EUREKA UNSCRIPTED

Happy Passover

Hannukah Harry emerges from the writers' room to wish everyone a Happy Passover!

Geeks Love Stuff Featuring Stuff Geeks Love

We hear y'all want to get your hands on some EUREKA-related merchandise.  Well, so do we.  Which is why we're attempting to come up with some neat-o ideas for products that will not only be featured in the show, but available for purchase by interested parties... whether that be fans, or merely our own geeky writing staff.

With that in mind, here's a mock-up of one of the ideas we've been working on: 

Yep, it's an iPhone cover featuring the GD logo.  Kind of cool, yeah?  It's just a prototype, but we promise to keep you updated if it ever becomes reality.  We're thinking of other fun stuff as we go, most of which we can't mention right now for fear of spoilers.  

Until then, you can visit the NBC Universal store and stock up on their wares.

Please Don't Touch The Explosives

With Production on Eureka Season Four now underway in Vancouver, Canada, your favorite writers have begun making treks North. The goal is to help the cast and crew bring the written page to life.  Yes, it's hard work, but also REALLY fun!  That is... until you make the mistakes Executive Producer/Co-Creator Jaime Paglia did.

As writer of our Season Four opener (surprise!), Jaime was the first writer on deck at our Canadian HQ. He arrived there just fine and for several days, all was calm and bright. Then came time for his return.  And that's when things went south in more ways than one, thanks to a few snafus with airport security.  And it's all because of our dogged determination to bring you an explosive season opener.  

Here then, are a few tips on what NOT to do when trying to get through airport security.  Keep them in mind the next time you come back from a set that's just blown up cool stuff in order to create an exciting season premiere.  You'll be glad you did.

JAIME'S AIRPORT SECURITY DON'TS  

When hoping for a smooth pass through international airport security into the United States:  

1.  DON'T spend time in an enclosed set all day with tons of smoke that is generated for atmosphere, which then settles on your computer bag and clothing.  

2.  DON'T leave said computer bag near the set where you are doing a gag involving EXPLOSIVES, like say, magnesium powder, that coats everything in the vicinity with residue.  

3.  DON'T, after screening POSITIVE for chemical exposure, and you're asked by the over-zealous agent frisking you to tell him if he's making you uncomfortable with his rather THOROUGH pat down, say, "Hey, at least buy me a drink first."  

4.  And lastly, ABSOLUTELY DON'T, when you see that your attempt at levity about the absurdity of your situation lands flat, do anything but apologize profusely, or be ready to face the EVEN MORE THOROUGH search and interrogation in the back room with the even more humorless agents.  I narrowly avoided said room.  One of the joys of making TV!  

Wow.

J 

photos from episode 1.10 "Purple Haze"

Movin' On Up

Please join us in congratulating Ed Fowler, our beloved writers' assistant, who this week emerges from behind his note-taking laptop to take his place in the room as a staff writer! Way to go, Ed!

Ed has been with Eureka since the beginning of Season 3, and we are all thrilled to have him on the team in his new role.

As you can see from this picture compared to the one taken last month, some things change -- bigger desk, blazer replaces hoodie.  And some things don't -- Diet Mountain Dew for the win!

Any advice for aspiring writers on (or looking to take) the assistant path, Ed?

"Listen and be patient. Try not to limit yourself by getting caught up in comparing your progress to other people's, setting limits like 'I need to be at this place in my career by this age,' or thinking that someone's holding you back. Focus on your own work and growth, and remember that you're a person as well as a writer. You'll get your shot and make your own opportunities."

Zombie killah Katie Lovejoy is also making a move, to writers' assistant, and one of our interns, Meghan Welsh, is our new producers' assistant. Gratz all around.

3... 2... 1... Liftoff!

Away we go...

This is the really exciting part.  After months in the writers' room crafting our new season, breaking stories and writing episodes, in a few hours, we will begin shooting the premiere of Season Four.  The last few days of prep have been filled with hundreds of final decisions, from character arcs, to story beats, to costumes, props and hair choices.  We're going on very little sleep, but are excited beyond description by the launch of our next episodes.  I can't divulge details, but I will say that the things we have planned required non-disclosure agreements from our team.  So as I attempt to get a few hours of shut-eye before we roll camera, let me thank everyone who has made Eureka possible, especially all of you who welcome us into your living rooms every week.  It's such a privilege to get to make a television show.  I hope you enjoy watching our new season as much as we enjoyed making it.

