From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, WALL-E), John Carter of Mars brings this captivating hero to the big screen in a stunning adventure epic set on the wounded planet of Mars, a world inhabited by warrior tribes and exotic desert beings. Based on the first of Edgar Rice Burroughs' "Barsoom Series," the film chronicles the journey of Civil-War veteran John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who finds himself battling a new and mysterious war amidst a host of strange Martian inhabitants, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). John Carter of Mars also stars Mark Strong, Bryan Cranston, James Purefoy, Samantha Morton, and Thomas Haden Church. 

Rediscovering A Classic
READING: Former teacher is part of effort to pique interest in Edgar Rice Burroughs.
By Kelly Puente - Staff Writer
Press-Telegram ~ Long Beach, CA ~ January 28, 2012

---

Former teacher Rebecca Garland is a fan of author Edgar Rice Burroughs, who's best known for creating Tarzan. She leads teen focus groups on the novelist's books and his sci-fi character John Carter through the John Carter Teen Reading Project.

---

"A Princess of Mars," released in 1917, was the first novel Edgar Rice Burroughs published. It introduces John Carter, the title character of a new Disney film. Members of the John Carter Teen Reading project focus group will get to pre-screen the film.
Click to Read
  .
www.cartermovie.com

WATCH THE JOHN CARTER TRAILER
iTUNES ~ YOUTUBE
See More Trailer Screen Captures in
.
PHOTO GALLERY CONTENTS
.

---

JOHN CARTER PREVIEWS
John Carter Edit Bay at Barsoom Studios, LA 

.
.
click for larger images PREVIEW NOTES:
Visit to the John Carter Edit Bay at Barsoom Studios, LA 
HeyUGuys.co.uk ~ July 11, 2011
We sat in a big screening room and finally the man of the hour [Andrew Stanton] appeared. "This is a world that has influenced many of the biggest science-fiction films of the last 40 years . . . I just wanted to see the film be made by anyone, I just wanted to see it," Stanton said, and seeing the project at Disney gave him the opportunity to bring the novel to life in the form of motion pictures. . . . 

The first clip sees our titular hero lying on his back in the Arizona desert, or so he thinks.  In actuality, John Carter has just been transported to Barsoom (Mars) and the clip plays out with John Carter learning to walk [and leap] in the lower-gravity atmosphere of Barsoom.  John Carter is played by Taylor Kitsch, who looks very good in the role of John Carter. . . . The desert landscape that was on the screen was visually striking and realistic in nature, and the environment looked like what the real Arizona desert looks like here in the real world. 

It is here where we get our first look at the indigenous lifeforms known as the "Tharks."  In the novel, the Tharks are 12 foot green aliens with four arms, and the finished product on the screen definitely fits the description very well.  The head of the Tharks is Tars Tarkas, played by Willem Defoe. 

Defoe had to play the role in a motion-capture suit with two cameras mounted on his face to capture his performance, all while on stilts.  The next clip sees our heroine Dejah Thoris, played by Lynn Collins come in contact with a Thark, Sola, played by Samantha Morton.  Collins looks stunning in the role. . . .  [The footage] all had a style and a shine that looked like something that was unique in the genre of sci-fi.

[Over to Pixar] All of the creatures that make up the world of John Carter were put out for us to see, including a life-size Thark that would make any game-room in the world the best just for having one of these things in it. . . . 

Stanton talked a little more about the obstacles that stand in the way of John Carter, as so many films have borrowed from the novels over the years. . . .  John Carter is shaping up to be a rather unique film experience and another great film from Disney. 

Read the entire article and see the photos HERE

John Carter Sneak Preview from the UK
Bleeding Cool.com ~ July 7, 2011
A few of the highlights of the John Carter trailer as reported by BleedingCool.com:
The trailer begins with shots on Earth, the young Edgar Rice Burroughs (Daryl Sabara) being met in the street and addressed. . .  If these Earth shots weren’t filmed on an expansive, real soundstage but created digitally, it’s top-tier stuff. It was a living, breathing street, very busy and cluttered with life. . . . Everything had a very, very natural look to it, and my preconceptions that the film's design would be stylised in an Avatar fashion were proven completely unfounded. Only one shot seemed to feature one of the CG characters, and I can’t tell you which one, but he was male. The voice over appeared to be done by Willem Dafoe. . . Most of the shots of Barsoom showed very few signs of life. There was some kind of huge leap sequence in which Carter propelled himself from landmark to landmark. . . Despite the physics of what he was doing . . . it all looked oddly realistic. We got a good few shots of Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins, not much of anybody else, and Kitsch seemed to be decked out in warpaint, and was typically stripped to the waist. Nothing gave away any indication of plot. . . At the end of the trailer, a complex insignia unravelled to leave just the JCM glyph from the poster. This trailer will go on wide release with the new Harry Potter film . . .and it’s also due online soon. More>>>

JAMES PUREFOY TALKS JOHN CARTER Collider.com ~ July 2, 2011
[My] character’s name is Kantos Kan, and he is an admiral of a big ship, called the Xavarian. He’s very close to Tardos Mors, who’s played by Ciarán Hinds, who is the Emperor or King of Helium. He’s a very cheeky, mischievous soldier/airman. He’s not in this film very much, in the first one. I think a lot of the characters in the first John Carter are established, but with the knowledge that they’re going to be bigger in the next two episodes of it. So, it’s a lovely character. He’s just very charming. He’s not frightened of getting involved in very sticky situations with John Carter. There’s a certain bravado about him. He’s a bit Errol Flynn-esque. He has a great lust for life and he’s a very positive character, in the film. More>>>

Movies.com: How successful do you feel like Andrew Stanton made that transition from animated filmmaking to live-action? And how did his past experiences impact your collaboration?

Strong: He was no different to any other film director. I mean, you’re in charge, you have to answer all the questions and you have to have the idea in your head. He definitely had all of that and more. His enthusiasm was what was really infectious. And your knowledge that he’s such a great storyteller was a very comforting thing to have during shooting. I mean, I don’t know how much collaboration he’s done on you know, subsequent [projects]. But I thought he was absolutely at the top of his game and he knew exactly what he was doing. More>>>

2012 EVENTS IN TARZANA: ECOF and DUM-DUM
Updates from ERB, Inc. and the LA SubERBs:


* Both the ECOF and the Dum-Dum will be in a hotel in Tarzana, 2012.
* The ECOF will be Friday and Saturday, March 2 - 3, 2012. 
Disney is giving a Saturday Night advance screening of JOHN CARTER 
at the Disney studios for ECOF registrants and their families.
* The 2012 Dum-Dum dates are officially Wednesday through Saturday, August 15-18.
A multitude of Centennary events, guests and special projects are planned for this event.
* The first appearance of the Disney/Pixar trailer for JOHN CARTER will be at the opening of Harry Potter #8 
-- ONE month from now!
* Unfortunately Disney has decided not to promote JC at all at the San Diego ComicCon.
* Disney is currently re-shooting some of the live scenes for the film.
* SubERBs want to connect with some other fan groups which might resonate with ERB, 
such as the Dickens society, the Sherlock Holmes group, the Jules Verne conventions, and the P. J. Farmer group. 
They plan to have a flier published which can be given out to interested parties.

Follow the regular updates for 2012 
and check out the many events planned for the 2011 Pocatello Dum-Dum at:
http://www.ERBzine.com/dumdum
and 
http://www.tarzan.com/meets

Mark Strong Talks About John Carter 
ComicBookMovie.com ~ June 9, 2011
Mark Strong recently sat down and talked about his role as Matai Shang in the upcoming production of John Carter, discussing his look in the film as well as how the film will look:
"In the books, they're all bald, but they wear these strange blonde wigs in the books. I think the feeling was that recreating that on film was a little bit strange. So it's much more of a traditional alien look: very shaved, pale, has a big robe. Very powerful.

"Andrew's (Stanton the director) such a great storyteller. We're in very safe hands and you know he's going to make something exceptional. The thing that I think will distinguish it, which I'm most excited by, is that even though it takes place in space — it's science fiction — it's from a Victorian point of view. Because Edgar Rice Burroughs novels were at the turn of the century, and his perception of space was very different from ours. The Martians, for example, wear breast plates and swords and helmets with wings on them. I think that's what's going to distinguish it visually." 

"The Therns are a very powerful race we don't need to get down and dirty. We're cerebral rather then physical."
>>View The Interview

Marvel Announces JOHN CARTER: A PRINCESS OF MARS
New Series of Comics Adapts Seminal Edgar Rice Burroughs Novels New York, NY, June 7— Marvel Entertainment, in collaboration with the Edgar Rice Burroughs estate, is proud to announce all new graphic fiction adaptations of the legendary John Carter novels, beginning with John Carter: A Princess of Mars #1 (of 5) in September 2011. By working closely with the ERB estate, all John Carter comics produced with Marvel Entertainment will be considered part of the official canon, adding new layers to the rich mythos created by Burroughs. 

Transported to the dying planet of Mars, Captain John Carter must now fight for his life against creatures unlike any ever seen by mankind. But as he finds himself enveloped by an alien civil war, he meets the proud and beautiful Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium, who will change his life forever!

“With our new partnership with Marvel Entertainment, we believe we have found the best creative force to revive the thrills and adventures in the 21st Century of the legendary John Carter of Mars.  We are looking forward to introducing this original interplanetary adventurer to a new generation of fans and await the first issue with great anticipation,” said  James Sullos, President of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

Re-envisioned by acclaimed scribe Roger Langridge (Thor: The Mighty Avenger) and fan-favorite artist Filipe Andrade (Onslaught Unleashed), with covers by Eisner-winner Skottie Young (Wonderful Wizard of Oz), John Carter: A Princess of Mars #1 (of 5) brings you the story you love like you’ve never seen it before.

“Edgar Rice Burroughs created one of the great action heroes in John Carter and we’re excited to bring his novels to comics for a new generation,” said Axel Alonso, Marvel Editor-In-Chief. “Roger and Filipe are going to blow everyone away with their take on the John Carter novels, keeping fans new and old on the edge of their seats.” 

---

This September, one of the greatest action stories of all time comes to life in John Carter: A Princess of Mars #1!

JOHN CARTER: A PRINCESS OF MARS #1 (of 5)
Based on the Novel by EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
Adaptation by ROGER LANGRIDGE
Art and Variant Cover by FILIPE ANDRADE
Cover by SKOTTIE YOUNG
All Ages …$2.99 
ON-SALE SEPTEMBER 2011

To find a comic shop near you, call 1-888-comicbook or visit www.comicshoplocator.com

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing. For more information visit www.marvel.com 

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND/OR ARTWORK PLEASE CONTACT:
Arune Singh 
MARVEL ENTERTAINMENT 
212-576-4061
asingh@marvel.com

aka JOHN CARTER May 24, 2011: Walt Disney Pictures JOHN CARTER OF MARS has had its name shortened to simply JOHN CARTER. The film is directed by WALL-E and FINDING NEMO helmer Andrew Stanton, and will be released on 9th March 2012 in the US.

---

John Carter Of No Fixed Abode
SFX ~ May 24, 2011
Walt Disney has announced that Pixar's first live action film, John Carter Of Mars, will now be simply known as John Carter, which is a bit odd as it removes the truly interesting bit from the title and leaves you with a name which will only mean anything to a mere handful of the potential audience. But in another way, it makes sense, because the film is actually based more on the book A Princess Of Mars, while John Carter Of Mars was the name of a different, later book in author Edgar Rice Burroughs's Mars series. Maybe Disney is just trying to get rid of any Mars references at all, fearing that setting the film there might come across a little cheesy these days. We’ll see…

SIMON AND SCHUSTER BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS 
TO PUBLISH NEW ANTHOLOGY BASED ON 
THE CLASSIC JOHN CARTER OF MARS SERIES BY EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS

---

New York, NY, May 19, 2011-Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing announced today it will publish a new original anthology called The New Adventures of John Carter of Mars, edited by John Joseph Adams and based on the characters created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Publication will be in the spring of 2012 and will coincide with the 100th anniversary of A Princess of Mars, the first book to feature John Carter. The anthology envisions all-new adventures set in Edgar Rice Burroughs' fantastical version of Mars (known in the series as "Barsoom.") This anthology not only imagines new or the lost adventures of John Carter, but also explores the other characters and niches not fully explored by Burroughs. David Gale is the acquiring editor, and Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary Agency brokered the deal. Simon & Schuster holds World English rights.

