 Chat: David Kemper & Ben Browder                        | |||||||
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Chat: David Kemper & Ben Browder
TranscriptModerator: Welcome to the Farscape web chat, and a big hello to our guests Ben Browder and David Kemper. For the next hour you will be able to ask them questions on FARSCAPE...
David Kemper: B -- Haven't read it yet. Will soon.
Ben Browder: First... welcome everyone
David Kemper: The core difference between Farscape and all the other
Moderator: Pegasus3: A question to Ben - What were your expectations when you got the role of John Crichton? David Kemper: He always wanted to do a show that was at once "real"
Ben Browder: Let's deal with one question at a time David Kemper: behave as real individuals, with faults, desires and dreams... not all of them good.
Ben Browder: My expectations... none
Moderator: Pegasus3: How much feedback do you get from the different places of the world where the show is being aired? (Hi from Germany, btw...) Ben Browder: I think that that is what the audience responds to.
David Kemper: The feedback we get is mostly positive, and we use it to see where we're clicking and where we aren't. Ben Browder: feel free to jump in on me Dave David Kemper: Do we have another Q? Moderator: Caged_bat_of_MyStErY: You're getting to work with some very talented actors in the show, you all seem to have knitted as quite a team, is there ever friction on the sets that causes family tiffs? Ben Browder: ...
David Kemper: I hate Ben, if that's what you mean! Ben Browder: Rygel is an ego maniac
Moderator: Neo's: Question to Ben - If you had the chance to meet anyone past or present - (1) who would it be and why (2) what question would you ask them? David Kemper: The real answer is: We're just like any other workplace. Sometimes passions run high, especially when we're all trying to work fast in a creative environment. Ben Browder: We have a superb group of people
Moderator: Neo's: Question to Ben - If you had the chance to meet anyone past or present - (1) who would it be and why (2) what question would you ask them? Ben Browder: wow
Moderator: SpeedIN_1: "How many white T-shirts did u pack on the shuttle?" Ben Browder: ask her out for a date... see if the rumours are true
Moderator: Ugh! Ben Browder: But there are any number of commerce planets
Moderator: Sorry with you in a mo... David Kemper: Awaiting a question, Moderator. Ben Browder: I believe our moderator is in Chat hell Moderator: Wibble: Question for BEN - What's it like talking to Latex Puppets? Ben Browder: It's a childhood fantasy fulfilled
David Kemper: Hey -- does everybody in the U.K know that Ben is writing a script for us for the third season about to go into production. Ben Browder: Rygel is David by extension
Moderator: SimonLondon: Do you realise you
Ben Browder: I don't
Moderator: SimonLondon: Do you realise you have a huge gay following in the UK? David Kemper: I apologize, but for the last how-every-long, I have seen nothing cross my screen. It does appear, however, that they have just solved the problem. Kemper is back. Ben Browder: did not know that David Kemper: I would assume that
Ben Browder: Is D'argo big as well? David Kemper: Am I correct? Ben Browder: must be the leather?
Moderator: Sorry having a few technical hitches here! Ben Browder: we make the show to tell STORIES
Moderator: SurfWidow: Ben have you been doing any cameo appearances in your time off? Ben Browder: I've been working only on Farscape... as David can tell you David Kemper: Ben was on a U.S. comedy program, "Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher awhile ago. Ben Browder: have virtually NOT stopped working on it/for it since we began over two years ago
Moderator: Cerell: Do you have any idea of where in the season Ben's scripted episode will show up? Ben Browder: David? David Kemper: Somewhere in the first third of the season. Moderator: I think David is having a few problems - we're on the case... Ben Browder: season three Moderator: SurfWidow: Ben, have you been recognized in public in the U.S. due to Farscape? Ben Browder: I've been working on it all weekend
Moderator: ed: Is Rygel as much of a sex god off screen as he is on?! Ben Browder: but I have spent little time stateside the past two years
Moderator: Bless! Ben Browder: I must say... he does score big with a certain class of woman Moderator: scotsman62: I'd like to ask, how long does one episode of Farscape take to make? Ben Browder: and like I said... David is really Ryge; David Kemper: On the set Ben Browder: Shooting lasts a minimum of 10 days David Kemper: it takes us 100 hours-plus of shooting.
