Clear Skies 2 Release Delayed: Expected Later Today
Out Of The Blue - With release of the sequel to the smash-hit holoreel "Clear Skies" expected shortly, anticipation among capsuleers is high; many waited all night in the hopes of being among the first to view the holo. The initial upload of the holodata to Chribba's distribution facility was plagued with difficulties for the already anxious team, and the final, lengthy upload of the movie failed for reasons presently unknown.
The Clear Skies team continued working throughout the night and still hope for a release later today. Chribba has confirmed that the holo will be available both by direct download and through peer-to-peer distribution.
Clear Skies 2 has been in production for 11 months and will run for some 46 minutes - approximately 10% longer than its predecessor, series creator John Rourke estimated.
Every scene in the film was written and crafted by Mr Rourke, down to the last flicker of the in-ship displays and the writing on the walls. Indeed, the level of detail is such in the scenes that capsuleers may well want to view it more than once to examine the wry evocation of details of a pilot's life that many will find familiar.
John Rourke described his feelings as the first public screenings approach. "I wrote the first one for myself as a creative outlet. This one I've written for everyone else, as a thank you." He did admit, however, that he would be keenly watching to see how the production is received.
When asked what he would be doing next, Mr Rourke said "I've done this for 3.5 years straight; I'm going to do almost anything else! Beer first though. I've got the bloopers to do and a "Making Of" featurette that's aimed at giving me [further] experience of... filming but that'll be more relaxed as to when I do it.
"I think [there's going to be a] "...What do I do with myself" kind of sensation. Suddenly no default "thing to do" like I've had for the previous three years.
"First person to mention making a third one gets a kick in the Auxiliary Thrusters."
Mr Rourke was assisted with Clear Skies 2's large-scale action sequences by Promithius of Quam Singulari, who took on the job of organizing large numbers of volunteer pilots on the Singularity simulator so that John could film certain difficult shots. It took some six hours of filming to finally obtain the footage used in the final version. John and Promithius discussed it:
John Rourke: "[The tactics we show] are a nonsense, by the way; nothing like actual fighting."
Promithius: "I thought it looked good."
John Rourke: "That's the point!"
Promithius: "No, the choreography... is nothing like real tactics. Real fleet fights are cluttered with [module] effects and lights; not very photogenic."
John Rourke: "The results of Prommie's efforts are spectacular; I couldn't have done it without him."
It was not all clear skies and smooth sailing shooting the battle sequences, by any means.
Promithius: "It seemed that in our efforts to make things look good we overlooked the need for damage output."
John Rourke: "Yeah, especially that berk showing up in a supertanked Machariel. Rigged and with three 1600mm plates; it just wouldn't die with our [puny] guns."
Promithius: "Gaiden, I've still not forgiven you for that!"
Being unable to destroy a ship is the inverse of a problem from the original Clear Skies, where John used a Raven in a pivotal combat scene. He explained "I forgot there was a [simulator]. Blowing the Raven up cost me 110 milion ISK." He made sure, however, that he only had to do it once.
The Interstellar Correspondents will continue to keep you updated throughout the day as to progress on release of the film, and fans should also watch the General Discussion section of GalNet for Mr Rourke's announcement.
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