Celebrated fantasy writer Tamora Pierce will write the foreword to the anthology, and John Joseph Adams will write the introduction and header notes. The collection will include stories by Joe R. Lansdale; Jonathan Maberry; David Barr Kirtley; Peter S. Beagle; Tobias S. Buckell; Robin Wasserman; Theodora Goss; Genevieve Valentine; L. E. Modesitt, Jr.; Garth Nix; Chris Claremont; S. M. Stirling; Catherynne M. Valente; and Austin Grossman. There will also be a "Barsoomian Gazetteer," a who's who and what's what on Barsoom, written by science fiction author and noted Barsoom expert Richard A. Lupoff. In addition, each story will feature an original illustration by noted artists such as Charles Vess, John Picacio, Michael Kaluta, and Misako Rocks.

At the same time, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers will publish John Carter of Mars, a bind-up of the first three John Carter books: A Princess of Mars, The Gods of Mars, and The Warlord of Mars, with all-new illustrations by Mark Zug, Scott Fischer, and Scott Gustafson.

"I still vividly recall the summer as a teenager that I read all eleven of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Mars novels in one enthusiastic gulp," said Jon Anderson, Executive Vice President and Publisher of Books for Young Readers. "The opportunity to revisit that experience with new stories from this stellar roster of authors was too much to resist!"

Daryl Sabara Interview - John Carter of Mars
About.com ~ April 26, 2011 ~ Interview Excerpt
About: Tell me about your role in [John Carter].
Daryl Sabara: "I'm really excited about it. I play Edgar Rice Burroughs, he's the author of all the John Carter stories. He's the author of Tarzan. But this one is just John Carter for now. He plays John Carter's nephew, because in the story Edgar Rice Burroughs incorporates himself and says that John Carter is his uncle and that the stories are actually John Carter's private journal. And so the story's kind of seen through Edgar's eyes."

About: What's that set like?
Daryl Sabara: "The set is just like being in a huge...it doesn't feel right. Like, the sets are literally - they feel like 10 stories tall. They are so tall and everybody has this incredible body makeup. All my stuff is on Earth so I shot all my scenes in London, kind of like in an old Chicago. But it's a period piece - it's my first period piece. I feel like the movie has a little bit of everything in it, and that's what I'm really excited to see."

About: You read the synopsis and it does.
Daryl Sabara: "Right. And to see it all on screen together is just going to be really cool to see."

About: Is there any scene in particular that you can't wait to see how it translates to the screen?
Daryl Sabara: "I don't know if I can say anything. Just when you first see Mars, I think when John Carter first lands on Mars - I'm really excited to see how Mars looks in Andrew's eyes and everyone's eyes."

About: This is Andrew Stanton's first live-action film, right?
Daryl Sabara: "This is his first live-action. I mean, I feel so lucky to get to work with him. Everyone's so great and just so normal. And it's a passion project of Andrew's. He's been wanting to do it since he was a kid. I've known the book since I was little. My grandfather would read them to me, and so I've known them and I'm so excited. I feel so lucky to be a part of something I'm so excited about."

About: Do you think it's probably the most excited you've been about being a part of a film?
Daryl Sabara: "Honestly, it is. So far, this is the most excited I've ever been about being a part of a project."

More Interview and Video>>>

Taylor Kitsch Talks Working With Andrew Stanton On John Carter Of Mars 
Cinema Blend ~ April 21, 2011
On March 9th, 2012, we will see Kitsch grace the big screen as John Carter in John Carter of Mars. The film is based on the first book of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ 11-volume Barsoom series. . . . Kitsch took the time to spill on a few John Carter of Mars details. “You won’t see it [the JC trailer] for a bit. There’s a couple things that need to be tweaked in the sense of just the facts and stuff.” . . . Kitsch did have quite a bit to divulge about director Andrew Stanton. John Carter of Mars is a major shift for Stanton as he’s known for creating some of the best of the best in the world of Pixar animation having written and directed Finding Nemo, WALL-E and more. 

While one may suspect moving from animation to live action would be a rocky transition, Kitsch explained, “You’ve got to remember, when he gets performances out of these characters in his animation he’s working with great actors as well.” Kitsch particularly appreciated Stanton’s personal approach to directing actors. “He’s directing me a lot different than he directs anyone else.” Kitsch added, “He’s with you on this journey and very open to listening and it’s more of a collaborative effort and that’s when you get the best stuff.” 

And, of course, in terms of the cast, Kitsch is in great company and he knows it. “I wake up, I’m working with [Willem] Dafoe, [Mark] Strong, I’ve got Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris.” Before wrapping up, Kitsch humbly added, “I’m a lucky man to go to work with these guys. It’s awesome.” Hear all about John Carter of Mars straight from Kitsch himself in the video clip HERE. 

Kitsch: I can't watch John Carter
MSN Movies UK ~ April 19, 2011
Taylor Kitsch will watch himself in his latest film once it is complete.
Taylor Kitsch has confessed he can't watch any of the special effects that have been filmed on John Carter Of Mars, as he doesn't like watching himself.

Taylor told New York Magazine's Vulture blog: "He's got a good chunk of minutes cut, but I just won't watch it until it's done. "They want me to watch it, but I need to wait a bit... It's hard watching myself, so I just gotta trust that they're killing it in post. "

Taylor Kitsch Teases 'John Carter Of Mars' Trailer
'I saw the official trailer hours ago. [I'm] over the moon,'
MTV.com  ~ April 17, 2011
Although the release date for the highly anticipated "John Carter of Mars" is still a ways away (March 9, 2012, to be exact), we might be close to seeing an official trailer very soon. When MTV News caught up with star Taylor Kitsch yesterday during the press day for his upcoming drama "The Bang Bang Club," we were pleasantly surprised to learn he had just seen the trailer.

"We're doing some fun little pickups right now," Kitsch said. "I saw the official trailer hours ago. [I'm] over the moon," he revealed. "We are just ... it's a special film. It's going to be a good ride. I'm pumped!"

Although he couldn't go into specifics, Kitsch teased that when fans do see the trailer, they might have a hard time figuring out exactly what they're seeing. "Man, I would love to get going and tell you everything about it," he said. "All I'll say is, good luck piecing it together. You're going to be like, 'How the f--- does this all fit together?' And there's a lot of heart in it too, to say the least," he added. "Yeah, I'm excited about it." More>>>

Taylor Kitsch Talks JOHN CARTER OF MARS . . .
Collider ~ April 16, 2011
Collider excerpt. . . What is it like to do films like The Bang Bang Club, that are scaled back and on a smaller budget, and then do something on a bigger scale like John Carter of Mars, where you’re the title character and you’re working with so many effects?

KITSCH: Well, I’m reacting with real people, and it’s face-to-face and incredibly gritty. There’s more room for error. [Andrew] Stanton has written a script for John Carter of Mars that is so intertwined and so incredibly intuitive and smart that every word and every sentence correlates to something maybe at the very last scene of the film. On its own, that’s something that I’m very excited to be involved with. I think we’ve done it. We’ve told the story, so that you have no idea what’s going to happen. Just to be a part of this guy’s mind-set and to play this title guy is amazing. This guy was 11 years old, wanting to do this film. 

To have him at the helm, and for him to pen what he did, and to go and play that, that was special. I was looking at a 100-foot green screen and there was an X on it at the 75-foot mark, and that was supposed to be a ship that I’m blowing up. In situations like that, escapism is a lot harder, as an actor, and tests you in different ways. Making a light switch real to me, as something that’s going to kill me, and being able to just be present and react to someone are very different. More>>>

Composer Michael Giacchino Talks John Carter of Mars
Collider ~ April 10, 2011 (Interview Excerpt)
Collider: Have you started work on John Carter of Mars yet or are you still in the discussion phase?

Giacchino: Haven’t started anything on that musically. They’re working their butts off just trying to get that together. They shot it and now they’re in post and dealing with animation and all kinds of stuff, so there’s a lot to do before I actually sit down. Probably before I touch that I’ll be with Brad [Bird] on Mission: Impossible first. So it’ll go Super 8, Mission: Impossible, and then John Carter. More>>>

James Purefoy interview: John Carter Of Mars excerpt
Den of Geek ~ February 28, 2011
DoG: Talking of projects, you mentioned John Carter Of Mars. We were saying we know virtually nothing about it. I don’t know if you can talk about it?

JP: It’s about them being in post, and you know Disney are going to be gigantic when it comes out, and it’s about the fact that, just up the road from here 75 per cent, I would have thought, of effects houses in London are right now rendering incredibly expensive shots, and that’s what they’ve been doing. We shot it, when did we finish shooting it? A year ago? And you always knew it was going to be 18 months of incredibly expensive, big, special effects shots.

DoG: Everyone’s really looking forward to it, especially with Andrew Stanton being from Pixar, and they’re champion story tellers so…

JP: And they spend so much of their time on story, story, story, and they know that that’s the secret and what they’ll be doing with it is noodling and fiddling and fiddling and editing and cutting and [thinking] is that telling the right story, because unless you have the story right, it will flop, and you need to be emerged and engaged in that story. He is brilliant, I think he’s extraordinary. I mean, WALL-E is just... you watch WALL-E and it is just mind blowing what he managed to wrap up in that film, as a kid’s film supposedly, so deeply, deeply, not cynical, but hopeless view of what we’re turning into.

DoG: And that he could have an entire narrative with nothing!

JP: They say barely one word each, Eve and WALL-E.

DoG: I know you can’t talk about John Carter too much…

JP: The only thing I can say, is that obviously it’s going to be enormous, it had a huge budget. I don’t like seeing myself on-screen, and I don’t watch myself very much. Once, and then that will be it, but this is a film I can’t wait to see, because I don’t know what’s going on behind me! We were working with these Tharks, which are these nine-foot-tall monsters, and they have four arms. I mean that’s well known, as it’s in the books, but who was it? You know it’s Willem Dafoe in a pyjama suit!

DoG: And that’s another leap of faith...

JP: Willem Dafoe, in an actual pyjama suit, on stilts, with a camera on his head. I mean it’s the same as Avatar, or any of those things, but it’s very hard to tell what it’s going to look like with any of those things.

DoG: It should be quite a revelation for you when you do get to see it. I’m looking forward to it!

JP: Me too!

---

Entire Den of Geek Interview with other topics: Ironclad, Solomon Kane, 007, etc.

Visit the John Carter Websites and News

'John Carter Of Mars' Will Be A 'Historically Accurate Martian Film,'
Says Director Andrew Stanton 
January 31, 2011 ~ MTV Movies Blog
"I'm not in post-production — I'm in digital principal photography now, which goes on for the rest of 2011, so I'm only halfway through the movie," he explained, indicating that there's a fair amount of effects-heavy work that's still to be accomplished. So, what are some of those effects going to look like? Stanton kept his lips zipped in terms of the aesthetic of "Carter," though he gave an enticing tease: "I didn't try to make it look like anything else. I really tried to make it its own thing. I tried to make a very historically accurate Martian film if that makes sense, so I'll let you decipher that."

"Carter" was an interesting shoot for Stanton for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that this was the "WALL-E" director's first foray into live-action filmmaking.  "When you've made animated movies your whole life, it was pretty exciting to be outside for a day, let alone for months," said Stanton, a fixture at Pixar. "For as cold and as hot and as hard as it was, which I knew it would be, I was up for it and it was a blast. It was the hardest thing I'll ever have done, but man, it was a great adventure. It was like sailing across the ocean, you know, everything that goes with that."

Stanton, who said that "Carter" is still slated for a 3-D release as far as he's aware, also weighed in on the man responsible for bringing the titular hero to life, Taylor Kitsch. "Hopefully he'll be another great face on the big screen, and hopefully he'll be John Carter to people and nobody else if we've done it right," he said of his leading man. See the Video HERE

Disney Moves John Carter of Mars Feature to March 9, 2012 Tim Burton's Frankenweenie in 3D, an expansion of his original 1984 short, has been shifted from the originally announced March 9, 2012, to the more appropriate October 5th, 2012.  Along with pushing back Frankenweenie, the studio is moving up John Carter of Mars from June 8th, 2012 to the March 9th date vacated by Frankenweenie, where it'll go head-to-head against Ridley Scott's Prometheus. Prometheus has, in turn, left the March 9th slot to move to June 8, 2012 -- John Carter's old slot. 

