Spacewoman: The Extraordinary Journey of Eileen Collins Spotlight

 

We don't know what we're capable of until we're tested. Eileen Collins endured arduous challenges to become the first woman to command the Space Shuttle. As a new era dawns for NASA, here's a chance to look back on the era when the United States space agency traded capsules for space planes, and sought international partnership with the scientific community. What issues did Eileen Collins struggle with as she refined her skills as an astronaut? And what price did her family have to pay to help her achieve her dreams?

Here's all the info from Haviland Digital and Tigerlily:

 

A Film About the Extraordinary Journey of Eileen Collins, the First Woman to Pilot and Command the Space Shuttle

SPACEWOMAN

Lands in LA Theaters May 28th &

Santa Barbara Theaters, May 29th!

 

**Official Selection – Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival 2025**

**Official Selection – DOC NYC Film Festival 2025**

**Official Selection – Athena film Festival 2025**

**Official Selection – Boulder International Film Festival 2025**

**Official Selection – Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival 2025**

Directed by Hannah Berryman

Produced by Keith Haviland and Natasha Dack Ojumu.

Written by Hannah Berryman

Featuring Colonel Eileen Collins, Bridget Youngs, Pat Youngs, Luke Youngs, Charlie Camarda, Cady Coleman, Dr. Mike Foale, Wayne Hale, Paul Hill, Marcia Dunn, and Margy Conklin

Astronaut Eileen Collins was the first woman to pilot and command an American spacecraft. Born on the other side of the tracks in upstate New York, she smashed many glass ceilings in the US Air Force and at NASA in her career, culminating in four increasingly dramatic and dangerous space shuttle missions. With an incredible set of archival materials, intimate interviews, and a moving score by Marcelo Zarvos, Hannah Berryman’s nail-biting film shares the emotional journey experienced by Eileen’s family, and explores what level of risk is acceptable in human endeavour.

RT: 95 Minutes

 

For more, see the Spacewoman trailer on Youtube.

 

If you're in the Los Angeles or Santa Barbara regions, find a theater near you. 

 

Thanks to Falco Ink for sharing this announcement with us. 

Crocodile Dance Announcement

 

Kosi Harris has shared some exciting news with us in the past. Foremost among them is Iyanu, the graphic novel from Lion Forge that has spun into an animated TV series, movies, and games. Here's the scoop on another cool film project currently underway. 

 

Africanfuturist Animated Feature Crocodile Dance Exceeds Kickstarter Goal, Raising $95,157 Africanfuturist Animated Feature Advances to Development Following Successful Crowdfunding Campaign

