Icon vs. Icon

The global market leader in browser-based massively multiplayer online games (MMOG), Bigpoint, (http://www.bigpoint.com/) announced that the highly anticipated Battlestar Galactica Online browser-based MMOG will feature appearances by characters from the hit TV series in game.

Based upon the second season of the Syfy TV series, Battlestar Galactica Online’s story captures the struggle between humans and cylons. Key characters from the TV series will be included in the game to create a deeper connection to the storyline, provide quests and accentuate the dramatic tension that the series is known for delivering expertly.

“These characters brought to life the story and captured the imaginations of a whole new generation of Battlestar Galactica fans and we felt strongly that they needed to appear in the game,” explains Heiko Hubertz, CEO and founder of Bigpoint. “Our goal is to create a deep connection to the mythology of Syfy series and by working with the producers, writers and actors, Bigpoint hopes to meet the expectations of the fans and allow them to write their own adventures through gameplay.”

Battlestar Galactica Online will feature the character likenesses of:

William “Admiral” Adama portrayed by Edward James Olmos

Number Six portrayed by Tricia Helfer

Kara “Starbuck” Thrace portrayed by Katee Sackhoff

Number Eight portrayed by Grace Park

Lee “Apollo” Adama portrayed by Jamie Bamber

Number One (John Cavil) portrayed by Dean Stockwell

Galen “Chief” Tyrol portrayed by Aaron Douglas

Number Two (Leoben Conoy) portrayed by Callum Keith Rennie

Heiko Hubertz will hold a keynote on Tuesday (August 17, 2010, 11:20am-12:10pm) at GDC Europe with the topic “Dominating Europe and North America (The keys to International Success with Online Games: Culturalization , Targeted Games and Understanding Local Players)”. Therein he’ll also go into the talents in BGO.

Continuing the expansion of its online content following the re-launch of Blastr.com, Syfy today announced the ultimate fan experience with the debut of the new Syfy Fan Club.

In making the announcement, Craig Engler, Senior Vice President/General Manager, SyfyDigital, said: “For years our fans have been asking for us to create a fan club that gives them exclusive behind-the-scenes access and great merchandise, and this year we’re excited to launch the official Syfy Fan Club. It’s a great mix of real and virtual offerings that we think will satisfy even our most hardcore fans, and even give them a few things they might not expect.”

The exclusive Syfy membership package ($39.99) includes:

• A custom designed Syfy messenger bag
• A collectible button set featuring favorite Syfy shows.
• Custom designed Syfy Key Chain
• Personalized Syfy ID card
• Personalized Membership Certificate
• Welcome letter from Syfy President Dave Howe.

As well, the Syfy Fan Club offers fans:

• Exclusive video content
• Members-only chats with Syfy talent, writers, directors and executives and industry insiders
• A news section with the latest Syfy announcements
• A photo gallery featuring behind the scenes shots
• Discounts for Syfy Fan Club members, including 15% off at the Syfy store, 10% off at the NBC store and access to a full member discount website
• The opportunity to win autographed scripts, props, and access to Special Events

By joining before July 28, fans will receive a 20% membership discount and be automatically entered in a sweepstakes to win a limited edition Syfy Comic-Con t-shirt prize pack.

Sci Fi Wire, the premiere online destination for entertainment news about science fiction, fantasy and horror, re-launched as Blastr.com on July 15, expanding its scope from a news site to a daily curated smorgasbord of news, features, images, popular science, videos and guest bloggers.

Syfy.com is one of the leading imagination-based websites, averaging 5.5 million visits per month* Syfy.comincludes the lifestyle blogs Syfy Wire, DVICE and FIDGIT; Game Centerfeaturing popular games such asEureka Genius Bowl and the MMOG Dark Orbit; major show sites for the channel’s scripted and unscripted programming, from Warehouse 13 andGhost Hunters to Eureka and Destination Truth, and video hubs showcasing original short form content and video blogs along with Syfy Rewind, which presents full episodes of Syfy’s critically acclaimed programming.

