"Terra Incognita: Making The Andromeda Strain" is a 28-minute documentary short made in 2008. It was to accompany the DVD release of a full movie of the 4-part TV mini-series that aired that year on the A&E network. This short has interviews with some of the production staff and members of the cast. It shows some of the behind the scenes production, set work, other technical aspects and location shooting.
Those interviewed include executive producers Daniel Zucker, Tom Thayer and Ridley and Tony Scott. Others are producer and writer Clara George, director Mikael Salomon, and production designer Jerry Wanek. Wanek is the most interesting. He describes their visits to various science labs around the U. S., and then the decision to build their own futuristic lab complex for the set.
Members of the cast also commented on the series and film. They included Benjamin Bratt who plays Dr. Jeremy Stone, Christa Miller who plays Dr. Angela Noyce, Ricky Schroder who plays Major bill Keane MD, Eric McCormack who plays Jack Nash, and Viola Davis who plays Dr. Charlene Barton. Overall, they talked about the extreme heat they worked in during the filming in Canada. Most of the outdoor scenes were shot in the Thompson River and mountains area of central British Columbia.
Bratt said that they had taken over the small town of Hedley, where the local people were in the cast as the dead civilians on the streets. Various actors said the heat was 112 degrees, 110 to 115 degrees, and about 140 degrees inside their protective suits. Yet, the film snippets don't show anyone with so much as a drop of sweat or with any signs of perspiration.
Bratt and Schroder especially seemed to be selling the film, promoting it as a better film than the original.
Of their effort with the remake of the original film, Mikael Salomon says, "The most important thing is probably not to bore people - but keep 'em entertained." They had some production obstacles to get through. Tom Thayer says, "We got very lucky very quickly." And, David Zucker says, "The big challenge on this picture was, we didn't have an enormous cast budget, but we had a, a very sharp script." And, director Salomon says they were able to have a more diverse cast than that in the original film.
Of course there was some diversity in the cast of the original film, and there the producers made it a point not to cast leading actors of the day. That was to give a sense of greater reality and believability. Yet they did go with a cast of quality supporting actors of the period.
One can appreciate the location information and shooting clips outdoors, and the information about the high-tech lab set. But, this short has a feel of scripted salesmanship for the film. There's not much of a human sense about working on the film or of the people on locations. In a way, it reflects the same almost wooden sense of the cast in the movie itself.
Still, those who like information about how movies are made, with blue and green screens and special effects, should find this documentary short mildly interesting.
Those interviewed include executive producers Daniel Zucker, Tom Thayer and Ridley and Tony Scott. Others are producer and writer Clara George, director Mikael Salomon, and production designer Jerry Wanek. Wanek is the most interesting. He describes their visits to various science labs around the U. S., and then the decision to build their own futuristic lab complex for the set.
Members of the cast also commented on the series and film. They included Benjamin Bratt who plays Dr. Jeremy Stone, Christa Miller who plays Dr. Angela Noyce, Ricky Schroder who plays Major bill Keane MD, Eric McCormack who plays Jack Nash, and Viola Davis who plays Dr. Charlene Barton. Overall, they talked about the extreme heat they worked in during the filming in Canada. Most of the outdoor scenes were shot in the Thompson River and mountains area of central British Columbia.
Bratt said that they had taken over the small town of Hedley, where the local people were in the cast as the dead civilians on the streets. Various actors said the heat was 112 degrees, 110 to 115 degrees, and about 140 degrees inside their protective suits. Yet, the film snippets don't show anyone with so much as a drop of sweat or with any signs of perspiration.
Bratt and Schroder especially seemed to be selling the film, promoting it as a better film than the original.
Of their effort with the remake of the original film, Mikael Salomon says, "The most important thing is probably not to bore people - but keep 'em entertained." They had some production obstacles to get through. Tom Thayer says, "We got very lucky very quickly." And, David Zucker says, "The big challenge on this picture was, we didn't have an enormous cast budget, but we had a, a very sharp script." And, director Salomon says they were able to have a more diverse cast than that in the original film.
Of course there was some diversity in the cast of the original film, and there the producers made it a point not to cast leading actors of the day. That was to give a sense of greater reality and believability. Yet they did go with a cast of quality supporting actors of the period.
One can appreciate the location information and shooting clips outdoors, and the information about the high-tech lab set. But, this short has a feel of scripted salesmanship for the film. There's not much of a human sense about working on the film or of the people on locations. In a way, it reflects the same almost wooden sense of the cast in the movie itself.
Still, those who like information about how movies are made, with blue and green screens and special effects, should find this documentary short mildly interesting.