Check out this amazing oil painting of Ender done by SidharthChaturvedi on DeviantArt for a show at the Modern Eden gallery in San Francisco, CA.
Blog
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Asa Butterfield on Training, Peter, and Leadership
Asa Butterfield spoke with Hollywood.com recently and reiterated how tough his training was for Ender’s Game.
“It was painful,” he says. “There was all sorts of marching, running. ‘Left face, right face’ where you turn in different directions.” Butterfield admits that the rigorous boot camp helped him form a close bond with his fellow teenage costars — mostly because if they didn’t keep up with one another, they all suffered. “If one person in the group of about 100 extras, and 10 or so cast [members], made a mistake, everyone had to do 10 push-ups. And we’d be jogging and if one person fell behind, we’d have to do 10 push-ups. Then [the trainers would] extend it… because they’re a bit mean [laughs].”
I’d like to use that quote as another chance to say that this is why Ender isn’t 6 in the movie. You can’t really scoff at the ethics of the International Fleet’s practices and then demand that real little kids get put through this kind of an ordeal just for entertainment.
Anyone worried about Butterfield’s understanding of the complicated character Ender Wiggin may feel better about what he has to say about Ender’s moral complexity.
“One of the main ones Gavin and I talked about was leadership,” Butterfield says. “Ender’s way of leading and communicating with other people — not just children, but adults — is completely different. It’s one of the things that makes him shine in the school.” The actor sees Ender’s two older siblings, Peter and Valentine, as ends of a scale that the character drifts between over the course of the film. “One’s completely selfless and open, Peter is the epitome of the worst human being. Ender knows he doesn’t want to be Peter, but at times he can’t help having his dark side shine through.”
Asa also mentioned Ender’s dark side during the “Meet the Fleet” Google+ Hangout from earlier this week:
The interview is a great read, so be sure to head over to Hollywood.com to read the entire thing.
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VLOG: The Weekly Ender #1
Ho, launchies! I’ve started up a weekly vlog called The Weekly Ender where I’ll do a short Ender’s Game related video at the end of the week.
I’m doing it mostly to get better at talking on camera since doing EnderCast every week has helped me learn how to speak continuously. Plus, if I’m going to have a YouTube channel, I need content, right?
Feedback is welcome!
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GALLERY: 179 Hi-Res Screencaps From the ‘Ender’s Game’ Trailer
Those of you wanting to get a really careful close up look at the trailer can now take a look at these 179 screencaps from the Ender’s Game trailer. Lots of cool details to find in them!
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UPDATE: Steve Jablonsky to Score ‘Ender’s Game’
UPDATE: Summit Entertainment has just confirmed with me that Steve Jablonsky will in fact be scoring Ender’s Game.
While the last we heard of the Ender’s Game score was a rumor that James Horner would be doing the film’s score, this was never actually confirmed by Summit. When checking IMDB (which has the Ender’s Game trailer featured on the front page!) today, I noticed that the film’s composer had been changed to Steve Jablonsky.
If you’re not sure who he is by name, you’d most likely recognize his work from the three Transformers films.
Here’s a sampling of his music:
While I was thrilled to hear that James Horner was possibly tied to the project, I’d be really pleased with Jablonsky as well. I thought his scores for all three Transformers movies remained great scores even while the entertainment quality of the third movie dipped rather drastically (in my humble opinion).
This story is still a rumor, as IMDB can be edited by anyone with a premium membership. I’ve contacted Summit about confirmation.
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About That Trailer Ending…
Boy, what a day. My head hurts, I still feel like I have earbuds jammed into my ears, and my back is killing me, but what a fantastic day it was anyway!So now that we’ve all seen it and people are reacting, one of the most common complaints I’ve seen online is that Summit did that dastardly thing us moviegoers hate so much: they ruined the ending of the movie.
Match to the planet. Boom boom! I’ll be honest, this was my initial kneejerk reaction too. Why did they reveal that? Why blow up the climax right now? And then I came to my senses.
The only reason anyone thinks this is a spoiler is because you’ve read the book. When you think about it, there’s really nothing in that scene to indicate that Ender knows exactly what he’s doing.
In the book, Ender is using what he is told is a very sophisticated simulator. He revels in its controls and excels in commanding his soldiers to do what he feels must be done to beat his enemy. And as we all know, to Ender, his enemies in these “simulations” aren’t the buggers on the screen. It’s Mazer. It’s Graff. It’s the teachers.
In the very first interview we got with Gavin Hood way back in December when the first still came out, he was asked about the ending by Grady Smith of Entertainment Weekly:
To that end, the director promises that the book’s dark ending (which I won’t spoil here) has remained fully in tact. “That ending — and the complex moral questions that it raises — is one of the reasons why I love the book, ” says Hood. “I promise you that it is very much there.”
I remain confident that the trailer is in fact spoiler free. The only reason it appears to be a spoiler is because we know what it really means.That doesn’t mean that after that explosion, Ender doesn’t then turn to see a crowd of cheering military brass and then learns that his worst nightmares have come to pass.
As much as I love the character of Ender, I think we’ll still have to see see the pain he suffers as a result of that intense last command.
Anyone going around ranting to people about how the ending spoils the movie is… actually spoiling the movie. So stop it already!
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VIDEO: Replay of “Meet the Fleet” Google+ Hangout
Ho, launchies! If you weren’t able to make it to the live Hangout, here’s a replay of it below!
