Doctor Who: Theta-G                                        beeblebroxcompany.org

The Doctor and Adric encounter Vardans and Autons in the American city of
Raleigh, where opposing plots are formulated to take control of the Earth using
a radio wave called Theta-G.

Theta-G was originally shown to a few small groups before Doctor Who fan
communities formed online. This four-part serial is now being digitally
restored for wider release.

* * *

Production

* Script: Theta-G: Wave of Oscillation 
* Scene Breakdowns: Script | Movie

* The Dalek forces in the script were realized as a Vardan legion instead.		
* Most of the script was shot in and around Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.
* The rest was shot by a second crew in Connecticut.

* All footage was shot in NTSC video.
* The original camera tapes were VHS, Beta and U-matic cassettes.
* The footage was assembled as a 102-minute movie on a VHS master tape.
* Editing was completed on July 23rd, 1987.

Distribution

Theta-G: The Movie premiered to the cast and crew of both states in Raleigh at
the home of cast member Kevin Sullivan on July 25th, 1987.

The following year, the movie was edited to a U-matic tape at public access
channel 26 in Connecticut. It was broken into three parts, using the same style
of non-Doctor Who credits for each episode. The tape was left at the facility
and was broadcast at least once. The tape of the specialized credit sequences
was retained. The titles in them read:

Theta-G: Wave of Oscillation
  Part One:   Invasion
  Part Two:   Raleigh
  Part Three: Crisis Point

Dubs of Theta-G: The Movie were given to the cast and crew and were sent to
a handful of UseNet Doctor Who fans in the mid-90's.

The first rough cut of the restored version (see below) was shown at the
Gallifrey One convention in 1998. This version was cut down to a length of
three 20-minute parts.

A dub of the 1998 rough cut was submitted to Doctor Who Magazine in 2000 for
a feature on fan films but was not used.

Restoration

Several liberties had been taken in Connecticut with the unshot scenes. The
nature and quantity of the raw material produced was pretty unwieldy to assemble
with the pair of home VCRs available.

After the premiere the project was shelved, even though the episodic script
didn't work as a movie. The 80's heyday of Doctor Who had ended: local area
conventions had ceased and everyone who knew about Theta-G had now seen it.

In 1989, most of the original camera tapes were intentionally destroyed to keep
the possibility of Theta-G restoration from obstructing other work.

* * *

The point of doing an episodic edit of Theta-G: The Movie is that Theta-G never
worked as a movie. The dramatic energy across the long running time is very
uneven due to the natural pauses and pushes written into the episodes of the
script.

For a while it seemed like a good idea to decorate the old footage with new
material. Between 1997 and 2000 several new miniature shots were produced but
after being tried out in a rough cut was their use was abandoned.

In the past few years it's become possible to capture the original tapes
digitally, which stabilizes the footage to the point that it looks better than
it did in the cassette.

Digital editing also makes it extremely simple to rework the shape and sequence
of the captured footage. The surviving camera tapes and master tapes can be
combined with good consistency into the best product possible.

* Restoration Plan


Doctor Who: Theta-G                                        beeblebroxcompany.org