Free "Ender's Game" Panel in London With Cast/Crew Guests!

Heads up, UK Launchies! Bleeding Cool is reporting that a week from today on October 7th, there will be an Ender's Game panel between 6:30pm and 8:00pm with cast and crew members -- and it's absolutely free to attend!

From the site:

The panel will take place in the West End of London – in one of the bigger cinemas in Leicester Square would be my guess – and a number of stars will be in attendance.

According to the press release the following guests will be there:

Harrison Ford, Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, Ben Kingsley, Gavin Hood, Bob Orci and Gigi Pritzker.

There will also be props from the film and "never before seen footage" shown.

Yikes!

To claim your ticket, keep an eye on the official website for London Comic-Con around 6 p.m. GMT tomorrow -- though Bleeding Cool suggests that you get there a bit early and hit refresh for a while; this is something that may "sell out" very quickly!

Good luck, Launchies.

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Countdown: 32 Days to Go | Vodka

"Everybody wears something underneath the flash suits that we can launder and then the suits themselves we just disinfected every day. And I can't tell you all the secrets behind that, but sometimes we used vodka. For real. It's an old costuming trick, you mix vodka with water and you put it in spray bottles, it kills all the germs." - costume designer Christine Bieselin Clark

Source: EnderWiggin.net

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Spotted: "Ender's Game" Popcorn Bag

This was a fun surprise to wake up to on a Monday morning!

Ender's Game actor Ty Parker (seen in the trailer in Dragon Army and the baseball scene) tagged Ender News on Instagram last night to let us know that he ran across this at his local cinema:

Popcorn Bag!

I don't know about you guys, but seeing an Ender's Game popcorn bag makes this all suddenly feel very real. He also mentioned that he believes the ICEE cups were available, and my offer still stands for the first two people sending me a picture of themselves enjoying Battleschool Blastberry or Orbital Orange!

Remember: they're meant to be fully implemented by October 1st, so your chances of finding one goes up drastically tomorrow - good luck!

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Countdown: 33 Days to Go | Tā Moko

Half-Maori war hero Mazer Rackham wears a Maori tribal tattoo on his face which is a historical record: "Every gesture in the tattoo carries family history, family struggles – it's your past! I was so enthralled. He's in quite a contained, stylized uniform but then this wonderful face tells his warrior history."

Source: Entertainment Weekly

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Countdown: 34 Days to Go | Shower Scene

The Shower Scene: Asa and Moises did such an amazing job, that it goes down in the annals of history as a fight sequence that many people will copy, I think, for years to come. - stunt coordinator Garrett Warren

Source:  Ender News

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The Flaming Lips to release Ender's Game 6-Track EP

American rock band The Flaming Lips have written a song that will (very likely) be featured in the Ender's Game movie, and the band has just announced that they will expand this collaboration to release an Ender's Game-themed 6 song EP titled Peace Sword on November 29, 2013, Black Friday. The cover art for this record can be seen on top.

Sidetracked: If you are not familiar with The Flaming Lips... they are a positively crazy bunch of great artists who did some amazing work in the past decade, frequently adapting sci-fi themes, including the masterpiece "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots", one of my old radio station's Top 100 songs of the decade and a song that is, despite its seemingly fun character, about a girl fighting cancer. Great stuff!

The band's frontman Wayne Coyne announced last month in an interview with The Huffington Post that the band is making new music for the film:

I don't know if I'm allowed to say it, but we are working on a song that is going to be in the Ender's Game epic movie that's coming out at the end of the year. If the song works out to be in the movie, we think we're going to pursue making a bit more of an expanded five or six song record that goes along with the theme and the stuff that we did for that movie, which we really ended up liking. A lot of times, people do songs for movies and there are a lot of criteria that you have to follow to make it suit the movie people.