More soon.

Best,

Jaime

Meet Eureka's Newest Resident

                                                   Photo by © dennys ilic

From SyFy's official press release:

JAMES CALLIS (BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) JOINS SYFY’S EUREKA

PRODUCTION ON SEASON 4 OF HIT SERIES FROM

UNIVERSAL CABLE PRODUCTIONS BEGINS MARCH 18

Series Stars Colin Ferguson, Joe Morton, Salli Richardson-Whitfield to Direct Episodes

Eureka Slated to Return to Syfy July 9, 2010

New York, New York – March 15, 2010 – Production begins this week in Vancouver on season four of Eureka, one of Syfy’s most popular original series, it was announced by Mark Stern, Executive Vice President of Development, Syfy, and Co-Head Original Content, Universal Cable Productions. The dramedy’s new season welcomes an all-new regular cast member, James Callis (Battlestar Galactica) as “Dr. Grant.” Syfy has ordered 20 episodes of Eureka, which will once again be shot entirely on location in and around Vancouver, Canada, and is slated to premiere on Friday, July 9th of this year.

Throughout the four-season run of Syfy's award-winning Battlestar Galactica, James Callis starred as "Dr. Gaius Baltar" garnering both critical acclaim and fan adoration for his portrayal of the self-serving, opportunistic, conniving genius. On Eureka, Callis will play scientist "Dr. Grant," a former resident of the town whose unexpected return is cause for serious alarm and - considering his romantic interest in Allison Blake (Salli Richardson-Whitfield) - significant friction with Sherriff Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson). New and returning fans won't want to miss the big changes in store for everyone in the small town of Eureka after a cataclysmic shift turns their lives upside down.

Once again this season series stars Colin Ferguson and Joe Morton (“Henry Deacon”) will direct episodes and also making her directorial debut is female lead Salli Richardson-Whitfield. Also, special guest stars returning this season include Jaime Ray Newman (“Dr. Tess Fontana”) and Matt Frewer (“Taggart”).

Eureka seems like any other cozy, Pacific Northwest town, but is actually a secret community of geniuses assembled by the government to conduct top-secret research. What they’ve unwittingly created is a place where anything imaginable can happen… and does.  In addition to Ferguson, Richardson-Whitfield, Morton, and now Callis, the series also stars, Erica Cerra (“Jo Lupo”), Neil Grayston (“Douglas Fargo”), Niall Matter (“Zane Donovan”) and features Jordon Hinson (“Zoe Carter”). Co-creator Jaime Paglia and Bruce Miller are Executive Producers. The series is produced and distributed by Universal Cable Productions.

Eureka’s third season was its highest-rated and most-watched season. With full DVR playback data factored in, Eureka settled comfortably into its new night, Fridays at 9PM, last summer averaging an impressive 3.2 million total viewers per week. It was also the show’s best season ever in adults 18-49 (averaging 1.4 million per week) and adults 25-54 (1.6 million per week).

For photos of Eureka, as well as all Syfy projects, please log on to NBC Universal Media Village at http://www.nbcumv.com/.

Universal Cable Productions creates quality content across multiple media platforms for USA, Syfy and other networks.  A leader in innovative and critically acclaimed programming, UCP is the studio behind USA’s ROYAL PAINS, LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT, PSYCH, IN PLAIN SIGHT and COVERT AFFAIRS along with Syfy’s EUREKA, WAREHOUSE 13 and CAPRICA. The studio also produced both long-running series MONK and BATTLESTAR GALATICA.  UCP is a division of NBC Universal.

Syfy is a media destination for imagination-based entertainment. With year round acclaimed original series, events, blockbuster movies, classic science fiction and fantasy programming, a dynamic Web site (www.Syfy.com), and a portfolio of adjacent business (Syfy Ventures), Syfy is a passport to limitless possibilities. Originally launched in 1992 as SCI FI Channel, and currently in more than 96 million homes, Syfy is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies. (Syfy. Imagine greater.)

The First Table Read of Season Four!!

