Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:41 — 30.8MB) | Embed
On August 16th 2014, 5 years ago to this day was when I first launched the first episode of Trial By Stone.
To celebrate the occasion I thought I better write a blog about the podcasts origins for any of new listeners curious to know how it all began.
I started the podcast at a time when I was listening to a lot of podcasts, mainly based on the Star Wars franchise.
My fandom for Star Wars drifted away after the conclusion of the prequel trilogy and waiting year after year for the live action Underworld TV series to happen, I remember being so excited that it was potentially going to be filmed in Sydney, same with The Power of The Dark Crystal, two franchises that I hold so dearly to me that I would love to somehow be a part of it, but unfortunately both projects never came to be.
Also at the time in 2014, my job as an Assistant Editor on number of television shows consisted of working evening shifts, which meant that I had a lot of time on my hands during the day.
There would be weeks that I would just sleep in and just go to work in evenings, or watch episodes of TV all day, eventually coming to a conclusion that I needed to be bit more productive (besides taking dogs for a walk or doing house work) I needed a hobby to keep me occupied, hence why I thought making a podcast would be fun to do, its an aspect of editing, with audio and talking to people about something that we have a passion for seemed like great way to go.
So when I decided to make a podcast, I was thinking what to do one on? Star Wars? By then there was hundreds of podcasts, thank to Disney purchasing Lucasfilm and the anticipation began for The Force Awakens, I wanted to do a podcast that was unique, different that stood on its own and something else I had a passion for.
That passion of course was The Dark Crystal, which my interests for it was re-energised at the time when The Jim Henson Company launched the official website www.darkcrystal.com and had finished their first contest, The Dark Crystal Author Quest, a chance to win to write a prequel novel to The Dark Crystal which J.M. Lee won (initially a one book deal that expanded to four books to then becoming a staff writer on Age of Resistance which the show has some connections to the books).
With The Dark Crystal coming back, with the prequel novel, and waiting for Volume III of The Dark Crystal: Creation Myths on the horizon the following year, there was new stories to look forward to and discuss about with other fans, thats when the idea to do a podcast all about The Dark Crystal came to be, so I reached out to J.M. Lee if he’d be keen to be on the show, he said yes. We recorded the chat, and the rest is history.
So I continued making an episode on a monthly basis, being a very small niche audience, and then suddenly on May 2017 it changed the podcast dramatically with the announcement of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance prequel series coming to Netflix in 2019!
The news was unexpected and never imagined starting the podcast that The Dark Crystal franchise would return to live action puppetry extravaganza, The Jim Henson Company have tried several times to get The Power of The Dark Crystal, the sequel to the original film off the ground, as well as several television animation shows in development started around early to mid 2000’s with the sequel film ultimately cancelled in 2012 and instead adapted as a 12 issue comic book series (which in my opinion was probably for the best, more on that another time).
Doing a prequel to The Dark Crystal is a risky move in and of itself, and is the biggest gamble that Netflix and The Jim Henson Company have ever done, to tell stories in an era where Gelfling clans are prominent, the cruel Skeksis ruling the world of Thra, the Mystics being well, mystical and full of riddles has more powerful storytelling opportunities compared to what was developed for the sequel.
I just wanted to thank everyone who has been a part of Trial By Stone or have listened to our many episodes of the podcast, I continue to have fun making these podcasts, having the passion for The Dark Crystal as well as video and audio editing is the best of both worlds and I hope you’ll enjoy listening to many, many more episodes to come with Jaime, Ethan and I.
We’ve got so much more Dark Crystal to look forward to.
2019 is a fantastic year to rediscover the Age of Wonder.
