"Dreamland" scripted series in dev. about Area 51

[jefferiestubes8]

"Executive Summary,"
"Deep inside of Area 51," say the creators of Dreamland, "Dr. Emily Dehner investigates signs of extraterrestrial life on Earth. But Emily also has her own agenda." Intrigue, suspense, drama, extraterrestials...

one hour series combines the action and adventure of Indiana Jones with the dark mysteries of the X-Files and the forensic investigations

Created and written by Michael David Stewart

DREAMLAND is a one hour, weekly SCI-FI procedural set inside the legendary Above Top Secret base known world-wide as Area 51. It tells the story of DR. EMILY DEHNER, a brilliant, but troubled, young scientist who is abducted and blackmailed into working inside Area 51. In each episode Emily, and her team, investigate signs of extraterrestrial life on Earth. However, Emily also has her own agenda: To discover the true fate of her parents who disappeared on a mission for Area 51, and are believed dead. Emily is inexorably drawn into the darkest mysteries of Area 15 in her quest for truth: The truth about extraterrestrials, about the disappearance of her parents many years ago, and ultimately, the truth about herself.

Envisioned as a ground breaking 3D television series produced in possible association with Kerner Studios (development talks are currently on-going as of May 17, 2011) whose special effects work will soon be seen in Cowboys & Aliens and currently in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

Yes that's my bolding. A 3D scripted scifi TV series. That sounds very cool and always could lead to the possibility of the next Trek TV series shot in 3-D in 5 years.

“Dreamland” was originally called “51,”

2 storyboard images and a pilot synopsis at the link
http://www.ufoshock.com/dreamland51/

via
New TV Series About Area 51 In Development

Hey great another scifi series that should have some great effects.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Sounds like a fun topic that doesn't at all need to be 3D. I like the poster, really gets my attention while being delightfully cheesy. Is this just a pipe dream production or is a network interested in it?

I'm sure that 3D TV is coming at us like a freight train even if 3D movies turn out to fizzle (again). The difference is advertisers. Once they get a new toy to play with, they'll want networks to do shows in 3D to generate demand for 3D TVs so that everyone can experience the joys of 3D ads. Advertisers will greedily seize any differentiator that will give them even a temporary advantage over their rivals. People might actually stop zapping ads (for a while) if they're in 3D.

After seeing The Cave of Forgotten Dreams (highly recommended, go go go!! and make sure you see it in 3D!!!) I really think one very valuable use of 3D is to take us to real-world environments that we can't get to any other way, because they are too delicate, too far away, too dangerous to get to or whatever. I really feel like I visited that cave in person now. To me, that's a much more profound experience than visiting Pandora. (Although I can also see the value in 3D realistic re-creations of places like the Moon.) Documentaries, not sci fi, is where the 3D energy should go.

 

[Admiral_Young]

Okay, this is something interesting that I could see myself watching. I don't think it needs to be in 3D. Frankly I don't think any TV should be in 3D.

 

[Foziwriter]

Thanks for your interest in DREAMLAND and no, Temis, its not a pipe dream. We've worked hard on this for nearly 8 years. As of today, I learned that both my manager and the production company are actively looking for a qualified show runner while we are engaged in polishing and rewriting the script. You can find regular updates at http://www.ufoshock.com/?s=dreamland.

So stay tuned and I'll be posting more on Dreamland and other things so check it out please.

Keep posting.

Michael "Fozzi" Stewart
Writer/ Creator
Dreamland

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Tell us when you have a premiere date.

 

[Vendikarr]

Thanks for your interest in DREAMLAND and no, Temis, its not a pipe dream. We've worked hard on this for nearly 8 years. As of today, I learned that both my manager and the production company are actively looking for a qualified show runner while we are engaged in polishing and rewriting the script. You can find regular updates at http://www.ufoshock.com/?s=dreamland.

So stay tuned and I'll be posting more on Dreamland and other things so check it out please.

Keep posting.

Michael "Fozzi" Stewart
Writer/ Creator
Dreamland

When I see some news reported on Hollywood Reporter or Variety or deadline.com I'll believe it's more than vaporware.

Good luck with your project.

 

[Foziwriter]

Vendikarr,

I can't blame your skepticism. It can take 8-to-10 years to get to the pilot stage because of all the outside influences who insist on having their fingerprints all over your project before you even get a pilot into production, and then there is no guarantee it will go to series.

