The Old, Unimproved Space:1999 DVD set

[Patrick Neary]

Hello All-

 

Does anyone know which of the 16 or so discs actually has any "making-of featurettes" of this series? I've been getting them one at a time from netflix and so far no-dice.

 

And just out of curiosity, does anyone know what happened to Brian Johnson (one of the fx guys) ? His imdb listings end around 1996 or so; retired? Nick Allder seems to still be busy with big films.

 

thanks for indulging my nerdiness.

[David Mullen ASC]

There is some behind-the-scenes stuff scattered through the discs, nothing extensive, but one is a visit with Brian Johnson and the model shop as well, which is interesting. There is also some interviews on the set and location.

[Patrick Neary]

Oh I'd love to see that- any recollection of which disc that was on (the model shop)?

[Guest Tim Partridge]

Brian Johnson has spent the last twenty years establishing himself as a director. He was in talks to direct his own feature projects as early as the mid 80s. In a STARBURST/LOG from about 1986 he showed signs of being frustrated as being just an FX supervisor and was down to direct a sci-fi feature for Donald Kushner's company. He also directed a chldren's TV show over here in the late 1990s called DREAM STREET, which I believe was shot at Bray and was on 35mm for the first season before going digibeta for the second. It was like Thomas The Tank Engine but with motorised and stop motion cars and such. I remmeber reading about five years ago that he wanted to make a BIGGLES or WW1 pfighter pilot adventure feature. Last year he directed an all CGI short film for a company called PIXEL here in England. I guess he's done a lot of commercial work too. So has always been very active, working away!!

 

Johnson also had a company called ARKADON in the 80s and into the 1990s (they get an acknowledgement on HIGHLANDER 3 that Johnson supervised), it was a motion control specialist house, (based at Bray studios I think). Johnson set it up with Dennis Lowe and Nick Pollack, and it did motion control and opticals on films such as ALIENS, NEVERENDING STORY, LABYRINTH, KRULL and SLIPSTREAM, even Ridley Scott's LEGEND (as "Fotherley" as or something). I'd love to know what happened to that!

 

For more Gerry Anderson related nerdiness, Google "AGENT CRUSH".

[Patrick Neary]

For more Gerry Anderson related nerdiness, Google "AGENT CRUSH".

 

HA! Thanks for the link- those folks must be having insane fun!