Atlanta, GA — Crocodile Dance, an Africanfuturist animated feature in development, has successfully concluded its Kickstarter campaign, raising $95,157 and surpassing its $70,000 goal. The milestone marks a significant step forward for the project, funding a polished three-minute animation test that will anchor the film’s next phase of development, financing, and co-production discussions. Rooted in West African mythology, Crocodile Dance is a mythic thriller centered on Roukia, a Northern Nigerian griot whose voice and music hold the power to confront Mami Wata, a feared and revered water goddess. When a generational curse resurfaces and threatens Roukia’s family, she must reclaim her voice, confront ancestral fear, and reshape her destiny. While the film delivers moments of heightened drama and supernatural tension, its emotional core explores grief, self-belief, ancestral memory, and the reclamation of power through creativity. TRAILER: Crocodile Dance - Full Teaser 4K Writer and co-director Shofela Coker shares: "Crocodile Dance elevates the origin story of the most reviled and venerated African supernatural being – The Mami Wata. From the shores of Senegal to Nigeria, and beyond, these beings in their many incarnations have influenced psychology for millennia in a manner equally dark and beautiful. It is this duality our film seeks to explore and find truth in" Coker is a Nigerian illustrator and director whose animated work includes the Disney Plus short film Moremi from Kizazi Moto. His creative practice draws deeply from Yoruba mythology, sculpture, and the printmaking traditions of Southwestern Nigeria. Co-director and head of story Nadia Darries adds: Crocodile Dance is about memory, ancestry, identity, and transformation. It's a love story not just between people, but between a woman and her own power. It is the journey of remembering and discovering who we are, piece by piece."  Darries is a South African Annie Award-winning writer and director of Aau’s Song, a Star Wars: Visions short film for Disney Plus. She is also a musician and the founder of Goon Valley Animation.       The Kickstarter campaign represents the first concrete step toward a full-length animated feature, which the creators estimate would require approximately $8 million USD to complete. Funds raised will support pre-production, production, rendering and compositing, editing and post-production, and sound and music for the animation test. The team’s long-term vision is to produce as much of the film as possible on the African continent, partnering with Lucan Animation in Cape Town to establish the film’s visual language and production pipeline. “This story of spirits, identity and transformation needs partners who not only believe in its beauty but in its boldness,” Producer Ingrid de Beer notes: De Beer is a South African producer and partner at Lucan Visuals. Peter Ramsey, the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind Rise of the Guardians and co-director of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, serves as producing consultant on the film. Additional key creatives include Nathan Minier, French composer and multi-instrumentalist; Ummi Yakubu, Nigerian producer, director, and founder of Abuja-based Griot Studios serving as story and cultural consultant; and Shobo Coker, Nigerian writer and executive producer known for co-creating the Africanfuturist graphic novels Bronze Faces and New Masters. The film’s visual world is shaped by Nigerian production designer Yinfaowei Harrison, whose credits include Netflix’s My Dad the Bounty Hunter and Disney Plus’s Kizazi Moto anthology series. He is joined by a global animation team including Aya Akl, Godwin Akpan, Tim Hennig, Kuolon Tzeng, and Gary Luo. Visually, Crocodile Dance draws inspiration from real Nigerian locations including Badagry, Idanre, and Ibadan, blending painted 2D environments with 3D character animation influenced by Southwestern Nigerian printmaking and sculptural traditions. The film’s setting, the coastal town of Itesi, merges vintage 1970s West Africa with neon-lit 1990s futurism, creating a world where myth, music, and modernity collide. In addition to the animation test, Kickstarter backers unlocked key creative deliverables including Roukia’s History, an illustrated novella, and The Art of Crocodile Dance, a 120-page artbook featuring concept art, character designs, storyboards, and behind-the-scenes process. Digital rewards including the original score, wallpapers, and posters are slated for release beginning March 2026, with the artbook and novella expected in October 2026. The completed animation test is targeted for April 2027. Crocodile Dance is developed by Coker CoOp, whose previous works include Outcasts of Jupiter, New Masters, and Bronze Faces. Members of the creative team have collectively worked on projects including Kizazi Moto, Star Wars: Visions, Eyes of Wakanda, Iyanu, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and The Lamplighter’s League. The Kickstarter campaign was fiscally sponsored by  Legends Animated, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting independent animation. With the campaign complete, the team is now entering a focused development phase, pursuing co-production partnerships, financing opportunities, and festival strategy.       For updates, follow the film on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/crocodiledancefilm/.

Thanks to Kosi Harris at KH PR for sharing this announcement with us, and best wishes to the filmmakers with bringing their vision to life. 

Mystery Team: Exclusive Blu-ray + Digital

 

 

Forget Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys! Baker Street Irregulars: take the week off! Meet the newest team of super sleuths! What mysteries will they pursue? And what hilarious hi-jinks might ensue?

Here's all the info from Lionsgate:

 

 

Lionsgate Limited exclusive Blu-ray™ + Digital

Street Date: 1/13/26

SRP: $27.99

 

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

A cold case from 2009 has been restored when MYSTERY TEAM arrives January 13th on Blu-ray™ and Digital from Lionsgate. Donald Glover stars in this Derrick Comedy film where kid detectives have grown up, just like their new case.  MYSTERY TEAM will be available for the suggested retail price of $27.99 with art done by Louie De Martinis.

