Grayson (film)

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Grayson
Directed byJohn Fiorella
Written byJohn Fiorella
Produced byJohn Fiorella
Gabriel Sabloff
StarringJohn Fiorella
CinematographyGabriel Sabloff
Distributed byUntamed Cinema
TheForce.Net
Release date
  • July 20, 2004 (2004-07-20)
Running time
6 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$18,000

Grayson is a 2004 fan film made by John Fiorella featuring DC Comics character Dick Grayson along with several other DC Universe characters.[1] Since it is a fan film, it was not allowed to be sold at a profit and was thus distributed for free on the Internet.

The film is a mock

trailer for a Grayson feature film; however, no such film exists. Currently, there are also no plans for a full-length feature film, because the filmmakers have no possibility to produce such a film without the support of Warner Bros.[2]

Plot summary

Robin.[N 1]

Clark Kent
that he wants "him [presumably Grayson] out of the equation!" O'Hara is also seen rolling up his sleeves, preparing to assault an angry captive Gordon.

It is implied that Batman may not actually be dead.[N 6]

Cast

Production

The project began when Fiorella was searching, along with his director of photography Gabriel Sabloff, for a suitable subject for a demo reel that would showcase their filmmaking abilities. When Fiorella raised the idea of a film about Robin, Sabloff was skeptical at first, but soon convinced.[2] The objective of Fiorella was to "tell a new and exciting story about the former boy wonder that leaves audiences wanting more" and let the viewer be the judge to decide if he hit the mark.[3]

With a budget of $18,000,[4] the filmmakers created a five-and-a-half minute trailer complete with motorcycle chases, underwater escapes, pyrotechnics and feats of strength. Most of the production budget went to 16mm film stock, production equipment, processing and transfers, leaving little for anything else.[5] According to the behind the scenes video of Grayson, their budget did not allow for daily film transfers, so the filmmakers only saw developed footage in batches every three months. The two employed guerrilla filmmaking tactics, filming mainly on weekends and at whatever locations they could find, often without permission.

Additional material

The screenplay for the non-existent motion picture is available for viewing at the Untamed Cinema website,[6] and features most of the events shown in the trailer, although with some differences, as well as a full explanation of all questions raised by the trailer.

A behind the scenes documentary of Grayson is also available for download. Grayson: Pieces of the Puzzle is a 30-minute featurette with commentary by John Fiorella.[7]

Reception

After the publicity generated by the film's online release at TheForce.net, the film was to be screened at the 2004

San Diego Comic-Con,[8] but all superhero fanfilm screenings were cancelled that year, as DC Comics requested that the convention honor their intellectual property rights and halt all showings of fanfilms based on their characters.[9]

Notes

  1. ^ Grayson does not take up the Nightwing identity. The filmmakers said they chose this because many people outside the comic book community are unfamiliar with Nightwing and they wanted to appeal to a wider audience.[2]
  2. 1960s Batman TV series
    .
  3. ^ In this scene, other comic books also appear of characters from the film, including Wonder Woman and Catwoman. Fiorella used his own comic book collection for this scene.
  4. ^ Adapted from The Killing Joke.
  5. ^ The filmmakers clarified that it was never their intention to portray the other superheroes as villains. They might be rather ordered to stop Dick because he is heading down a dangerous road.[2]
  6. ^ Fiorella's commentary on the "Behind the Scenes" video confirms that this ambiguity was his goal: "I wanted to make people wonder if in fact Batman had really been killed."

References

  1. ^ "The Making of Grayson" (PDF). Online Entertainment Magazine. May 24, 2005. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d Schweier, Philip (June 23, 2005). "Batmania Revisited, Part 2: Robin Returns". TheComicBookBin.com. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  3. ^ Fiorella, John. "A Word from the Director". TheForce.net. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  4. ^ Mejia, Carlos (September 2, 2005). "Fanning the Flames". Entertainment Weekly. New York City: Meredith Corporation. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  5. ^ Coustan, Dave (August 31, 2004). "Who Killed Batman?". HowStuffWorks.com. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  6. ^ Grayson, Untamed Cinema
  7. ^ GRAYSON: Pieces of the Puzzle
  8. ^ "Grayson (C)(2004)". Filmaffinity Spain (in Spanish). Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  9. ^ Worley, Rob M. (June 29, 2004). "Hero fan films absent at this year's Comic-Con". Comics2Film.com. Retrieved July 7, 2008.

External links

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