James Purefoy on Stanton's John Carter of Mars
Comic Book Movie Fansite ~ Interview Excerpts ~ September 12, 2010
'I've seen artwork and it is just gonna be incredible. I mean really mind gobbly, just extraordinary, really amazing. There are two civilizations on the surface of Mars and John Carter gets teleported there from a cave. He ends up there and he sorts out and it's the first part of a trilogy of films. It's directed by Andrew Stanton who directed WALL-E and Finding Nemo. There really aren't that many geniuses working in Hollywood but I really think that he's one of them. If you only look at his story telling skills alone, which is what this whole job is about, just telling stories. then you would mark him down as someone who is just gobsmackingly brilliant at bringing you along on a story and adventure. It's gonna be extraordinary."

John Carter of Mars Release Date Announced
August 9, 2010
Disney has announced the release date for John Carter of Mars.  Stanton's John Carter of Mars will be released on June 8, 2012. It's an adaptation of the pulp-adventure novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs centered around A Princess of Mars - first written by Burroughs in 1911. This is the first of a planned series of ERB Mars films and some reports indicate that it will be in Disney 3D.

John Carter of the University of Paris reports:
New Clues Suggest Wet Era on Early Mars Was Global
Technology Daily ~ August 5th, 2010 
In recent years, the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter and NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have found clay minerals that are signatures of a wet environment at thousands of sites in the southern highlands of Mars, where rocks on or near the surface are about four billion years old. . . . French and American researchers report in the journal Science this week that some large craters penetrating younger, overlying rocks in the northern lowlands expose similar mineral clues to ancient wet conditions. "We can now say that the planet was altered on a global scale by liquid water about four billion years ago," said John Carter of the University of Paris, the report's lead author. Other types of evidence about liquid water in later epochs on Mars tend to point to shorter durations of wet conditions or water that was more acidic or salty. More>>>

Disney wraps up Mars movie shooting in Utah
The Standard ~ August 2, 2010
SALT LAKE CITY - Principal photography is now completed in Utah for The Walt Disney Studios' upcoming feature film, "John Carter of Mars," being directed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, WallâàôE), and produced by Colin Wilson (Avatar). Filmed throughout Southern Utah in the areas of Big Water, Kanab, Hanksville, Delta and Moab, the production created 300 jobs over a 120-day period, and brought $21 million into several rural Utah economies. "As Governor, I am particularly happy that Utah has been host to the recently completed production of 'John Carter of Mars' during the past year. The book series was a favorite of mine when I was young, and I can't wait to see the finished film," Governor Gary R. Herbert said. "This project has stimulated the state's local economies at a critical time and provided hundreds of jobs for Utah's film professionals." "This was an ideal project for Utah because of the unique landscapes we have within our borders," said Marshall Moore, director of the Utah Film Commission. 

JOHN CARTER OF MARS FILM INTERVIEW EXCERPTS
July 15, 2010
The Martian Chess site has interviewed Kev McCurdy the man responsible for all the swordplay in the John Carter of Mars film. A few highlights from this interview: 

Kev McCurdy: The swordmaster choreographs with the core stunt team. The stunt coordinator then films the fights, gives them to the director. The director then says 'cool'. The stunt coordinator then 'signs' the fight off. We then teach the actors concerned. . . .   Each character had their own style and I fitted their style to the way they were playing their character so moves became organic, they flowed easily for them. . . . We had a lot of fun developing the Thark style and making it as brutal and minimalistic as we could. . . . The styles of blade were designed by Mark Andrews. They fit the different races and this was helpful when designing the fighting styles. The Zodangan blade was straight and I used that for a very brutal close quarter combat style as well as long distance striking. The Heliumite blade was slightly curved so their style was, as I call it, 'living on the 45 degree'. Their movements were straight lined and diagonal whereas the Zodangans were straight lined and totally in your face. The Tharks had huge axes and spears and used those as well as anything else they could get their hands on. . . Taylor [Kitsch] is a natural at movement. He clicks into what is needed for the fights very, very quickly and he's awesome with a sword. . . . Lynn [Collins] was lovely to work with. The fans will love her because she's feisty, intelligent and beautiful. Everything that the character is. She has a beautiful movement about her and I didn't want to lose that when I was training her so I made all of her moves flow by using circular movements then using straight line moves to use her core strength when blitzing the Zodangans. She did an awesome job. 

Read the entire interview at MartianChess.com

The Official Frank Frazetta Museum Site features
A Tribute for Frank Frazetta
A tribute for Frank Frazetta will be held on July 17 from 1-6pm. 

The event will be held at 186 South Courtland St. East Stroudsburg PA 18301. There will be a semi-formal dress code and a $10 donation for the Juvenile diabetes research fund, a cause close to Franks heart since the diagnosis of one of his granddaughters with the illness. 

For more information contact: 570-421-9054.

Avatar Returns to the Movie Screens August 27
Canada.com ~ July 9, 2010
Film fans who haven't seen Avatar yet — or who can't wait to see it again — now have their big date: It's coming back to theatres on Aug. 27. The re-release on 3-D and Imax screens will include eight minutes of new footage. Avatar, the highest-grossing movie of all time, has already brought in $2.7 billion worldwide, and 20th Century Fox points out that it's also the top-selling Blu-ray Disc of all time.

LOS ANGELES - Avatar director, James Cameron, is training his 3-D camera on a planet closer to home: Mars. The Oscar-winning filmmaker has persuaded NASA to install a high-resolution 3-D camera on the next generation Mars rover, Curiosity, due to launch in 2011. Cameron, whose science-fiction epic Avatar has earned more than 2.7 billion dollars worldwide, argued that a rover with 3-D "eyes" would better help to capture public imagination in the mission. NASA has purchased a 3-D camera that would be rigged to a mast on top of Curiosity. "It's a very ambitious mission. It's a very exciting mission," Cameron said. "(The scientists are) going to answer a lot of really important questions about the previous and potential future habitability of Mars."

Bryan Cranston Talks John Carter
ComingSoon.net Interview Excerpt ~ June 9, 2010
CS: And then you've got Andrew Stanton's "John Carter of Mars."
Cranston: "John Carter of Mars" – Another fantastically-written film. This is based on the book "Princess of Mars" by Edgar Rice Burrows, which he started writing way back before "Tarzan" and wrote eleven novels following the exploits of John Carter, who's kind of a rebel from Virginia during the Civil War time. My character is a Northern Colonel and wants to and needs to recruit him into the cavalry of the northern army to help settle the Arizona territories because we're having tremendous difficulties with the Indians. He refuses and I keep grabbing him and forcing him to come into the fold. There's a whole bunch of exploits and he goes to Mars. He finds a portal to Mars, which is fascinating. Then the story takes places on Mars with all the creatures that Disney is so wonderfully and incredibly expert at creating, and then it also takes place back in the American Civil War time.

Extras needed for Disney Feature, "John Carter of Mars" Central Utah
Posted by crazeagency on Saturday, May 29, 2010 
Production is need of Extras to play warriors on John Carter of Mars. This will shoot in Hanksville, Utah. They need Dark Haired, Tan skinned Men and Women, Who are fit and in Good Shape.  Women who are 5'6 to 5'10, Men 5'10-6'4, 
They need you for Tuesday, June 1, Wich will be a fitting day, Pay is $101.50, Wed. and Thurs., June 2 and 3 for shoot days, Pay will be 150.00 per day. 

Set Photos From John Carter Of Mars! 
The movie has been kept very tightly under wraps but some pictures have finally emerged from Utah!
  .
.
  .

These comments were also sent in by the person taking the photos: 

"The Stonehenge thing is a building made from wood and foam that was shot onto outside then formed. They are filming at the lake also using some log rafts for something. Seen a 4-wheeler with a saddle mounted about 10ft in air they must be going to CGI some animal under it. They have taken over Big Water. Rented about 10 buildings for special fx and storing props. The monkey arena is made from containers that are stacked and a green screen hung from tops." 

A local casting call asked for "good-looking, dark-haired, tan people ages 18-35 yrs old Male and Female." And the call requests that all extras turn in pictures that show off their figure - in fact they suggest the guys to just turn in shirtless pics altogether. 

From: io9.com
Earth's Mightiest Fansites
See more at: www.johncartermovie.com

John Carter Of Mars - Bones Made By Orlandi
Orlandi Statuary ~  May 03, 2010
"John Carter of Mars is a movie set for release in 2012. Orlandi was contacted to make the bones for a fight scene where saber tooth tiger bones are spread across a desert. We received the models from the film company, then molded the skulls, casting a few hundred in total. We think it is being filmed in part of a Utah desert."

Mark Strong Talks 'John Carter Of Mars' (excerpt)
Cinematical ~ April 7, 2010 
Cinematical: How has your experience been on John Carter of Mars?
Strong: It's an amazing experience. It's proving to be a fascinating jigsaw, and each moment, each line almost, fits into this vast plan that Andrew has, and he's been working on it for years. You have to have faith; you have to go in and do your stuff, because your piece of the jigsaw allows him to complete the puzzle, so I'm really enjoying it. It's a fascinating process, and I've still got quite a lot to go I'm filming for three months, the whole of March and then I've got a week or two in April, and then I'm out to Utah for a few days. So there's still plenty to go. We're right in the middle of it, but I find it fascinating. Last week I was performing in a massive warehouse with 400 extras on this floating platform in the middle of a battle between two opposing tribes, and the sequence took two or three weeks for an incredible four-and-a-half-minute sequence. It's amazing. 

Films that might go 3D
MTV ~ April 3, 2010
Recent Taylor Kitsch photo
"John Carter of Mars": Pixar and Disney have made bold moves into 3-D, but "John Carter" director (and Pixar vet) Andrew Stanton decided against shooting with 3-D cameras. While there's been no report that the film might be converted during post-production, that option remains a plausible one. 

The film's fantastical alien setting — not to mention its combination of CG animation and live-action — seems tailor-made for presentation in 3-D. And then there's the matter of the premium ticket price Disney could charge for a 3-D presentation. We'll see if economics outweigh artistry on this one.

Thomas Hayden Church, The Authentic Man
(Interview Excerpts)
Film School Rejects  ~ April 2, 2010
FSR: You mentioned wanting to do projects that are a challenge, and a lot of our readers are interested in Andrew Stanton movie and John Carter of Mars. I am interested in what kind of challenge that presents for you and. Are you done shooting on that?

No. Not even close. I have to go back here pretty quick in the next few weeks, and then all the rest of April, May, and a good chunk of June. Then it is going to be wrapped, and then there will be, like… you know, I will have post-production, motion capture stuff.

You know, in these big movies, my experience in Spider-Man 3, as they get along in the animation stuff, you do sort of…there is a good chance you will have to reshoot some stuff or some additional photography. The movie doesn’t come out until May of 2012, and I anticipate probably being involved in it up until it comes out. That’s the way it was for Spider-Man 3.

FSR: What was it that really drew you to that project in particular?

Andrew Stanton. I didn’t know anything about it and he wrote the part for me and was very straightforward. The script came to me a year ago, and I read it, and then they called me and they were like, “He really wants to talk to you.” And he was up…I don’t know if it is Marin County or wherever. His offices were at Pixar. And, you know, we had a great conversation about it and he was so flattering in telling me that he had written it for me. And then we talked again a little while later in the summer.

And, you know, just the idea of doing it was very appealing to me, because Andrew is an amazing guy. He couldn’t be more approachable, more funny, more intelligent, more successful. I mean he is just crazy successful. And the fact that I was talking to him on the phone about a character that he had written for me a week or maybe two weeks after he had won two Academy Awards, it was astounding to me that this guy was calling me, and was like, “Hey, I wrote this part for you.” And coming off of winning two Academy Awards for Wall-E. You know, it just was astounding.

And you gotta pay attention to those moments in your life. And we just kept talking and talking, and then I signed on. And then I started in January in England. I was over there for a couple of weeks. And then I had some time off. And then I go back, like I said, in a few weeks, and then I am on it for a while. Thank you. I say this without hesitation. I think it is going to be pretty huge.

---

NY Mag.com ~ April 2, 2010
Do you have a sense yet of the look of the film, since technological questions were at the heart of so many of its fitful starts?