Ben Browder: post production can last for months David Kemper: ready to air, the time from is roughly 6 months. Ben Browder: ga Moderator: ga indeed! Ben Browder: ga... GO AHEAD
Moderator: Nope - technical! David Kemper: Anyone have any questions that go to the core of the series? Character? Plotlines? Direction of the series as a whole? Let's try to get a little deeper if we can. Ben and I are ready to deal! Moderator: Sorry - with you in a mo Ben Browder: like I said Chat hell
Moderator: Pegasus3: David how many episodes have you already written/prepared when you start filming? Ben Browder: David never stops writing...
David Kemper: Once again, I am NOT seeing the questions that the Moderator is posting. A bit in the dark here in L.A. Ben Browder: David.. the q was ... how many scripts are ready before we star shooting
David Kemper: Scripts?
Ben Browder: yeah... those things you are supposed to write David Kemper: There are usually about half-dozen as we roll cameras
Ben Browder: WE will be adjusting up to the very last take David Kemper: that we like, we'll adjust and include them/it in upcoming stories. Ben Browder: it's part of what makes the show different Moderator: Naron: Did Ben or David have any interest in SF prior to Farscape? David Kemper: It's fluid and makes a better show, but also drives the writers crazy -- most notably
Ben Browder: I'm a bit of a scifi geek
David Kemper: Moderator -- I am still not seeing your questions! Ben, can you please help with translations? Moderator: Sorry David - hang in there! Ben Browder: It's Cultural David... the Brits do not talk as loud as we do? Moderator: WHAT!!!
Ben Browder: you can spot the Yank... two cars away on the underground by the sound of his voice
David Kemper: Rock and I are working on a story. The trick is to find the time to squeeze in a major
Ben Browder: Plus... getting Tom cruise to play Crichton has been holding you up. Moderator: Dark: did anything embarrassing happen while filming the show? Ben Browder: Ep 14 season 1. David Kemper: Embarrassing? Ben?
Ben Browder: any scene where the writers spice it up with those words....
Moderator: pokehater: have you ever considered giving Farscape more of a story arc? Ben Browder: Farscape has a story arc David Kemper: MORE?! Ben Browder: it's just not ALL it has David Kemper: The whole series is one giant arc that has the characters
Ben Browder: there are long arc bits seeded in almost every episode Moderator: Sorry about the delay here - so many users the server is a bit slow! Ben Browder: I take that back.... In EVERY episode
Moderator: VelvetGlove: A question to Ben: in the episode where you all swapped bodies
Ben Browder: Rygel
David Kemper: Careful, Ben--
Ben Browder: glad you caught that Moderator: Jules: The story lines are amazing how do you come up with such original ideas? Ben Browder: you're smarter than you look David Kemper: I don't look smart... Ben Browder: David Drinks David Kemper: Stories? Ben Browder: He makes the writers drink David Kemper: Some are truly original and come from the minds of Rockne
Ben Browder: we should call it the farscape..Torture David Kemper: And then, we want to switch-up on you! Ben Browder: we Tortured that story... Moderator: Agape - Do you feel Farscape has achieved a new way at looking at science fiction? David Kemper: We DO NOT torture stories. We only torture actors.
Ben Browder: We really just do classic story telling David Kemper: That is what we try to do.
Ben Browder: it's all in execution... David Kemper: We push the genre closer to a truthful grittiness than many of
Moderator: ChaoticDreamer: Howdy David, have you ever thought of doing some acting yourself? David Kemper: It's what made Rockne so excited by the show, and all of the writers have fallen in with that way of thinking. Ben Browder: I want him to... David Kemper: Hey, ChaoticDreamer. Ben Browder: I want David Kemper on the set.... David Kemper: Are you mad?!
Ben Browder: in prosthetics David Kemper: opening to tell me, "See how hard it is, you X**X%!!ZXX** moron?" Ben Browder: hitting his mark and saying the words David Kemper: I prefer to stay "ignorant" and ask them all to do the impossible week after week. Ben Browder: I would never presume to tell you anything David
David Kemper: David has just fallen off his chair. Ben Browder: David and I have a "healthy" relationship
David Kemper: He's telling the truth. Ben is one of my very best friends. Over the years, we have
Ben Browder: David... our gay friends our listening
Moderator: Cush: How are the aliens designed? David Kemper: You are so asking for trouble out in cyberspace! Moderator: Does Creature Shop come up with ideas based on the writers description, characteristics? Ben Browder: The man is a slave driver David Kemper: Alien Design:
Ben Browder: then hand it to lunatics David Kemper: Then, we run it past Dave Elsey (head of the Creature Shop in Oz) and
Ben Browder: read... lunatics David Kemper: Dave designs a beastie to go with the story we're creating, careful Ben Browder: Dave Elsey is a Brit ya know David Kemper: to include the elements we need to pull off the plot points. Moderator: jtbethel: are you expecting to add further full time characters, if so, give hint David Kemper: Oh, now...
