What's wrong with modern sci-fi?

      I was doing a little research on the mysterious language of Esperanto and ran across a film called "Yerba City." The film, currently laboring without a distributor, was written and directed by a fellow named Michael Gibson. He sent me a copy and we passed emails after I viewed his creation.

Miles (Dominik Overstreet) watches over his prey in "Yerba City."

      In viewing "Yerba City," I began to think about the current plight of the sci-fi genre. According to the online bible on film, IMDB, there are some 3354 titles that qualify for one reason or another as science fiction. A quick scan of this list reveals everything from "Doctor Strangelove" to something called "Future War." "Strangelove" heads the list and that other film does not appear to be highly recommended.

      The problem with modern science fiction films is that such films forget their roots abandoning intelligent story lines in favor of special effects and tired action sequences. A paramount example of the decay in modern sci-fi would be Arnold's last and latest disappointment "The Sixth Day." You see, science fiction films should contain, at least, some science, even if it really may be the junk kind.

      The best of the sci-fi genre arguably have a little of both science and thrills appealing to the audiences' intellect as well as its senses. Some people argue that the decay began with the success of "Star Wars." I'm not so sure I agree, but the next installment of the new trilogy must get smarter to truly win me over.

      Trapped in the middle of this struggle are films like "Yerba City," a smart, low tech, high brow, sci-fi thriller. While not making the grade in every department, it sure offers hope to the Asimov crowd. Michael Gibson just might remember the Three Laws of Robotics if pressed at a cocktail party.

      "Yerba City" is a great looking black and white feature, so, I asked Mr. Gibson for budget and production details. He told me that he owes a lot to good friends. Usually, this means a guy to hold the video camera or some crazy bud that willingly risks bodily injury for art and friendship (see "The Coven" and "American Movie").

      "The film stock was expired (which is pretty goddamn old for black and white) and it was donated from a contact at Kodak. The cinematographer has his own camera and his own prime lenses, the grip has his own truck. Both these guys worked for free, as did the editor who has his own Avid," said Gibson via email. He actually "used recycled beta stock to save money on tapes." Believe me, to watch this film, you would have never known that corners were cut.

Are some of the inhabitants of "Yerba City" more human than human?

      According to Gibson, "all in all, what really cost me money on the picture was the developing (Joe Bono labs who did an excellent job?? best B&W in the country if anyone asks, better than DuArt), and the basic production."

      Of course, there is money in the film, but ultimately credit ratings suffered, especially, that of Gibson himself who did come away with all the rights, but he tells me that the film is another "casualty of the .com fallout." He would not recommend repeating his model for your production.

"Yerba City is a 35mm feature film, it would look great in the theaters, although it's never been projected," Gibson said in an email. I suggested that the film would benefit from a little narration. Gibson said that he has toyed around with the idea of narration and recutting the film, adding new music, but without a distributor or any real interest in the movie, Gibson is hesitant to do anything further. It took two (2) years to get the production to this point and Gibson says "a film is like a baby, and I'm not going to buy braces for my kid until I'm sure her teeth are going to grow into her skull, if you follow the metaphor."

      Gibson cites as his influences "Goddard's Alphaville and Welles' Touch of Evil, both of which I [Gibson] showed to the cinematographer before we started shooting." He recognizes the film as derivative and that at the tender age of 29, he still has to develop his own voice. Still, the photography is compelling on such a low budget.

      Gibson told me a little about his real life inspiration for "Yerba:"

In any case, I was walking through the Potrero Hill district of San Francisco, down by the general hospital, when I saw these patients who had left their care wards to venture out across the street to buy cigarettes. There were about half a dozen of them, men and women, still dressed in hospital gowns and still with their IV drip bags stuck in their arms. All of them where either wheeling their bags on support stands along with them as they walked or they were just holding the bags up above their heads. Of course, I HAD to talk to these people in the liquor store, where most of them had gone to buy cigarettes. They claimed not to be from the cancer ward and that none of their doctors had recommended against smoking (although I can't imagine a doctor not recommending against smoking). In any case, I went to a cafe and wrote all this down. Later on that week, I was going over my notes, and just looking at my thoughts about Goddard's film combined with these people from the hospital with their IVs, I was like "there's a movie."

Enjoy "The Drip" while you can!

      In "Yerba City," the world, perhaps, our own world or dimension, has been brought to a complete halt due to a powerful and debilitating addition to something aptly called "the drip." The inhabitants of this universe lounge around in drug parlors in which their needs (mainly just the basic few) are catered to by half human androids. It is an eclectic mix of depravity and political/social satire. The masses are embalmed here, at times, it appears pleasantly so.

      Gibson's film was made independently mainly out of frustration with rejection he told me. A lot of great science fiction films make me think that they too were born from the damnable Hell fires of denial and rebuff.

So, where does this leave the good modern sci-fi film? Without a distributor, being made by smart good friends who risk financial ruin, only to be discovered years after its completion and still nobody cares. Maybe, the drip featured in "Yerba City" can be likened to the drivel that oozes from Hollywood disguised as science fiction but isn't scientific at all.

Jonathan W. Hickman