The only comparison I can make is Avatar. It’s live-action, CGI, and motion capture — all that stuff. I didn’t realize how excited people were about this movie, and that it’s been around for like 80 years — somebody was telling me they tried to mount the first production in 1930 or something. But it’s going to be fascinating, it really is. They don’t say don’t talk at all about it, but I want to be political. I’ll say this: My character is a badass warrior. There are tribes, and in my tribe he’s a very ferocious individual. 

Revenue and profits down at Pinewood Shepperton
guardian.co.uk ~ April 1, 2010
Warner built the set for Clash of the Titans at Longcross Studios, a former tank testing site in Surrey. MAP  The biggest shed at Longcross is comparable in size with Pinewood's flagship 007 stage, but costs 80% less to hire, though the producer has to bring all the fixtures, fittings and even the electricity.

Disney has now taken over Longcross to construct the enormous steel sets for its sci-fi adventure John Carter of Mars, which it hopes will become a franchise. It is also using a vast former Woolworths warehouse in Greenford.

LONGCROSS

John Carter of Mars is coming to Kane County
Southern Utah News ~ March 17, 2010
Utah Film Commissioners Marshall Moore and Mimi Davis Taylor [reported]: John Carter of Mars, a Disney production, is being filmed in Utah, with several locations in Kane County. A set is currently under construction in Mt. Carmel. Other sites include Big Water, Lake Powell, Moab, Hanksville and Delta. $27.7 million out of a total budget of $250 million will be spent in Utah. Disney plans a trilogy from the 12 books on the Chronicles of John Carter. The same people who did Avatar are behind this production. Big Water and Kanab will be production hubs. Moore said,“This will be a great experience to bring movies back to Kanab.”

 
Bryan Cranston on Andrew Stanton's JOHN CARTER OF MARS
Collider.com ~ March 9, 2010
Collider: You’re going to be in Andrew Stanton's John Carter of Mars.

Bryan Cranston: Yeah, I am. We already started shooting that. I shot for a week in London a couple weeks ago.

Collider: Can you talk about who you play in the film and are you excited to be in this huge movie?

Cranston: Very excited. I liked the script first and foremost. That’s why I went in to meet with Andrew. And then his infectious enthusiasm for the movie and for characters and it just….I caught his bug. And I said, yes, so I’ll be a part of it. I’ll do whatever you want me to do. And so I play, during the Civil War America time….this story takes place part-time Civil War America and Mars, which has no time. So my character is a Northern Colonel who is dogging John Carter to be a part of the government. We need his help. He’s an excellent tracker and marksman and that sort of thing. And in the Arizona Territories, the Apaches are running wild, so I need his help and he won't do it. He doesn't want to have anything to do with anything. His family was obliterated during the War. It was horrible and he wants to be a part of no man's government. So I keep after him and keep after him and track him down and have a conversation with him and have to use some physical force on him and he keeps breaking out and I keep tracking him down. And finally we end up in a cave and in this cave are some magical things that happen.  And that transports him and it's really quite fascinating and I look forward to it.

Collider: I'm so excited for this movie. Andrew's first live-action. You're on hiatus now and you're filming… now you just did the one week on John Carter, does that mean you're wrapped?

Cranston: No, I have 2 more weeks to go.  We'll pick that up in Utah in April.

Another Disney Mars Adventure  Disney will be spending quite a bit of time on Mars in the coming years. They've announced a release for the animated  Mars Needs Moms about a boy who travels to Mars to rescue his kidnapped mother. The first of its Martian riddled films, Mom, is slated for release on March 11, 2011, which will be about a year before John Carter. The film will be put together much in the same vein as The Polar Express which required polarized glasses for viewing.

 

Ciaran Hinds (Tardos Mors) talks John Carter

Steve "Frosty" Weintraub interviewed Ciaran Hinds for The Collider ~ February 25, 2010
Ciaran Hinds recently discussed his invovement with the upcoming Harry Potter and John Carter of Mars films. He plays Tardos Mors. Stanton was impressed by the imperial power that Hinds displayed in the film Rome. Hinds was impressed with Stanton and by the imagination and action in the John Carter script --  he describes it as bizarre and being full of wit, energy and drive. He has done his scenes in London but is scheduled for a day of shooting when the production moves to Utah. He suspects that Stanton will take the film in a whole new direction from Avatar. 

Have you shot John Carter of Mars yet?

Ciarán Hinds: They are shooting it at the moment. I have a small role in that. I have already shot on it for a couple of days. Then I go back to the set in March to shot for another six or eight days. I'm playing Tardos Mors, one of the leaders of Mars. I am the father of the female protagonist. She is played by Lynn Collins. Andrew Stanton is directing it. He shot Finding Nemo and Wall-E. Those wonderful films. He came to see a play that I was in at the National Theater in London. He had thought of me to play one kind of leader on Mars. It was a thrill to meet him knowing he'd made these classic films. Then he cast me in his next movie. Which has been great. He knows all about animation and computer generated effects. Now he is making a live-action film. I think it is a huge adventure for him. Goodness knows, the conundrums of actually making the film? I don't know about that stuff. It's just a great honor to be in it. To have him want me there.

Is it an all-green screen set? With everything being added in later?

Ciarán Hinds: Apparently so. It is very, very green. They have me off on another adventure in the film that I don't quite understand. And I hope I am of some use to Mr. Stanton.

More at Movie Web

---

JAMES PUREFOY (KANTOS KAN) DISCUSSES JOHN CARTER An excerpt from a Total Film interview with James Purefoy, star of the upcoming Solomon Kane. In it he discusses Kane as well as John Carter Of Mars
. . .
T: How is John Carter Of Mars going? 
P: It’s a great project. Huge. There aren’t many bona fide geniuses working in our industry but Andrew Stanton is one of them… Wall-E and Finding Nemo are extraordinary. If you only look at him in terms of his storytelling skills, that’s enough – and on top of that, look at the beauty, the soul, the heart he puts into those films. It’s staggering what he achieves. Funnily enough, I don’t have much to do in the first film. I’ve taken this basically because they’ve said, “Your part gets bigger and bigger as the films go on.”

T: You’re playing a Red Martian named Kantos Kan, right? 
P: Yes, he’s a fighter pilot. He’s the captain of a massive naval airship so in the first film, I do a little bit of steering, a little bit of rescuing, shit like that. He’s quite flash, he has a few jokes – he’s like a naughty, sexy uncle. That’s the way I’ve been told to play it. 

T: Are you wearing a costume or a mocap suit? 
P: It’s not mocap with us [the Red Martians]. We’re humanoid, we’re in costumes, but there are other actors who are playing pure mocap characters. It's hard to talk about it because I don't really know what it's going to look like. So much of it is in Andrew's head and with his designers. We're on a real set but it’s surrounded by green screen so there’s going to be stuff out there that I have no idea what it is but I know it will be extraordinary. 

T: How would you describe your costume? 
P: Armour. [Laughs] It looks cool. It’s very Dan Dare.

---

Another Purefoy Interview ~ with Film News film news: John Carter of Mars is another pulp movie based on a novel. How far along is that in development? 

James Purefoy: We're shooting. I shot two days last week. It's going to be gigantic.

film news: How has the success of Avatar affected it so far? 

James Purefoy: Well, it's a weird world they're creating in John Carter. It's not nearly as hi-tech. In the books, the ships that they use are powered by solar tails. So, that's a very different kind of thing, as opposed to rocket power. We don't have that level of technology; we have Martian technology on John Carter. 

I don't know what it's going to look like. It's all on a green screen.I'm reacting to stuff that Andrew is telling me. There's also some motion capture. But I don't really know, to be honest. I'm there at the studio, there's a set and beyond that it's green screen. So, it's a mixture. You have real people and then there's mo-cap, and then there's models and puppets. I loved District 9 and the mixture of what they managed to do with mo-cap and puppets and models and any available technology they could get to create that world... it was fantastic. Why Sharlto Copley wasn't nominated for an Oscar this year I'll never know. It was a genius performance. You could not see where it began and ended. I loved how my sympathy went towards him without knowing why it happened. 

---

Utah draws production of a major film
The Denver Post ~ February 9, 2009
The strange geology of Arches National Park helped Walt Disney Studios decide on Moab as a site for filming "A Princess of Mars," based on a science- fiction story written in 1912. Thanks to a century-old sci-fi novel and a modern-day rebate, Utah is looking forward to an out-of-this-world economic boost of $60 million and about 400 temporary jobs this spring.

Walt Disney Studios scouted locations in southwest Colorado last summer for the upcoming film production of "A Princess of Mars," but ultimately chose the red rocks and white sands around Moab and the strange geology southwest of Lake Powell to make what will be the largest-budget movie ever filmed in Utah. Hopeful actors, extras and crew members are swamping the Moab to Monument Valley Film Commission with resumes. Hotels are looking forward to full houses. Restaurants, caterers, rental agencies, animal wranglers and other businesses are anticipating a film windfall. About $10 million of the $60 million that will be spent in Utah will go into coffers in Grand County. Filming of the movie has begun in London and will move to Utah in the spring. More>>>

---

Explore Utah in 3-D
http://www.utah3d.net/SulpherCreek_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/DoubleArch1_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/PaysonC_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/Dutchman_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/GypsumSink_swf.html
http://www.utah3d.net/panoramas/Dragon_swf.html

---

Disney plans to film new movie in Lake Powell area
Lake Powell Chronicle ~ February 2, 2010

BIG WATER – Barsoom Pictures is setting up camp in the Lake Powell area as it prepares to film the movie “John Carter of Mars” for Disney/Pixar this spring. According to the “John Carter of Mars” official casting call from spoilertv.com, the movie will be directed by Andrew Stanton and will star Taylor Kitsch as John Carter and Willem Dafoe as Tars Tarkas.

When looking for possible places to film, location scouts for Barsoom Pictures discovered the gray shale lining of the canyons near the Grand Escalante Staircase and envisioned the area as the perfect backdrop for depicting scenes from Mars.
 

Michael Giacchino to write the score
Recent Oscar winner Michael Giacchino -- the composer who nabbed a gold statue for his Up score -- will return to the Disney fold when he handles the music for the currently shooting John Carter of Mars. His work includes Lost, Star Trek, Alias, Mission Impossible III and Up just to name a few. He is noted for mixing romance and excitement flawlessly, much like his mentor John Williams.

 
Disney Movie Jobs in Moab
MoabLife.com ~ January 15, 2010
Beginning in April, Disney Studios will film the science-fiction fantasy movie “John Carter of Mars” (also known as "A princess of Mars") in the Moab area. Preliminary work already is under way in London. Disney crew members scouted the world for a location resembling the reddish planet Mars. Film crews have been in Moab for more than a year, said Tara Penner, director of the Moab to Monument Valley Movie Commission.

The Disney cast and crew could pump nearly $60 million into the Moab-area economy during filming, which likely will take several months. In addition to filming the movie in eastern Utah, Disney plans to hire nearly 400 people to help with the movie in areas such as construction, security, and production and location assistance. Preference in hiring will be given to Utah residents, but residents from Western Colorado could be considered for jobs. People interested should immediately send a resume detailing previous movie experience to tara@moabcity.org.

For more details about the kind of jobs needed for the movie production, go to www.moabcity.org/filmcommission/production_directory.html.

---

Also. . . from Uni-versal Extras
"I am or I look Mediterranean: For the all action feature film John Carter of Mars we are starting to cast men and women of all ages who look Mediterranean for a variety or roles!"

---

Rock Doc lends helping hand on Disney blockbuster 
YourThanetNews.com ~ January 25, 2010
Hollywood giant Pixar has called on a Cliftonville couple to help it shoot its next blockbuster. Alasdair Bruce and his wife Kim, aka the Rock Doc team, have been advising the film crew working on John Carter of Mars, which is based on the books of Edgar Rice Burroughs. They helped out at one of the sets, a quarry in Dorset.

Director Andrew Stanton, who made some of Pixar’s best-received films such as Toy Story, Wall-E and Finding Nemo, is behind the movie. The film’s producers were keen to have the pair on set so Mr Stanton could call on their rocky knowledge and expertise in geology. They helped make sure that no damage was done to the site or to those working on location.

Dr Bruce said: “We were asked back while they did the filming to make sure all was well because it’s quite a dangerous place. 
There are a lot of loose pieces of rock and our job was to make sure no one went where they shouldn’t have been. It was health and safety meets geology, really, but good fun.”