 

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS

They were kid detectives. Now they’re eighteen and still solving child crimes. But when the Mystery Team is challenged to solve a murder, they’re pulled into a dangerous world of sex, drugs, and swear words. From Derrick Comedy, the Internet comedy sensation whose short films have been viewed over 150 million times online, comes this strangely hilarious, completely unique film that’s been called “‘Encyclopedia Brown’ meets Napoleon Dynamite with a pinch of Ace Ventura” (Cinematical).

 

 

 

BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES

·      2025 Q&A with Filmmakers and Cast

·      Not on Our Watch! Investigating Mystery Team

·      Legacy Special Features:

o   Audio Commentary with Derrick Comedy (Dan Eckman, DC Pierson, Dominic Dierkes,

o   Donald Glover, and Meggie McFadden)

o   Making Mystery Team

o   Pre-Production Test Scene

o   Who Is Wally Cummings?

o   Deleted Material

o   Theatrical Trailer

 

CAST

Donald Glover        TV’s “Atlanta,” “Community,” Solo: A Star Wars Story

DC Pierson             Captain America: The Winter Solider, TV’s “Community”

Dominic Dierkes      Producer of TV’s “Workaholics,” “The Mick”

Aubrey Plaza          TV’s “Parks and Recreation,” Emily the Criminal, Honey Don’t!

 

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Year of Production: 2009

Title Copyright: Mystery Team © 2009 Mystery Gang Productions, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Closed-Captioned: No

Feature Run Time: 94 mins.

Subtitles: English SDH

Format: Widescreen (1.78:1)

Audio:  English 5.1 Dolby TrueHD

 

 Thanks to Lionsgate for sharing this preview with us.

Your Biggest Fan: Upcoming Horror Movie

 

 

 

We may not think of ourselves as storytellers. But as we live our lives, and interact with others, we all tell stories. Some creators make such an impact through their stories that they encounter difficulties with their fans. Here's an upcoming movie that explores that relationship between the creators, the fans, and the stories that bind them together.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Writer-director Eric Salberg has wrapped principal photography on YOUR BIGGEST FAN, a new horror-thriller filmed on location in East Hampton, NY. The project, which was shot with a majority-female crew, completed its main block of production in late 2025 and will return for one final special sequence in early 2026.

 

The feature stars Cosette Hatch as Sophia/Lulu, a breakout young performer who has amassed over 30 vertical film credits, opposite Anthony Jordan Robertson (Bel-Air, 9-1-1) as Theodore. Clare Kramer (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Bring It On) takes on dual roles as twins Joan and Pam, with Judson Mills (Walker, Texas Ranger, Major League: Back to the Minors) appearing as David Carpenter.

 

Executive produced by Linda “Lindy” Janota and shot by cinematographer Hanuman Brown-Eagle, the film leans into a voyeuristic visual language inspired by security-camera footage, phone POVs, livestream aesthetics, and digital distortion. Brown-Eagle’s approach grounds the story in the unsettling modern dynamics between creators and their most obsessive fans—blurring the line between performance, surveillance, and reality.

 

“YOUR BIGGEST FAN explores the dark side of para social connection—the way digital intimacy can twist into something far more dangerous,” said Salberg, who makes his feature directorial debut with the project. “We wanted to build a thriller that feels uncomfortably close to the world we’re all living in right now.”

 

Janota added, “This film was designed and driven by a predominantly female team, and I’m incredibly proud of the vision, craftsmanship, and fearlessness everyone brought to set. It’s thrilling to be launching a story that speaks to the cultural moment while pushing the visual boundaries of the genre.”

 

Production is slated to resume in early 2026 for a final narrative sequence, after which the project will move into full post-production.

 

Thanks to Anderson Group PR for sharing this announcement with us. 

Coming Soon: Charlie Tango

CHARLIE TANGO

 

OPENING ON DIGITAL PLATFORMS ON SEPTEMBER 3

 

 

Kim, an air traffic controller under investigation after a tragic plane crash, is recruited by Charlie, her lover who specializes in lucrative real estate investments. Her police officer husband, Jeff, soon begins to suspect that Charlie is at the head of a major embezzlement scheme. 

