DC and Marvel. In addition to "Hellboy," DH is the home of Frank Miller's "Sin City" and "300," as well as "The Mask" and such distinctive creator-owned titles as "Grendel," "Usagi Yojimbo," "The Goon" and "Concrete."

'Hulk' trailer a hit

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First reactions to the first look at "The Incredible Hulk" trailer: Story looks cool with a bigger action focus than the previous version, but the CG still needs some refinement to avoid looking so, well, CG.

MTV, which is hosting the trailer, also has a moment-by-moment dissection of the trailer. It's also interesting to note that as of about 10:30 PT this morning, the site shows nearly a half-million views of the trailer.

Film news: 'Hulk' trailer, Singer's return, Marvel pics, Dark Knight

Comicbook movie news is coming at a rapid pace. Here's what's up:

* The long-awaited trailer for "The Incredible Hulk" is set to debut Wednesday at 9:56 p.m. on the following Universal family networks: MTV, MTVU, MTV2, VH1, Spike TV, Nick at Nite and CMT. It will be posted to MTV's movie site immediately after, and will be shown in theaters this weekend, most notably before "Doomsday." Meanwhile, Nikki Finke at her Deadline Hollywood Daily blog reports that star Edward Norton and Marvel are squabbling over the final cut of the film.

* The U.K.'s Empire Online has news on a number of fronts, including "Superman Returns." The site chatted with director Bryan Singer, who says work has resumed on the pic. The director, however, did not say if the rumor reported at IESB that "Transformers" and "Star Trek" scribes Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman might write the script.

* Empire also checks in with director Edgar Wright, who says fans can expect to see both Hank Pym and Scott Lang in his "Ant-Man" film. The script is currently being polished. Meanwhile, Matthew Vaughn talks about  his plans for Marvel's "Thor":

“We’re in a holding pattern at the moment,” he said. “It’s up to Marvel, they have to decide if they want to make the movie and then we take it from there.”

* Interest in "The Dark Knight" is heating up, and will only increase as the pic approaches due to the death of star Heath Ledger. The New York Times talks to director Christopher Nolan. The viral campaign for the film moves on to Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent. The actor tells Wizard  he will be seen as the villainous Two-Face in the film.

* Producer Richard Saperstein has picked up the rights to Clifford Meth's comicbook "Snaked," published by  IDW.

Par takes "Harbinger" for Ratner

This will surely be controversial, but I think Brett Ratner could do a good job directing a "Harbinger" film for Paramount.

'Bone' back on the boards

After years of largely staying away from Hollywood, Jeff Smith is back, having optioned "Bone" to Warner Bros. for Dan Lin to produce.

Deal is a potential blockbuster for Smith, who started self-publishing "Bone" in the early 1990s and retains all rights to the story and characters. The series ran 55 issues, with Smith publishing for a while with Image Comics before returning the book to his own Cartoon Books label, wrapping up in 2004.  Smith, who's been protective of the property, will exec produce the project.

It's also a savvy deal for WB, which would love a new kid-friendly fantasy franchise to replace "Harry Potter," which wraps after two more movie outings. "Bone" may have started as a self-published black-and-white comic, but its all-ages appeal and acclaim from critics and readers helped make it a big enough hit in the direct market for Scholastic to release color volumes that have been a smash hit with young readers in bookstores and schools. Offering a solid mix of fantasy, adventure, humor and a terrific look, a good movie version could vault "Bone" into the same arena as "Potter," "Spider-Man" or "Shrek."

Interestingly, Lin — a former WB exec who's also working on "Justice League of America" — is leaving open the option of doing "Bone" as a live-action film. While I know it's possible to do such a thing these days, I have a hard time imagining live-action as preferable to a good animated version.

New "Wanted" trailer

MySpace.com has the exclusive new trailer for "Wanted," which is looking good ...

Wanted Exclusive Trailer

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First "Watchmen" pics hit

With one year until its release, director Zack Snyder released the first photos of five of the main characters in "Watchmen." Take a sneak peek at Jeffrey Dean Morgan as The Comedian below and then head over to the official movie site to check out Nite Owl, Rohrschach, Ozymandias and Silk Spectre.

We'll have to wait a bit to see what's planned for Doctor Manhattan. I'm not quite sure what to think of these pics. They look pretty cool, but also a bit "Batman & Robin" for my taste.

New 'Iron Man' trailer in HD

From the look of this new trailer, now up at MySpace, Marvel's managed to turn one of its B-list superheroes into an A-list movie.