We don't know for sure that's going to happen yet, but we've already done the song and we quite like the mood of it and the way of it, the sound and the theme of it. Steven and I both remarked, "Man, I'd like to do some more music associated with this," and we think they're going to let us. If it works out that they end up liking our song and using it and all that, we think we'd pursue something like that. That would be even as soon as November, so I think it could work out. But I don't know. It'll probably be another week or so before we know, but I'm talking about it like it's going to happen, so that's good enough for me.

Based on Wayne Coyne's recent social media posts on Twitter and Instagram, the song has apparently been approved for the movie and the band is in the final stages of finishing up Peace Sword.

Still mixin Enders' Game extended play 6 song thang.. http://t.co/1bYugp5AZy
— Wayne Coyne (@waynecoyne) September 19, 2013

Workin on vinyl lay-out for Peace Sword songs from the movie Ender's Game http://t.co/mj90jgZaSU
— Wayne Coyne (@waynecoyne) September 24, 2013

From the record's back sleeve (also posted on Instagram) we can confirm three of the song titles: "Think Like a Machine, Not a Boy", "Wolf Children", and "Assassin Beetle/The Dream Is Ending". Good chance that we'll also get a title track Peace Sword, but keep in mind that at the most one of these six songs will be featured in the actual movie.

The band is also very aware of the Orson Scott Card debate and when approached about the controversy, here's what Wayne Coyne had to say (in Instagram comments):

Our involvement is only with the music directors of the movie... but yeah ...these are conflicts all big projects have to deal with. We try to do cool things with cool people that, obviously benefit us and the cool people we doing stuff with... occasionally these benefits extend to abstractly connected people who are NOT so cool...

The vinyl release (which as an avid vinyl collector I will have to get my hands on no matter what) will also directly address this issue. According to a post on The Future Heart, the vinyl etching for the EP will read "Hey Orson Scott Card You Are Wrong" on side 1 and "Gay People Are Cool" on the flip.

Here is some more artwork from the Ender's Game EP:



(Source: Instagram and Instagram)

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Ender's Game TV Spot "Chosen"

Summit Entertainment has silently released a second commercial for the Ender's Game movie last night on YouTube, titled "Chosen." You can keep track of all officially released trailers, tv-spots and movie clips in Ender News's Video Gallery.

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Countdown: 35 Days to Go | Props

A number of props used in the film were created using 3D printers, including a model of Mazer Rackham's ship that you'll see hanging in Ender's quarters in Command School.  They showed us some of these props - along with some truly badass looking weaponry, and the level of detail was pretty astounding.

Source: Collider

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Countdown: 36 Days to Go | Squirm

At one point Gavin Hood went up to Harrison and asked him to really put Asa on the spot with the "You don't like taking orders from Bonzo" line. "Make him squirm" is how Hood put it. And when you tell Harrison Ford to make someone squirm, goddamnit they squirm!

Source: Ain't It Cool News

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Ender's Game TV Spot "Destroy"

The first official TV Spot for Ender's Game has debuted today on YouTube (via Machinima). And we are very very pleased that "The Future Must Be Won" now seems to be the official tagline for the movie.

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French "Ender's Game" Laser Tag Tournament -- Win & Attend a Private Screening!

French Launchies, this is for you! Loads of cities across France, Luxembourg and Switzerland are holding an Ender's Game laser tag tournament, with the winners attending a private screening of the film on October 25th!

You probably won't need if if you're eligible and living in France, but Ender News reader Claire was kind enough to send us a translation -- and make us super jealous!

Ender's Game Tournament
Who will be the chosen one? Ahead of the release of the movie Ender's Game (in theaters on November 6), take part in our grand tournament in our Laser Game Evolution centers to become the chosen one and win a weightless flight!

The tournament will take place in two phases:

Qualifying Phase -- October 9 -- Register at your Laser Game Evolution center from September 1st to take part in the qualifying tournament, which is open to all. Solo players and teams alike will have to give their all!
Grand Final -- October 25 & 26 -- The 20 best players will attend a private early screening of the movie in Paris in the evening of Friday, October 25. The grand final will take place on Saturday, October 26, to determine the winner of the weightless flight!"