 

 

 

 

CHARLIE TANGO was written, directed and produced Simon Boisvert. The film stars

popular Canadian actors David La Haye and Bruce Disnmore, and Stacie Mistysyn (Degrassi High). The original music was done by Oliver Palotai, keyboardist for the band Kamelot.

 

 

 

 

CHARLIE TANGO was first runner up, Best Foreign Film at the 2024 Myrtle Beach International Film Festival. Gravitas Ventures will release the film on digital platforms on September 3, 2024. The film has a running time of 98 minutes and will not be rated by the MPAA.

 

 

 

Thanks to Karen Oberman, at K.O. PR for sharing this cool movie news with us!

 

To view the trailer, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMWXTEiFOjE

 

 

A Brave Look At A New Superman

“Man of Steel” is a shockingly ugly movie, filled with violence and destruction, reprehensible ideologies, and twisted takes on beloved, time-tested characters. It is also a supremely beautiful movie, filled with visions of grandeur, ideas that push the story forward, and a hero who rises above questions of identity and moral quandaries to protect those in need. Like the teens it caters to, it is a pulsing, heaving, aching mass of strong performances and vivid scenes. We lean forward to hear its huddled, whispered conversations, then cover our ears when it lurches, crashes, and explodes into motion. As the hero of my own life story, I heeded those desperate, pain-wracked calls, and made another attempt not just to understand it, but also to enjoy it.

In the first few moments of the film, we find Lara on the planet Krypton. She lies on a bed, her legs spread wide, as she struggles to push a child from her womb. Her screams ring through a darkened room as she gives birth to her son Kal-El. Her husband Jor-El stands beside her, holding her hand, and willing her strength. Hers is the first natural birth in generations, for on Krypton children are genetically programmed, their bloodlines, abilities, and purpose in life approved before they gestate in the bio-mechanical birthing containers of the Genesis Chamber. 

As Krypton's chief scientist, Jor-El recognizes how planning out every conceivable aspect of their society has led the World Council to develop and utilize every available resource, even the planet's core. In exhausting this last store of energy and materials, Jor-El tells the council it has pillaged their future. Others realize this too, including their chief military officer, General Zod, who intends to wrest control of his world and remake it in his own design. So Jor-El compounds the heresy of creating an unprogrammed child by stealing Kryption’s genetic library, downloading the information into his infant son's DNA, and sending young Kal-El off in a one-man spacecraft, knowing his planet may implode at any minute.

Kal-El hardly finds life on Earth easy, even when his adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent, give him the Human name Clark. With his enhanced Krptonian senses, he functions like a boy with ADHD, constantly inundated by stimuli you and I would never perceive.  Nor are his troubles limited to concentration in the classroom. His adoptive father, Jonathan Kent, continually rides Clark to rein in his super-abilities, to fit in with society, and above all, not to reveal who he really is. For most people, he argues, cannot accept anyone who stands out, who says or does things they don’t understand, and challenges their preconceptions and beliefs. 

Meet Lois Lane. As Martha means everything to Jonathan Kent, and Lara to Jor-El, she is destined to become Clark’s partner in love and life. She’s a hard-edged reporter who forces her way into a military-led archeological dig. She’s not afraid to stand up to the base commander, list her “rights” to be there, and then, with her steely gaze, tell him, “Now, if we’re through comparing the size of our dicks…” She drinks hard liquor. She leaks stories to rumormongering blogs (i.e. not The Dragon's Cache) when her boss refuses to print them. She may be as tough as any man, but she is also a Human, and therefore frail and weak in comparison to Clark Kent.

On her first night in camp, Lois follows Clark across the dig site, and into a spaceship buried in the ice. Clark shrugs off an attack by the ship’s robot guardian, but Lois is not so fortunate. She is bleeding internally, and will die unless she receives immediate medical aid. Clark must make a choice, and decide where he belongs. Will he embrace his identity as Kal-El, and use his Kryptonian abilities to save her life? Or will he be the Human his Earthly father Jonathan desires, and watch Lois Lane die.

