If the world were to expire sometime before Friday, the debate between free will and determinism would trace its history from the Greeks, through the battles between Augustine and Pelagius, Erasmus and Luther, the writings of Hobbes, Hume and William James, ending effectively with the questions posed by big-budget American serial television. In the years since 9/11, producers have found rich thematic material in the arguments for and against preordination, resulting in series like “The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” “Lost” and now “FlashForward,” which begins in such a spirit of bracing suspense that I am challenged to recall another pilot that lured me so quickly into addiction.
Joseph Fiennes, Lennon Wynn, center, and Sonya Walger in a scene from “FlashForward,” based on a science fiction novel.
Loosely based on a clunky science-fiction novel of the same title by Robert J. Sawyer, “FlashForward” (starting Thursday on ABC) imagines a global blackout in human consciousness — lasting precisely 2 minutes 17 seconds — when billions of people around the world experience visions of their lives six months into the future. Specifically they’re seeing themselves on April 29, 2010. And while “FlashForward” seems to avoid (at least so far) the geeky pretensions of “Lost,” which invite so much circuitous decoding, the date hardly seems arbitrary as it carries the symbolic weight of historic incident.
It’s tempting to go down the rabbit hole; this is, after all, a post-“Lost” world and who could resist the temptation? April 29 is the day Joan of Arc, after receiving visions calling her to divine mission, relieved the siege of Orleans. It is also the anniversary of the riots over the Rodney King beating in Los Angeles, where “FlashForward” is set amid the mayhem, looting and fires that transpire in the immediate aftermath of the collective expulsion of memory. In one sly turn during the premiere, crowds stampede into the streets with Circuit City boxes, as if that bankrupt consumer electronics company hasn’t suffered enough.
Again, the reference seems almost purposeful. “FlashForward” is similarly a behemoth, a drama on network television, and yet one primed to exalt the hold of new media. The Web and its spirit of collectivism are immediately deployed to guide the F.B.I. agent Mark Benford, played by the appropriately moody Joseph Fiennes, through his efforts to unravel what happened. Benford and his colleagues quickly set up a Web site — Mosaic — to allow visitors to post details of their futuristic visions so that agents can analyze them and extract clues.
Like so many contemporary television thrillers, “FlashForward” works just as powerfully as a domestic drama as it does as a mechanism of apocalyptic intrigue. Benford is a recovering alcoholic, devoted father and husband of an attractive, hard-working doctor (given to us by Sonya Walger, Penelope on “Lost”) who has clearly tested her commitment in the past. During their lapses in consciousness, each is privy to unsettling images of their relationship half a year hence, and the question remains (as it does for all the characters in the ensemble cast) whether the outcome is fated or subject to change depending on their ministrations.
The Benfords have an unusually pretty nanny who quietly wears a cross, which implies where she will stand theologically in the debate. After dallying with her boyfriend on the Benfords’ sofa (while in charge of the couple’s young daughter) on the day of the blackout, she extrapolates from her own perceived deviance that the bizarre cataclysm might be God’s punishment for an immoral world.
“FlashForward” has the sobriety and charge of the best, early days of “24” but builds its tension more gracefully and feels reluctant to be get subsumed by its own philosophizing. And like “Battlestar Galactica,” its has a presumed message that is humanistic and uplifting: No single messiah can save us; it takes a village to save the world.
FLASHFORWARD
ABC, Thursday nights at 8, Eastern and Pacific times; 7, Central time.
Created and written by David S. Goyer and Brannon Braga; Mr. Goyer, Mr. Braga, Marc Guggenheim and Jessika Borsiczky, executive producers. Produced by ABC Studios.
WITH: Joseph Fiennes (Mark Benford), John Cho (Demetri Noh), Jack Davenport (Lloyd Simcoe), Zachary Knighton (Bryce Varley), Peyton List (Nicole Kirby), Dominic Monaghan (Simon), Brían F. O’Byrne (Aaron Stark), Courtney B. Vance (Stanford Wedeck), Sonya Walger (Olivia Benford) and Christine Woods (Janis Hawk).