Rob Zombie

Universal Studios Hollywood(SM) and Rob Zombie are partnering to recognize the nation’s top short-form filmmaking horror genre talent with the “Halloween Horror Nights – Rob Zombie Film Competition,” offering filmmakers an opportunity to have their scariest short film judged by a panel led by the multi-media horror auteur, rewarded with a premiere showing on Chiller TV, a posting on SyFy.com, a $1,000 cash prize and a trip for two to the opening night of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Contest entries will be accepted from July 7 through August 14, 2010. Prospective filmmakers are invited to submit short films from 90 seconds to three minutes in length on DVD (two copies of each film must be submitted).  Selected films will be judged by Rob Zombie, members of Universal Studios Hollywood’s “Halloween Horror Nights” team and horror industry professionals.  Criteria will be storytelling skill, originality and the degree of a “good scare.”  The top 10 shorts will be posted online at Halloween Horror Nights from September 3 – 17, 2010 for public voting.

The winning film will be announced on September 17. In addition to the prize and the broadcast of the film, the winning filmmaker will be honored in front of celebrities, studio executives and media at the Eyegore Awards ceremony, which will kick off the 2010 Halloween Horror Nights event at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Entries should be sent to “Halloween Horror Nights-Rob Zombie Film Competition,” 100 Universal City Plaza, Building 5511, 100 Universal City CA 91608.  Additional information on the contest, including a complete list of rules and regulations, is available online at the website Halloween Horror Nights.

Rob Zombie’s latest release, “Hellbilly Deluxe 2,” is in stores now and you can catch him on tour headlining the Rockstar Mayhem Festival this Summer.  Zombie has sold 15 million albums to date and is a seven-time Grammy nominee.  He is also the writer and director of 5 full-length feature films, including the critically acclaimed cult favorite The Devil’s Rejects (2005), the blockbuster re-imagining of John Carpenter’s classic, Halloween (2007), and its successful follow up, Halloween II (2009).

Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A., includes a movie-based theme park and Studio Tour, the CityWalk entertainment, shopping and dining complex, the Universal Cinemas and the Gibson Amphitheatre concert and special event venue. The theme park features the groundbreaking attractions as “The Simpsons Ride™,” “Revenge of the Mummy(SM)—The Ride,” “Jurassic Park®—The Ride” and “Shrek 4-D™ as well as and the newly enhanced Studio Tour, which features “King Kong 360 3-D” Created by Peter Jackson, state-of-the-art Hi-Def monitor system and new movie and TV sets on the historic backlot.

Universal Studios Hollywood is a unit of Universal Parks & Resorts, a division of NBC Universal.

NBC Universal is one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience.  Formed in May of 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks.  NBC Universal is 80% owned by General Electric (NYSE: GE) , with 20% controlled by Vivendi.

Tiffany and Debbie Gibson in their heyday.

Syfy has done it again! The channel has cast 1980s pop-stars Debbie Gibson and Tiffany in one of the network’s signature Saturday night original features. The network promises an epic battle between the former teen pop stars, who will co-star in Mega Python vs. Gatoroid.

Debbie Gibson will play a fanatical animal-rights activist who frees illegally imported exotic snakes from pet stores, sending them into the Everglades, where they grow to mega sizes. Tiffany will play an overzealous park ranger who uses dangerous methods to save endangered alligators. In the script, the pair are said to brawl at a party, then take matters outside into the swamp.

Both of the 80′s pop icons previously have been cast in Asylum/Syfy originals but the new project will mark their first project together.

Executive vp programming and original movies Thomas Vitale said the idea was hatched by Syfy’s creative team after Tiffany visited their office and said she always has wanted to work with Gibson; the media often portrayed the duo as rivals during their MTV years.

“They loved the idea of taking this perceived rivalry and having some fun with it,” Vitale said.