The couple were asked to put together a report for the film but later asked along on location because of the nature of the site, which is a visually stunning spot that has been used for such TV shows such as Doctor Who, Torchwood and Blake’s Seven. “It was a very interesting experience,” said Dr Bruce. “The film has aliens called the Tharks and features Willem Defoe, among others, so perhaps we will meet some of the stars at some stage.  “It was tricky this time, though, as much of it is being done in CGI. The crew were eager to re-create the rocky landscape of Mars, called Barsoom in the Rice Borroughs (sic) books, as best they could. The film will mix live action and animation and is set to hit cinema screens in 2012.

This filming location is in the Winspit Quarry caves in Dorset, England. Quite likely this is for some of the earlier scenes where John Carter is being chased by Apache Indians and ends up in a mysterious cave. That is the starting point for him being transported to Mars. 

---

Edgar Rice Burroughs Gets a 'John Carter' Cameo
January 18, 2010
Disney released an official statement today that announced some intriguing additions to the cast and crew. Ciaran Hinds has been added in an unknown part, and Disney proto-talent Daryl Sabara has been cast as a teenage Edgar Rice Burroughs. 

John Carter travels back to Earth, where he narrates his adventures to Burroughs, who's his nephew. Young Burroughs grows up to become the famous pulp author. The use of a narrator makes sense since the Mars books are all in first person and are quite detail oriented. 

---

WALT DISNEY PICTURES' "JOHN CARTER OF MARS" 
BEGINS PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY IN LONDON
BURBANK, Calif. (January 15, 2010) - Principal photography is underway in London for Walt Disney Pictures' "JOHN CARTER OF MARS." Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton brings this captivating hero to the big screen in a stunning adventure epic set on the wounded planet of Mars, a world inhabited by warrior tribes and exotic desert beings. Based on the first of Edgar Rice Burroughs' "Barsoom Series," the film chronicles the journey of Civil-War veteran John Carter, who finds himself battling a new and mysterious war amidst a host of strange Martian inhabitants. 

Produced for Walt Disney Pictures by Jim Morris ("WALL•E," "Ratatouille") and Colin Wilson ("Avatar," "War of the Worlds"), the live action/animation film marks Academy Award®-winning director/writer Andrew Stanton's ("Finding Nemo," "WALL•E") first foray into live action. Stanton directed and co-wrote the screenplay for Disney•Pixar's "WALL•E," which earned the Academy Award and Golden Globe® for Best Animated Feature (2008); Stanton was nominated for an Oscar® for the screenplay. 

"I have been waiting my whole life to see the characters and worlds of 'John Carter of Mars' realized on the big screen," says Stanton. "It is just a wonderful bonus that I have anything to do with it."

The stellar ensemble cast is led by Taylor Kitsch (NBC'S "Friday Night Lights", "X-Men Origins: Wolverine") in the title role, Lynn Collins ("50 First Dates," "X-Men Origins: Wolverine") as the warrior princess Dejah Thoris and Oscar® nominee Willem Dafoe ("Spider-Man 3," "Shadow of a Vampire") as Martian inhabitant Tars Tarkas. The cast also includes Thomas Haden Church ("Sideways," Spider-Man 3), Polly Walker (upcoming "Clash of the Titans," "Patriot Games"), Samantha Morton ("Elizabeth: The Golden Age," "In America"), Mark Strong ("Sherlock Holmes," "Body of Lies"), Ciaran Hinds ("Munich," "There Will Be Blood"), British actor Dominic West ("300," "Chicago"), James Purefoy ("Vanity Fair," "Resident Evil") and Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad"). Daryl Sabara ("Disney's A Christmas Carol," "Spy Kids") takes the role of John Carter's teenaged nephew, Edgar Rice Burroughs.

The creative team includes Oscar®-nominated production designer Nathan Crowley ("Public Enemies," "The Dark Knight," "Batman Begins"), costume designer Mayes Rubeo ("Avatar," "Apocalypto"), cinematographer Daniel Mindel ("Star Trek," "Mission Impossible III," "Spygame") and video effects supervisor Peter Chiang ("The Reader," "The Bourne Ultimatum").

Bryan Cranston heading to 'Mars'
January 13, 2010

 "Breaking Bad" star Bryan Cranston has joined the cast of Walt Disney's "John Carter of Mars" which goes before cameras next week. 

Cranston plays a Civil War colonel who comes into conflict with Carter. 

---

Avatar Screenplay Available for Free Download from Fox
Fox Studios has made James Cameron’s original Avatar Screenplay available for free download online.  There are some pretty substantial differences, at least at the beginning, from the version that is playing in theaters.   The screenplay, for example, features a number of scenes building up Jake Sully’s backstory a bit more.  DOWNLOAD HERE: 

---

Becoming a giant green alien in John Carter of Mars
SciFi Wire
Polly Walker, who will soon co-star in Syfy's upcoming Caprica, will also appear in the live-action film adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars series, and she let us in on her preparations for the role of a four-armed, 900-year-old. giant green Martian "Thark."

"I'm going to Thark camp, so I'm going to find out," Walker said in an exclusive interview in Pasadena, Calif., on Sunday, where she was promoting Caprica. "I only start next week. I can't wait. I've got to learn the whole physicality of it. I suppose they're creating that kind of world, so I'm going to find out, but it should be cool."
"It's going to be amazing," Walker said. "I'm like a 9-and-a-half-foot green alien. She's sort of the queen bee of the tribe, and she's incredibly tough." Walker expects that part of Thark boot camp will involve learning the technical process that will transform her into Sarkoja. "I think, apart from Thark camp, I have to go be stilt-walking and things like that," Walker said. "So it's a physical process."

So far, Walker has not read any of the John Carter books yet, but she plans to before filming. "To be honest, I've not had an opportunity, just because I've been so entrenched in [Caprica], but I'm going to do my homework when I go over there, because it's iconic, isn't it?" The British actor may also have to modify her voice to play a Thark. "I don't know what my Thark accent is yet. I'm going to work on that. I think there is going to be an accent there."

---

Willem Dafoe Gears Up To Start Making John Carter
SciFi Soundtrack ~ January 6, 2010 What was the appeal in doing John Carter of Mars?
Andrew Stanton, the material, the idea that I'm going to play a 10-foot Martian Warrior. I live very much in the independent cinema world, which is great and that's where we find a lot of great filmmakers and sometimes more freedom to make personal films. But the flip side of that is, sometimes there isn't a lot of protection or care. There may be an emotional rigor, but sometimes you don't have the the technical stuff to work with. You can have lousy lighting [and] no time to prepare properly. You are very vulnerable.

When someone asks you to make a movie directed by Andrew Stanton, with Disney behind, a big tent-pole movie... I know from making Finding Nemo how these Pixar guys work. They're very thorough , they're very rigorous, they really get it. It's a real pleasure because you get so protected because they are so well researched. And you get so much help trying to make something. I think I got excited about that. I like to go back and forth, but it was time to do a big movie again.

Have you read the book?
I haven't but I'd read Princess of Mars, and I'll probably read some of the others.

Has Andrew talked to you about how they are going to film [your character's] four arms?
I saw him recently because we start in London, for studio stuff. I start next week... He showed me some samples, just so I can understand what I'm in for. Mostly about ideas about how they are going to film these creatures next to human beings. Because we do play the scenes, it's not like some people's fantasies where they put you in a room and they sample you and they go off and they do this computer magic, and no one ever plays a scene — it's not like that. We're going to play these scenes. He showed me the different variations of how they will shoot it, the kind of equipment I'll have to wear, the different times I won't have to wear certain kinds of equipment and all that.

Are you going to have to wear two extra prosthetic arms?
I'm not telling. And you know what, I can't talk that much about it, because I don't know yet. We don't even start shooting next week it's part of prep, I go to London and we do the things that we need to do to know how to start this project... I think officially production starts the 18th.

Will you be working on a special voice for the character?
We're always working on a special voice.

 

AVATAR: THE EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS CONNECTION

Director James Cameron credit ERB as a major influence and most of the rave reviews for this landmark cinema event also mention the Burroughs legacy and the debt owed to ERB's Mars, Tarzan, Venus and Earth's Core adventures. A few excerpted samples are featured below:

---

Great Expectations
The director reveals how he got Fox to greenlight his $195 million technology-driven motion picture
EW.com | Jan 15, 2007
How did you come up with this story?
Well, my inspiration is every single science fiction book I read as a kid. And a few that weren't science fiction. The Edgar Rice Burroughs books, H. Rider Haggard — the manly, jungle adventure writers. I wanted to do an old fashioned jungle adventure, just set it on another planet, and play by those rules.

Your premise reminded me a lot of the Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter, Warlord of Mars series.
It's definitely got that feeling, and I wanted to capture that feeling, but updated. To be certain, I wanted a film that could encompass all my interests, from biology, technology, the environment — a whole host of passions. But I've always had a fondness for those kind of science fiction/adventure stories, the male warrior in an exotic, alien land, overcoming physical challenges and confronting the fears of difference. Do we conquer? Exploit? Integrate? Avatar explores those issues.

---

Avatar Entry in Wikipedia
"In 1994, director James Cameron wrote a 114-page scriptment for Avatar. Cameron said his inspiration was 'every single science fiction book I read as a kid', and that he was particularly striving to update the style of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter series."

---

Hollywood North Report ~ June 25, 2009
Inspired by author Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter Of Mars fantasy book series, Avatar is set during the 22nd century on a small moon called 'Pandora', inhabited by the tribal 'Na'vi', ten foot blue humanoids that are peaceful unless attacked.

---

New Yorker ~ October 26, 2009
“With ‘Avatar,’ I thought, Forget all these chick flicks and do a classic guys’ adventure movie, something in the Edgar Rice Burroughs mold, like John Carter of Mars—a soldier goes to Mars,"

---

A monitoring of ongoing traditional media and Internet report will unearth a multitude of such references.

---

See more at our ERB / Avatar Connection Feature:
http://www.erbzine.com/mag30/3038.html

Taylor Kitsch: The New Action Hero 
Blackbook.com ~ December 22, 2009
Any day now, Taylor Kitsch will cut his hair. To transform into the title character in John Carter of Mars—Wall-E director Andrew Stanton’s first live-action feature, based on Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burrough’s sci-fi novels about a Civil War veteran’s adventures on the Red Planet—the 28-year-old actor, who plays the dreamy, brooding, beer-drinking, football-playing Tim Riggins on NBC’s cult drama Friday Night Lights, will lop off his locks for the first time since he was 19. "Hopefully, it's a 10-year job," Kitsch says of the potential franchise, which co-stars Willem Dafoe, Samantha Morton and Thomas Haden Church. 
. . . the intense preparation leading up to John Carter exceeds anything he's done before. It includes sword training, gun fighting, horseback riding and seven-hour cram sessions on the Civil War. And while learning to fence with four-armed giant green Martians might not be every actor's idea of the method, Kitsch uses physicality as entrée into psyche. "It makes it a bit easier," he says. "I have to look like this, walk like this. I have to lose this much weight. I'll know this inside out. Then I work on the mental state. . . . the stakes are incredibly high. It’s a big movie. I just have to keep my head down and go to work."

Mark Strong Talks Shape-Shifting For JOHN CARTER OF MARS CinemaBlend.com  ~ December 16, 2009
Mark Strong recently chatted with Cinemablend and revealed a bit about his character Matai Shang, the ruler of the Thems with godlike status, and his abilities:

Filming has begun in Utah, but most of Strong's part will be filmed on soundstages outside of London. And even though there's some motion-capture animation going on, he won't be part of most of it, despite the fact that his character is a shape-shifter. He wasn't spilling any plot details or anything, but his enthusiasm about working with Stanton and explanation of how his character will work seemed worth sharing. 

On Stanton:
He's a genius. He's such a good storyteller. When I met him and he showed me the storyboards, the ideas for the sets and the designs for the characters, it's just absolutely mind-blowing. I can't wait to get involved with it. I said to him, how do you feel about live action? And he said it's going to be easy. As an animator, you literally have to invent everything. The color of the background, the size of people's noses. Whereas in live action, half the stuff is given, and you can embellish the rest with CGI.

