Card: Movie is the Adventure Version of Ender’s Game

Ender's Game author Orson Scott Card gave an extensive interview (of epic length) to The New Zealand Listener, where he talks about various aspects of his work, his screenwriting attempts and of course the upcoming feature film.

If you want to read the entire interview -- he is also talking politics, his controversial essays, the Mormon church, Xenocide and Children Of The Mind -- head over to the New Zealand Listener, as I will focus here on the movie part. Just one interesting tidbit. Card says: "I have an arrangement with Tor [U.S. publisher] that they will accept Aaron Johnston [Card's co-writer on the Ender's Game prequel trilogy] as the writer of any of my books. [...] I trust Aaron to know how to flesh them out."

I'll leave the following passages uncommented, which means what you want to read between the lines is entirely up to you (if anything):

Card on Mazer Rackham and the casting of Sir Ben Kingsley

It was 30 years ago. I do know I was making a conscious effort to get rid of the old "Americans in space" attitude in sci-fi, and to make the IF and Battle School look like the world population as a whole. Since I was already locked in with the name Mazer Rackham from the short story, I sought a way to make the character non-white. New Zealand was a place where intermarriage could put an English name on a mixed-race character. Add to that a lifelong sympathy with Polynesians (although not Maoris in particular) because we had Samoan friends when I was young, and it seems a natural progression.

Ben Kingsley is a superb actor, but in looks and build he is obviously not remotely Maori in appearance. Clearly that was not a consideration in casting, but since I was not involved in that process I can't speak for the thinking that went into that decision. I can say he gives a very good performance, and I hope Maori will forgive the ignorance or unconcern that led to this slight to the very good Maori actors who were available.

Card on Book Elements That Have Been Cut for the Movie

Readers who are disappointed at elements of the book that are not in the movie should keep in mind: my own scripts also cut sharply, because filming the entire novel would have taken about six hours. Huge swaths of material had to be omitted, and the movie actually includes elements from the book that I removed!

Card on Ender's Game, the Film

Certainly, there is no trace of any of my scripts in the Gavin Hood script that was filmed. Hood gave the executives what they were looking for: a script that used elements of the original story within a format that followed the film-school rules that, although they don't actually work, give executives in Hollywood a warm sense of recognition.

Within those paradigms, the film Ender's Game has been shaped into a tight, fast, hard-hitting film that rockets along at a breakneck pace — the adventure version of Ender's Game. It is an excellent film of that type; it is, in fact, about as good a job of filming Ender's Game as anyone could have expected Hollywood to achieve.

Leave your thoughts in the comments if you like.

One Reason (Of Many) Why We Support Gavin Hood

I know we said this topic was closed here at Ender News, but Ender's Game director Gavin Hood recently spoke with SFX magazine about the debate surrounding Orson Scott Card and the upcoming film. He addresses the inner conflict many of us most likely experienced when deciding to support this movie, and how he tackled that issue early in the production process:

"I'm frustrated and disappointed in the views that he's espousing, because I'm finding it very hard as a fan of the book," Hood says. "One of the key themes in the book is compassion, and kindness and understanding towards – for want of a better word – another species, and the notion that these great themes and ideas that are in the book are not playing out in his personal life is confusing and distressing to me. My feeling is that this is one of those very strange and unfortunate situations, much l like the music of Richard Wagner or Carl Orff, where it's often the case that art rises above the personal failings of its creators.

"I'm obviously disappointed and saddened. Ender's Game was written when he was younger, and I read what he's saying now and I read what he said then, and it feels like I'm looking at two different people, and that's confusing. But I faced this issue when I was in pre-production, and these views were coming out, and I remember coming home to my wife and saying 'Honey, I don't know what to do, part of me wants to just stop, I can't believe what's coming out of this author's mouth.' I love this book, but what is this? And then I thought this book is actaully [sic] completely at odds with what he's saying. I'm not going to be intimidated out of making a piece of work that I feel has strong themes and important themes and is beloved by many, just because its original creator is now espousing extremely extreme views, with which I don't agree.