“Gatoroid” is produced by the Asylum. Mary Lambert (Pet Sematary) will direct from a script by Naomi Selfman (Evil Eyes). The project will begin shooting this month and air in 2011.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The Science Fiction Museum at Seattle’s Experience Music Project has announced a very special exhibit coming this October:

Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum (EMP|SFM) is proud to announce its latest exhibition, Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition. Organized by EMP|SFM and in partnership with Universal Cable Productions and Syfy, Battlestar Galactica features three stunning, full-size prop spaceships, iconic costumes, new exhibition films, music and other props from the original and reimagined series. Battlestar Galactica opens to the public Oct. 23, 2010 and runs through March 4, 2012 at EMP|SFM in Seattle.

“The museum is honored to be organizing the first exhibition devoted to both series,” said Brooks Peck, Curator of Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition. “Battlestar Galactica is one of those rare science fiction shows that appeals to a wide range of people because it combines high adventure with very personal drama. It explores what it means to be human, and has a lot of fun doing so.”

Opening weekend (Oct. 22-24, 2010) will include museum member and public events with some of Battlestar Galactica’s most popular personalities.

“Over its four season run on Syfy, Battlestar Galactica became an iconic series that not only entertained, but fulfilled the promise of all great science fiction. It provoked us into examining our world and ourselves through its politically-charged, socially-relevant, religious and technological themes,” said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President, Original Programming, Syfy, and Co-head, Original Content, Universal Cable Productions. “It is an honor for us to partner with EMP|SFM in this one-of-a-kind opportunity to experience BSG in an up-close and personal way.”

The exhibition will be presented in the Milestones Gallery on EMP’s third level. Battlestar Galactica will become a traveling exhibition in 2012 after its premiere at EMP|SFM.

About Battlestar Galactica: The Exhibition:

Battlestar Galactica is an epic drama of interstellar proportions. The last vestiges of humanity flee a cybernetic Cylon horde, traversing the stars in search of the fabled promised land of Earth. The setting of Battlestar Galactica may be rife with spaceships and inhuman adversaries, but ultimately the show is a complex narrative about how we attempt to retain our humanity under desperate circumstances. The series acts as a science-fictional lens through which to examine difficult questions that we may encounter in our own lives.

Exhibition sections:

Creation of Battlestar Galactica
Explores the genesis of the two versions of the show (1978 and 2003) and introduces the story and central conflicts.

The Search
Focuses on one of the central elements of the shows, the human quest to find the lost colony of Earth. The Search is also a spiritual one, as the humans seek meaning in a dangerous galaxy and grapple with issues of religion, fate and freedom.

The Ships
Three life-size spacecraft from the later series—two human and one Cylon— are the exhibition show stoppers. Concept art, storyboards, props and films complement the ships.

Humans and Cylons
This section presents the major characters from the shows including: Commander Adama, Starbuck, Boomer, Number Six and the Imperious Leader. Costumes are featured, along with props and concept art. 

Exhibition specifics:

• Three full-size (30-feet long) prop spaceships:
  • Viper Mark 2
  • Viper Mark 7
  • Cylon Raider
• Series props featuring:
  • 15 costumes
  • Dozens of props, concept sketches and storyboards
• Exhibition films
• Interactives:
  • Music interactives
  • Human/Cylon identity interactive

Battlestar Galactica Online is coming to a Web browser near you this fall and the war between the humans and Cylons is far from over! Check out the trailer for the highly anticipated game below and be sure to swing by the official site at www.battlestar-galactica.bigpoint.com to register for updates!

As previously reported, the MMO (massively multiplayer online game) will debut on Syfy Channel’s site first, as a 30-day exclusive, and will use browser-based 3-D software Unity.

Though situated in a cross-platform Web browser, the game features full 3D graphics and sees players assuming the role of either humanity’s remnants or the Cylons.

As for gameplay, Battlestar Galactica Online will include tactical space combat, exploration, and mission-based quests, which flesh out the game’s overarching storyline. The game will also feature assets taken directly from SyFy’s Emmy Award-winning TV show.