Iron Man Exclusive Trailer

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"Justice League" a go for 2009; Dimension picks "Locke"

In need of a tentpole pic for 2009, WB is moving ahead on production of "Justice League of America," with scribes Kieran and Michele Mulroney polishing the script and pre-production proceeding. The cast remains the same, with Adam Brody as The Flash, rapper Common as Green Lantern, Armie Hammer Jr. as Batman and Megan Gale as Wonder Woman. 2009 is looking like a good year for comicbook pics, with release dates also set for "Will Eisner's The Spirit," "Watchmen" and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine."

Dimension, meanwhile, picked up the rights to "Locke & Key" from IDW. Just-debuted horror comic is written by novelist Joe Hill, son of Stephen King.

'Boys,' 'Akira' edgy picks for comics pics

You know you live in interesting times when the likes of "The Boys" and "Akira" are optioned on the same day.

"Akira" has long been talked about for a live-action version, though I'm skeptical that any adaptation of Katsuhiro Otomo's manga classic will live up to the anime version he himself directed in the late 1980s. Still, the visuals of this story are amazing and the Wachowskis' upcoming "Speed Racer" may point the way for really adapting anime-style visuals and storytelling to the big screen. In comics, this was a big one in manga's entry into America, first published by Marvel's Epic Comics line in the 1980s and most recently reprinted in six volumes by Dark Horse.

As for the "The Boys," well, that's a thornier question. Garth Ennis' irreverently gross and funny take on superheroes as corrupt jerks that need to be taken down was dropped by DC/Wildstorm for content issues despite being a decent seller for them, continuing now at Dynamite Entertainment. I'm not sure what kind of audience Col sees for this property, but I would bet that it's going to have to be toned down a bit much the same way as "Wanted" seems to have been, with the main characters changed from supervillains to "assassins who protect order."

Wolverine casting; comics movie rumors

Casting news on the upcoming "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" movie, now shooting down under, should make fans of the character's early 1990s adventures more than happy. It's been confirmed that Ryan Reynolds has been cast as Deadpool and Taylor Kitsch as Gambit, with rapper will.i.am playing Wraith. They join Hugh Jackman in the lead role, as well as Liev Schrieber as Sabretooth, Danny Huston as William Stryker and Lynn Collins as Kayla Silverfox, based on the comics character Silver Fox. Above photo is the first still released from the pic, courtesy of USA Today.

That's a lot of mutants for a "solo" pic — and perhaps not the ones that inspire the most confidence, either. The best Wolverine solo stories, such as the 1982 miniseries by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller or Barry Windsor-Smith's "Weapon X" — both reportedly influences on the film — were true "solo" stories staring a tough loner. Adding Deadpool, a motormouth assassin created by Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza in 1991's The New Mutants #98, in particular alters the tone of the movie to something a bit more jokey. Gambit makes a bit more sense, especially since he's almost made it into the "X-Men" pics twice now, as do Stryker (played in "X2' by Brian Cox) and Sabretooth (played in "X-Men" by Tyler Mane). Silver Fox also was an element in early drafts of the "X-Men" script, but ultimately was one of the more troubling elements of the 1990s-era Wolverine comics, in which the character constantly discovered his memories were faked.

* In other superhero movie rumors, it's going around that "Justice League of America" will be pushed back to 2010 and that it may be revamped to remove Superman and Batman, preventing overlap with their respective solo movies.

* On the toon front, could "Brave and the Bold" — featuring Batman teaming up with a different DC hero each week — be the next DC-based WB animation series?

* Meanwhile, writer director Edgar Wright is waiting to see which of his two comics films will get the greenllight first: "Scott Pilgrim," based on Bryan Lee O'Malley's popular humor comic, or "Ant-Man" for Marvel.

'Wanted,' 'Iron Man' rock Super Bowl viewers

I was in Arizona over the weekend (though it had nothing to do with the Super Bowl) and only now am getting a look at the two big comicbook movie ads that aired during the game.

First, the ads for both movies — Marvel's "Iron Man" and U's "Wanted," based on the Top Cow comic — offered only the slightest glimpses of something new. Both films have had trailers out, and these short clips didn't give us a whole lot more than we'd seen before.

"Iron Man" continues to look like it's going to be an extremely solid movie. Robert Downey Jr. is an ideal casting choice for Tony Stark, and this may be the first instance of a second-tier Marvel hero spawning an A-list film franchise. Still, the coolness of "Iron Man" only makes the absence of any significant look so far at "The Incredible Hulk" increasingly worrisome. Also missing was an ad for "The Dark Knight," though obviously there are some tough issues surrounding promoting that with the recent death of Heath Ledger.