"I said this is going to be a debate, and debate is good. The truth is that if we hadn't made the movie we wouldn't be having this discussion, and in some ways, in a twisted way I actually welcome the opportunity to express my views which appear to be the polar opposite to his. But the movie is not about the crazy things that Orson is saying. It's about the nature of man in terms of his capacity for violence and compassion, and questioning this merging of game and reality in drone warfare. All of those themes for me remain extremely powerful despite the views on gay marriage that Orson has, with which I strongly disagree."

I'm beginning to despise the word "controversy" but admire Gavin Hood more and more every day.

Ender's Game Stars Address Orson Scott Card Controversy

It certainly wasn't a surprise that the recent controversy about Ender's Game author Orson Scott Card and his anti-gay marriage views, came up quite frequently during and around the movie's Comic-Con panel last night in San Diego. As far as I can tell, no member of the film's cast or crew was shying away from answering questions and addressing the issue, despite the fact that the studio, Lionsgate, has already released an official statement last week.

As Ender News is not a political blog, I will leave the following quotes uncommented, just this much for the background of it all: as I have pointed out here, Mr. Card's involvement in the movie project is limited to contributing his original story. His work on the project ended when director Gavin Hood came on board, and that was in the very early stage of the Summit Entertainment project, as Gavin wrote an entirely new screenplay from scratch.

Here is an independent opinion from 'Milk' writer and gay civil rights campaigner Dustin Lance Black, as quoted by The Guardian, who also states that Orson Scott Card hasn't been involved "in decades":

"Boycotting a movie made by 99% LGBT equality folks in an LGBT equality industry is a waste of our collective energy. Making one phone call to a relative in the south who isn't quite there yet would be 1,000 times more effective. The homophobic novelist who wrote the book hasn't been involved in decades. Misguided boycott."

Here's what Harrison Ford and other Ender's Game stars had to say about the issue last night:

Harrison Ford (via StarPulse):

"He [Orson Scott Card] has written something that I think is of value to us all concerning moral responsibility. I think his views outside of those that we deal with in this film are not an issue for me to deal with and something I have really no opinion on. I am aware of his statements admitting that the question of gay marriage is a battle that he lost and he admits that he lost it. I think we all know that we've all won. That humanity has won. And I think that's the end of the story."

Harrison Ford (via Associated Press):

"No part of the story concerns Mr. Card's theories about society in terms of gay issues or homosexual issues. So I hold it completely separate. I think it's an imaginative and complex story. And I'm glad he told it. And I'm glad I had a chance to be a part of it. I think he has a right to his opinions and I think he has also made it clear that it was a battle that he fought and lost and would like to get on with the rest of life."

Roberto Orci (via The Los Angeles Times):

"The truth is you never want to court controversy, but we decided to use the attention on us to support Lionsgate's statement of support of LGBT rights. So rather than shy away, we are happy to embrace it and use the spotlight to say we support LGBT rights. I would hate to see the efforts of all the people who made this movie thwarted for the less than 1% of the people behind the movie, particularly because the message of the book and the movie is tolerance, compassion and empathy."

Gavin Hood (via Associated Press):

"My view is, I've been a member of the Courage Campaign for many years and I'm a little distressed by his point of view on gay marriage. However, the book is not about that issue, so I hope people can still appreciate the book because I think he wrote a great book, and the themes and ideas in the book, I think, are universal and timeless and applicable, and I hope the book will still be appreciated as a great work of art, even though I don't agree with the author. I optioned the book, not an author, and I love what the author said in that book."

Asa Butterfield (via Associated Press):

"I agree with rights for everybody. You can't blame a work for its author."

Okay, I know I just said I wouldn't, but let me close this with a personal comment anyway. No matter what your position might be regarding Orson Scott Card's opinions, what he chooses to campaign for, how he chooses to use his personal money and all those things... Mr. Card wrote an outstanding piece of Sci-Fi literature; a wonderful, imaginative and moving story that is cherished by so many, with defining virtues as compassion and tolerance that should be at the core of our modern society. And he deserves praise for that. No matter what you think about any of the other issues. Period.

