If we didn't think we could do the show up right for the money we've got,
we wouldn't be doing it.

Given that I can log on here even in the midst of production on the show
I'm currently doing, MURDER, SHE WROTE, I figure I can keep on showing up
throughout the B-5 production.

To the question of vision...yes, this is entirely my baby in that
respect. There has to be direction, firm and complete, from the top for ANY
show to be successful, I think. But what you then have to do is get people
you trust involved AND LISTEN TO THEM. You tell your tech guys, "Okay, what I
want to do in this scene is X, how can we do that?" and they give you options.
Let them run with it. Then take whatever works best visually and for the
story. By giving every person the freedom to be creative, the show works
better, the attitude is better, and it all accrues to the benefit of the
person running things.

We don't at this time have a science advisor per se, though that's
something we're considering when we get to series. There's certainly a solid
brain-trust available at JPL, which is practically down the street. (Curious
thought...we don't normally expect SF writers to hire science advisors, they
tend to do their OWN work...and I think that as much as possible, I'd like to
try and hew to that standard. I'm not a major science guy, but I know enough
to hold a conversation, and by going to writers who ALREADY ARE SF WRITERS, I
think that will go a long way toward taking care of the problem. But one way
or another, we're still thinking about it. We already have a visual
consultant, and we'll have a creative consultant when we get to series to make
sure we don't accidentally duplicate any stories already in the SF
literature.)

One last note re: the B-5 logo. Again, that's an early version. The
finished (for now at least) version is in, and it's being used on all of our
mailings and the like. It's the same basic design, but it's in burnished
copper and gold against jet black, and it looks like it's been carved out of
solid steel, with a slightly 3-D look. That symbol, btw, will also be used IN
the show. The upper, pyramidal section will be incorporated into rank
insignia, with a separate bar below finishing off the symbol. The symbol will
be altered to fit various professions and status. That, at least, is the plan
for now.

Almost 2/3rds finished revising the movie script. I hope to have the
darned thing finished soon. We can't do SQUAT until it's in hand. So here I
am, an exec producer, waiting impatiently for the damned writer to finish his
rewrite...and it's me.

jms