"Wanted" looks cool, but it's hard to overlook the fundamental change made to the plotline. In the graphic novel, Wesley is invited to join a group of super-VILLAINS — to take part in a fraternity of thoroughly nasty folks whose goal is to take the world for all its got. (It also explains the title: "Wanted," as in "10 Most Wanted Super Criminals.") The movie has morphed this into a "brotherhood of assassins" out to protect the world. So, yeah, the effects look cool and James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie look terrific doing all kinds of cool superhero-y things, but the closer this gets the more annoyed I am at this fundamental change in the plot, which I suspect was made to keep the film from being accused of glamorizing villainy, promoting violence, etc. The move amounts to little more than lip service anyway — as if a few lines of dialogue will take away from the seemingly awesome and outlandish portrayals of violence anyway.

Heath Ledger, "Dark Knight's" Joker, found dead

I was prepping a blog post on the Oscar noms just now when an email from a pal alerted me to the news that acter Heath Ledger, who was nominated for an Oscar for his role in "Brokeback Mountain" and whose take on The Joker is an anticipated highpoint in the upcoming Batman film "The Dark Knight," was found dead today in a New York apartment.

Details are coming in, but early reports can be found here.

This will make "The Dark Knight," which is one of the most anticipated films of the summer, a much more solemn event.

'Justice League' movie on hold

The not-surprising news that Warner is putting the "Justice League" pic on hold comes in this Variety report from Diane Garrett and Michael Fleming.

While it's interesting that WB is still interested in making the pic post-strike, this was the first confirmation of casting, with Adam Brody set as Flash, Armie Hammer Jr. as Batman and Megan Gale as Wonder Woman.

Myriad and 407 a go on 'Hybrid'

This recent deal between Myriad Pictures and comics house Studio 407 has already resulted in a film project: the aptly titled "Hybrid." Details on the deal and pic can be found here.

What to expect from this kind of project? Who knows. The comic the film is supposedly based on isn't due to be published until June ...

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Foreign-lingo category passes on 'Persepolis'

The list of contenders for the best foreign-language film Oscar were released yesterday, surprising many by omitting "Persepolis," the animated film from France based on Marjane Satrapi’s award winning graphic novel. (It’s not the only surprising omission. Romanian film “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,” one of the best-reviewed films of the year, also is out of contention.)

The film made a bit of history on its own just by being France’s official submission in this category, but it now looks like the film’s sole chance for an Oscar will come in the animated feature category, which is already crowded with sure-thing "Ratatouille" and strong contenders such as "The Simpsons Movie" and wildcards like "Beowulf," which was passed over in the visual-effects category.

'JLA' movie delays rumored

Robert Sanchez over at IESB.net has some not-so-good news on the "Justice League of America" movie. Sanchez writes that concerns about the script, the cast and the budget have prompted WB execs to push back the scheduled start date and consider scrapping the project completely:

“Justice League is indeed in danger of not starting production on time and maybe even getting scrapped altogether” is what a studio source told the IESB last week. "The concerns are that the script is not ready to go in front of cameras, and also that the budget is getting a bit out of control, the WGA strike has proven to be Kryptonite to Superman and friends."

So while the cast is apparently locked, the studio has had to go back to the actors and extend their holds. IESB was told that at least two high level studio execs headed to Australia right before Christmas to try to resolve these issues and get the film get back on schedule.

“George Miller really wants this movie to be way big but the cast is 100% unknowns,” our source continues.

Read the whole report here.

Oscar bakeoff prefers "300"; VES goes for "Spidey 3"

Now that we're into the new year, awards season is beginning to heat up, with comics-based pics starting tos how up in the various nominations and bakeoffs.

It looks as though "300" will be the standard bearer at this year's Oscars, making it to the next round in both the makeup and VFX categories. Final nominees will be announced Jan. 22.

The makeup contenders are: “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” “La Vie en Rose,” “Norbit,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” “Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” and “300.”

The VFX contenders are: “The Bourne Ultimatum,” “Evan Almighty,” “The Golden Compass,” “I Am Legend,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” “300” and “Transformers.”

Conspicuously absent from the VFX list is "Spider-Man 3," which had some excellent effects despite not being the best film of the trilogy. (That the backlash against the film worked against it is undermined by the advancement of "Pirates 3," which was similarly challenged.)

It's also interesting given that "Spider-Man 3" got more attention in the 6th annual VES Awards, where it received four nominations to one for "300." On TV, "Smallville" scored three noms to one for "Heroes."

