THE NEW RAY BRADBURY REVIEW - announced for October 2016

I've been editing issue five of the annual New Ray Bradbury Review, and it has now been listed in the publisher's catalogue for 2016. October sounds a long way off , but with any luck, copies may become available earlier than this date; they sometimes do.

The issue is entirely devoted to articles related to the Francois Truffaut film of Fahrenheit 451, which is fifty years old in 2016. I managed to pull together contributors from four continents for a wide-ranging look at the film, its contexts, its influence and its curious strengths and weaknesses. The film is usually considered to be flawed - and indeed Truffaut scholars often rate it as one of his lesser works. But it remains just about the only film made from a Bradbury work by a major figure in world cinema. It's fun to speculate what a Kurosawa, a Fellini or a David Lean might have made of a Bradbury story - and Bradbury tried to work with all of these directors and more - but we do at least have a Truffaut version of Bradbury.

The New Ray Bradbury Review is edited at the Center for Ray Bradbury Studies in Indianapolis under the general editorship of the Director, Jon Eller; and is published by Kent State University Press. The publisher's catalogue page for the Review can be viewed here: http://issuu.com/dcrosby/docs/2016_catalog_complete_web/15?e=2256225/31544935

Dandelion Wine - on screen

RGI Productions has confirmed its intention to adapt Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine into a feature film.

Rodion Nahapetov is the author of the film's screenplay, and he will produce the film with Natasha Shliapnikoff, Agata Gotova and Albert Pocej. The screenplay was initially developed several years ago, and had Ray's blessing.

There is a Facebook page for the film, which currently includes some concept art, and photos of Rodion with Ray: www.facebook.com/dandelionwinemovie

There have been many announcements of Bradbury-based film projects in recent years. So far, nothing has resulted from the planned versions of Fahrenheit 451 or The Illustrated Man - and things have gone quiet on Something Wicked This Way Comes. But Rodion and Natasha are different: producers who had a close connection to Ray, and who have a strong commitment to Dandelion Wine. I think adapting Dandelion Wine could be really difficult, but I hope they manage to pull it off!