Ben Browder: Well.... we have to replace the one's we're killing don't we? David Kemper: you wouldn't want to tune in and watch. Moderator: kingbing question for Ben: how do you feel about the changes to Crichton's character? David Kemper: Let me just say that we're a "fluid" show --
Ben Browder: David... how do you feel about the change in Crichton?
Moderator: Koey: How many seasons is Farscape set to run for? Ben Browder: It's a sign that the show and show runners are doing something right...I think David Kemper: Crichton has evolved because Ben is evolving in the character. A lot of what we do is keyed off of where he leads the ensemble.
Ben Browder: two? David Kemper: I'd like to think 5-7 years, if you all keep watching. Ben Browder: LOL
Moderator: Sounds good to us! Ben Browder: oh... wait... Crichton will be so DEAD by then Moderator: Agape Do you feel Farscape has achieved David Kemper: By the time 7 years comes around, Ben Browder will be SOOOO beat up! Moderator: a new way at looking at science fiction? Ben Browder: I'll be dead by then David Kemper: Didn't we already answer that question? Ben Browder: David will be dead by then. David Kemper: For sure. Ben Browder: next question Moderator: on its way Ben Browder: snail mail Moderator: Leepee Is Aaron anything like her character in real life? David Kemper: Moderator, whenever it is we get to the end, I'd like to say something to the fans before you open the room to chaos. Moderator: no prob! David Kemper: "Aeryn"\
Ben Browder: Aeryn like Claudia? David Kemper: However, their creations spring partially from a place inside. Ben Browder: Claude is actually sexier David Kemper: In some respects, Claudia and Aeryn necessarily overlap. Ben Browder: smarter
David Kemper: When we see the areas an actor likes to explore or deal with, we
Moderator: liam: Where did the idea for a living starship come from? David Kemper: In that regard, we're very fortunate. All of our people (including in a huge way, Ben and Claudia) have those characteristics. Ben Browder: Where did we steal that one David? David Kemper: Rockne S. O'Bannon came up with idea that Ben Browder: the living Starship... David Kemper: Moya was a living ship.
Moderator: Spacefish: have you tried to tackle any of the stereotypes
David Kemper: We tackle them every week
Ben Browder: We torture the stereotype ... every week
Moderator: Yodaclone: Were the mythological elements to the show (ie comparisons to Ulysee's journey) Ben Browder: "the Farscape treatment." Moderator: intentional, or accidental? (George Lucas says he owes a lot to this kind of archetypical storytelling) David Kemper: I think
Moderator: YenRug: Request for Ben: Can you tell Claudia that Pitch Black has just opened in the UK cinemas! Ben Browder: Will do.
Moderator: Vexzil: Did you ever expect the series to be so popular and , in my opinion, become a serious rival to Star Trek? David Kemper: We ALWAYS expected the series to be "different." Ben Browder: Expect... no David Kemper: It's what Rockne and myself and Ben always wanted. Ben Browder: Hope... sure Moderator: Sentinel: If the voices of the puppets are added later, have you met the actors who do the talking? David Kemper: Then, we HOPED that there were others out there who shared our craving for "different."
Ben Browder: That and we want to be wildly rich and famous
David Kemper: Rygel, Pilot and the others
Ben Browder: I know all the actors who regularly voice those characters Moderator: RonniePc: For Mr Kemper : How do you find writers who can keep the story exciting without getting too weird? David Kemper: I find weird writers.
Ben Browder: that's not a joke David Kemper: We try to surprise each other daily. If we do, then we know we'll surprise you1 Ben Browder: our writers are weird and wonderful
Moderator: pauls: Would either of you like to direct? Ben Browder: yes... but, David Kemper: Directing is a fantastic
Ben Browder: it would be almost impossible on Farscape David Kemper: to take the helm for an episode, we'd be taking a job
Ben Browder: our current Jobs are all consuming and our current directors are too frelling good. Moderator: mr: do you believe in extra terrestrial life? David Kemper: Do I?