Lionsgate to Host Benefit "Ender's Game" Premiere to Support LGBT Causes

So, Ender's Game fans have had a tough week. Our inboxes, which usually contain exciting Ender updates, have been flooded with articles about boycotts, intolerance, and vitriol -- from both sides of the argument.

Today, Lionsgate addressed the ongoing debate surrounding Ender's Game and the controversial views of its author, Orson Scott Card.

As proud longtime supporters of the LGBT community, champions of films ranging from "Gods and Monsters" to "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" and a company that is proud to have recognized same-sex unions and domestic partnerships within its employee benefits policies for many years, we obviously do not agree with the personal views of Orson Scott Card and those of the National Organization for Marriage. However, they are completely irrelevant to a discussion of "Ender’s Game." The simple fact is that neither the underlying book nor the film itself reflect these views in any way, shape or form. On the contrary, the film not only transports viewers to an entertaining and action-filled world, but it does so with positive and inspiring characters who ultimately deliver an ennobling and life-affirming message. Lionsgate will continue its longstanding commitment to the LGBT community by exploring new ways we can support LGBT causes and, as part of this ongoing process, will host a benefit premiere for "Ender’s Game." (New York Times)

I have always been determined not to cover this topic here on Ender News for various reasons, mostly because I don't feel it has anything to do with Ender's Game. I also feel like I made my opinion quite clear on our episode of EnderCast which covered the subject.

That being said, I've never met Orson Scott Card, though I would love to have the opportunity. I therefore can't possibly have any idea of what sort of person he is or isn't. That we disagree on what is probably a vast variety of sociopolitical topics doesn't change the fact that he is the author of the story that has moved me more than any other I've ever read and for that I hold him in respect.

However! I am 110% pro-LGBT rights, pro-everyone's rights, and Lionsgate's position on this thrills me to no end. It is exactly how I feel, and I'm so pleased to hear that they will be hosting a benefit premiere to support LGBT causes this October!

We will update this post with more information on the premiere as it comes in.

Ender's Game Alive: The Full Cast Audioplay

Exciting news! This fall, Skyboat Media is releasing an audioplay based on the Ender's Game novel and, according to Amazon, the upcoming movie adaptation. From their announcement:

We have just announced that we will be producing ENDER’S GAME ALIVE: THE FULL CAST AUDIOPLAY written by Orson Scott Card, based on Ender’s Game. Production begins mid-July here at Skyboat, and we will be updating this page with features from the production. The audioplay will be released in late October 2013, will have a cast of over 40 actors playing over 100 roles. The production will be originally scored with full sound effects. It will be directed by Gabrielle de Cuir and produced here at Skyboat by Stefan Rudnicki. All this brought to you by publisher Audible.com.

Orson Scott Card at round table project discussion

In their teaser post, they called he work "revolutionary in nature," as they will be working with Orson Scott Card (who wrote the script!) and "a cast of over 40 actors reading over 80 characters in over 100 scenes to create a full-radio style drama recording with Foley effects and a musical score that goes into production on July 9th."

Some of Skyboat Media's recent tweets:

"We're talking six hours of audiodrama gold; written by OSC himself; 40 actors; 80+ characters and over 130 scenes. A candy store of goodies." (Source)

"Casting now for ENDER'S GAME ALIVE. 40+actors; 100+roles. We start recording Tues. Yikes! Break out the Mexican Coke!" (Source)

We're doing full cast audioplay written by OSC of EG. 6 hours. Sound effects. Should make for intrsting [sic] comparisons come fall. (Source)

We're a little short on details regarding the project at the moment as casting just completed and is being announced today (make sure you check back this evening!) but we will keep you updated as more information rolls in!

