Doctor Who 2009 - Exclusive Interview to UDW!

Doctor Who 2009 is a new fan made production coming soon to our computer screens. It stars Kenneth Raymond Moore as The Doctor and Jennifer Richman as companion, Alice Hemmingway. UDW has managed to get an interview with these two actors and you can view it below:

Q. Okay, first off, you recently released a
trailer for the first episode of Doctor Who 2009, Fire and Ice, what did
it feel like when you saw that trailer for the first time? As it looks so
professional and well made, I bet you're proud of it.
Jennifer Richman: Thank you! It was amazing to see it come together. I sat
in the editing room quite a bit while it was being made, and I'll tell
you, it was so difficult to keep my mouth shut about the fact that it was
coming out! I think we knew it was something really special and that it
would be an even better showcase of what "Fire and Ice" is than the
trailer that was released on Christmas.

Kenneth Raymond Moore: My immediate reaction was, "Oh my god! Doctor Who
fans are going to flip!" I've been a fan of Doctor Who since I was little
- in the days when the "classic series" was the new series - and so I know
all about Ice Warriors - and these Ice Warriors look great! Just like the
real thing! And there's one lifting and choking Doctor Who and I'm Doctor
Who! It's very surreal - and this is just a fan film. I can't imagine how
someone like David Tennant feels when he watches himself doing it on the
actual programme. Everyone who got to see the trailer before it came out
kept shouting "Again! Again!" at the end of it. There was a genuine
feeling that it was something special - epic was a word that kept going
around. I'm very proud of it - very proud.

Q. Obviously you play one of the most important roles in
the production, the one, the only Doctor! Did you audition for it? Or were
you already involved in the production that you were just randomly chosen?
I guess there was some thought in the early stages of development to
cast someone much much older in the role, but with the way the stories
developed it seemed to need a younger actor. I had played the Doctor in
some short remakes of classic Doctor Who scenes and so I guess it just
seemed to make sense to Aron Presswood, our producer, that I do it instead
of hunting for someone new. However, I wanted to do it completely
different from how I did in the remade scenes. Aron worked really hard
with me to create a new and original version of the character. And I think
we succeeded. This Doctor Who come across very "A.D.D." - he seems to be
all over the place - very hyperactive - but suddenly he'll switch when the
moment is serious and become very focused, authoritative, and commanding.
He has some little quirks, too. Some of them where already in the script
and some we just developed in rehearsal. We also have a few brief homages
to other Doctors. In the first scene where I speak I have a quick moment
that's a tribute to William Hartnell - and I like that because the Doctor
was this old man once and it should come through every once and a great
while. There's a line at the beginning of episode two where he uses a term
someone my age would never us - and it's because he's not my age.

Q. What kind of person do you think your role is? As she
is the companion I bet she's brave enough to even travel with the Doctor!
Well, it's funny because when we first "meet" Alice, she really isn't
the brave type. She's not what some might consider a typical companion.
She's very insecure, a bit shy, and unhappy. She's fallen into a very
mundane life. My first thoughts about her when studying the character were
that she is really a total conformist to her surroundings. It's almost as
if Alice believes that if she just goes through the motions, and does what
everyone does, and dresses and behaves like the other girls (especially
her friend, Marisa, who she is very reliant on), no one will notice how
depressed she is. But of course, The Doctor comes into her life and her
whole mindset is uprooted. As the series goes on, we get to see more and
more of the real Alice.

Q. What monsters can we expect to see in
this production? Will there be any new ones?
KRM: There's a great team of writers who have come up with all sorts of
new and exciting creatures. The production team also elected to use two
races of monsters from the classic Doctor Who series that haven't been
brought back in the new series yet: The Ice Warriors, who appear in the
first episode, and then another race of monsters show up later on that
we've been asked not to talk about yet.

