EA, Starz Media Ink Deal for Animated Movie

BURBANK, March 24:
Electronic Arts (EA) and Starz Media have secured a deal to produce an animated
prequel movie to the game publisher’s upcoming sci-fi horror video game Dead
Space.

The film is being
developed by Starz subsidiary Film Roman, and will pick up where the plot of
the original comic-book series ends and leads up to the beginning of the game,
which will be launched alongside the film on Halloween this year. The story
follows the events aboard a futuristic spaceship, after a mysterious artifact
triggers the invasion of a long-dormant alien presence.

Starz is currently in
discussions with worldwide broadcasters for Dead Space, which will be released on TV and then on DVD, and
will kick off its international sales efforts at the upcoming MIPTV market. The
company will also market the film through its home-entertainment company,
Anchor Bay Entertainment, as well as with online and wireless distributors.

“Due to the richness and
complexity of stories that have evolved for video games, they have become a
type of entertainment that can span generations and provide fantastic
inspiration for other forms of media; especially in the realm of animated
features,” said Film Roman’s president and COO, Scott Greenberg. “We’re
particularly thrilled to be starting off with Dead Space.”

“We are really excited to
be working with Film Roman to create an animated feature that will tell the
portion of the Dead Space saga
between the comic and game,” said Glen Schofield, the executive producer for
Dead Space. “With the video game,
comic book and now animated movie,
Dead Space has become a true
multimedia brand. Each of these elements delivers the story to new audiences
and tells it from different aspects and perspectives.”

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski