Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics (2010) (V)

Director:

Mac Carter

Writer:

Mac Carter (written by)

Release Date:

9 November 2010 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | History

Plot:

A look at the history of the comic book publication that launched such legendary characters as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. |

Plot Keywords:

Comic Book | Cultural Revolution | New York | Government | Superhero

Cast

Ryan Reynolds	...	Narrator
Zack Snyder	...	Himself (archive footage)
David Cronenberg	...	Himself (archive footage)
Bryan Singer	...	Himself (archive footage)
Frank Langella	...	Perry White (archive footage)
Sam Huntington	...	Jimmy Olsen (archive footage)
Margot Kidder	...	Lois Lane (archive footage)
Lynda Carter	...	Wonder Woman (archive footage)
Francis Lawrence	...	Himself (archive footage)
Frank Miller	...	Himself (archive footage)
Richard Donner	...	Himself (archive footage)
Ronald Reagan	...	Himself (archive footage)
Neil Gaiman	...	Himself
James McTeigue	...	Himself (archive footage)
George Reeves	...	Clark Kent / Superman (archive footage)
John F. Kennedy	...	Himself (archive footage)
Pat Boone	...	Himself (archive footage)
Michael Bell	...	Zan (archive footage)
Bob Kane	...	Himself (archive footage)
Alan Moore	...	Himself (archive footage)
Franklin D. Roosevelt	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
Jerry Siegel	...	Himself (archive footage)
J. Edgar Hoover	...	Himself (archive footage)
Ilya Salkind	...	Himself (archive footage)
Joe Shuster	...	Himself (archive footage)
Geoff Johns	...	Himself
Grant Morrison	...	Himself
Dwayne McDuffie	...	Himself
William Woodson	...	Narrator (archive footage)
Bud Collyer	...	Clark Kent / Superman (archive footage)
Marv Wolfman	...	Himself
Alexander Salkind	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jim Lee	...	Himself
Len Wein	...	Himself
William M. Gaines	...	Himself (archive footage)
Neal Adams	...	Himself
Denny O'Neil	...	Himself (as Dennis O'Neil)
Paul Levitz	...	Himself
Mark Waid	...	Himself
Dan Didio	...	Himself
Karen Berger	...	Herself
Louise Simonson	...	Herself
Kyle Baker	...	Himself
Harry Donenfeld	...	Himself (archive footage)
Gerard Jones	...	Himself
Walter Simonson	...	Himself
Joe Kubert	...	Himself
Paul Pope	...	Himself
Mike Carlin	...	Himself
Irwin Hasen	...	Himself
Jack Liebowitz	...	Himself (archive footage)
William M. Marston	...	Himself (archive footage)
Chip Kidd	...	Himself
Irwin Donenfeld	...	Himself
Julius Schwartz	...	Himself (archive footage)
Jerry Ordway	...	Himself (archive footage)

Directed by
Mac Carter

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Mac Carter		written by

Produced by
Jeffrey Blitz	....	executive producer
Ivan Cohen	....	co-producer
Janet Fries Eckholm	....	producer (as Janet Eckholm)
Gregory Noveck	....	producer
Sean Welch	....	producer

Original Music by
Shaun Drew

Cinematography by
Chad Wilson		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Yana Gorskaya