And if it does go to series any resemblence to your original concept has either been co-opted, dumb-downed, or bastardized to such a degree its unrecognizable from the original idea.

Until you've built a rep and have a "track record" with studios and networks you are at their mercy unless the idea is so unique and original and you have a heavyweight agency behind you to keep them at bay, you're pretty much screwed.

I've had exceptional response from notable genre actors, but no one with the clout that could bring this to a network untouched. So we're forced to play the network's game. The creative types seem to get it, the network execs are a mystery because they're "bottom line" types with little or no vision.

As someone once told me, if this is a success, this won't be the last show you'll do.

So we're in agreement on that score. And network programmers are so thick if the show doesn't get major ratings in the first three weeks, you're gone, no matter how high the network is on your show or how much they hype it.

Its you, the FANS, that ultimately make or break a show. I doubt that CBS envisioned NCIS becoming the #1 show on TV. It was the fans and word-of-mouth, and the characters that made its audience increase year after year.

A name actor doesn't guarantee the success of a series either. Basically its a major crap-shoot all around.

Michael Stewart
Writer/Creator
Dreamland

 

[Shatnertage]

Any plans to film in or around Las Vegas?

 

[Foziwriter]

Not at this time, but you never know,

 

[Temis the Vorta]

And network programmers are so thick if the show doesn't get major ratings in the first three weeks, you're gone, no matter how high the network is on your show or how much they hype it.

Have you seen how ratings trend? I wouldn't call the suits "thick" at all. They're doing what they need to do not to get their fool selves fired in a maniacally competitive industry. If I were them, I wouldn't be doing any different.

It's very rare for a show that takes an immediate nose dive to pull out of that tailspin. There's just too many other shows and other forms of entertainment competing for eyeballs. Viewers have no patience, and why should they? It's not their job to like a show.

From the programmer's perspective, you might as well just cut your losses and axe a failing show immediately. What was the point of letting an obvious flop like The Event hang in for even a full season like it did? Fans complain mightily when a show they like is axed - I do it to - but when I've looked at the numbers, it becomes obvious why it's happening. The TV biz is not a charity.

The exceptions to that rule are notable. Game of Thrones has managed to increase its ratings through word of mouth. Shows of truly exceptional quality can cut thru the clutter. Being on cable helps a lot because the ratings bar is not as high.

Shepherding a good show through the process must be a challenge, but good shows do exist. How did Game of Thrones survive? Other shows whose ongoing quality impresses me: Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, The Walking Dead, Dexter, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. Why aren't they all crap too?

 

[Foziwriter]

Temis, I've wondered about that myself. Why do the cable nets (HBO, Showtime, USA, Syfy, AMC, TNT, A&E) have shows of such higher quality (in my opinion) than standard Broadcast Network series?

Maybe because they take risks the Networks are afraid to, after all HBO and Showtime have no sponsors to answer to. Remember Stargate SG-1 started on Showtime. And even the smaller cable networks who do have sponsors to deal with seem to take bigger chances and leaps of faith during the summer with counter programming like Breaking Bad (a friend of mine is their script supervisor/continuity person).

Cable is a different animal than network. The Network Suits are more concerned with the sponsors than the fans and even when they find a show that they like and hype, like last year's "Lone Star" they yanked it after two episodes. Same with Paul Reiser's show.

CBS is the only network programming solid entertainment for an older demographic, which is working well and FOX, which programs for a much younger demographic has risen in the ratings ranks considerably.

The reaction to DREAMLAND has been encouraging in that we feel it will play to a much broader demographic, not just "Sci-Fi Geeks" and I use the phrase affectionately, but you don't have to be one to enjoy the show and get into the characters. There is so much lore about Area 51, it should appeal to everyone. I hope it does.

And although I'm biased on the subject, I think we have something for everyone provided we get the right ensemble of actors. I know who I want, but that might not be what the Suits want, so we'll see.

I wish I could tell you who our original casting ideas were but I can't. But many are well known Sci-Fi genre actors many of whom have their own fan bases. When I originally put this together I wanted to make it for the fans, being one myself.

But the "powers that be" whoever they turn out to be, will have more control over that and I may have little if any input where casting is concerned.

Michael Stewart
Writer/Creator
Dreamland

 

[Kegg]

The exceptions to that rule are notable. Game of Thrones has managed to increase its ratings through word of mouth.