VISUAL EFFECTS SOCIETY (VES) ANNOUNCES NOMINEES
FOR 6TH ANNUAL VES AWARDS
Los Angeles, January 7, 2008 - The Visual Effects Society (VES) today announced the nominees for the 6th Annual VES Awards ceremony recognizing outstanding visual effects in over a dozen categories of film, television, commercials and video games. Nominees were chosen Saturday, January 5, 2008 by numerous panels of VES members who viewed submissions at the FotoKem screening facilities in Burbank.

“We received hundreds of submissions from around the world and we are proud to present nominees that push the boundaries of how visual effects can enhance the storytelling process,” says Jeff Okun, VES Chair. “Looking at the level of complexity and creativity of this year’s nominees, it is clear that the VES is the single most important pool of talent, experience and knowledge in the visual effects world.”

The nominees for the 6th Annual VES Awards are the following:

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion Picture

I Am Legend
Janek Sirrs, Mike Chambers, Jim Berney, Crys Forsyth-Smith

Transformers
Scott Farar, Shari Hanson, Russel Earl, Scott Benza

The Golden Compass
Michael Fink, Susan MacLeod, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
John Knoll, Jill Brooks, Hal Hickel, Charlie Gibson

Spider-Man 3
Scott Stokdyk, Terry Clotiaux, Peter Nofz, Spencer Cook

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Motion Picture

Ratatouille
Michael Fong, Apurva Shah, Christine Waggoner, Michael Fu

Zodiac
Eric Barba, Craig Barron, Janelle Croshaw, Chris Evans

We Own the Night
Kelly Port, Julian Levi, Brad Parker, Olivier Sarda

The Kite Runner
David Ebner, Les Jones, Todd Perry, Leif Einarsson

Blades of Glory
Mark Breakspear, Randy Starr, Shauna Bryan, Kody Sabourin

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Miniseries, Movie or Special

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - Razor
Mike Gibson, Gary Hutzel, Sean Jackson, Pierre Drolet

RACE TO MARS - Getting to Mars
Manon Barriault, Jacques Levesque, Olivier Goulet, Benoit Girard

DOCTOR WHO CHRISTMAS SPECIAL 2007 - Voyage of the Damned
David Houghton, Will Cohen

BEN 10: RACE AGAINST TIME - VFX Compilation
Dina Benadon, Evan Jacobs, Brent Young, Chris Christman

TIN MAN - Night One
Lee Wilson, Lisa Sepp-Wilson, Sebastien Bergeron

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series

HEROES - Episode 208 - “Four Months Ago”
Eric Grenaudier, Mark Spatny, Diego Galtieri, Mike Enriquez

DOCTOR WHO “THE LAST OF THE TIME LORDS” - Series 3, Episode 13
David Houghton, Will Cohen

STARGATE ATLANTIS - Adrift
Mark Savela, Shannon Gurney, Erica Henderson, Jamie Yukio Kawano

FIGHT FOR LIFE - Episode 4
Philip Dobree, Nicola Instone, Marco Iozzi, Matt Chandler

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - Episode 316 - “Maelstrom”
Mike Gibson, Gary Hutzel, Michael J. Davidson, Kyle Toucher

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program

GREY'S ANATOMY - WALK ON WATER - Ferryboat Crash
Sam Nicholson, Scott Ramsey, Valeri Pfahning, Mike Enriquez

MARIE-ANTOINETTE - Miniseries
Richard Martin, Pierre Raymond, Sebastien Rioux, Nadine Homier

DRIVE EPISODE 101 “THE STARTING LINE” - Driving Sequence
Raoul Yorke Bolognini, Loni Peristere, Steve Meyer, Chris Jones

ROME 2 - Episode 6 - “Philippi”
James Madigan, Barrie Hemsley, Duncan Kinnard, Gary Broznich

PUSHING DAISIES - Pilot Episode
Craig Weiss, Toni Pace Carstensen, Brian Vogt, Jimmy Berndt

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Commercial

BACARDI - Bacardi Sun
Vittorio Giannini, Franck Lambertz, Robin Carlisle, Nico Cotta

ZUNE - The Ballad of Tina Pink
Luisa Murray, Laurent Ledru, Katrina Salicrup, Miles Essmiller