Q. Can you give us any hints whether to your Doctor will
regenerate in the finale?
KRM: Each episode of Doctor Who 2009 has its own story; however, it also
tells a bigger story over the course of the series and that story has a
resolution and comes to a conclusion at the end of part 13. The producers
have always intended to only do the 13. They don't have any plans or
desire to do a second series. If the Doctor were to regenerate at the end
of the finale that would be an indication that the story would be
continuing on. Also, it would be such a cruel thing to do to an actor.
"We'd like you to play Doctor Who in this, but only for a few seconds at
the end of the last episode."

Q. What can you tell us about the HisStory/HerStory
episodes, they seem rather different to some of the other titles, are they
in anyway more important than the other stories?
JR: I wouldn't say they are more important than the other stories, as the
whole series really has a strong through-line, but these episodes are
definitely something different. HerStory especially is probably one of the
most beautiful and unique episodes of the entire series. Unfortunately, I
can't give much more away than that!

KRM: I want to jump in on this question too because HerStory is one of my
favorites. HerStory and HisStory are a bit different. They really explore
what the Doctor and Alice are to each other. HerStory explores why the
Doctor means so much to Alice and it's great because it's not the obvious
or cliched reasons. HisStory addresses the Doctor having to understand
what its like to be a companion and to travel with him. It also does it in
a way that isn't obvious or cliched. The Doctor sees the people who travel
with him as his friends and equals - but something happens that forces him
to see how it can be for them - how it can affect them and how it can make
them feel at times. It becomes a major turning point in is relationship
with Alice that greatly affects what happens in the finale.

The HerStory episode is also different because its the most "artistic" of
the series. It doesn't have any monsters in it - but instead its an
exploration of the human condition and it addresses some interesting
social issues - ones I don't think the series has ever really looked at
before - at least on the telly. It's also shot so that what you see on the
screen reflects the moods and emotions of the characters. Some of the
shots are on grainy 16mm black and white film. It's very different and a
facinating experiment with the format

Q. What year is Doctor Who 2009 set in? As it must take
place after Matt Smith's reign.
KRM: The point when these episodes take place in the Doctor's life isn't
addressed at all in the beginning of the series, but it does come up
eventually at some point later on nearer to the end. There are the
occasional references to the Doctor's past in some episodes. Alice meets
an old friend of the Doctor's named Alexander in episode 9 who tells her
that the Doctor once showed up on his doorstep with curly brown hair and
wearing a long scarf and a different face.

Q. Are you planning anything big for the
finale?
JR: Oh, you have no idea...

KRM: It's a very epic finale. It takes all these little random threads
you've been given since the first episode and ties them all up in
mind-blowing ways. There's this moment where it all just snaps together in
your head and you realize what it all meant - and there are somethings
that you didn't even realize at the time were significant. It's also
fascinating because the Doctor and Alice go through their own little
individual journeys as characters in the series and what happens in parts
12 and 13 are the results of how they've developed up to that point.
Everything they go through together in the stories affects each of them
differently. Alice's journey is one of self-discovery and growth - she
starts out very insecure with lots of self doubt and ends up growing into
something stronger and better. The Doctor's journey is much different and
its not necessarily a good journey for him - but he's responsible for it
happening. Parts 12 and 13 explore and aspect of the Doctor that's never
really been looked at before - but one that's always been there somewhere
and only hinted at. Plus, on top of all of this, is a very action packed
fast paced story going on in 12 and 13 that spans over lots of different
locations. I'm extremely excited for people to see it.

Q. And Finally, is there any set date for
when Fire and Ice will be released? And are there any plans to make a
second series of Doctor Who 2009?
KRM: There is release date, and we've been told it, but asked not to share
it with anyone until the producer gives the go-ahead. But I think they're
going to announce it soon because it's not that far off and they want to
give people time to hear about the new date.

Doctor Who 2009 is expected to begin later this year. Please do not reproduce this interview anywhere else as it is an EXCLUSIVE interview to Ultimate Doctor Who. For more information on Doctor Who 2009 visit their official website here.

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