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Watch the Ender’s Game Trailer on YouTube Now
The trailer is finally here folks! Click below to watch the first trailer for Ender’s Game, which has just made its debut on the official Ender’s Game YouTube channel. Be sure to comment and let me know what you think!
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Join the Google+ ‘Meet the Fleet’ Ender’s Game Hangout
Don’t forget to join some of your Ender’s Game fansites as we do the Meet the Fleet Q&A with Ender’s Game director Gavin Hood, producer Roberto Orci, and star Asa Butterfield on the Ender’s Game YouTube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/EndersGameMovie
The hangout will begin at 1 PM PT! (in just about half an hour!)
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Extended ‘Ender’s Game’ Teaser Airs on Entertainment Tonight
If you don’t already watch Entertainment Tonight, make sure you tune in to tonight’s show as they’ll be showing an extended teaser of the Ender’s Game trailer that will debut worldwide tomorrow at 1 PM PT.
People on the East Coast have already reported seeing it and it sounds like it is just under one minute and includes the end of the trailer when Ender yells, “NOW!”.
Just saw the snippet of Ender's Game trailer today on Entertainment Tonight and saw Asa as Ender. So far, so good! #EndersGame
— Diana //ARCHIVE: SEE PINNED! (@ignitethereason) May 6, 2013Still not over the part where Asa as Ender shouts, "NOW!" He's so going to be the perfect Ender. His accent is perfection. #EndersGame
— Diana //ARCHIVE: SEE PINNED! (@ignitethereason) May 6, 2013@EnderNet I saw it on ET!!!! Omg it looks AWESOME!!!
— julia brantley (@thecountofmonty) May 6, 2013@EnderNet I think it's a 1 min preview or less. But it looks GOOD!
— julia brantley (@thecountofmonty) May 6, 2013This extended teaser will be exclusive to their television broadcast.
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Trailer Countdown Giveaway: Win an Ender’s Game Pin
We’re just about 24 hours away from the launch of the trailer and I’m going to be giving away 12 random Ender’s Game pin buttons to fans more than ready for this momentous occasion.
Here’s a video giving you guys a quick look at the different buttons I have available:
To enter, all you need to do is comment here and tell me if you’re going to be watching the Meet the Fleet Google+ Hangout tomorrow or if you can’t make it and will watch the recorded version. For an additional entry, you can tweet the following:
Enter to win an #EndersGame pin from @EnderNet and don’t forget to watch the @EndersGameMovie trailer at 1 PM May 7th http://enderwigg.in/11bYA9L
For yet another entry, simply like EnderWiggin.net on Facebook and post on my wall telling me which button you hope you get if you win.
I’m going to be simply awarding them throughout the next 24 hours, giving away a special bonus prize (you maybe have seen it on Twitter!) just after the trailer airs tomorrow at 1 PM Pacific Time. This is a fast giveaway so don’t miss your chance!
A couple of rules:
- I don’t have a limit on how many times you can win this one, so you can technically win up to 3 buttons via Twitter, Facebook, and commenting.
- Open worldwide.
- I need to be able to contact you, so if you comment with no email address, I’m probably not going to pick your entry! Please do not include your email address in your comment!
- Ends shortly after the Meet the Fleet event tomorrow May 7, 2013.
Don’t forget to RSVP to the event on Google+!
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IF-Sentinel.com Launches Mission Statement and More
Those of you that have been waiting for the IF-Sentinel site to update need wait no longer! The official Ender’s Game I.F. site, which is operating on Tumblr, updated this morning with five stories that will help to immerse fans into the Enderverse.
The stories introduce people to the purpose of the IF, which states:
United under a single, harmonious government, the International Fleet serves to protect the Earth from another global invasion, while striving to maintain order and propel human progress on Earth.
It also establishes the concept of Thirds, introduces a campaign to honor Mazer Rackham, and mentions what sounds like I.F. preschools called Tactical and Strategic Training Academies.
The screenshot above is with the Mazer Rackham story, so this is presumably Kyle Clements playing young Mazer.
The I.F. has selected archivist Stephen Trawcki to head a new program that will draw deep connections between the military heroism and numerous accomplishments of Mazer Rackham’s life that can teach us all to be better citizens. “No one was spared from the attack,” says Trawcki, “it’s the job of survivors to make sure we never forget those who are gone and honor the hero who saved us.”
They’ve also got the overview of a mysterious planet:
Could this be the home planet of the Formics or just one of their outposts?
What do you guys think of the site? Check out all the stories for yourself!
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Speculation: Ender’s Game Movie Armies to Have 15 Soldiers?
With the teaser trailer less than 2 days away, the official Ender’s Game marketing team has been pushing out some really cool collages and digital manips of the imagery so far. Today’s image was a collage of the Battle Room and Ender:
In the middle photo, there are computer screen words. Here’s the image slightly enlarged:
Dragon Army
Leader: Ender Wiggin
Squad No: 416
Crew:// 15Now, since these are just promotional images, I have no idea if they actually reflect how things are in the movie, but I admit I’m confused by the use of the word “squad” over the book’s term “toon”. Also, is the “Crew” number the entire army? If so, it sounds as though the army sizes have been severely reduced, which could make sense given the small scale of the barracks we’ve seen so far, but part of me had hoped that these were simply toon barracks, not the entire army.
What are your thoughts? Are the 15 crew members simply how many there are in Squad 416? Or is this just a promo image and we shouldn’t read into it too much?