I wouldn't oversell that aspect. Game of Thrones was renewed the day after the pilot episode aired.

Also, before the pilot even aired, the show had made more money being sold to overseas channels than any other HBO series ever, beating the previous record holder, the Sopranos, by up to 50%.

I'm sure the ratings since the premiere have been good, but the only ratings that mattered when the show was renewed couldn't have been done via word of mouth.

 

[Foziwriter]

Kegg,

That's true. Many cable shows are pre-sold to foreign markets first before airing in North America, that's how they get their financing.

A show could be a huge hit overseas and do so-so ratings here. And as long as demand is strong overseas and the foreign money keeps pouring in, there's a good likelihood it'll stay on the air here.

And then they have to be sold into syndication here which they have been doing only after a series has been on the air for 3 years. Some shows, like "24" and "Alias" aren't even in syndication (as far as I know.

To get Dreamland financed, we're going the foreign presale route from what little I know about that side of things.



Michael Stewart

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Temis, I've wondered about that myself. Why do the cable nets (HBO, Showtime, USA, Syfy, AMC, TNT, A&E) have shows of such higher quality (in my opinion) than standard Broadcast Network series?

Different economic models make all the difference.

Network: you make $$ off eyeballs. Each viewer is worth X.

Basic Cable: you make $$ off a combo of eyeballs and subscriptions. Each viewer is worth Y.

Premium Cable: you make $$ off subscriptions. Each viewer is worth Z.

The key here is that X < Y < Z. So you need more viewers under X than Y than Z to make the same amount of money. The fewer viewers you need to cater to, the better the show, because you can target niche tastes, which are inherently more interesting than big, blanded down mass tastes.

This is not the same as saying "the mass of people are stupid." If a person belongs to a niche taste category, he or she might be very tasteful and smart, and shows that cater to that taste can be very good. That same person might also enjoy some mass taste category, such as procedurals. Those shows are going to be cookie cutter by comparison. The fault here is not in an individual person or group, but in the need to bland down a show to cater to a vast range of people, all of whom have niche tastes to some degree.

So, if you want to make good shows, figure out how to make shows that people will buy up-front, and not pay for via advertising. The advertising model is doomed, anyway. The future is in niche tastes.

 

[Jetfire]

The poster does look interesting but the description worries me in the OP. Emily has her own agenda...which is cool but she is also being forced to work in Area 51...which bothers me a bit...I'd rather see her get the gig as a wide eyed young scientist getting the chance to work inside a place most people would dream of being at...but finding out everything isn't as what she thought it would be. I am guessing there is a point to why she is being forced to work there by you guys. Good luck on this.

 

[Foziwriter]

Jetfire,

Emily is a mystery within herself at the heart of the most mysterious place in North America if not the world, next to Kapustin Yar in Russia.

If we come to series you'll see what I mean. The scope of the series goes farther beyond the pilot and, as I've said before, I wrote this with Sci-Fi fans in mind and hope I accomplished my task.

Wish I could reveal more, but the series works on so many levels...And I hope it won't disappoint.

Look forward to more of you comments.

Michael Stewart

 

[Foziwriter]

You sound like you work in the industry. Do you?

 

[Foziwriter]

Jetfire,

Emily is a mystery within herself in a place that is the biggest mystery in North America if not the world next to Kapustin Yar in Russia. And as I have said, I wrote this with the Sci-Fi fan in mind. I hope I don't disappoint and I appreciate your comments. Keep them coming.

Michael Stewart

 

[Foziwriter]

Jetfire,

Emily is a mystery within herself at the heart of the most mysterious place in North America if not the world, next to Kapustin Yar in Russia.

If we come to series you'll see what I mean. The scope of the series goes farther beyond the pilot and, as I've said before, I wrote this with Sci-Fi fans in mind and hope I accomplished my task.

Wish I could reveal more, but the series works on so many levels...And I hope it won't disappoint.

Look forward to more of you comments.

Michael Stewart

 

[Foziwriter]

Jetfire,

Emily is a mystery within herself at the heart of the most mysterious place in North America if not the world, next to Kapustin Yar in Russia.

If we come to series you'll see what I mean. The scope of the series goes farther beyond the pilot and, as I've said before, I wrote this with Sci-Fi fans in mind and hope I accomplished my task.

Wish I could reveal more, but the series works on so many levels...And I hope it won't disappoint.

Look forward to more of you comments.

Michael Stewart