Q: Why do you bother with making this thing? Isn't it a lot of work? A: Yes, it is. I do it mainly as a hobby, but it's also a learning experience, since I'm interested in film production. Doing the series gives me the opportunity to learn the basics of what's involved in each step of the production process and new ways of doing things, so the work is worth it. Q: Where did you get the idea? A: It started as just experiments with special effects. As I got more into it, it grew into an entire episode and, from there, a series. Q: How many episodes will there be? A: Probably 13. Q: How long does it take to make an episode? A: Anywhere from three months and up, usually. It depends on how much I work on it. Episodes have taken up to six months to make. Q: Why does it take so long to make an episode? A: There are other people who live here. I can't actually do any filming (with sound) unless I'm here, by myself (a rare thing, these days), due to the noise, among other things. Also, the lighting conditions have to be good. I can only film on clear days, in order to avoid clouds periodically passing in front of the Sun and decreasing the light level. It's virtually impossible to composite green screened footage when the light level is constantly changing. Q: Does anyone help you? A: No, I have to do everything myself. I prefer it that way, anyway. Q: Where did you learn how to act? A: Darn, I knew I was forgetting to do something. Q: Can I be a guest star? A: It's not impossible, but I probably won't be using guest stars. I'll make a note in the production notes if an episode calls for them. Q: Will there be a full length movie? A: Currently, there are no plans for a movie. I've thought about it, though. Q: Why is the screen size so small? A: Because of my crappy computer. It only has 32 megs of RAM and can't be upgraded. Since I have to record the video directly to the computer with a webcam, a screen size of 160x120 is the most I can get away with, without a lot of frames being skipped while recording, resulting in jerky motion. I increase the screen size slightly for the versions that you watch, to make them easier to see, but the quality of the video suffers, if I increase it too much. The original AVI files I keep stay at 160x120. Q: Do you make any money from the series? A: No. I'm not doing it for money. Q: If the opportunity arose, would you sell the idea to Hollywood? A: Yes, I would. Q: What is "horizon speed"? A: The speed that a ship has to reach to make it all the way through the event horizon of a portal before it collapses. The longer the ship, the faster it has to go. If a ship doesn't reach horizon speed, the collapsing portal will sliced it in-to. Q: What about sex? How do the clones do it if there aren't any women? Are they gay? A: No, and they don't do it and never will. I have no intention of having sex with myself. Q: Can I put The Portal on my website? A: Sure, I only ask that you let me know you're doing it, but you don't have to. Q: Can I edit the episodes? A: Please don't. Q: Can I sell the episodes? A: No. Q: I'd like to hire you to work on a film project. May I contact you? A: By all means, but only if you're serious. I'm always available. Q: Why are you laughing? A: Take a wild guess. |