BMW COMMERCIAL - Hydrogen
Simon Maddison, Dave Kelly, Mike Bain, Sam Cole

BMW - Road
Chris Fieldhouse, Jay Barton, Ron Herbst, Dave Stern

SMIRNOFF - Sea
William Bartlett, Scott Griffin, Dan Seddon, David Mellor

Best Single Visual Effect of the Year

TRANSFORMERS - Desert Highway Sequence
Scott Farrar, Shari Hanson, Shawn Kelly, Michael Jamieson

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END - Jack and Davy Duel
John Knoll, Jill Brooks, Francois Lambert, Philippe Rebours

300 - Crazy Horse Sequence
Chris Watts, Gayle Busby, Kirsty Millar

SURF’S UP - Riding the Visual Effects Tube
Rob Bredow, Lydia Bottegoni, Daniel Kramer, Matt Hausman

SPIDER-MAN 3 - The Birth of Sandman
Scott Stokdyk, Terry Clotiaux, Spencer Cook, Doug Bloom

Outstanding Real Time Visuals in a Video Game

NEED FOR SPEED PRO STREET - ProStreet
Michael Mann, Wilson Tang, Eduardo Agostini, Carl Jarrett

CRYSIS - Realtime Visuals
Michael Endres, Michael Khaimzon

TEAM FORTRESS 2
Jason Mitchell, Moby Franke, Chris Green, Dhabih Eng

HALO 3 - Halo 3 Footage
Marcus Lehto, Jonty Barnes, Stephen Scott, CJ Cowan

MASS EFFECT - Game Sequence
Derek Watts, Casey Hudson

Outstanding Pre-Rendered Visuals in a Video Game

COMMAND AND CONQUER 3 TIBERIUM WARS - GDI, NOD & Scrin Scenes
Richard Taylor, Matt Britton, Ben Hopkins, Tang Katai

HELLGATE: LONDON
Tim Miller, Jerome Denjean, Al Shier

WORLD OF WARCRAFT: THE BURNING CRUSADE - Cinematic Intro
Jeff Chamberlain, Scott Abeyta

THE WITCHER CINEMATIC - Intro
Tomek Baginski, Marcin Kobylecki, Grzegorz Kukus, Maciek Jackiewicz

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project

DINOSAURS-GIANTS OF PATAGONIA - 38_011
Mario Couturier, Vincent Roberge, Richard Bergeron, Martin L'Heureux

MONSTERS, INC. LAUGH FLOOR - Show Edit
Roger Gould, Liz Gazzano, Joe Garlington, Dan Colajacomo

SEA MONSTERS
Sean Phillips, Jack Geist, Robin Aristorenas, Mark Dubeau

Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Motion Picture

SPIDER-MAN 3 - Sandman
Chris Yang, Bernd Anger, Dominick Cecere, Remington Scott

THE WATER HORSE: LEGEND OF THE DEEP - Crusoe
Richard Frances-Moore, Martin Hill, Marco Revelant, Daniel Barrett

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END - Davy Jones
Hal Hickel, Marc Chu, Jakub Pistecky, Maia Kayser

ENCHANTED - Pip
Tom Gibbons, James W. Brown, David Richard Nelson, John Koester

TRANSFORMERS - Optimus Prime
Rick O'Connor , Doug Sutton, Keiji Yamaguchi, Jeff White

I AM LEGEND - The Infected Leader
David Schaub, Marco Marenghi, Josh Beveridge

Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Motion Picture

SURF'S UP - Chicken Joe
David Schaub, Moon Jun Kang, Brian Casper, Andreas Procopiou

SHREK THE THIRD - King Harold
John Cleese, Guillaume Aretos, Tim Cheung, Sean Mahoney

BEOWULF - Beowulf
Keith Smith, Scott Holmes, Pericles Michielin, Kenn McDonald

SURF'S UP - Cody
David Schaub, Pete Nash, James Crossley, Shia LaBeouf

RATATOUILLE - Colette
Janeane Garofalo, Jaime Landes, Sonoko Konishi , Paul Aichele

Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Broadcast Program or Commercial

DOCTOR WHO 'THE LAST OF THE TIME LORDS' - Series 3 Episode 13
Nicolas Hernandez, Adam Burnett, Neil Roche

CHEMICAL BROTHERS - SALMON DANCE - Fatlip shots
Nicklas Andersson, Mike Mellor, Sylvain Marc, Florent DeLa Taille

PRIMEVAL - Episode 6 - Predator Animation
Mathieu Vig, Antoine Birot, Simon Thistlethwaite, Kevin O'Sullivan