[The page then gives a list of the Laser Game Evolution centers that participate in the tournament in France, Luxembourg and Switzerland.]

Thanks, Claire!

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Countdown: 37 Days to Go | Colors

There is a color scheme throughout the movie that makes it very easy to subconsciously follow Ender's journey from location to location. Human environment, such as Earth and Battle School, is color-coded in blues and greys. Formic locations (Eros, Command School) are held in amber tones.

Source: Ender News

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New UK "Ender's Game" Poster: The Future Must Be Won

Empire Online

The imagery isn't new, but the composition is sweet -- and they are sticking with that tagline Crystal and I both love!

Thanks to EnderWiggin.net for the find!

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Battle School Challenge #2: Become a Part of the Official IMAX Poster!

Ready your flash suits, Launchies! The official Battle School site has updated today with the SECOND Battle Room challenge which will lead us up to the IMAX poster reveal next week!

From the release:

People who visit the International Fleet Battle School site (http://www.if-battleschool.com) can enlist by taking a Strategic Aptitude Test that determines their military strength & knowledge, and therefore, which army within the International Fleet they're assigned to.  Users are provided a personalized ID badge representing their army.

The second battle has begun! Cadets must enter the Battle Room and login to their army to compete. SHARE your Army ID badge on Twitter to help your army reveal the official IMAX poster, and the winning army will have the honor of becoming a part of the poster!

The official IMAX poster will be unveiled on 10/2 on Fandango.com.

Go here now --> http://www.if-battleschool.com

They are calling it a "fan collage" so perhaps the logos or even tiny versions of the Facebook images of the conquering army will be featured on the poster -- it would be a shame for Dragon Army to break their winning streak!

Good luck -- and we can't wait to see the new poster!

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Another New Calendar Still -- Ender Confronts Graff

CinemaBlend

New image from Cinema Blend! Shortly after arriving at Battle School, Ender confronts Graff "for pitting him against his fellow Launchies on the shuttle ride to Battle School."

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Countdown: 38 Days to Go | Petra

Petra is very strong and independent because she has to be. She's put into a world where she doesn't know who to trust and who not to trust. In most cases, there's nobody to look to. When she meets Ender, there's this really truthful connection between the two of them that comes from finding their way and finding their place.  - Hailee Steinfeld (Petra Arkanian)

Source: Examiner

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Countdown: 39 Days to Go | Transparent

"The Battle Room is transparent. It gives the feeling when you're out there that you're actually in space 'cause you can see the Earth out the window, you can see the sun, you can see the moon..." They plan to make good use of lighting changes: Some battles will take place at night, and every time the Battle Room is shown there will be a different feel to the incredible null-g environment.

Source: Ender News

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Los Angeles Premiere: October 28, 2013 - Bid to Attend!

Look alive, Launchies: with only 40 days to go until Ender's Game hits theaters, we now have some information regarding the US premiere!

We've confirmed with the studio that the date for the Ender's Game premiere has been set for Monday, October 28th and will be held at the newly-renovated TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles.  And Lionsgate has put another 2 tickets up for grabs on Charity Buzz -- not just to the premiere, but to the after party as well!

The auction closes Wednesday, October 2nd  and all proceeds from the auction will benefit Heal the Bay, a conservation organization dedicated to preserving the coastal waters and watersheds of southern California. We would love to see these seats go to another Ender News reader so definitely let us know if you plan on bidding!

More details surrounding the premiere will most likely be coming over the course of the next month, and we'll definitely keep you updated regarding guests and other related shenanigans.

Only a little over a month to go. We're not excited at all! :)

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Countdown: 40 Days to Go | Complexity

The character that I play is responsible for manipulating young people in service of some perceived need for humanity as a whole. No matter how you try to wrestle with the questions of warfare and the military, the more you realize how complex these issues are and how much attention they deserve. It's really important for us to visit these questions, not only in the daily news, but also in our emotional and civic lives.
- Harrison Ford (Colonel Graff)

Source: Examiner

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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.

