June 4, 2017

Neill Blomkamp Reveals Why He’s Forming His Own Studio — and the Fate of His ‘Alien’ Sequel

Neill Blomkamp’s “Alien” sequel may not be happening now that Ridley Scott has taken back the reins on his franchise, but the “District 9” director is busy all the same. His next project is more ambitious than just another movie, as he’s forming Oats Studio as a sort of testing ground for short films that will be released for free online — and, if all goes well, perhaps even expanded into features.

READ MORE: Watch Neill Blomkamp’s Crazy Trailer for Alien Invasion Story ‘Volume 1’ From Oats Studios

“At the end of making ‘Chappie,’ I wanted to try to figure out a different method for making films and expressing myself,” explained Blomkamp to the Verge. “I felt that if I could sell smaller pieces directly to the audience, the sale of those small experimental pieces would keep this machine alive so that it became an ecosystem that was self-sufficient.”

Part of the idea is to allow viewers to peek behind the curtain in a way that iTunes and similar services don’t. “The more I thought about that, the more it became, ‘What if the users had access to all of the 3D files that we used for the visual effects?’ If we just gave that away with any one-time purchase and you could render stuff yourself?”

READ MORE: ‘The Escape’: Clive Owen Returns as The Driver in Neill Blomkamp’s New BMW Short Film — Watch

As for his “Alien” sequel, it seems that we won’t be seeing it anytime soon. “I think it’s totally dead, yes. That would be an accurate assumption at this point,” Blomkamp confirmed. “It’s sad. I spent a long time working on that, and I feel like it was really pretty awesome. But politically, the way it’s gone now, and the way that it all is — it’s just not going to live.” Read more here.

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Source: IndieWire film