Neill Blomkamp might not be creating his Alien 5 movie anymore, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to turn his back on the sci-fi genre completely.
After Ridley Scott recently ruled out any chance of Blomkamp’s ‘spiritual sequel’ to Alien and Aliens becoming a reality, the District 9 director has found a way to get his sci-fi visions into production, bypassing the need for studio politics completely. To avoid future heartbreak, Blomkamp has created Oats Studios, a production house that aims to create unique sci-fi properties and deliver them directly to the consumer via online media.
I want to have direct open dialogue with audience going forward – at least on all things #oatsstudios related
— Neill Blomkamp (@NeillBlomkamp) May 22, 2017
The model for Oats studios is an interesting one. High-quality sci-fi shorts will be screened for free via YouTube, while Steam will offer paid versions of the same movies with bonus assets like 3D VFX models and concept art. The more views and downloads the movies get, the more content Blomkamp will create.
If you were concerned that movie into the online world would dampen Blomkamp’s ability to create beautiful sci-fi visuals, this first trailer for the studio’s debut entry will go a long way to allaying any such fears.
There hasn’t been any official cast list released just yet, but Dakota Fanning can clearly be spotted in multiple scenes of the trailer. Even more exciting for sci-fi fans is that it we’re 99% certain we saw some involvement from Blomkamp’s compatriot, Sharlto Copley (District 9, Elysium) and Sigourney Weaver, who was widely expected to make an appearance in Blomkamp’s Alien 5. This just got a whole lot more exciting.