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Countdown: 41 Days | Elon Musk

"Originally we had concept art of shuttles taking off like an airplane, like a shuttle, and Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla Motors and SpaceX) said, 'No, that's highly... that would never happen. Since you're trying to get up, just point the damn thing up!'"

Source: Ender News

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"Ender's Game" Soundtrack Cover and Details Released

We woke up to some exciting news from Film Music Reporter this morning: Last night the music news site released details and the cover for the Ender's Game soundtrack -- including the very plot-spoilery track list!

The album, composed by Steve Jablonsky, will be released October 22nd by record label Varese Sarabande and is now available for preorder on Amazon.

Here's the track list:

1. Ender’s War (3:27)
2. Stay Down (2:42)
3. Battle School (1:55)
4. Move It Launchies (:56)
5. The Battle Room (3:03)
6. Mind Game Part 1 (2:24)
7. Salamander Battle (3:34)
8. Mind Game Part 2 (3:55)
9. Dragon Army (2:44)
10. Dragons Win (3:53)
11. Bonzo (1:37)
12. Ender Quits (6:22)
13. Mazer Rackham (2:34)
14. Enemy Planet (3:50)
15. Command School (2:42)
16. Graduation Day (1:28)
17. Final Test (6:02)
18. Game Over (2:36)
19. The Way We Win Matters (6:14)
20. Ender’s Promise (5:09)
21. Commander (3:33)

Film Music Report promises that audio clips from the soundtrack will be available in a couple weeks, so keep check back here for updates -- we will let you know as soon as they pop up!

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Countdown: 42 Days to Go | Genuine Tenderness

They are in this Battle School, which is pretty brutal, and there is genuine tenderness between these two characters at certain moments. And there are genuinely sweet moments, when she teaches him how to shoot... both exciting and really tender.

Source: Ender News

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New Stills from the 2014 "Ender's Game" Wall Calendar

Hey, Launchies! As you all probably know, the Ender's Game wall calendar was released this past Tuesday and while Amazon was a bit late in shipping and my local book stores have let me down entirely, one brilliant Ender News reader has saved the day.

Kelson, the guy who won the auction to attend the Ender's Game premiere in Los Angeles next month, hooked me up today with a first look at the new imagery from the calendar.

There are so many new stills here. We have exciting new looks of Bernard in his Launchie suit, Dragon Army, the mess hall -- and BEAN.  Check it out:

"Given only ten minutes to suit up with helmet and weapon, Ender (Asa Butterfield) and the other Launchies listen intently as Colonel Graff introduces them to the zero-gravity Battle Room."

"A diagram of the anatomy of a Formic on the wall of Ender's classroom on Earth."

"After rehashing the fight with Stilson and losing his monitor (or chance to enter the training program), Ender (Asa Butterfield) and Valentine (Abigail Breslin) are surprised by their brother, Peter, who mocks the failed cadet and proposes a game of Formics and Astronauts."

"In forty-two battles, nobody has beaten Ender's Dragon Army, a platoon of misfits and oddballs. Graff, pressured by Command School for a decision to promote the brilliant strategist, doubles the enemy for the next maneuvers in the Battle Room. Whichever side gets a cadet through the enemy's gate unharmed will win, regardless of points scored. In a stroke of tactical genius, Ender stacks multiple rows of cadets in formation."

"Ender (Asa Butterfield) looks down across the sea of kids in the Mess Hall watching the Battle Room Games scoreboard flash Game Over, and Bonzo Madrid's Salamander Army remains on top. Aware of the lingering Launchie, Bonzo tells Ender to keep his eyes on the floor and sends him to face a wall with a lone kid in a Salamander uniform."

"With Ender (Asa Butterfield), Bean (Aramis Knight) and Alai (Suraj Partha) the only passing scores on the Deep Space Navigation Test, Professor Behari (Jasmine Kaur) encourages one of them to step forward and educate the class on using the gravitational pull of a planet to slingshot fighter craft into attack [unreadable] on the dark side of a moon."