On his part:
There's some filming in Utah, but most of it is in a studio outside of London. My character doesn't actually get involved in any of the motion-capture stuff. All the stuff is live action. Although I can shift my shape (to other human beings mainly), so I have to be photographed by a 360-degree camera. I can adapt into anything. That's going to be my particular talent. 

---

JC in UK Studios
Foreign filming on British soil is booming thanks to a favourable dollar/sterling exchange rate, a tax credit that's particularly generous for Hollywood blockbusters and a strong post-production sector that can provide high-end vfx. … "John Carter of Mars" are among the U.S. projects in various stages of shooting, contributing to an estimated $1 billion-plus of inward investment in 2009... Top facility: Longcross Studios in Surrey.

~ From our UK reporter Laurence Dunn

---

Mark Strong on JOHN CARTER OF MARS Collider.com ~ December 16, 2009
Strong says he plays Matai Shang and “over the course of the 3 movies that they’re envisioning making, and I’ve seen the synopsis of the 2nd and 3rd, Matai Shang is basically John Carter’s nemesis.” He also confirms the movie is both live action and motion capture and they are filming from January to May in both London and Utah.

Collider: I actually saw Andrew Stanton when I was in London and spoke to him. He said he’s filming at Shepperton ’til April or something like that. So can you talk a little bit about…have you worked at Shepperton before? And are you looking forward to being in this crazy production?

Yeah, I mean I’ve worked at Shepperton and Pinewood. They’re the most famous British film studio lots. And Andrew wooed me with the storyboards that he had at the interview. He showed me his vision for the thing and it’s just mind-blowing and . . .  he’s a master storyteller and I think the fact that he’s been given the opportunity to direct live-action and a motion capture film together and in the light of “Avatar” knowing that these Pixar guys like to be in the vanguard of everything. . . .

I play a character called Matai Shang and he is the ruler of a group of people called the Ferns [sic] who are like the old Olympian Gods. They exist….people aren’t really sure if they exist, but basically he’s a master of the Universe. They travel ’round keeping order in the Universe. So basically he exists over and above the Martians that exist on the planet. Like I say, he’s like an Olympian God.  I mean getting to play Mati Shang Master of the Universe, it doesn’t get much better than that.

I’ve seen the synopsis of the 2nd and 3rd, basically and in the novels, Princess of Mars that Rice Burroughs wrote, Matai Shang is basically John Carter’s nemesis. So he comes into his own during the 2nd half of the current movie and then just basically gets bigger and bigger in the 2nd and 3rd. . . .  It’s extremely nerve wracking because what you have to do is understand that you’re committing to something in the future and if the first one is a huge success and they want to make the 2nd and 3rd, basically they have first call on you for a number of years.  It’s a combination of live action and motion capture (probably not 3D). 

Collider: I spoke to Andrew after the Avatar screening. . .   I think Avatar is going to influence every filmmaker who’s working in motion capture of any kind because how could it not. . . . Do you think when you saw the test stuff for John Carter did it already look like it was pushing the boundaries for you at the time?

Oh my God yeah. I mean it looks phenomenal. I mean his conception of it is extraordinary. I mean it’s "Avatar" type territory and I think the point I was making before about these Pixar’s guys are always wanting to be in the vanguard. They want to be leading from the front.  . . . But they I think Andrew said they’re in the business of giving the public what they want before they know they want it. So I can totally imagine he's gone to see "Avatar" and that’ll just set the cogs whirring in his brain and the twinkle in his eye because he'll just want to surpass it, no question.

Yeah, I mean it’ll be enormous. I think it’s something like a $200 million budget. It starts in January and I actually go through to May. I think some of it is also filming in Utah, so it’s a 5 month production based largely in London with some exterior scenes in the desert I assume in Utah. So it’s a massive production. . . .  I think the fact that it’s a science fiction movie and that it's going to spend 2 years in post and not come out 'til 2012 means that the vision for it is enormous. And as you pointed out, in the light of “Avatar”, I think they are planning on creating something extraordinary.

.
From our Barsoom and John Carter of Mars sites:

Disney's John Carter of Mars - Official Casting Call and Plot Details
The ODI ~ December 08, 2009
Star Now Casting Calls: Canada

With the major players in place, Disney is looking for actors to round out the cast of John Carter of Mars! 
Disney's live-action John Carter of Mars movie adaptation of the classic book series by Edgar Rice Burroughs was originally scheduled to begin shooting in November, but the date has been pushed back to an early 2010 start. It is still unclear why the film was delayed, but apparently the casting process is still incomplete. SpoilerTVrecently listed this new casting call sheet for John Carter of Mars: 

Director: Andrew Stanton
Starring: Taylor Kitsch as John Carter, Willem Dafoe as Tars Tarkas, Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris and Mark Strong as Matai Shang
Synopsis: A damaged civil war veteran finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars where his involvements with warring races of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity.
[STABLE BOY] 9 yrs old, Mestizo – a mixture of European and Native American or Mexican decent, no lines, 1 scene
[DIX] The storekeeper, 40’s – 50’s, built like a lumberjack/longshoreman, strong & husky, 5 lines, 1 scene
[1ST ROWDY] Late 20’s – early 30’s, rough and dirty, worn looking, 1 line, 1 scene
[2ND ROWDY] Late 20’s – early 30’s, rough and dirty, worn looking, 1 line, 1 scene
[CAVALRYMAN/SERGEANT] Early 30’s, clean cut, 2 lines, 1 scene
[US STOCKADE PRISON GUARD] Mid 20’s – early 30’s, clean cut, 4 lines, 2 scenes
[APACHE LEADER] 40’s - 60s, Native American, must speak Apache, wise and experienced with a weathered face. Multiple lines, 1 scene
[TWITCHY CORPORAL] 20’s - 30s, a shifty bad guy, not to be trusted. 1 line, 1 scene.
[YOUNG THARK WARRIOR] 20’S, tall (6’ PLUS), athletic, experience working on stilts, MOTION PICTURE CAPTURE ROLE

---

Willem Dafoe Discusses John Carter of Mars & His Tars Tarks Character
October 21, 2009
Willem Dafoe who is slated to play Tars Tarkas in Disney's John Carter of Mars recently spoke to the AICN, about his role in John Carter and revealed, that his character has four arms and is 9 feet tall.

"I've seen a lot of the designs and things, and I’ve just started to do prep work now.  We've starting doing scans and things like that, but it's going to be a real full-on.  Well, I'm nine feet tall with four arms, but, just from the scheduling, I'm going to do the stuff. They'll use my face, but they'll enhance it in a way – both after and before – in a way that I may not be recognizable. But, I'm good with that. It's particularly cool, because he's a creature, but he's got this huge range of character. And, he does cool things in the movies.

"There's a whole period where we're going to work with the language and the movement, and find out how I'm going to be nine feet tall, and all that stuff. . . like, a long period of time where we're going to go to Thark school. We're going to create our culture. So, it's going to be very cool. These guys know how to do this, and they've got great people. And, the designs and things are just mind-blowing."

---

Church, Purefoy & Strong join JC cast
September 29, 2009

Thomas Haden Church, James Purefoy and Mark Strong have joined the cast of joined "John Carter of Mars," Disney's adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series that Andrew Stanton is directing. Church plays Tal Hajus, an ambitious and vicious Thark warrior who is biding his time to be a ruler. Purefoy plays Kantos Kan, the captain of the Xavarian, the kingdom of Helium's grand warship. Strong is Matai Shang, the ruler of the Thems with godlike status.

The casting reveals a bit about the movie's plot, which would appear to combine elements of Burroughs' first Barsoom book, A Princess of Mars; the second, The Gods of Mars; and the third, The Warlord of Mars.

---

Lynn Collins Gets 'A Really Great Tan' 
To Become Alien Princess In 'John Carter Of Mars'
MTV MoviesBlog ~ September 24, 2009
Edgar Rice Burroughs' "John Carter of Mars," is going to start shooting in Utah as early as January of next year.  Pre-production continues to move steadily forward on the hybrid live action/CGI film. As co-star Lynn Collins told MTV's Josh Horowitz, she's already seen workups of fight sequences she'll have to film and, last week, some initial effects work kicked into gear.

"We're actually getting into some hair and makeup tests this week to see what the look is like," said Collins, who plays the humanoid Martian princess Dejah Thoris. "It's really collaborative and really creative and I'm really excited about it." The preliminary idea is not to bury Collins under prosthetics and heavy-duty makeup but to create a look that would not be out of place on a tropical island. "I think they're going more like a really great tan, like the best-tan-you-can-ever-imagine type of thing," she said. "I've yet to find it. Maybe the makeup team will be able to."

There's no word yet how the rest of the cast will end up looking. Joining Collins in "John Carter" is her "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" co-star Taylor Kitsch as the title character, a Civil War vet inexplicably transported to the Red Planet, where he stumbles upon all manner of alien adventures. "Taylor is so amazing," Collins said. "We went to Pixar and saw some of the workups of some of the fighting that we have to do. I was like, 'Oh my god, there's just no guy better for the job. He's so athletic and wonderful and such a great actor and so positive.'"

Calling her character "a priestess of science and letters," Collins extolled co-writer/director Andrew Stanton's ("WALL-E," "Finding Nemo") vision for "John Carter." "Edgar Rice Burroughs was a really smart writer, so smart that some of the stuff I can hardly wrap my head around, so that's up to Pixar to see if they can put in visually to life," the actress said, adding, "It's completely satirical and politically on point, I'd say." More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton discussed the film in the MTV Movies Blog:
"We're full bore on it right now. We're over the hump of the writing phase, and we're certainly far from rewrites. I don't want to be dissing it but it almost had an absence of a story for a feature film because it was very episodic. In its day it was a comic book. I mean, this book was written in 1912. It was the comic book you got in the time before there was such a thing as comic books. So, it was really just about the next fight, the next adventure, the next romance.

"The key was putting a story into it and creating characters that had to grow and real basic stuff that we all know a movie needs. Fortunately it's an old enough story. There isn't such huge allegiance to it that people won't mind that we muck with it a bit to hopefully amplify the essence of what made me interested in it as a young kid and hopefully will keep me interested in it as an adult. There's so much in it that can't be real. It's the perfect definition of a hybrid movie."

---

John Carter of Mars Casts Brits as Tharks and a Zodangan
Morton, West and Walker Join ERB's Mars Film
Aug 25th, 2009 ~ From the Web: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 
The cast of Disney's big budget adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars continues to grow, with the news this week that three Brits have found roles that do much to flesh out the story's rich alien mythology. Playing Sola, Tarkas' daughter who must hide her softer side from her warrior race, will be Samantha Morton (Minority Report). Polly Walker (the sexy Atia in HBO's Rome) will be playing a more typical Thark, Sarkoja, who is described as "merciless" and "tyrannical." Finally, there is Dominic West (The Wire), who will be playing Sab Than, the prince of the Zodangans who believes it is his destiny to rule Barsoom, which we know better as Mars. . . . League of Extraordinary Gentlemen actor Jason Flemyng has let slip that he could well be in line for a role in the film.
Samantha Morton ~ Dominic West ~ Polly Walker

---

Willem Dafoe cast for Tars Tarkas
Variety ~ July 15, 2009
Willem Dafoe will star alongside Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins in "John Carter of Mars," the Walt Disney Pictures fantasy epic to be directed by "Wall-E" helmer Andrew Stanton.
Dafoe will play the role of Tars Tarkas, a fierce green Martian warrior, who's unusual among his savage race for his ability to love. Tars develops an alliance with John Carter in the first film, which is based on "A Princess of Mars."

He fights battles alongside Carter through the entire series of Edgar Rice Burroughs books, so he will be hanging around for sequels.

Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing. Stanton wrote the script with Mark Andrews. 
More>>>

Visit the ERBzine Thark Galleries at:
http://www.erbzine.com/mag13/1390.html
See the ERB, Inc. Barsoom site at:
http://www.barsoom.com

---

John Carter of Mars is Cast
Taylor Kitsch has been cast as in the lead role in John Carter Of Mars. Canadian Kitsch played Gambit in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Lynn Collins has joined the cast as Dejah Thoris, aka the Princess Of Mars. Collins played the Siverfox role in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Thomas Hayden Church told Jeffrey Lyons of Reel Talk that he will also be joining the film, in what he's calling a "very dramatic role."
Kitsch ~ Collins ~ Church

Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins blast off to 'Mars'
Disney adapting Edgar Rice Burroughs book series
Hollywood Reporter ~ June 12, 2009
Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins will star in "John Carter of Mars," the adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series that Andrew Stanton is directing for Disney. The movie is a big step for Stanton -- who as one of Pixar's top creators directed the company's animated films "Finding Nemo" and "WALL-E" but will now helm his first live-action feature -- and Disney, which hopes the big-budget production will launch a franchise on the scale of "Pirates of the Caribbean."