From the POV of the writers stuck in Los Angeles while the kids play in Vancouver.

 

What is a table read?  As the name suggests, it's a gathering around a table where the actors read through a script.  At the start of a season, it's also a meet-and-greet situation to kick off production, with new and returning folks from the cast and production side getting together for the first time.  Typically studio and network executives attend at least the first table read, and more if possible.

When you shoot in Vancouver like we do, logistics for a table read can be challenging.  For this one, we had most of the actors, producers, members of our amazing production staff, and executives from the studio and network side around a speakerphone in a conference room at our offices in Vancouver.  The rest of the writing staff were dialed in from our offices here in Hollywood (pic above).  We also had one actor calling in from elsewhere in Los Angeles, and yet another actor in New York.  Technology for the win!

For writers, table reads are insanely useful as we hear our words spoken by Actual Actor Humans for the first time.  We take notes as we listen, and the read usually leads to a new round of edits to the script.  Sometimes a line doesn't quite work, or a better one presents itself.

And when you're introducing new characters, hearing the script aloud is your first chance to get a sense of how the character's voice is shaping up, and sometimes we end up tuning the dialogue to better fit the actor.  To that end, we have VERY exciting casting news coming soon.  Stay tuned!

Ultimately, the first table read of the year signifies that we have officially launched into pre-production on EUREKA Season 4.  We start shooting next Thursday, March 18th.  Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!

A Day In The Life - Katie Lovejoy, Producers' Assistant

The next installment in the our sorta monthly feature "A Day in the Life" features our lovely assistant, Katie Lovejoy. And yes, that is her real name.

A Day in the Life by Katie Lovejoy

6:00 am:  The worst ringtone I have on my blackberry screams at my sleeping face, and I roll over and glare at the time.  I proceed to think seriously about going for a half-hour jog, but decide instead that, because it’s so early in the week, I need to get my rest.  I guiltily reset my alarm.  6:30 am:  I drag myself out of bed (I’m not a morning person) and plod towards the bathroom, beating myself up for not going on that jog.

7:30 am:  After making a steaming cup of green tea and snagging a banana, I squeeze into my car, wondering why I ever thought it would be a good idea to own a coupe.

8:00 am:  I arrive at Ralphs, where I commence the weekly office grocery shopping.  There’s nothing that says TV Writers’ Room like loading your cart up with enough sodas to quench the thirst of a small army and enough chocolate to fuel a rocket.  But don’t worry.  I buy fruits and vegetables to supplement our sugar.

8:30 am:  I proceed to checkout while twenty other morning shoppers grumble about how long I’m taking at the counter.  I attempt a joke to ease the tension, but neither the elderly man trying to buy a carton of milk nor the sick college kid holding a bottle of NyQuil are particularly amused.

9:15 am:  Ed (our Writers’ Assistant) and I go over the schedule for the day as we walk to Starbucks – Producers’ meeting at lunch, a casting session across the lot, a set design call with Vancouver, and a notes call from the Studio and Network (schedule subject to alteration).

9:30 am:  I hunker down at my desk as the phones start ringing.   Todd, who is en route to Vancouver to oversee episode 401's prep, calls and asks what’s on his schedule for the day.  Jaime, who is working on a script polish from home, phones in to see if I can conference him to Bruce, who is currently reading the latest draft of a different episode at Starbucks.  One of the main responsibilities that comes with this job is being the center of all internal communication, so knowing who is where and what is happening at all times is absolutely crucial.  It's the only time being a know-it-all is actually a valuable commodity.

9:45 am:  John (our Script Coordinator) gives me the latest episode draft that was distributed to the Studio and Network the night before, and I copy and collate scripts.  Well, okay.  I have our interns copy and collate the scripts.  But I oversee.

9:50 am:  Paper jam.  I engage in an epic battle with the Xerox Machine. 

10:00 am:  The writers start in the room and all is quiet on the Western Front.  I update the calendar and write my to-do list for the day – FedEx DVDs to Vancouver, get an episode outline to our post supervisor, order office supplies (especially the index cards and sharpies that are the life force of the writers’ room), get Sunset Gower facilities to figure out why it’s, twenty degrees in our offices, etc.  The most important thing I learned after working this job for a while? Resistance is futile: you will NEVER outrun your to-do list. 