"Sergeant Dap (Nonso Anozie) calls attention on deck as Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) enters the Launchie dormitory to announce that he's pleased with their progress and, with some failed seniors leaving soon, he'll be looking to promote some of them."

"Arriving at Battle School orbiting high above Earth, Bean (Aramis Knight) disembarks the Desert Salt Flats shuttle through the docking airlock, and hears a voice over the loudspeaker instructing Launchies (new arrivals) to follow the yellow lights."

"Ender takes the only free bed in the Launchie dormitory, and approaches the shriny locker next to it. At the sound of his voice, the locker spins open to reveal a slightly stiff, anodized spacesuit, flight boots, and gloves, an aerodynamic helmet, and a pistol-like laser gun."

"Though the Salamander Army leader, Bonzo Madrid, has forbidden Ender (Asa Butterfield) to unholster his weapon for fear the inexperienced Launchie will screen up his platoon's perfect maneuvers, Petra Arakanian (Hailee Steinfeld) takes Ender under her wing and practices with him in the Battle Room during her free time."

The Cover

Kelson -- hero of the day!

So, what do you guys think? And what is Dragon Army doing up there? :)

All images and captions are taken from the 2014 Ender's Game wall calendar and © Summit Entertainment.

 Thanks again, Kelson!

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Countdown: 43 Days to Go | Desks

The desk is used by the Battle School students for homework, research, and a trip into the school's psychological evaluation program, the Mind Game - though the props themselves are not actual computers.  Filmed with a blue screen, the VFX team added in visuals later.  It also comes with a storage bag: "Sold separately," Bob Orci winked.

Source: Ender News

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Two New Battle School Games -- Win a trip to NASA!

Launchies across the pond, this is for you!

The UK Ender's Game movie site recently launched the "Battle School Command Core," complete with 2 brand new Battle Room games. And these games aren't just for fun -- each week, those at the top of the leader board will be entered into a drawing to win cool prizes or even a trip to Florida to visit NASA!

Week One's prizes are pretty exciting: an iPad Mini for the "Pairs" game and a Kindle Paperwhite for the top scorer in the "Target Shoot."

Compete in all 6 weeks for the chance to win a trip to NASA in Florida! But keep in mind: only those living in the UK and Ireland can be entered into the draw for prizes. Check out the site for more terms and conditions.

Good luck, Launchies!

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Countdown: 44 Days to Go | Valentine

You want people to watch the characters and see the innocence of these kids for who they were in that moment, so that their humanity is present. You want Valentine to be adorable, loving and charming instead of like "Ooh, doesn't she look hot?"

Source: Ender News

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Japanese Ender's Game Illustrations by AKIAKANE

Aki Akane, a very popular Japanese artist (illustrator and singer), has done some manga-style promotional illustrations for Ender's Game which debuted last month at the 84th Comic Market (Comiket) in Tokyo. Those illustrations were on display in West Hall, the section of Comiket where TV stations and film distributors promote their latest titles.

The accompanying leaflet also carries a (c)Summit Entertainment copyright, so we are pretty sure that this is official artwork for the promotion of the movie in Japan. Even though I am not a particular fan of manga-style art, I think these illustrations are very lovely. Enjoy the scans and photos below:

Sources: Crunchyroll, Vocaloid, Tumblr

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Contest: Find an "Ender's Game" ICEE!

Hey guys -- since we found out today that the Battle School Blastberry and Orbital Orange ICEEs are available in some locations this week (though most places the first week of October), I thought  it would be fun to run a small contest!

The first two people to email me a picture of themselves with an Ender's Game icee (with the themed cup!) will win one Ender's Game bag from this year's Comic-Con -- plus a static cling and a pin!

Send all submissions to endernews@gmail.com with "ICEE Contest" in the subject line. And please keep in mind: this must be your own photo, not something you found on the internet. Believe me, I am very good with Google and if you cheat, I will find out! Also, I will be posting the photos in the EN gallery so including your face is entirely optional. :)

Good luck, Launchies!

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