"Carter" centers on a civil war veteran who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars, where his involvement with warring races of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity. Kitsch will play the title character, while Collins is playing Dejah Thoris, heir to the throne of Mars' Helium kingdom.

Stanton wrote the screenplay with Mark Andrews. Jim Morris, who produced "WALL-E," and Colin Wilson are producing "Carter," which is eyeing a start in early 2010. Brigham Taylor is overseeing for the studio.

The role of Carter was considered one of the "gets" for a young actor, and Disney has spent months meeting and testing a wide swath of names from Jon Hamm to Josh Duhamel during its search. Canadian-born Kitsch, repped by WMA and Untitled, began building buzz with his starring role on NBC's "Friday Night Lights." Before long, he was considered one of the town's next generation of leading men, especially when he booked the role of Gambit in "Wolverine." 

Collins, repped by WME and 3 Arts, had a recurring gig on HBO's "True Blood" but appeared with Kitsch in "Wolverine," which raised her profile considerably. She next stars opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt in "Uncertainty," which IFC is releasing this year. 

---

Kitsch, Collins to star in 'John Carter'
Andrew Stanton helming Disney's fantasy epic Variety.com ~ June 12, 2009
Walt Disney Pictures has set "Wolverine" stars Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins to star in "John Carter of Mars," a fantasy epic that marks the live action directorial debut of "Wall-E" helmer Andrew Stanton.

Kitsch, a member of the "Friday Night Lights" ensemble who made his screen breakthrough as Gambit in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," will play the title character, a damaged Civil War veteran who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars where his involvements with a warring race of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity.

Collins will play Dejah Thoris, the Princess of Mars. Collins worked with Kitsch in "Wolverine," playing Hugh Jackman's character's love interest Kayla Silverfox. She also co-stars in the HBO vampire drama "True Blood."

Pic will begin filming early next year. Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing. Stanton wrote the script with Mark Andrews.

---

Utah will be stage for Mars in new Disney Pixar film
The deal will bring millions to the state and employ nearly 400 Utahns.
The Salt Lake Tribune ~ June 12, 2009
First as the planet Vulcan and now the red rocks of Mars, Utah has become Hollywood's destination spot for depicting exotic intergalactic worlds. Disney and Pixar are expected to partly film the pulp science-fiction adventure "John Carter of Mars" in Utah from November to July 2010. Portions of the Beehive State will double as Mars, including Lake Powell (where the original "Planet of the Apes" was partially filmed), Moab, and Kane and Wayne counties. 

"It's the biggest movie we've ever used incentives on," said Utah Film Commission executive director Marshall Moore. "We haven't seen these kinds of numbers since doing a TV series for a year." The San Rafael Swell already doubled as the planet Vulcan in this year's summer blockbuster "Star Trek," but second-unit crews only shot for four days in Utah. 

Disney is scheduled to shoot in Utah for 45 days. The story, based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs science-fiction book series -- which begins with A Princess of Mars -- is about an American Civil War veteran who is transported to Mars to face a series of adventures. 

Burroughs, who was born in Chicago, was no stranger to Utah, working as a railroad police officer in Salt Lake City in 1904. 

---

Disney/Pixar to produce new film in Utah
KSL.com ~ June 11th, 2009 
SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah's new movie incentives bill has landed the state its first big-time motion picture project. 
Take the Walt Disney company, combine it with Pixar and Utah scenery, and you're going to have the movie "John Carter of Mars." It's based on a series of books about a Civil War vet transported to the Red Planet. Governor's Office of Economic Development Director Jason Perry is stoked. "This is a place where Disney will start looking as the place where they will want to do all of their films," he said. The film will bring hundreds of cast and crew members to the state during production. "This is over 400 people involved in full-time work for seven-straight months here in the State of Utah. This is going to put our film crews to work. It's really going to put us on the map as a place to film," Perry said. 

---

Chabon Revising "John Carter of Mars" Script
Kavalier and Clay Site ~ April 9, 2009
Michael Chabon: ( (pronounced “Shea as in Stadium, Bon as in Jovi”) “I’ve been hired to do some revisions to an already strong script by Andrew Stanton and Mark Andrews. I wrote my original screenplay The Martian Agent back in 1995 because I wished I could do [Edgar Rice] Burroughs's Barsoom. So this is pretty much a dream come true for me.” 

 Chabon has written some highly respected books over the years, including Wonder Boys, The Yiddish Policemen's Union and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, which is essential reading for any comic book fan.  Rogert Ebert, reviewing the Spider-Mansequel, said, "One of the keys to the movie's success must be the contribution of novelist Michael Chabon to the screenplay; Chabon understands in his bones what comic books are, and why."

Disney got the option rights to Burroughs' 11-volume series in 2007 after the rights lapsed at Paramount Pictures. Andrew Stanton, the writer and director of Finding Nemo and WALL-E, is set to direct. It’s expected to hit theaters in 2012.
Chabon Bio | IMDB.com

---

Disney scouts South Australia for mars landscape
The Advertiser - Adelaide ~ March 30, 2009
South Australia could form the backdrop for two of Disney's biggest forthcoming films, John Carter of Mars and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo. Senior representatives of Walt Disney Studios have scouted the state for locations for the upcoming blockbusters although no decisions have been made. John Carter of Mars is being written and directed by Andrew Stanton, who made the Oscar-winning Wall-E. Bruce Hendricks, Disney's president of physical production and producer of all three Pirates of the Caribbean movies scouted SA for locations on the weekend of March 22 and 23. John Carter of Mars, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' classic science-fiction novel series, is scheduled to begin shooting next year.  The makers of Paramount's aborted version of the film examined filming the movie at locations near Coober Pedy in 2005. Breakaways Reserve and Moon Plain are perfect stand-ins for alien and post-apocalyptic landscapes. The area has been featured in films such as Pitch Black  (1999), Red Planet (2000) and Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (1985). SA's major drawback for large-budget films is a lack of studio space and facilities. Australia is seen as an attractive proposition for American films at present with the low value of the dollar against the greenback and the 15 percent rebate for foreign films. More. . .

Academy Awards "Wall-E" an Oscar for Animation, But Not Song, Sound or Screenplay
USNews.com ~ February 23, 2009 
Wall-E, the animated film dear to the hearts of Americans and green bloggers alike, took home only one trophy out of its record-tying six nominations last night. Director Andrew Stanton accepted the Oscar for the film in the "Best Animated Film" category, a win that came as a surprise to no one. The film was also nominated for Original Score, Original Song, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, and Original Screenplay. Its six nominations put it in company with Beauty and the Beast, which is widely considered to be the best animated film of all time.

Though the film was up against steep competition in the other categories, there was talk that Wall-E had a shot at Original Screenplay, since the film paid homage to classic Charlie Chaplin films. Because much of the film was silent, score played an important role, and composer Thomas Newman, like Kate Winslet, has been a constant nominee, but never an Oscar winner. Though Newman previously took home two Grammys for Wall-E (Best Song for a Motion Picture, and Best Arrangement), the Academy decided this was not his year.

Wall-E's song, "Down to Earth," was written by Peter Gabriel but performed during the ceremony by John Legend. It was part of a medley of the two other nominated songs from Slumdog Millionaire, and was given a Bollywood tinge by being sandwiched in between. The song, naturally, continued the sustainable message of the film - that we should conserve, appreciate our natural resources, and clean up our messes. 

Stanton's WALL-E receives many Oscar nominations

---

January 23, 2009 ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney); Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter
"Frozen River" (Sony Pictures Classics); Written by Courtney Hunt
"Happy-Go-Lucky" (Miramax); Written by Mike Leigh
"In Bruges" (Focus Features); Written by Martin McDonagh
"Milk" (Focus Features); Written by Dustin Lance Black

---

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM OF THE YEAR
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Andrew Stanton
"Bolt" (Walt Disney) Chris Williams and Byron Howard
"Kung Fu Panda" (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) John Stevenson and Mark Osborne

---

Andrew Stanton (WALL-E) is only the fourth person to score a second bid in the animated feature category, which began in 1981. 
He also earned a citation in original screenplay as one of the scribes on the film.
Stanton is currently working on his next project: John Carter of Mars based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' novels.

---

WALL-E also received nominations for:
ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES (ORIGINAL SCORE)
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Thomas Newman

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES (ORIGINAL SONG)
"Down to Earth" from "WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; Lyrics by Peter Gabriel 

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood

---

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND MIXING
"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt

WALL-E helmer Andrew Stanton talks John Carter of Mars
SciFiWire.com   ~ January 12, 2009

WALL-E director Andrew Stanton is working on a new draft of his proposed John Carter of Mars movie and is aiming for a realistic feel to the live-action movie, his first. "I'm deep into it," Stanton told SciFi Wire at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association award ceremony, where he accepted the award for best picture of 2008 for WALL-E. "I'm on my next draft of it. We're in preproduction art-wise, and we're starting to talk to actors. So it's full bore."

Stanton confirmed that Carter, based on the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, will be live-action. "Yeah, I think that's the only way," he said. "I mean, there are so many creatures and characters that half of it's going to be CG whether you want it to be [or not], just to realize some of these images that are in the book. But it will feel real. The whole thing will feel very, very believable."

We're going very authentic . . . it's such a foundational story to so many films and stories and sci-fi ideas that have come since 1912. So the trick is how to not make it seem clich? and derivative because it's such an archetype story now. I spent most of my life just being a fan of those books and being a cheerleader from the sidelines of anybody that was trying to make it. I never thought I would be lucky enough to be one of those guys associated with it, let alone helming it. I would love to break the curse.  I've surrounded myself with a couple key people that are just really smart, really talented. . . 

 It'll be a two-hour film. It's not being done by the Pixar crew. It's being done by Disney, and I'm sort of being loaned out. We're sort of using any element that we need to to make the film right.  This story of John Carter is not going to be an all-ages film. If you do the story right, there's no way you couldn't [do PG-13].

John Carter Of Mars’ To Be Live-Action, CGI Hybrid
MTV ~  January 13, 2009 
Quotes:
“It’s real. We’re full bore on it right now. We’re over the hump of the writing phase, and we’re certainly far from rewrites.”

“I don’t want to be dissing it, but it almost had an absence of a story for a feature film because it was very episodic. In its day it was a comic book. I mean, this book was written in 1912. It was the comic book you got in the time before there was such thing as comic books. So, it was really just about the next fight, the next adventure, the next romance.”

“The key was putting a story into it and creating characters that had to grow and real basic stuff that we all know a movie needs.”

.“Fortunately it’s an old enough story. “There isn’t such huge allegiance to it that people won’t mind that we muck with it a bit to hopefully amplify the essence of what made me interested in it as a young kid and hopefully will keep me interested in it as an adult.”

“There’s so much in it that can’t be real. It’s the perfect definition of a hybrid movie utilizing both live actors and computer-based animation."

 “I know everybody wanted Hugh Jackman forever, but he’s only getting older and more exposed now, so it’s a tough call. I’m your typical filmmaker, I want to find the next best unknown.”

JOHN CARTER OF MARS info from Andrew Stanton! From the AINT IT COOL SITE ~ January 25, 2009

"I was able to attend a luncheon before the panel and sat with Tom McCarthy and Andrew Stanton. Of course John Carter of Mars had to come up. He also elaborated on the panel, but here’s what’s going on with JOHN CARTER OF MARS:

- It is live action.

- “It is huge, it is exciting, it scares the crap out of me. It’s either going to make me or break me.”

- It is NOT a Pixar movie, rather a Disney film. However Stanton’s creative team from Pixar are all still involved.

- The style is going to be very real, not highly stylized. He said that 20 some years ago that version could have been made, but since Star Wars and a whole glut of science fiction and fantasy films have ripped off giant portions of JCOM over the years the only option he sees is doing a straight up, realistic version of the story. He described it as if it was a National Geographic crew that stumbled across a preserved civilization while exploring a cave. Very real, but awe-inspiring. 