Shoot Straight: Introduction by Orson Scott Card

Hey guys! Welcome to the first installment of Shoot Straight: An Ender's Game Reread. Over the next months leading up to the release of the film (with a short break for SDCC), I'll be reading a chapter of the novel a week and reporting back here on the weekend with my thoughts. I'd love for you guys to follow along and participate in the comment section of each post.

I'll be reading from the 1994 revised mass market edition of Ender's Game. It doesn't particularly matter which edition you're reading, though if you're a lucky owner of a copy of the book published before '91, the introduction will obviously not be included.

I'm admittedly not really a huge fan of introductions in books; I find them tedious and sometimes full of spoilers so I tend to avoid them. When I first read the novel back in 1999, I remember reading the introduction to Ender's Game, but I don't believe I've made it all the way through since. I guess that's going to change now -- let's see what interesting tidbits we find!

About the Introduction

The introduction to Ender's Game was written in 1991 and first published in "Phoenix Rising," a magazine composed by a group of students at a residential program for gifted teens at Purdue University. Card sent them the intro and allowed them to publish it before it appeared in his novel as a response to a letter they mailed him in March of 1991. 

Card jokes in the first paragraph of the introduction that, while many people had written to him to exclaim over how much they loved the novel, no one had mentioned that it particularly needed an introduction. However, since the novel was being reprinted in a hardcover edition, he wrote the intro to "mark the occasion."

Summary

In the intro, we learn how Ender's story first unfolded in Orson Scott Card's mind, as well as how it transformed from a short story to a full-fledged novel. Card also speaks quite a lot about the novel's reception and the importance of fiction in society -- the latter being the part of the intro I liked best.

Thoughts

- It's very interesting to think that it was the idea of the Battle Room and not Ender himself that Card first developed, especially since it is the character that we are all so attached to now. How the gravity-free game came to him is equally as fascinating: with an older brother in the military and a love of war stories, Card began to ponder what it would be like to train soldiers in the future. He surmised, after reading Issac Asimov's Foundation triology, they would be trained in space and forced to redo their patterns of thinking with no up and down at all: the Battle Room.

- As a huge musical theater fan, the thought of Orson Scott Card beginning his career in theater and working as a playwright makes me inordinately happy.

- I know it's not news, but the thought of Ender's Game existing at first in Card's mind as a set-up for Speaker for the Dead never fails to blow my mind. They are such different novels, different stories. Sometimes I find it very hard to reconcile the weary Ender at the end of Ender's Game with the well-spoken, kind man he is in Speaker. Though, I'll admit that Ender in Exile came a long way in bridging that gap for me.

- Crystal and I actually spoke about the negative reception to Ender's Game in the most recent episode of EnderCast. Namely, one teacher's accusation that Card's "depiction of gifted children was hopelessly unrealistic."

? ---> While the story is fiction, do you believe there are aspects of the portrayal of children in Ender's Game that are spot on? Since obviously none of us are genius 6-year-olds, what is it about the story that we really relate to?

Favorite Quotes

"I learned that history is shaped by the use of power, and that different people, leading the same army, with, therefore, approximately the same power, applied it so differently that the same army seemed to change from a pack of noble fools at Fredericksburg [...] and then, finally, to the disciplined, professional army that ground Lee to dust in Grant's long campaign. It wasn't the soldiers who changed. It was the leader."

"The story of Ender's Game is not this book, though it has that title emblazoned on it. The story is one that you and I will construct together in your memory. If the story means anything to you at all, then when you remember it afterward, think of it, not as something I created, but rather as something we made together."

* * * 

 « Index | Chapter 1: Peter » 

Countdown: 162 days! "Ender's Game" Movie Timeline Part 2

After it occurred to me last night that today is the 1 year anniversary of my visit to the Ender's Game set in New Orleans, I admittedly became a little bummed. Where in the world has the time gone?

(You can read both of my set visit reports here: Part 1, Part 2)

To celebrate the day, I thought we could go back and review what's happened in the past 6 months since I posted my first Ender's Game timeline. If you're just now catching up on movie happenings, make sure to read that one first!

