atomicblue
03-16-2003, 04:37 PM
I could not resist. Although I know there are more, I had to put these together. :ewink:
''Many of the top-grossing movies of all time are science fiction. We're realizing there is a huge audience to explore,'' says Bonnie Hammer
Hammer says, the mandate now is to ''define ourselves as a front-runner in original programming.''
''Years ago, science fiction was based on all of these predictions about technology. Well, there is nothing new out there for kids who are so used to technology,'' she says. ''People don't care about the future that much but about new perceptions on the here and now. We're trying to develop products that deal with that.''
Anticipating her critics, she calls it a myth that the channel is watched by only ''geek boys.''
''In fact,'' Hammer says, ''we're very balanced - 55/45, male/female.''
Sci Fi's president Hammer concedes she receives e-mails daily from upset viewers. ''Science fiction for some reason has an even more passionate fan base than other genres, so when any series ends, somehow there is a backlash,'' she says. Still, she insists that ''Farscape'' is ''coming to its natural end. ... It was a fabulous series that told great stories with a fabulous cast and at some point you have to say goodbye. ... Like many series, it started waning in the ratings, and we have to move the channel forward with fresh product.''
(reminder to send emails.......)
"Our viewers out there today are very different from the image and perception of what Sci Fi viewers are supposed to be," she said. "People used to think Sci Fi's viewers were all these young geek boys who stay home and play computer games all day, and all night, and that's all there was. We found that wasn't true at all."
"Do we need our break-out hit? You bet," Hammer said. "Do we expect to get it? Absolutely." What will it be? We won't have any idea until the end of this month", when Mark Stern unveils his plans for a new Sci Fi series.
"One of the things we'll have to do as we move forward," Hammer said, "is to take risks."
That change is the work of network president Bonnie Hammer, charged with "broadening" the fan base, which, not to put too fine a point on it, largely means: bring in women. Hammer dismisses the idea that "female sci-fi fan" is a contradiction in terms. "Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein," she notes. But the key to attracting women, and nongeek men, is emphasizing drama over technology, psychological drives over warp drives, fi over sci. "These viewers want things that have more emotional and ethical components," says Hammer. "They'll say, 'I'm not a sci-fi freak, but I loved The Sixth Sense.'"
(I feel my ineer geekiness being slightly offended!)
"We really tried to take the high road," says the cabler's president, Bonnie Hammer. "Instead of going out there and in any way belittling our partners, we kind of remained quiet."
We never wanted to cancel it. (Farscape) What we were trying to do was do 13 more episodes, not 22. The ratings had softened, and it was getting increasingly expensive to produce. We just couldn't make the financial deal. But we never wanted it to end when it ended. We had all intentions of doing 13 more episodes [beyond these 11] — we wanted to keep it in '03 and end it in '03. But financially, it was just too difficult to do.
Even though Stargate is sci fi, it's very broad sci fi. It's not serialized. Every episode, you can come to it whether you've watched the one before [or not]. They are self-contained. My husband is kind of an absentee watcher, and he would tune in every fifth or sixth episode and have absolutely no issues [with following the plots]. Farscape, on the other hand, got very, very serialized. It got very "in."
Hammer on Farscape "They had brilliant and sophisticated writing, but it was so narrow that it basically was an invitation to not tune in if you weren't totally familiar with the show. It was brilliant when you got it, and some of the characterizations were truly amazing, but it took a little too much work."
If that doesn't inspire you to pick up a pen, or activate your email program......I don't know what will! This woman continues to amaze me with the stuff she says. She has completely snowed herself. Isn't it time for the next Skiffy prez to step up to the plate??
Also is it just me....or would Scorpius love this woman?
''Many of the top-grossing movies of all time are science fiction. We're realizing there is a huge audience to explore,'' says Bonnie Hammer
Hammer says, the mandate now is to ''define ourselves as a front-runner in original programming.''
''Years ago, science fiction was based on all of these predictions about technology. Well, there is nothing new out there for kids who are so used to technology,'' she says. ''People don't care about the future that much but about new perceptions on the here and now. We're trying to develop products that deal with that.''
Anticipating her critics, she calls it a myth that the channel is watched by only ''geek boys.''
''In fact,'' Hammer says, ''we're very balanced - 55/45, male/female.''
Sci Fi's president Hammer concedes she receives e-mails daily from upset viewers. ''Science fiction for some reason has an even more passionate fan base than other genres, so when any series ends, somehow there is a backlash,'' she says. Still, she insists that ''Farscape'' is ''coming to its natural end. ... It was a fabulous series that told great stories with a fabulous cast and at some point you have to say goodbye. ... Like many series, it started waning in the ratings, and we have to move the channel forward with fresh product.''
(reminder to send emails.......)
"Our viewers out there today are very different from the image and perception of what Sci Fi viewers are supposed to be," she said. "People used to think Sci Fi's viewers were all these young geek boys who stay home and play computer games all day, and all night, and that's all there was. We found that wasn't true at all."
"Do we need our break-out hit? You bet," Hammer said. "Do we expect to get it? Absolutely." What will it be? We won't have any idea until the end of this month", when Mark Stern unveils his plans for a new Sci Fi series.
"One of the things we'll have to do as we move forward," Hammer said, "is to take risks."
That change is the work of network president Bonnie Hammer, charged with "broadening" the fan base, which, not to put too fine a point on it, largely means: bring in women. Hammer dismisses the idea that "female sci-fi fan" is a contradiction in terms. "Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein," she notes. But the key to attracting women, and nongeek men, is emphasizing drama over technology, psychological drives over warp drives, fi over sci. "These viewers want things that have more emotional and ethical components," says Hammer. "They'll say, 'I'm not a sci-fi freak, but I loved The Sixth Sense.'"
(I feel my ineer geekiness being slightly offended!)
"We really tried to take the high road," says the cabler's president, Bonnie Hammer. "Instead of going out there and in any way belittling our partners, we kind of remained quiet."
We never wanted to cancel it. (Farscape) What we were trying to do was do 13 more episodes, not 22. The ratings had softened, and it was getting increasingly expensive to produce. We just couldn't make the financial deal. But we never wanted it to end when it ended. We had all intentions of doing 13 more episodes [beyond these 11] — we wanted to keep it in '03 and end it in '03. But financially, it was just too difficult to do.
Even though Stargate is sci fi, it's very broad sci fi. It's not serialized. Every episode, you can come to it whether you've watched the one before [or not]. They are self-contained. My husband is kind of an absentee watcher, and he would tune in every fifth or sixth episode and have absolutely no issues [with following the plots]. Farscape, on the other hand, got very, very serialized. It got very "in."
Hammer on Farscape "They had brilliant and sophisticated writing, but it was so narrow that it basically was an invitation to not tune in if you weren't totally familiar with the show. It was brilliant when you got it, and some of the characterizations were truly amazing, but it took a little too much work."
If that doesn't inspire you to pick up a pen, or activate your email program......I don't know what will! This woman continues to amaze me with the stuff she says. She has completely snowed herself. Isn't it time for the next Skiffy prez to step up to the plate??
Also is it just me....or would Scorpius love this woman?