Now when most people hear we have an Executive Producers' Assistant on a production, they'll invariably ask: "What the hell do you need an assistant for?". Well, the obvious answer is: "Everything." Once we roll into prep, production, and post, Executive Producers like me are far too busy to deal with certain aspects of…
October 22, 2014: Introducing Vanessa Piazza!
Production on Dark Matter will be uniquely challenging for a number of reasons, not the least of which being the fact that my long-time writing and producing partner, Paul, won't be making the move to Toronto to show run the series with me. Instead, he'll come down for a week of meetings in November, return for prep…
October 21, 2014: Introducing Jay Firestone! Notes! And carpet heaven!
As we head into prep on the first season of Dark Matter, I thought it might be nice to introduce you to some of the people who work behind the scenes to bring you (what will no doubt become) your new favorite new scifi series. Now people have often asked me: "Joe, what does a producer…
October 20, 2014: Early prep on Dark Matter begins!
Okay. I may not love where I'm presently living and I may hate the weather and the Toronto traffic but, boy, am I looking forward to production on Dark Matter's first season. Yes, of course I'm thrilled that I'm about to start prep on my very own show, but experience has taught me that, at the…
October 17, 2014: Prepping for the Toronto move! And a modest mailbag!
That's it. We're out of time. Ready or not, we are on a plane and Toronto-bound tomorrow morning. I'm super anxious about flying with the dogs - but have done my best to prepare them for the four and half hour in-cabin flight. I spent an hour on the phone with Air Canada, making the…
October 16, 2014: Dark Matter! Casting! The Ramp-up! Oh, and my birthday!
So now that it's official, I can finally talk about my new show, Dark Matter, and my plans for the series and this blog in the lead-up to season premiere (sometime in 2015). As most of you know, while I was working on Stargate this blog offered fans a peak at the inner workings of the…
October 15, 2014: Dark Matter!
Big news! I'm not crazy after all - http://tvline.com/2014/10/15/syfy-acquires-dark-matter-graphic-novel-adaptation/ http://www.gateworld.net/news/2014/10/stargate-producers-bring-dark-matter-to-syfy/ So I DIDN'T imagine the whole thing. Unless, of course, this is also part of my elaborate, ongoing hallucination and those url's actually link to the live cam of a cat hotel in Cornwall. But, just in case, I'd like to thank a few of the…
January 8, 2014: Project-hopping! Jelly and me hanging in there! Did you vote for our Book of the Month Club?!
I woke up this morning to find the above-pictured oranges sitting on my kitchen counter, and Paul's pass on our latest script sitting in my inbox. I looked it over, made a few changes, and then sent the script wide - and, in this particular case, "wide" refers to the 3-5 individuals involved in this…
April 16, 2013: Dark Matter developments! Mailbag! My dog eating kale chips!
First things first! My french bulldog, Lulu, eating kale chips. Please raise volume to maximum before viewing: One of the worst kept secrets on this blog has been the identity of that scifi series Paul and I have been trying to set up. As many of you know, back when we were working on Stargate,…
January 23, 2012: Blog Hopping Dark Matter!
A few weeks ago, I was invited to take part in The Next Big Thing blog hop. And what, pray tell, is a "The Next Big Thing blog hop"? Well, it involves me answering a set of ten questions on a recent or upcoming release on this blog, and then forwarding the same questions to…
November 16, 2012: Dark Matter! Mystery Projects! More J-pop and K-pop videos! And the mailbag!
Whew. What a day! It started with a doctor's appointment and ended with a conference call about an exciting potential new project. In between, I fielded texts, emails, and phone calls about Dark Matter, read what Paul has written so far on that "other" project, talked to a lawyer, met with my bank rep, and…
September 26, 2012: Spinning our creative wheels! Dark Matters! Days of Stargate Atlantis past! Midway!
My writing partner, Paul, came over for Day #2 of our spinning session for the new pilot script we're working on. Next to starting a script and, perhaps, passing a kidney stone, there's nothing more painful than outlining a story, especially in those first few days. Ideas are pitched. They're shot down. The story is…
July 15, 2012: Dark Matter at Comic Con!
I'm pleased to report that the Dark Matter signing was a rousing success. I actually made it to the booth on time, people actually showed up, and nobody standing in line stepped up to my counter to order a milkshake and fries. I met some great fans, chatted Stargate and Dark Matter, signed a few comic…
July 14, 2012: Comic Con Day #2!
"I've never seen so much drunk zombies." - Akemi walking home after drinks at the Hilton last night. Well, not really Comic Con Day #2. Actually, the second half of Day #1 and part of Day #2 as the festivities are ongoing. Today = my Dark Matter signing. Where: The Dark Horse Booth (#2615) When: 4:00…
July 13, 2012: Comic Con!
Whenever I travel, the excitement of the upcoming trip is always somewhat muted by the fact that I'll be leaving my dogs behind. I wouldn't mind so much if it weren't for the fact that the dogs KNOW we're leaving and get downright depressed. Bubba paces, Lulu tries to squeeze in as much play time…