Ben Browder: David is Extra terrestrial life. David Kemper: How can there be trillions and trillions and star, most of which Ben Browder: Either that or he works for the pentagon David Kemper: will probably have planets of some kind. And how can we believe
Ben Browder: Yes... It's out there. David Kemper: I mean, we already know there was once water on Mars, as well as Moderator: Just a few more questions then we have to say goodbye... David Kemper: frozen water on many of the moons farther out in our own solar system. Moderator: ChaoticDreamer: David and Ben, you both have wicked senses of humour
David Kemper: Ben says funny things. Ben Browder: David and I are both boring introverts David Kemper: Also, we try to play the odd practical joke on each other. Ben Browder: other people write things for us David Kemper: For instance, every week, I send Ben another script that has him getting his arse kicked. Ben Browder: the secret to success... is to have someone else do the hard work David Kemper: Stuff like that.
Ben Browder: WE HAVE FUN David Kemper: everyone around us has the same twisted, warped sense of humour.
Moderator: AutumnH: For David, what would you say are the biggest challenges you are facing going into season 3? And thanks for being here! David Kemper: And thank you.
Ben Browder: better scripts? David Kemper: Keeping everyone from getting so tired that we "drop" moments
Ben Browder: we never drop stuff David Kemper: And most important of all-- Ben Browder: we choose to be mysterious David Kemper: Continue to foster and environment where we can all have fun and enjoy ourselves
Ben Browder: amen
Moderator: Adriana: David, which kind of scenes do you enjoy most writing? -- Ben, which kinds of scenes do you enjoy most acting? Ben Browder: I like the difficult ones David Kemper: I like the scenes that delve into the characters
Ben Browder: the ones that scare the bejesus out of an actor David Kemper: I like to watch as the layers we all Ben Browder: the ones where you say... How are we gonna do THAT? David Kemper: paste over ourselves slide away to reveal the true individual beneath.
Moderator: zaph!: Hi I have a question for Ben - Now that he has seen himself as an old man how has that made him feel about his old age? Ben Browder: And I love a scene with a really good Joke in it.
David Kemper: That day -- with Ben looking like he did -- made it okay for him to forget things and gave an excuse for him taking more bathroom breaks than usual. Ben Browder: I guess the trick to growing old is to not see yourself through other peoples eyes Moderator: Mk2000: I would like to ask Ben how he feels his acting ability has progressed
Ben Browder: I did get away with some rude behaviour
David Kemper: Ben has always been a great actor, in my opinion. Where he has improved revolves around his willingness to be absolutely fearless. This, as I spoke of earlier, is a trait that the man himself brings to us, and we have accepted that part of him and worked very hard to push him to the brink. Moderator: H9: Ben - If you were not playing the part of Crichton, which other character would you like to portray any why? And, how would you like Crichton to progress? Ben Browder: Crichton is in Kempers hands David Kemper: CAREFUL with the hands again. Ben Browder: I don't presume to anything other than live in the writers stories
David Kemper: And, of course, this year, writing one himself that he'll then have to live in (and with) forever! Ben Browder: as to other roles....
Moderator: Last few questions... Moderator: Blue_Dragon: what's been the hardest episode to make? David Kemper: Whooo. They're all tough. Ben? Ben Browder: The next one
David Kemper: If pressed, from a script point-of-view, I'd say "Out of Their Minds." From a production point-of-view, I'd say the Ben Browder: That was easy... David Kemper: huge four-part arc (upcoming) that ends the second season. Moderator: LogicBomb: In the episodes where Scorpion causes John to go fruity...it reminds me of 60s series The Prisoner...is it intentional, and a sign of things to come? David Kemper: Wait
Ben Browder: John goes Fruity... Farscape "the Fruity" Generation David Kemper: then you should NOT be drinking
Moderator: Last question...
David Kemper: Okay, a moment of thought... Ben Browder: Charlie's Angels
David Kemper: 1) A comfortable pair of shoes. Ben Browder: shoes? David Kemper: You're always complaining! Ben Browder: A frickin Mustang convertible
David Kemper: Still thinking... Ben Browder: how about... A huge winnebago... with satellite dish David Kemper: 2) The biggest tank of fresh water I could find. Ben Browder: BEER
David Kemper: 3) And then... Ben Browder: sheesh... he's so serious David Kemper: Charlie's Angels. Ben Browder: yes!!!!! Moderator: Thank you for taking part - especially David and Ben - thanks for visiting Sci-Fi UK!
David Kemper: Ben? You or me first? Ben Browder: me
David Kemper: Say when... Ben Browder: and perfectly spelled
David Kemper: We exist because of you. Once you stop watching, we're cancelled and all of us then will say goodbye to each other and move on to separate projects.
Ben Browder: Night Ya'll David Kemper: Goodnight, all!!!!! Thanks for coming! See you on the next chat.
Moderator: Thanks & g'night from Sci-Fi!
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