- He is not planning nor wanting to shoot it 3-D (thank God… I love James Cameron, and I think AVATAR is going to be amazing, but I’m getting tired of every big event movie being 3-D), but thinks Disney might want to push him towards it.

- Stanton has been a fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs since he was a kid, so while he won’t have the same kind of development time on this one as he had on his animated movie he looks at it as him living with the story in his brain for 40 plus years instead of the 6-8 of his animated films. 

- He has his second draft done and will be casting soon.

- John Carter WILL be a Civil War soldier."

---

Writer's Panel at 2009 Santa Barbara Film Festival. 

Ann Thompson ~ Robert Knott ~ Tom McCarthy ~Andrew Stanton ~ Dustin Lance Black

For "Wall-E" director, art mixes well with commerce Reuters ~ November 18, 2008
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - If there ever was a person meant to make a movie about a U.S. Civil War soldier from the Confederate States of America stranded on the planet Mars, it just may be Andrew Stanton, director of animated hit "Wall-E." Why?

A soldier of the confederacy was a "rebel" in the 1860s when the United States fought its war between the states, and Stanton also comes from a pack of rebels -- the filmmakers at Disney-Pixar -- whose movies like "Wall-E" have time and again defied conventional Hollywood wisdom and become smash hits. . . .

. . . "John Carter of Mars" is Stanton's next animated feature project. It is based on a story written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, best known for his "Tarzan" books. Stanton said he read "John Carter" as a boy and has been in love with it ever since. It is based on a simple idea, he said: "an ordinary person in an extraordinary world." But audiences wanting to go there will have to wait several years before the movie hits theaters. But when it does, the betting is that like "Wall-E", it, too, will be a hit. More>>>

---

New Look For Carter Of Mars?
Sci Fi Wire  | SciFiLog.com
Andrew Stanton, who is writing and directing John Carter of Mars, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' books, told SCI FI Wire that he and co-writer Mark Andrews will be putting their own spin on the iconic story, and a Pixar manager added that the film will have a unique look as well. "I'm going to do what I remember more than what they exactly do" in the books, Stanton said cryptically in a group interview at the Emeryville, Calif., headquarters of Pixar on Sept. 25.

Stanton (WALL*E) added that he is currently deep in writing with partner Andrews, a storyboard artist at Pixar, on the script for Carter. "John Carter of Mars is what I'm writing right now with Mark Andrews," Stanton said. "Writing, it's all about writing this year."

Jim Morris, general manager at Pixar Animation, promised that the movie will not look like previous attempts to adapt the franchise for the screen. "Everything that's been out there has been an attempt to kind of capture this Deco-esque [Frank] Frazetta vision of John Carter, which I think feels old and stale," he said. "And where Stanton is going--from what we've seen so far--is very different than that. And I think that the people who really love the essence of the books will really dig it, but so will audiences in general."

Asked whether the film would be in 3-D, Morris added, "I hope not!" It's been reported that Carter may incorporate live-action elements amid animation. Stanton's WALL*E was the first Pixar production to incorporate live action. Morris declined to discuss the matter.

"John Carter is in its very early stages, and there is much to figure out about that, so we'd be premature," Morris said. "We are looking at a variety of different approaches and techniques for that ... We're kind of a bit early in the development of that."

Morris added: "I'm sure I speak for all of the science fiction geeks, fans and aficionados when I say it's finally time to see that movie. And I, for one, am delighted that Andrew Stanton is the guy that's making the movie, because he's a story-driven guy."

---

Jon Favreau ~ LA Times Interview excerpt
Quote:
"Not involved with John Carter of Mars. Visited [Andrew] Stanton at Pixar. He's doing a great job. He will do a better job with it than I would have at that point in my career. Most importantly, after 100 years, it's finally getting made."

---

John Carter of Mars updates

---

See the official John Carter of Mars sites:
www.johncarterofmars.ca
barsoom.com
www.princessofmars.org
www.johncarterofmars.org

---

Projects in 'WALL*E' director's future are exciting
Deseret News ~ June 29, 2008
As much as I love "Finding Nemo" (2003) and loved the new movie "WALL*E" even more, it's the things in Andrew Stanton's future that really have me excited. A Pixar executive with a good track record, Stanton also co-directed "A Bug's Life" (1998) and co-wrote "Monsters, Inc." (1998) and "Toy Story 2" (1999). And his next feature will be "John Carter of Mars," a long-in-development fantasy that's based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs novels. Have I mentioned that I'm a big fan of those books? In a recent interview in Salt Lake City Stanton pooh-poohed my suggested casting of Hugh Jackman as the lead. (Stanton said Jackman is "too old," apparently forgetting the character is supposed to be a Civil War veteran.) But I was pretty intrigued by his talk about digitally animated versions of Burroughs' green-skinned, multi-armed Martians, or Tharks. Also, Stanton chuckled when I suggested Michael Clarke Duncan as the body model — or at least the voice of Carter's Martian brother-in-arms Tars Tarkas. Unfortunately, it will be at least four years until we get to see the movie. More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton discusses the John Carter project
Ain't It Cool News Interview ~ June 25, 2008
"I have been a fan of those books since I was 10, and I've watched vicariously from the sidelines as it has gone from studio to studio since I was in college in the '80s. And just as fan, wanting to see it be made, and praying to God it would be done right. I thought it was truly going to get done by Jon Favreau, and the minute it fell apart, I couldn't believe it. And the timing was just right with my schedule, and I said, "I don't know, this is crazy but I'm going to see if we can get it." And here we are. Believe me, if it doesn't fall apart for other reasons, I'm going to do it right, because I have been a huge fan of those books.

"Mark Andrews and I are writing it together; he was the head of story on RATATOUILLE and THE INCREDIBLES. We make a great combo together, and we're just spending this year writing. We've learned from the Pixar methodology: don't get distracted about how and all these things everybody else wants to ask; just make a great story and everything else wants to fall into place. So all the other specifics we aren't even going to decide upon until next year, once we have a script that we think is worth making. . . . We don't want to decide [whether the film is animated or live action] until next year. And believe me, we're not going say, "Oh, it's a Pixar film, so it's got to be G-rated." We're going to do what's right for the movie and then we'll find the right way to distribute it." More>>>

---

Andrew Stanton Out To ‘Break The Curse’ With Adaptation Of ‘John Carter Of Mars’
MTV Movies Blog ~ June 24, 2008
From Bob Clampett, to Ray Harryhausen, to Robert Rodriquez, and Jon Favreau, the list of directors who’ve wanted to make “John Carter of Mars” is a long one stretching back at least 70 years. For a long time, Andrew Stanton, who was recently confirmed to be directing an adaption of “Carter” for Pixar Animation Studios, didn’t feel like he belonged in their company. “I cared a lot that [‘Carter’] was done right, and I didn’t really care if I was the one to do it. I didn’t feel qualified,” he told MTV News.

Stanton’s assertions aren’t faux-humility. The daunting nature of the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, which center around an immortal Virginian’s adventures on the red planet, as well as the long-list of talented directors who tried and failed to bring it to the bring screen, would no doubt challenge any director. So what does Stanton have that they didn’t? Well, for one, he’s got unending reserves of talent. For another, he’s got impeccable timing. (“It fell on the floor right at that moment and I was there,” he said) And, thirdly, of course, he’s got a t-shirt. “We want to make t-shirts that say ‘break the curse’ because I don’t want to be another name on the list,” Stanton laughed. “[The project] seems to keep dropping on the floor. I’ll pick it up this time and hopefully I’ll be the one to do it right.”

For the “Wall-E” and “Finding Nemo” director, that means having no illusions about the project’s difficulty, and sticking with it despite what looks to be at least a 5 year process. “I loved those [‘John Carter’] books. I read them all from front to back all through my high school and junior high years, and just always wanted to see them realized on the screen,” Stanton insisted. “The big common denominator for me [with all my films] is: is it an idea I love so much that I would desire so badly to see on the screen that I would be willing to get out of bed for years and face it when it’s not working? [‘Carter’ shares] that common denominator.” More>>>

---

Review: Stanton's "Wall-E": An Instant Film Classic
(CNN) ~ The most consistent production unit in Hollywood just hit another home run. Over the last decade, Pixar has become a byword for quality, combining cutting-edge digital animation with depth of character, slapstick comedy and rich, engrossing storytelling that appeals equally to kids and adults. "Wall-E" has all of that and more. Written and directed by Andrew Stanton ("Finding Nemo"), it's Pixar's most ambitious movie and an instant classic.  . . . Grace, beauty, joy, laughter and love. A wonderful combination for any movie. "Wall-E" is easily the best film of the year so far. More>>>
EW.com

---

JOHN CARTER BLOG QUOTES:

---

". . . there’s been no discussion about exactly how it won’t be distributed or what moniker it will be under. Everything is going to be derived based on whatever we end up with script-wise, so this whole year is just about the script. In 2009 will be much more involved in the OK, exactly how is this going to get made? And exactly how are we going to present it? Nobody is worrying about that until there’s a script." SlashFilm.com

---

WALL*E is nothing short of a masterpiece of filmmaking. It is brilliant. I have not seen a film deal with such complex issues as humanity’s existence and the fate of the planet in such a deep and beautiful way. . . WALL*E is so fucking perfect a film. The film is very much alive; it has an organic pulse not found in many live action releases. I expected a great film, but I did not expect a masterpiece. Andrew Stanton, like Brad Bird before him, can do no wrong in my book. Andrew Stanton’s adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter Of Mars cannot arrive soon enough. 2snaps.tv

---

The blog reports that Andrew Stanton, director of Finding Nemo (2003) and the upcoming WALL-E, confirmed today  that he is currently developing an adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars, as has been rumoured for several months now. The Pixar Blog ~ June 06, 2008

---

Q: Can you talk a bit about John Carter of Mars?
AS: Well, pretty much it’s already out there. I’m definitely writing it with Mark Andrews, and that’s all we’re doing right now.
Q: Is it gonna be live-action?
AS: Everybody’s asking that, and we’re not gonna make that decision for about a year or so.  Interview in Art Of Duze

---

CONFIRMED:
- Pixar is doing the John Carter series
- The first one is probably going to be called Princess of Mars
- It is currently set to be released in theaters in 2012
- They would then continue the series, one film a year (or close to that)
- Andrew Stanton is directing
- Brad Bird is doing a live-action film, 1906, which seems to be a break from Pixar for him ~ Animation Empire

---

Pixar's 'Wall-E' rolls over competition ~ “Wall-E” blasted off at the box office Friday, earning an estimated $23.1 million and giving Disney-Pixar its best opening day ever. The critically acclaimed “Wall-E,” directed by Andrew Stanton, easily won the weekend, grossing an estimated $62.5 million from 3,992 runs. Variety ~ June 29, 2008

---

"WALL-E" wows box office
Reuters ~ June 29, 2008
LOS ANGELES -- Animation giant Pixar hit the box office jackpot once again on Sunday as its robot love story "WALL-E" snagged the No. 1 spot during its first weekend of release across North America. The movie, bolstered by near-unanimous critical praise, earned an estimated $62.5 million in its first three days, said Pixar's Walt Disney Co parent. More>>>

 

Pixar's "John Carter" Team Visits Tarzana
Pre-production for the Disney/Pixar "John Carter of Mars" film is gathering steam

Tarzana, CA: October 2, 2007
The Pixar creative team spent Tuesday morning exploring the massive Edgar Rice Burroughs archives in the ERB, Inc. offices on Ventura Blvd.  Pixar's Jim Morris (vp), Andrew Stanton (director), Mark Andrews (script) discussed the "John Carter of Mars" film project with Burroughs representatives, Danton Burroughs, Sandra Galfas and Jim Sullos. 

All six members at the meeting expressed a deep commitment to the project, acknowledging that they had been inspired by Burroughs' creations from a very early age. This is evidenced in the excitement held for the John Carter property and the plans for a film trilogy faithful to the Burroughs books. Projected release date is sometime before 2012.

Danton Burroughs presented the creative team with a wealth of resources, including art samples and books by ERB scholars such as Irwin Porges and John F. Roy. They noted that their major resource to date had been the thousands of official ERB, Inc. Webpages and Webzines.

~ Bill Hillman