AMP - Paper
Fred Raimondi, Chris De Santis, Angie Jones, Narbeh Mardirossian

BEN 10: RACE AGAINST TIME - Grey Matter Sequence
Brent Young, Michael Smith

PROPEL - Stress Monster
Mitch Drain, Sean Faden, Matt Hackett, Denis Gauthier

Outstanding Effects in an Animated Motion Picture

BEOWULF - Dragon Chase
Theo Vandernoot, Vincent Serritella, Rob Engle, Pericles Michielin

SHREK THE THIRD - Effects
Matt Baer, Greg Hart, Krzysztof Rost, Anthony Field

RATATOUILLE - Food
Jon Reisch, Jason Johnston, Eric Froemling, Tolga Goktekin

SURF’S UP - Riding Wave - CG Style
Rob Bredow, Daniel Kramer, Matt Hausman, Danny Dimian

RATATOUILLE - Rapids
Darwyn Peachey, Chen Shen

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Motion Picture

SWEENEY TODD - The Old Bailey
Raf Morant, Julian Gnass, Nakia McGlynn, Christine Wong

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END - The Maelstrom
Frank Losasso Petterson , Paul Sharpe , Joakim Arnesson , David Meny

ZODIAC - Washington and Cherry
Wei Zheng, Greg Szafranski, Janelle Croshaw, Karl Denham

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX - The Hall of Prophecy
David Vickery, Philippe LePrince, Trina Roy, Jolene McCaffrey

RUSH HOUR 3
Barry Williams, Robert Weaver , Jay Cooper , Masahiko Tani

I AM LEGEND - Times Square Hunt
Daniel Eaton, Blaine Kennison, Ron Gress, Daveed Shwartz

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Broadcast Program or
Commercial

BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE - 002_05
Phi Tran, Matthew Lee, Martin Hilke, Andrew Roberts

TIN MAN - Night One
Les Quinn, Ken Less, Andrew Domachowski, Jonah West

UGLY BETTY - “A League of their Own”
Chris Martin, Michael Cook, Cedric Tomacruz

SMALLVILLE - Metropolis City
Kaz Yoshida, Jack Matsumoto, Andrea Shear, Eli Jarra

SUBARU - “Peel Out”
Graham Fyffe, Chris Nichols, Chris Bankoff, Daniel Buck

Outstanding Models or Miniatures in a Motion Picture

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END - Practical and Digital Ships
Ken Bailey, Bruce Holcomb, Carl Miller , Geoff Heron

LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD - Freeway Sequence - F35 Miniature and Effects
Ian Hunter, Scott Schneider, Scott Beverly, John Cazin

TRANSFORMERS
Dave Fogler , Ron Woodall , Alex Jaeger, Brian Gernand

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX - Hogwarts School
Jose Granell, Nigel Stone

SPIDER-MAN 3 - Building / Crane Destruction Miniature and Effects
Ian Hunter, Scott Beverly, Forest Fischer, Raymond Moore

Outstanding Compositing in a Motion Picture

TRANSFORMERS
Pat Tubach , Beth D'Amato , Todd Vaziri , Mike Conte

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END - Death of Beckett
Lou Pecora, Joel Behrens, Ted Andre, Kevin Lingenfelser

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END
Eddie Pasquarello , Katrin Klaiber, Jen Howard, Shawn Hillier

I AM LEGEND - Seaport Evacuation
Darren Lurie, John Sasaki, Rita Kunzler, Fish Essenfeld

THE WATER HORSE: LEGEND OF THE DEEP - Crusoe
Areito Echevarria, Gareth Dinneen, Norman Cates, Caterina Schiffers

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX - Hall of Prophecy and Comp Shots
Jolene McCaffrey, Jelena Stojanovic, Victor Wade, Adam Pashke

Outstanding Compositing in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

SMALLVILLE, SEASON 6 - Episode 11, Justice
Rob Reinhart, Jack Matsumoto, Takashi Takeoka, Christina Spring

TIN MAN - Night One
Todd Liddiard, Philippe Thibault, Lionel Lim, Annabelle Kent

NIKE - Leave Nothing
James Allen, Rob Trent

SMALLVILLE - Bizarro Flood
David Alexander, Kaz Yoshida, Geeta Basantani, Tony White

LEVIS - Change
Tim Davies, Jason Schugardt, Yuichiro Yamashito

Outstanding Special Effects in a Motion Picture

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
John Richardson, Stephen Hamilton, Richard Farns, Stephen Hutchinson

Outstanding Special Effects in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

ACTIVELY SAFE - Lexus Hydrant
Dave Peterson, Anthony De La Cruz

The 6th Annual VES Awards will take place on Feb. 10, 2008 at the Kodak Theatre Grand Ballroom in Hollywood. Last year’s event attracted more than eight hundred celebrities, visual effects and animation artists, dozens of nominees and members of the film, television and gaming industries. Winners from 2007 included Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (John Knoll, Jill Brooks, Hal Hickel, Charlie Gibson) for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion Picture and Battlestar Galactica - Episode 303b “Exodus” (Gary Hutzel, Michael Gibson, Alec McClymont, Brenda Campbell) for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series.