“‘Battlestar Galactica’ has a huge and passionate fan base,” CEO and Bigpoint founder Heiko Hubertz said. “We are proud to be able to publish such an internationally famous title as one of our online games. For the first time ever, we’re relying completely on Unity in order to offer our users fantastic game graphics right in their browsers.”

Battlestar Galactica Online is hardly SyFy’s only venture into the gaming market of late. In 2008, the television network announced a deal with Trion Worlds to develop massively multiplayer online games that integrate with its broadcasts. Last month, SyFy entered into a joint development deal with game-publishing heavyweight THQ that sees the two collaborating on adapting existing franchises and creating new properties for cross-media use.

World Wrestling Entertainment® and Syfy announced today a multi-year agreement that brings Friday Night SmackDown® to the “Imagine Greater” network beginning in October 2010. Friday Night SmackDown will premiere on its new home October 1st at 8:00 PM ET. The program, which debuted more than 10 years ago, is one of the longest-running, weekly episodic shows on television.

Syfy’s original Friday night drama series will move to Tuesday night, where hit series such as Warehouse 13 and Eureka have yielded unprecedented ratings success. WWE NXT™ will leave Syfy in October as Friday Night SmackDown joins the schedule.

“WWE® is the ultimate in imagination-based sports entertainment. The fantastical thrills of Friday Night SmackDown provide an ideal addition to the Syfy slate, as it targets the younger male and female demographics, which are the fastest growing categories for WWE,” said Dave Howe, President, Syfy. “With Tuesday night, a proven winner for our original drama series including Warehouse 13, there is bigger opportunity for series such as Stargate Universe, Sanctuary and Caprica to thrive on a night with a significantly larger number of viewers available to watch live.”

“Syfy is a terrific partner and we look forward to bringing our proven ratings winner and ten year television institution, Friday Night SmackDown, to the network,” said WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon. “With this move, WWE is thrilled to be expanding its long-standing relationship with the NBC Universal family.”

Friday Night SmackDown averages more than 3.4 million viewers a week and is currently the most watched TV program on Friday nights among Males under 55 and beats all Friday primetime programming on ABC, NBC, FOX and CW among Men 18-34*. The two hour television program will be presented weekly on Syfy and features a star-studded cast of WWE Superstars and Divas including Undertaker®, Edge®, Rey Mysterio®, Chris Jericho®, CM Punk®, Michelle McCool®, Beth Phoenix™ and Layla™.

Building on the success and brand awareness of the After Dark Horrorfest 8 Films To Die For ® brand, After Dark Films, in cooperation with Lionsgate and NBC Universal’s Syfy, has created a new series, After Dark Originals (ADO).

Tapping into the vast and innovative talent of directors and filmmakers from Horrorfest’s acquisitions over the past 4 years, After Dark has taken the horror festival concept to a higher level. After Dark Originals showcases eight new cutting edge horror films spanning the genre. The mission is to create high quality horror films that provide After Dark full control from script concept through final editing. The first installment of ADO includes Husk, Fertile Ground, Scream Of The Banshee, Prowl, The Task, Re-Kill, Seconds Apart and 51. Notable directors and writers include Brett Simmons, whose short film Husk took Sundance by storm several years ago, Steven C. Miller of Automaton Transfusion fame, and previous After Dark writer/director Adam Gierasch (Autopsy). All ADO films were shot in the US and Bulgaria.

“The writers and directors in our After Dark Originals line are outstanding. We are excited to showcase their work and to give a home to all this fresh young talent that we will continue to develop over time”, says After Dark Films owner and CEO, Courtney Solomon.

Currently seven of the eight films have been filmed and are in post-production. The eighth to slated to start production this month. All eight Originals will be released in Third Quarter 2010 with a new and innovative marketing and release strategy. Additionally, the second set of Originals has already been green lit and will start production in July 2010.