Let's start where I left off last time, shall we?

November 12, 2012: Aramis Knight and Andrea Powell attended the premiere of Breaking Dawn Pt. 2 in Los Angeles. We were hoping they could meet up for a photo, but they couldn't find each other!

November 17, 2012: An edited version of the full synopsis of the Ender's Game film was released by Summit Entertainment:

In the near future, a hostile alien race (called the Formics) have attacked Earth. If not for the legendary heroics of International Fleet Commander, Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley), all would have been lost. In preparation for the next attack, the highly esteemed Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) and the International Military are training only the best young children to find the future Mazer. Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), a shy, but strategically brilliant boy is pulled out of his school to join the elite.

Arriving at Battle School, Ender quickly and easily masters increasingly difficult war games, distinguishing himself and winning respect amongst his peers. Ender is soon ordained by Graff as the military’s next great hope, resulting in his promotion to Command School. Once there, he’s trained by Mazer Rackham, himself, to lead his fellow soldiers into an epic battle that will determine the future of Earth and save the human race.

November 19, 2012: Ender News released the second part of our SDCC 2012 interview with Orson Scott Card where he speaks a lot about the upcoming film. Before you start reading, you might want to check out Part 1 in which he talks about his novel Earth Unaware!

November 23, 2012: Jimmy Jax Pinchak and Ender's Game stunt coordinator Garrett Warren faced off in their annual Thanksgiving football game. Guess who won. Thanks for the pics, guys. :)

November 30, 2012: We reported on a book signing and extensive Q&A session in which Orson Scott Card participated, where he gushed over the film's Battle Room scenes and clarified his semi-infamous "very few of the scenes in this movie [come from the book]" quote.

December 05, 2012: Entertainment Weekly unveiled the first official Ender's Game still which we later broke down for fans.

December 13, 2012: Crystal from EnderWiggin.net and I officially launched our Ender's Game podcast: EnderCast! 14 episodes in, we are still running strong.

December 15, 2012: The cast attended Hailee Steinfeld's 16th birthday party in LA.

January 17, 2013: EnderSpeaker discovered that Amazon.com is accepting pre-orders for an official Ender's Game 2014 calendar.

February 06, 2013: Brandon Soo Hoo sat down with teen entertainment magazine J-14 to speak about his role (Fly Molo) in Ender's Game and what it was like to work with some of his teenage co-stars.

"My character, Fly Molo, is a veteran soldier in Battle School. At first, he is introduced as Bonzo's lackey, but he eventually comes to recognize Ender as the superior commander. I can definitely relate to Fly's second-in-command role. A leader will always feel the majority of the pressure in a high-stakes situation, whereas the lieutenant is usually allowed to function below the radar. However, I'd say that unlike Fly, I would have a bit of trouble putting up with Bonzo. I have mild authority issues."

February 11, 2013: Suraj Partha covers Phillip Phillips' "Gone Gone Gone" and posted the video on his personal YouTube channel. A must watch! Since everyone is so musically talented, I'm still waiting around for an Ender's Game cast band to pop up.

February 12, 2013: We announced that Cryptozoic Entertainment had obtained the rights to produce not only an Ender's Game board game, but a trading card series as well!

February 19, 2013: Four of the Ender's Game army insignias were exclusively revealed by the fan sites who visited the set last year - including Ender News! Check out Salamander, Rat and Asp -- as well as Dragon Army to the left.

February 20, 2013: Just a day later, those same fan sites unveiled an exciting still of Ender and Petra in the Battle School mess hall. We also included a set visit preview -- with promises of much more to come! No worries: we haven't forgotten.

February 24, 2013: Aramis Knight and Khylin Rhambo smartened themselves up for a night on the town at Hollywood's Oscars after-party.

February 28, 2013: Hailee Steinfeld signed copies of Ender's Game while out in support of Our Military Kids in Phoenix, AZ.

March 01, 2013: Ender News turned 1! 