This year the VES will present Steven Spielberg the VES Lifetime Achievement Award. This award recognizes the contribution that his vast body of work, as both a director and producer, has made to the art and science of visual effects.

Updated information on the VES Awards can be found at www.vesawards.com.

About the VES
The VES is a professional, honorary society, dedicated to advancing the arts, sciences, and applications of visual effects and to upholding the highest uniform standards and procedures for the visual effects profession. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary year, VES is the entertainment industry's only official trade organization representing the extended community of visual effects practitioners including supervisors, artists, producers, technology developers, educators and studio executives.

Its 1,600 global members contribute to all areas of entertainment from film, television and commercials to music videos, games and new media. VES strives to enrich and educate its members and the entertainment community at large through many domestic and international events, screenings and programs. Visual effects professionals constitute a vital creative force in content creation and are literally shaping the future of entertainment.

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Rumors on Routh, JLA

The rumors have been flying faster than a speeding bullet when it comes to casting the Man of Steel in both the "Justice League of America" film and the sequel to "Superman Returns."

It all began with a pre-New Year's post from fellow Variety blogger Anne Thompson, in which she wrote:

Speaking of DC Comics pics, it is highly unlikely that Bryan Singer will return to shoot the next Superman movie. (The director is finishing up Tom Cruise's Nazi film Valkyrie, and prepping The Mayor of Castro Street). The next Superman we will see on the big screen will not be Brandon Routh, but a younger Superman among a cast of youthful superheroes in The Justice League. That movie will likely not be shot, however, until after the WGA strike is resolved. Warners is so happy with Dark Knight that their fondest hope is that Nolan will return to do another Batman

Ain’t It Cool News wrote this weekend that an anonymous-though-reportedly-well-placed source tells them that Routh is still set to play Superman in the sequel to “Superman Returns,” though a new actor will take on the part of Superman in "Justice League." Same is said to be true for the part of Batman, which would not be played by current "The Dark Knight" star Christian Bale.

As for Singer, who's currently wrapping up "Valkyrie," there' s been no definitive, recent word from the director on his plans for a sequel to "Returns." Singer talked extensively about his plans for a sequel at Comic-Con in 2006, promising it would have more action in the same way "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" improved on the first "Trek" pic. But little has been heard from the director on the subject since as he's moved on to "Valkyrie" and plans next to shoot "Mayor of Castro Street." Writers Dan Harris and Mike Dougherty, who worked with Singer on "X2" and "Superman Returns," left the sequel project in October, leaving the film without writers or, likely, a finished script and no hope of progress on that front until the writer's strike is settled.

Speaking of the JLA movie, WETA has signed on to create the costumes for the film’s pantheon of superheroes, which include Flash, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern. The film is set to shoot in Sydney this year. Casting announcements are likely soon, but rumors continue to swirl, with speculation that Eva Green of "The Golden Compass" and "Casino Royale" fame would play a part being shot down, while rapper Common seems more likely than ever to don the green power ring of the John Stewart version of Green Lantern.

Pics and clips: 'Dark Knight,' 'Watchmen'

U.K. film mag Empire gives us a new glimpse at Heath Ledger's version of Joker in next summer's "The Dark Knight." Here's the image in question:

In case you haven't seen it, here's a video clip from the IMAX site on the film's being shot in that supersize format.

Over in "Watchmen" land, Zack Snyder posts on the film's production blog some info about the backlot set built to replicate the look of New York in the graphic novel. A few goodies here include a shot of the newsstand reader poring over the latest issue of The Black Freighter and the must-have Nixon re-election poster. The page also includes larger versions of the images below.

Movie news: 'Surrogates,' 'Iron Man,' more on 'The Spirit'

* Bruce Willis has been cast in the film adaptation of "The Surrogates," based on the comicbook by Robert Venditti and Brett Weldele and published by Top Shelf. Details here.

* A new teaser site has gone up for Marvel's "Iron Man" movie, due in May. No new trailer, but there's some fan art and the promise of more goodies to come.

