We put a series of questions to Jezz Vernon from Metrodome Destribution about their future Transformers DVD releases.
Play.com and Sendit.com are listing the TF Victory box set for release on 25th September. Can you confirm this?
Unfortunately we think that this will be moved now – just a case of getting it through the BBFc in time and maing sure we meet deadlines, we should have a new release date in the next week or so. However it will feature a commentary from Chris McFeely on 3 episodes and a booklet as per the previous two Takara volumes. It’s likely to be a late Oct release
Any plans for another tin to house the Takara Collection?
I don’t think this is going to happen although we looked at it – the quantities we sell aren’t the same as the main US series, so the powers that be are being cautious about an investment like the tin, it would have been good though.
Metrodome announced plans for a TFTM 20th Anniversary Edition DVD earlier this year. Is this still going ahead?
Yes – we hope that this will proceed as planned, when we confirmed that we could include Zone and Scramble City we felt that we had a shot at a genuine ultimate edition. Although Zone is far less relevant it would be a good home for it as an added extra, we didn’t have the time to include this on Victory by the time we received clearance.
Can you provide some details on the film master being used (remastered?) and what soundtrack we can expect?
This hasn’t been confirmed yet, but – to roll several answers together, we are speaking with Sony at the moment about sharing their master and tie-ing in for a worldwide release date. They’ve done a great job from what we’ve heard on building a widescreen master that’s been graded and checked out by US fans, so they’re avoiding the pitfalls of using unqualified techs ‘interpreting’ aspects of the 5.1 sound etc. We hope to confirm this soon.
Scramble City and TF Zone have been mentioned as extras for the set. Will they be included and what other extras have you got lined up?
We’re still tbc on extras – we’ve had some great feedback on our message boards and we’re looking at everything, if we can possibly include it (within legal and copyright confines) we will.
Have you been working with Sony BMG or are your releases completely seperate?
answers above
Sony BMG seem to have received lots of help from Hasbro. Have Metrodome received the same level of support?
Hasbro are always overseeing what we do – and we appreciate their guidance, but obviously we’re only signed up to release the generation one collection – and they’re keeping tabs on all aspect of the brands lifeline, including the new activity around the film.
How about releasing the TFTM DVD on 12th December 2006, exactly 20 years after the movie was first released in the UK?
It’d be a neat thing to do, but we have to look at early November, partly because of tie-ing in with Sony’s US release and to ensure we get a bit of shelf space prior to Xmas.
After TF Victory and TFTM DVD, Metrodome would have released all 98 G1 episodes, 109 Takara Collection episodes and Transformers the Movie 4 times (3 DVD, 1 UMD) since November 2003. What have Metrodome got planned next? hint*HD DVD/Blu Ray Transformers or Beast Wars*hint
We went to a blu ray presentation and it was pretty impressive it must be said, we’d certainly look at an edition of the movie when the time was right – i think the format would suit it beautifully, can’t say when that would be at this stage though.
I don’t think we’ll be able to access Beast Wars – we can only release TV Loonland owned content for now.
And a quick question for your board members – we’ve not looked at releasing Generation Two for obvious reasons, it’s always felt a bit redundant to us – but is there any interest at all in seeing a version out there?