Source: NY TIMES
The documentary features David Goyer and deals with issues that may/will be present in the show.
Q: FlashForward was originally optioned as a movie. Now it's a television series. Do you have a preference either way?
A: To be perfectly blunt, if we last longer than one season I'll make more money off of a TV series than I would off of a film. So I think a TV series is a marvelous idea. Also, the comparison is often made to Lost. Well, here's the difference: Lost has 40 people on one island affected by the event. We've got 7 billion people on five continents. So of course we've got a bigger canvas and more stories to tell.
Q: Why was only one of your characters, Lloyd Simcoe, incorporated into the series?
A: The only character by name that makes it over is Simcoe. The central conflict in the marriage between Sonya Walger and Joseph Fiennes's characters in the TV series is directly the same conflict of Lloyd and Michiko in my novel. The central story of John Cho's character -- the guy who has no vision of the future -- is directly the central story of Theo, one of the characters from my novel. Do I care about search and replace on names? Not in the least. Do I care about the thematic integrity of the material, that it actually explores in depth the kinds of issues I raise in the book? Yes, and it does.
Q: Executive producer David S. Goyer has repeatedly stated that FlashForward is not science fiction. Do you think that's an important distinction to make?
A: We've learned that people will happily put their rear end in a seat for two hours to watch a science fiction movie, but they won't watch again week after week. Thanks to George Lucas, science fiction in the visual media has been indelibly identified as escapism for adolescent boys. You look at Battlestar Galactica: Wonderful series, on a really good week it had 875,000 viewers out of 315 million people. We will die as a primetime network broadcast series if the same percentage of people decide they want to watch FlashForward. So what had to be done was make sure people don't see science fictional tropes -- they don't see robots, aliens, flying cars, what have you; and instead see the compelling character drama.
Q: One of the big series mysteries is what actually causes the event, which in your novel is explained right away. How do you resolve that?
A: In my book it's on Page 1! The reality is that it may or may not follow the book. You know the phrase in computer science, "RTFM," read the eff-ing manual? We've gone to pains to make clear that my novel FlashForward is not necessarily the eff-ing manual for the reveals that are going to happen in the series.
Q: You compared FlashForward to Lost right away -- something the producers seem more reluctant to do. Why is that?
A: There's a double-perception of Lost amongst the general public: Those who have stuck with it from the beginning absolutely adore it. Those who rightly or wrongly lost faith that the creators did have a coherent conclusion in mind are afraid of being burned again. I don't think they are going to be burned by Lost. But the producers have given an enormous amount of thought to how this season and subsequent seasons will play out. I stand here to tell you that the mythology is worked out in detail, that there will be a payoff not only in each episode and each season but also at the end of the series, and that nobody will walk away from this shaking their heads.
Q: FlashForward correctly predicted the Large Hadron Collider would be turned on in 2009. Your new novel, Wake, is about the Internet becoming sentient. Is this a cautionary tale?
A: No it's exactly the opposite. Everywhere you look, the foregone conclusion is we're hosed. Computers are going to take over, and there's nothing we can do about it. And I freely admit some of my previous novels have taken that position. But I came to realize that almost nobody was writing about a possible road map to a future in which humanity might survive with its essential dignity, individuality and humanity in tact, despite the advent of superior intelligence. So the WWW trilogy -- Wake, Watch and Wonder -- are designed not to be cautionary tales, but possible road maps for an uplifting future in which we survive the coming advent of intelligences greater than us.
SOURCE: AMCTV
Microsoft has scored an elaborate multiplatform ad buy from ABC, which is promoting its upcoming sci-fi series FlashForward with a major assist from the software giant’s company’s video game assets.