* Last week, I had a chance to visit the set of Will Eisner's The Spirit for Matt Brady over at Newsarama. You can read the three pieces I filed on the visit here, here and here.

Here's a few minor bits and pieces, as well as impressions, left over from those reports:

* Overall, it was hard to get a sense of what the film is going to be like, as it was all being shot in greenscreen. The screens themselves ran 40 feet from floor to ceiling, and looking at them even for a short period of time created an interesting effect when you left the stage as everything took on a pinkish tint for a few minutes.

* The sets, such as they were, were very small, such as a patch of grass featuring some junk in what is likely Wildwood Cemetery but was being referred to on set as "the grassy knoll."

* As reported elsewhere, the largest chunk of "set" was a old-time truck emblazoned with a logo for "Ditko's Delivery Service."

* Samuel L. Jackson ate lunch with the crew, standing in line with everyone else — in costume, which consisted of leather pants and a purple turtleneck.

* Actor Gabriel Macht looks quite good in the Spirit costume, though there will surely be plenty of debate over his suit, coat, hat, etc., being black instead of the customary blue seen in the comics. That'll re-open the debate over whether blue in the comics means black or blue.

* The scene we saw being shot of Macht punching out The Octopus was very short and very Miller-esque, with the camera close on Jackson and Macht grabbing his shoulder and turning his face into a big right cross that came right at the screen. It all happens very fast and should play nice and quickly on screen.

* Producer Deborah Del Prete told an interesting story about finding a studio to make the film. Her company, Odd Lot, working with Batman producer Michael Uslan, sent out the script to every studio in town asking for partners in making the film. Making it clear they owned the film rights and had no intention of working with a studio on the content, they went with Lionsgate and have been very pleased with the relationship.

* We were told this is the first feature film to shoot at the new, eight-stage Albuquerque Studios, which were quite nice and still had that new-studio smell. It's a bit remote — the road ends at the studio gate — though our guides said there are plans to extensively develop the empty desert around the lot with all kinds of residential and commercial projects.

Photo by Lewis Jacobs/Lionsgate

Fincher options "The Killer"

Par has picked up the rights to the French graphic novel "The Killer," for director David Fincher.

Novel is published in the U.S. by Archaia Studios Press. This would be the second comics pic for Fincher, who last year picked up "Torso," based on the Image Comics graphic novel by Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko.

Movies: 1st 'Wanted' pics; Devil's Due goes H'wood

U.K.-based site Empire Online has the first pics from "Wanted," the Universal pic starring James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie, based on the Top Cow comic by Mark Millar and J.G. Jones. Click on the above pic for a closer look, then go to Empire's site for more.

* Comics publisher Devil's Due has opened up a Hollywood shop, with former Marvel producer Stephen Christy in charge. Company, repped by William Morris Agency, has already set up "Drafted," Lost Squad" and "Hack/Slash," and is looking for more. Company also has signed on with Uclick to make several of its titles available on mobile phones. Variety's Marc Graser has the full details.

WB inks directors for 'Flash,' 'Green Lantern'

WB scores a pair of directors for a pair of DC icons, inking David Dobkin for "The Flash" and Greg Berlanti for
"Green Lantern."

Dobkin, whose credits include the upcoming "Fred Claus," "Wedding Crashers" and "Shanghai Knights," tells MTV that "Flash" will feature Wally West — the third Flash after Jay Garrick, the 1940s version, and Barry Allen, the beloved 1950s version who died in Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985. Dobkin also says the film will spin out of George Miller's "Justice League of America." He also revealed a tagline for the pic: "You can't outrun yourself."

Berlanti, meanwhile, will direct "Green Lantern" based on a script he will write with Marc Guggenheim and Michael Green. Looks like the pic will focus on the Hal Jordan version of the character, which may set it apart from being a "Justice League of America" spinoff as that film is rumored to be using the John Stewart version of Green Lantern. Like "Flash," there are multiple characters who have used the identity, including Alan Scott in the 1940s, Guy Gardner in the 1980s and Kyle Rayner in the 1990s. Jordan remains the most popular with fans, and stars in the current DC comicbook sereis.

Berlanti and his crew have extensive TV and comics credits, Berlanti as a writer and exec producer on "Everwood," "Brothers & Sisters" and "Dirty Sexy Money. Guggenheim is currently with Berlanti on "Brothers & Sisters" and has penned segs of "Jack & Bobby" and "CSI: Miami." He's also penned "Blade" and "Wolverine" for Marvel Comics. Green's TV credits include "Smallville" and co-exec producer on "Heroes"; he's also written "Superman/Batman" for DC.