The producers have now publicly confirmed that the target release date for Atlas Shrugged – Part 1 will be April 15, 2011.
That would be, of course, tax day in the United States.
Category: The Atlasphere
All things Atlasphere can be found here, columns, podcasts, interesting anecdotes, and more.
Announcing the Atlas Shrugged movie blog
Hans Schantz and I have launched a new blog exclusively devoted to covering the Atlas Shrugged movie, at Atlas-Shrugged-Movie.com.
For those not already familiar with Hans, he has done some excellent work already covering the Atlas movie, including interviewing screenwriter Brian O’Toole and creating an excellent Atlas Shrugged chronology, outlining the dates of major events in the novel itself. I’m pleased to have his help covering the movie.
The Atlasphere’s meta-bloggers will continue covering any major developments in the movie, but this new blog will become our primary repository for Atlas Shrugged movie news and discussion.
Recent posts there include a preview (in text and photos) of the Atlas Shrugged movie, an interview with screenwriter Brian O’Toole, and a post with a link to the new official Atlas Shrugged – Part I movie website (a splash page, for now, enabling you to sign up for announcements).
Comments are enabled on this new blog and we look forward to hearing your thoughts as more and more information about the new movie becomes available.
If you’re as excited about the movie as we are and would like to join Hans and me as a co-blogger at the Atlas Shrugged movie blog, let me know.
Got ideas for improving the Atlasphere?
Now that our new site design is (mostly) in place, we’re sizing up our options for additional upgrades to the Atlasphere. And a group of us will be prioritizing these ideas over the coming months. But first, we’d like to hear your ideas: What would you like to see at the Atlasphere?
We have over 21,000 members now, and the technical capacity to do almost anything imaginable â?? so in a sense, the sky is the limit. Should we start focusing more on intellectual activism? Make it easy for members to create their own forums? Help members form and publicize local social/study/activism groups? Make it easy to advertise your company’s products or services on the Atlasphere?
What features would be most inspiring to you personally? We look forward to seeing your ideas and votes, over at Google Moderator.
Interviews with the creators of the new Atlas Shrugged movie
In addition to our own new interview with Atlas Shrugged movie producer John Aglialoro, also check out this interview with screenwriter Brian Patrick O’Toole.
One noteworthy exchange:
Ã?therCzar: The production of Atlas Shrugged has been criticized for its relatively low budget and lack of famous acting talent. Do you believe these factors have compromised your ability to bring Ayn Randâ??s story to the screen?
Brian Oâ??Toole: Why is it that everyone on the Internet, when talking about our production of ATLAS SHRUGGED-PART ONE, seem to fixate on the â??low budgetâ?? It puzzles me. Five million dollars is still a lot of money.
We made ATLAS SHRUGGED-PART ONE independently â?? in every sense of that word. John Aglialoro personally financed the film so that the story could be told without studio executive pressure to make the story more Hollywood-friendly, which I believe he encountered in his past dealings to have the book brought to the screen. I think itâ??s heroic that someone would put up their own money to finance something that obviously means a lot to them. Itâ??s something to be respected. To me, thatâ??s the story people should be focusing on, not who the actors are and how much the movie cost.
As for the lack of star power behind the names in the film, I think itâ??s a bit ridiculous. I canâ??t believe audiences would rather say â??Wow, Julia Roberts did a great job portraying Dagny Taggartâ? than be involved in the journey that the character takes in the story as portrayed by a very gifted actress like Taylor Schilling.
There was a story in the Los Angeles Times recently about a television production that was paying each of its writers $200,000 a week and yet they were not required to write a single word until Spring 2011. This is a good example as to why Hollywood productions are out of control.
When you use money efficiently and wisely, and you hire a crew that is imaginative and thinks out of the box and not from the checkbook, youâ??ll be surprised by the quality you can get up on the screen. In my opinion, the budget was exactly right for this film, so, please everybody, stop worrying how much the film cost to make and enjoy the show.
See the full interview for much more.
"Night of January 16th" playing tonight at Odyssey theater in Los Angeles
The Odyssey theater is performing Ayn Rand’s play “The Night of January 16th” in Los Angeles. Tickets are still available for tonight’s show, which looks like it may be the last performance in this run.
Scheduled maintenance on Monday morning
The Atlasphere will be down for maintenance for at least several hours early Monday morning, starting just after 12:00 a.m. ET. We’ll be implementing a long-awaited upgrade to the site’s design.
This site could be down for 6 to 8 hours, though probably less. During this time, you will see a page saying the site is down for maintenance and will not be able to access any other pages of the site.
Monday morning is a relatively low-traffic time for Atlasphere members, so hopefully not many of you will be inconvenienced. It should be well worth the wait… 🙂
"Atlas Shrugged: The Making of a Movie" event in NYC on December 7, 2010
Want to see a ten-minute clip from the Atlas Shrugged movie, including the first scene from the movie? If you’re in New York City, you’ll get your chance on December 7th.
An announcement from the Atlas Society:
The Atlas Society is proud to present Atlas Shrugged: The Making of a Movie. After years of anticipation, John Aglialoro has completed filming Part I of what will be a trilogy. David Kelley, Atlas Society founder and CEO, consulted on a script that is true to the characters and philosophy of Ayn Randâ??s epic novel.
The program will feature a ten-minute, first-time viewing of an Atlas Shrugged film clip, which will include the first scene from the movie. Youâ??ll hear special remarks from producers John Aglialoro and Harmon Kaslow, Kelley, and select cast members. The event will be followed by a general cocktail reception. There will also be a VIP reception with an opportunity to meet and mingle with the producers and cast members.
Donâ??t miss this opportunity to celebrate the cinematic achievement of Aglialoro, Kaslow, and their team in bringing Randâ??s great literary achievement to the screen. Join us in the historic Hudson Theatre for an evening to remember.
See the full announcement for more information and registration details.
PS. Ed Hudgins sends the following information for Atlasphere members: Those who want to receive our lower member price can get an intro membership for $50 which will get them our quarterly, The New Individualist, newsletters, event discounts, and other goodies.
"Agora" movie now available on DVD
The wonderful new Spanish movie Agora, recommended so highly in Don Hauptman’s review for the Atlasphere earlier this year, is now available on DVD from Amazon.com.
The dialogue is in English, by the way — so you won’t have to read subtitles.
"Sick and Sicker" movie has been released
Objectivist entrepreneur Logan Darrow Clements, whom we interviewed in 2003 during his bid for the governorship of California, has released “Sick and Sicker,” which is billed as “the movie that puts ObamaCare on ice.” You can watch the trailer and order the movie at SickAndSickerMovie.com.
Responses, from various parties, to John McCaskey's resignation from the Ayn Rand Institute and Anthem Foundation
As an update to the news in our earlier post, in response to John McCaskey’s resignation from the Ayn Rand Institute and The Anthem Foundation, The Intellectual Activist‘s Robert Tracinski has published “Anthemgate,” Paul and Diana Hsieh published “The Resignation of John McCaskey: The Facts,” and The Objective Standard‘s Craig Biddle has just published “Justice for John P. McCaskey.”