The digital ad blitz, which sources said is valued at several million dollars, kicks into high gear this week with a wide array of ad placements on Microsoft’s Web, mobile and gaming platforms. The full first act of the FlashForward pilot has been available since Sept. 10 on Xbox Live—the online subscription platform where 20 million Xbox owners congregate, download movies and TV shows, and play online games.
On the series’ premiere date (Sept. 24) Microsoft’s in-game ad group Massive will serve Flash ads within 12 Xbox video games, including the mega hits Guitar Hero 5, Madden 10 and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10.
Also that day, ABC will have a major presence on the MSN portal that includes a homepage takeover ad on MSN.com, a branded Flash site on MSN TV and ad placements that will envelop the content on MSN’s celebrity channel Wonderwall. In addition, Microsoft has built ABC a custom mobile site to promote the show, and will also run ads on its mobile portal.
Plus, users can sign up to receive text alerts prior to the premiere and can download Flash-themed phone wallpaper.
The multifaceted campaign is said to make up the bulk of ABC’s digital effort to tout the much-hyped Flash. The deal—stewarded by ABC’s agency Wieden+Kennedy—marks the second major win for Microsoft, which landed a similar buy for Discovery’s Deadliest Catch in April.
Keith Lorizio, vp of U.S. sales, Microsoft Advertising, said the company’s ability to deliver young male gamers who are likely to be drawn to the sci-fi show, was crucial. “We have a multi-screen user experience, and we have scale on all three. Xbox is absolutely a differentiator.”
Mike Benson, executive vp, marketing, ABC Entertainment Group, said ABC typically expects 3-5 percent of users exposed to a promotional campaign online for a new show will actually tune in. Given the young male audience of the Xbox, they are shooting for 10-15 percent. “As we all know, audiences have become incredibly fragmented,” said Benson. “For a show like Flash Forward…We actually think that with Xbox, we’ll get a deeper, more engaged audience that will spend a lot of time with it.”
Source: MediaWeek
Disney's freshman drama "FlashForward" has been picked up by 10 broadcasters in the Asia Pacific region, covering some 40 countries.
The series toplining Joseph Fiennes and John Cho was acquired by terrestrial broadcasters Seven (Australia), TVB (Hong Kong), Media Prima (Malaysia), TVNZ (New Zealand), MediaCorp. (Singapore), ABS-CBN (Philippines) and by payboxes Fox International Channels (covering Southeat Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan), Zee Cafe (India), OCN (Korea) and Singtel (Singapore).
The series premieres in the U.S. on Sept. 24 on ABC.
In keeping with major U.S. suppliers' recent moves to time the launch of their shows abroad as close to U.S. debut as possible, Disney is working with Seven Down Under to facilitate launch there on Sept. 28 and with MediaCorp. in Singapore to go to air Oct. 4.
In addition, Fox International Channels will begin beaming "FlashForward" on dates staggered around Taiwan and all SE Asian markets, launching first in the Philippines on Star World (Dec. 10).
A catch-up TV service for "FlashForward" within 12 hours of the local telecast will be available in Oz and in Singapore as part of a strategy to ensure the widest audience possible.
No word on the pricing for the series was available, though top-tier U.S. dramas can rake in as much as $1 million per episode from all their terrestrial and pay TV deals combined. Racking up so many deals ahead of U.S. launch -- and ahead of the MIPCOM program sales bazaar in Cannes Oct. 5-9 -- suggests that the show has momentum and is getting decent license fees.
Rob Gilby, senior vp and managing director of Disney's TV unit in the Asia Pacific region, described the series, not surprisingly, as "the buzz show of the new U.S. TV season": "With the show's global themes and relatable characters, our partners have been aggressively marketing 'FlashForward' as a key show in their programming schedule."
To reinforce the importance of the overseas market for "FlashForward," Jessika Borsiczky, one of the executive producers of the show, will be on hand at MIPCOM to talk to other prospective buyers about the plans for the show's evolving story lines.
Earlier in the week, Disney announced deals for the show with free and pay TV broadcasters in 12 territories across Europe and the Middle East.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
