Date: September 12, 2004
Source:IESB.NET
Author: Robert Sanchez
We were hanging out at the Kevin Smith Stash Bash the other day and our friend Grant Boucher came by (btw Grant worked with Kevin on Dogma and was there to catch up on old times). Grant was mum on the Runelords (he would only say “it’s still alive and well, but burning in financing hell”) but was pretty excited about his new TV series, SYN, which he called “a supernatural crime thriller, sort of Se7en meets The Shield with a little Buffy the Vampire Slayer thrown in.” We liked what we heard a lot and asked him if he could tell us a little more.
Grant Boucher
Grant: “Thanks for taking such an interest in the show. It may not be kosher to talk about this at such an early stage, but what the heck. I love the site and you guys have been great about supporting the Runelords during all of its continued ups and downs. So, here goes…
The basic (really, really rough) premise of SYN is this: “Every seven centuries, the immortal Seven Deadly Sins and their opposing Heavenly Virtues choose one person to become their pawn in an invisible war. The victor leads mankind into a bright age of Enlightenment and discovery or a Dark Age of ignorance and despair.
As the last age of virtue comes to a close, the immortals choose LAPD Detective Allison Dumond – a decidedly imperfect woman precariously balanced between the light and the dark.
Armed only with the divine gift of Free Will, she stands between Heaven and Hell – alone in the City of Angels. Pray for Allison Dumond. For her fate is our destiny.”
IESB: What stage is SYN at now?
Grant: “Fortunately, some friends of mine at Gold Pictures (@ Universal Studios) read my treatment and fell in love with the show immediately. They’re launching the show while I wrap up the second hour of the script. I’ve already laid out the first season and the show bible is locked, so we’re ahead of the game I think for now. Yeah, I know, famous last words, hehe.
IESB: You have worked on plenty of "Genre" style shows in the past including Seaquest, Sliders and of course Star Trek Voyager in which you won an Emmy, Why SYN?
Grant: I created SYN in an attempt develop a rich story-driven episodic framework that could be made anywhere from network to cable. I wanted the show to be a writer/director/actor showcase, using visual effects only sparingly, i.e. where they would have the maximum impact. Yeah, this might sound weird coming from a visual effects guy, but most people don’t know that I was a sci-fi/fantasy writer and storyteller long before I rendered my first spaceship (see www.grantboucher.com).
The final style of the show will depend on whether this is ultimately destined for network or cable. If we had the chance to cut the pilot independently and therefore maintain complete control, then Jenni Gold (director) and I would like to see this (humbly) as Hitchcock’s take on “The Shield”. Producer Jeff Maynard calls this a “drama trifecta - gritty, edgy, and scary.”
IESB: What can we expect from the cast and crew?
Grant: The producers at Gold Pictures and I are committed to developing greater diversity within the entertainment industry by utilizing a crew consisting predominantly of women and minorities. Since the show is set in urban L.A. we intend for SYN to set the high-water mark for diversity hiring both in front of and behind the camera.
IESB: Where are you planning to shoot this show at? Hollywood or Hollywood North?
Grant: We’ll be shooting in the good old U.S. of A. I think we’ve sent enough California jobs to Vancouver for now, don’t you? Check out www.acttaskforce.org for more on stopping runaway production.
IESB: So if anybody is interested in SYN, where can we find more information?
Grant: If anyone is interested in what we’re putting together here, SYN will go live on the www.goldpictures.com around the 20th, so you can check there for updates and contact information. We’re just getting our first pitch meetings together now, so wish us luck.
IESB: Grant, thanks for the heads up on SYN!
Grant: Robert, thanks for giving enough of a damn about the genre fans to cover something like SYN in its very early infancy. It’s what sets sites like IESB.net apart from the mainstream media.”
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