10:30 am: Update calendars with confirmed meetings, including the master calendar on the white board in my office.  Naturally these meetings will get canceled, rescheduled, canceled, and rescheduled again – so needless to say, the calendars and I hang out a lot.

11:00 am:  Approach writers about where they’d like to order lunch today and circulate the coinciding lunch menu.  After everyone has indicated their order, I have one of our lovely interns fax that baby over to the restaurant. 

11:20 am:  The Production Office in Vancouver calls about scheduling conference calls later that afternoon.  (Like I said, schedule subject to alteration.)

12:00 pm:  Lunch arrives and the interns and I organize the meals.  I contemplate how much the delivery guy must hate me for making him stand there and wait for us to go through every single box and make sure each order is correct before letting him leave the premises.

12:30 pm:  Our weekly internal Producers’ Meeting starts as Bruce goes around the room, asking each writer how their episode is coming.  Then, we go through, one-by-one, and report on our various areas of responsibility.  I take notes during this shindig, because if the producers say they want to set a meeting or schedule a call, I’m the one who makes it happen.

1:00 pm:  We take a short break.  The interns and I talk shop while we tidy up the kitchen, and then I clear my head.  Sometimes I talk a walk to get a change of scenery and some fresh air.  Other times, I’ll play a round of Left4Dead with Ed and John.  Nothing says relaxation like killing some zombies.

1:30 pm:  I reach out to the assistants at the Studio and Network to schedule some meetings and conference calls.

2:00 pm:  Conference call with Vancouver regarding set design.  My duties on such a call include dialing in to the telephone conference center, making sure the other parties are on the line, and then grabbing the producers to jump on the call.  (My biggest fear in the world?  Forgetting to MUTE my phone while I monitor the conference.) 

3:00 pm: FedEx DVDs to Canada.  I still struggle to fill out that International Waybill.

3:30 pm:  I leave the FedEx in the drop box on the lot and pick up mail from the Sunset Gower mailroom.  I use this as an excuse to climb the five flights of stairs back up to the office, which I’m hoping will help get rid of that guilt I’m still feeling over not jogging in the morning.

4:00 pm:  Accounting sends me the weekly Corporate Purchasing Card (P-Card) report and I organize all the receipts from the previous week.  Every time I order anything for the office, I need a complete itemized receipt.  I tape this receipt to a clean sheet of white paper and, each week, organize these receipts in chronological order to accompany the P-Card report.  This standard protocol is designed to make sure all purchases are actually for the use of the show… and not so that I can finally buy that awesome Mario Brothers chessboard on Thinkgeek.com.

4:35 pm:  Visit my favorite website.  Staples.com. 

5:00 pm:  As I bug the assistants at the Studio about various and sundry projects, I remind myself of the P.A. adage “Call early, call often.”  And then I decide that this is simply a nice way of saying, “Be annoying.”

5:30 pm:  I check in with John to see if he needs help with anything as he reads over the latest episode outline before sending it to the Studio and Network.  If he says no, I use this time as an opportunity to read the outline myself.  There’s nothing more exciting or informative than reading each draft of the outlines and scripts for each episode.  It’s amazing how much things change.

6:00 pm:  The interns finish cleaning up the kitchen and make sure drive-ons are ready for any guests visiting the office the next day.  This is usually the time that I prep a nightly email that I send to the entire staff with the following day’s schedule.

7:00 pm:  The room breaks and Ed, John, and I reconvene.  We discuss what’s on the docket for the next day and how things went for each of us in our various areas of responsibility.  Because we spend so much time together, it’s important that the three of us not only get along and like each other, but support each other as much as we can.  As Ed likes to say…  he sees us more than his own wife.

8:00 pm:  I arrive at home and eat some dinner.   As I dig into my own writing for the rest of the evening, I’m reminded that, while sometimes exhausting, this job is a unique and incredible position.  I’m not only learning by example, but I get to work in the exciting and creative environment that is the writers’ inner sanctum.  And there’s no better place to be than that.

Warehouse 13 returns to Syfy on July 13th!!

We here at EUREKA want to extend a heartfelt congratulations to the cast and crew of our sister show, WAREHOUSE 13.

They started production this week on their second season. Woo hoo!