March 19, 2013: A sneak peak of the Ender's Game trailer was shown to lucky professionals at the GAMA Trade Show in Las Vegas - to raving reviews!

March 22, 2013: Rames from Ender News posted a great overview of what he believes when can expect regarding  Ender's Game movie marketing.

March 24, 2013: Director Gavin Hood posted a sneak peak of the teaser poster over on the official production blog.

"Without exception, every person who works on this wonderful film brings more than just skill to the table. They bring passion."

March 25, 2013: Yahoo! Movies unveiled the first official Ender's Game teaser poster alongside an exclusive phone interview with Gavin Hood.

March 25, 2013: Producer Bob Orci casually mentioned on twitter that the Ender's Game trailer would make its cinematic debut in May in front of Star Trek Into Darkness. Way to make it no big deal, right?

March 27, 2013: Harrison Ford spoke with Entertainment Tonight and admitted that he believes Ender's Game "could be great."

April 1, 2013: Many of Asa Butterfield's cast and crew members rose to the occasion and sent in photos wishing him a very happy birthday! Thanks again to everyone who participated!

April 18, 2013: Ender's Game cast members Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, and Harrison Ford hit CinemaCon, where they were honored with awards -- plus, the trailer was shown during Summit's 2-hour 2013 project presentation.

April 20, 2013: Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston spoke at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books where Card admitted that he believes Speaker for the Dead to be unfilmable:

"'Speaker for the Dead' is unfilmable," Card said in response to a question from the audience. "It consists of talking heads, interrupted by moments of excruciating and unwatchable violence. Now, I admit, there's plenty of unwatchable violence in film, but never attached to my name.

"'Speaker for the Dead, I don't want it to be filmed. I can't imagine it being filmed'."

April 27, 2013: While making promotional rounds for Iron Man 3, Sir Ben Kingsley (Mazer Rackham) spoke to Coventry Telegraph about his other upcoming projects, Ender's Game included:

Mazar Rackham [is] a combination of historically ancient warrior in that he is descended from Maori and has Maori tattooed on his face. And at the same time he is teaching children how to operate drones. So he is very advanced and also rooted in an ancient warrior tradition.

May 01, 2013: Enterrtainment Weekly gave the world its first look at Sir Ben Kinglsey as Mazer Rackham - in full makeup! Check out those Maori tattoos.

May 02, 2013: Asa Butterfield and Harrison Ford previewed the first trailer for Ender's Game on YouTube with a 10-second teaser of entirely new footage. They also announced an exciting live Google Hangout with Bob Orci, Gavin Hood, and Asa Butterfield before the debut of the trailer.

May 03, 2013: Thanks to @BKilek, we gave you your first look at the Ender's Game movie tie-in book covers. You can pick one up at Barnes and Noble - Hardcover and Paperback!

May 06, 2013: Summit unveiled the official movie website, the IF Sentinel: a communication hub of the International Fleet with the fictional public of Ender's world.

May 07, 2013: The first Ender's Game trailer debuted on Google and YouTube. With over 4 million views already, it won't hurt to watch it again, right?



Asa Butterfield also spoke with Hollywood.com about Zero-G, Space Camp and what makes the character of Ender Wiggin so special.

May 08, 2013: Asa Butterfield participated in a Reddit AMA.

May 09, 2013: Summit confirmed that Steve Jablonsky (not James Horner) is to score Ender's Game.

May 13, 2013: Cryptozoic's Ender's Game trading cards are most likely to include cast/crew autograph cards. Can't wait to get my hands on these.

May 17, 2013: Producers Bob Orci and and Alex Kurtzman briefly addressed the sensitive issue of Orson Scott Card's controversial views on gay marriage and how these views may or may not affect the reception of the film:

"The book is beautiful. It’s about tolerance, it’s about responsibility, it’s about growing up. We just tend to judge a book on its own merits. Nothing that anyone could say is going to remove our original reaction of how we perceive this beautiful book. For us, it’s just about the book."