Art Department
Neal Adams	....	art contributor
Murphy Anderson	....	art contributor
Ross Andru	....	art contributor
Bernard Baily	....	art contributor
Matt Baker	....	art contributor
C.C. Beck	....	art contributor
Ed Benes	....	art contributor
Lee Bermejo	....	art contributor
Simone Bianchi	....	art contributor
Simon Bisley	....	art contributor
Brian Bolland	....	art contributor
Henry Boltinoff	....	art contributor
Richard Buckler	....	art contributor
Jack Burnley	....	art contributor
J. Scott Campbell	....	art contributor
Nick Cardy	....	art contributor
Mauro Cascioli	....	art contributor
Darwyn Cooke	....	art contributor
Denys Cowan	....	art contributor
Maurice Del Bourgo	....	art contributor
Dick Dillin	....	art contributor
Ed Dobrotka	....	art contributor
Glenn Fabry	....	art contributor
David Finch	....	art contributor
Lou Fine	....	art contributor
Creig Flessel	....	art contributor
Gill Fox	....	art contributor
Ramona Fradon	....	art contributor
Joe Gallagher	....	art contributor
Frank Giacoia	....	art contributor
Dave Gibbons	....	art contributor
Dick Giordano	....	art contributor
Tony Harris	....	art contributor
Bryan Hitch	....	art contributor
Adam Hughes	....	art contributor
Carmine Infantino	....	art contributor
James Jean	....	art contributor
J.G. Jones	....	art contributor
Dan Jurgens	....	art contributor
Bob Kane	....	art contributor
Gil Kane	....	art contributor
Stan Kaye	....	art contributor
Jack Kirby	....	art contributor
Joe Kubert	....	art contributor
Jim Lee	....	art contributor
David Lloyd	....	art contributor
Francis Manapul	....	art contributor
John McCrea	....	art contributor
Dave McKean	....	art contributor
Mike Mignola	....	art contributor
Frank Miller	....	art contributor
Sheldon Moldoff	....	art contributor
Martin Naydel	....	art contributor
George Perez	....	art contributor
Harry G. Peter	....	art contributor
Al Plastino	....	art contributor
Howard Porter	....	art contributor
Frank Quitely	....	art contributor
Fred Ray	....	art contributor
Jerry Robinson	....	art contributor
Johnny Romita	....	art contributor
Alex Ross	....	art contributor
George Roussos	....	art contributor
Ira Schapp	....	art contributor
Mike Sekowsky	....	art contributor
Howard Sherman	....	art contributor
Joe Shuster	....	art contributor
Joe Simon	....	art contributor
Vincent Sullivan	....	art contributor
Curt Swan	....	art contributor
George Tuska	....	art contributor
Ethan Van Sciver	....	art contributor
J.H. Williams III	....	art contributor
Wally Wood	....	art contributor
Bernie Wrightson	....	art contributor
Thomas Yeates	....	art contributor

Sound Department
Joe Milner	....	sound re-recording mixer
Joe Milner	....	supervising sound editor
Billy Theriot	....	adr mixer

Camera and Electrical Department
Justin R. Cook	....	grip (as Justin Cook)
Josh Day	....	gaffer

Animation Department
Ed Dunning	....	animator
Felix Kawamura	....	animator
Bryant Little	....	lead animator
Jake Mendez	....	animator
Jeffrey Pittle	....	animator
Joshua Kirk Ryan	....	animator (as Joshua Ryan)
Alex Skramble	....	animator

Editorial Department
Matthew Blackshear	....	digital intermediate editor
Michael Cioni	....	digital intermediate supervisor
Mark T. Osborne	....	digital intermediate colorist

Music Department
Shaun Drew	....	music editor
Shaun Drew	....	music supervisor

Other crew
Adam Hyman	....	archival researcher

Production Companies

• DC Entertainment

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Home Video (2010) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Puget Sound  post-production sound services

Also Known As:

Runtime:

USA:90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

DC Entertainment

Movie Connections:

Features "Wonder Woman" (1975)

This is What Comics Mean to Me

Like most comic readers, I am surrounded by people who simply just don't get it. Even in 2010 with superhero movies charting the box office, many people still view comics as simple childish escapism.

Now I can show them this documentary as an explanation of how important the comics industry is to the world. It's our modern mythology. DC comics has been around for 75 years and in that time A lot has happened, not just in the comics but in the real world as well. So naturally there's only so much you can fit into an hour-and-a-half documentary.

But it talks about all the most notable and important moments and people, it shows the evolution of these character and their stories and how they adapted to the times. Comics aren't removed from reality, they make a statement about it.

A common complaint I've heard about this film is that it skips Infinite Crisis completely, not even a single mention made. While I agree it was a significant series historically, I believe it's too complex of a plot to accurately summarize and justify within the time limit. I think it would have completely disrupted the pacing. As it is, this documentary is light easy viewing filled with all sorts of interesting trivia. The kind of thing to bring new people into comics.

Any one of the many things they covered in this documentary could have had their own films. Like Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman or any single member of the Justice League could easily fill movie on their own. So I appreciate that they managed to successfully compress a titanic amount of information while still doing it justice.

I also love that it focuses on the personal and emotional connection people make to these superheroes. It definitely sells the idea that there's more gravity to the genre than the reputation would have you believe. And at no point does it seem like the people who are passionate about comics are pathetic losers. It encompasses a wide variety of people, some of them very talented who went on to working in the industry themselves.

If only I could have shown this to my parents when I still had dreams of being a comic artist. Oh well, costume designer is close enough.