 May 21, 2013: Summit released a new promotional photo of Colonel Graff and Ender -- with a great look at Dragon Army's flash suit helmet.

And we're back to today. Only 162 days to go, Launchies. Did you know it was 364 days to go last time I posted a timeline? Look how far we've come!

How's everyone holding up?

Bob Orci: "It’s about tolerance, it’s about responsibility, it’s about growing up."

Producing duo Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman recently sat down with The Wall Street Journal's entertainment blog Speakeasy to discuss their newly-released Star Trek Into Darkness as well as other upcoming projects -- Ender's Game included.

This is part two of a two-part interview. You can check out the first part of their interview (which includes more Star Trek talk) here.

What were some of the challenges you and director Gavin Hood faced in adapting Orson Scott Card’s "Ender's Game" into a film?

Orci: "Ender's Game" was a book that we both loved from teenagehood. It was published in 1985 and I think we read it in high school, maybe even earlier. The challenge with the book is it’s very internal in that a lot of the narrative that occurs is within the character’s head and the trick is, how do you dramatize that? The answer is both through having some of those internal struggles be dramatically shown as scenes, and second, we have an advantage that the book does not have, and that is actors. We have great actors who can not only say things, but play things and play reactions on their faces and actually convey a lot of the emotion of the book. Thankfully now we have the technology to make it the grand adventure that it deserves to be. We have the technology to render a Zero-G environment in a totally believable and incredible way.

They also briefly tackled the sensitive issue of Orson Scott Card's controversial views on gay marriage and how these views may or may not affect the reception of the film:

Orci: I was never aware of in the book – and we’ve read it three or four times during our lifetime before we got into this movie – I never saw any sign in “Ender’s Game” of anything that offended Alex or me. The book is beautiful. It’s about tolerance, it’s about responsibility, it’s about growing up. We just tend to judge a book on its own merits. Nothing that anyone could say is going to remove our original reaction of how we perceive this beautiful book. For us, it’s just about the book.

Kurtzman: Look, obviously it’s a First Amendment issue and Mr. Card is free to express whatever point-of-view he chooses to express, and we are free to disagree with him. At this point, that’s all I really want to say about it.

Great statements from both of these men. At this point, it seems that's pretty much all anyone cares to say about it.

168 days until Ender's Game hits US theaters!

EnderCast Episode #11: The Giant's Drink

 

Ho, Launchies -- another episode of EnderCast has popped online. This week we talk about

- The secret io9 video. Seriously, okay?
- Will the Mind Game be included in the movie?
- Asa Butterfield says no Ender's Shadow in the movie
- IGN - Ender's Game the "next Star Wars?"
- 3 weeks away from Star Trek!!
- Festival of Books – Orson Scott Card declares Speaker for the Dead unfilmable

Today's episode was actually really fun to film; I think Crystal and I were both in silly moods. Oh, and we also had another guest on Pop Quiz, Fart Eater. Did she prevail? You'll have to listen to find out!

Don't forget: you can listen to EnderCast whenever you like by subscribing to us on iTunes!

Thanks again for tuning in!

Orson Scott Card: "Speaker for the Dead" is Unfilmable.

Aaron Johnston and Orson Scott Card - Image © LA Times

Orson Scott Card appeared today alongside Earth Unaware co-author Aaron Johnston at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, an annual event held this year at the University of Southern California. According to the Los AngelesTimes, when asked about potential sequels to the Ender's Game film, there is one film in particular Card hopes never hits the big screen:

"'Speaker for the Dead' is unfilmable," Card said in response to a question from the audience. "It consists of talking heads, interrupted by moments of excruciating and unwatchable violence. Now, I admit, there's plenty of unwatchable violence in film, but never attached to my name.

"'Speaker for the Dead, I don't want it to be filmed. I can't imagine it being filmed'."

He also warned audiences to keep in mind that they will be disappointed if they head into the film expecting "the same experience as reading the book."

Admission to the book festival is free and will be taking place at USC through tomorrow.