And so we return to the beginning, and I wind down this musing on “Man Of Steel.” Kal-El’s eyes glow hotter and hotter, until they generate twin beams of light, which spear down into Lois Lane’s torso, and staunch her internal bleeding. Her screams ring through the dark corridors of the Kryptonian spaceship. The scene, like the movie, is cringingly ugly, hauntingly beautiful, and rich in ideas. It is a writhing mass of incompatabilities that craves our understanding, and challenges us to evaluate our preconceptions and beliefs. 

I’m not sure why I wanted to watch “Man Of Steel” again, but I did. Some might regard this as a valiant attempt to understand why the movie achieved such wide-spread acceptance. Others might see it as a heroic attempt to accept the latest evolutions in popular culture. Alas, my superior reserves of humility prevent me from commenting on either assertion.

Dragon Dave

Related Dragon Cache entries

Indulging My Inner Cow with Superman

"Nebraska" & The Elderly

In the movie "Nebraska," elderly Woody Grant believes that he's a millionaire.  He believes this because he receives a letter from a sweepstakes company, which states that he's won a million dollars. Several times he sets off walking from his home in Billings, Montana, only to be intercepted and returned home.  Finally, his son David takes time off work to drive him to Lincoln, Nebraska, where the company that runs the sweepstakes is located.

Why drive to Nebraska, you ask?  Well, you wouldn't trust the post office with a million dollars, would you?

All the way, David tries to get his father to see sense.  He argues repeatedly that Woody hasn't won a million dollars.  But Woody believes, and because he's hoping for a final chance to understand his father, David puts up with all of Woody's idiosyncrasies.  Unfortunately, his father knocks open his head during a fall, which necessitates a night in the hospital, and thus somewhere to spend the weekend, as the sweepstakes company won't reopen until Monday.  The two end up staying with Woody's brother, in Woody's hometown, where later that weekend, David's older brother and mother join them.  The rest of the movie largely takes place there, and by meeting his relatives, and the people he grew up with, we (and David) learn more about this quiet, elderly man.

If you've undergone a similar situation with a relative, then you may find "Nebraska" uncomfortable to watch.  At times, I suspect most viewers will squirm in their seats.  The movie addresses how well-meaning (and not so well-intentioned) relatives and friends treat the elderly.  It reminds us how we often expect rewards for our kindnesses to others, while forgetting all the kindnesses they have paid us.  Gradually, we get to know Woody, who never says much, and who refuses to relinquish a few desires that make no sense to others.  We also learn why his wife fell in love with him, why she found it necessary to drag him away from his hometown, and why it's so important to him to collect that million dollars.  

The Black & White photography in "Nebraska" focuses on the characters, instead of letting us get distracted by the scenery.  The music enhances their isolation from each other, as well as what occasionally draws them together.  The story takes us on a journey into our regrets, our hopes, our confusion, our pain, and how we interact with others.  While it's often humorous, the movie is also quiet and reflective, as this little snippet of conversation toward the end of the film reveals:

"Does your father have Alzheimer's?" a woman asks David.

"No.  He just believes what people tell him."

"That's sad."

"Yes."

It would have been easy to have ended this film on a down note, to reinforce the skepticism of modern life.  Alternatively, the filmmakers could have opted for a miraculous ending, presenting us with a pleasant fantasy that rewarded Woody's unrealistic belief.  Instead, this character-driven film ends by allowing both David and Woody to forge their own victories.  David's heart-warming decision makes him a winner. And Woody's suggestion (which David graciously grants) allows others to look up at this confused, elderly man.  Some of them, for the first time in their lives, regard him with expressions of awe.  

And David, the son who really wanted to understand his father?  He wears a smile.

Dragon Dave

Reviewing Old Movies

I'm not sure why I thought you'd be interested in reviewing my thoughts on these movies, but I'm taking the Movies Page off the blog.  I made it up a year or so after I started The Dragon's Cache, and I've written more about some of these movies, as well as a few others since, such as "Despicable Me 2" and "Man Of Steel." They're all good movies, and important to me for one reason or another. So If you're interested in discovering why, you can check these entries out one last time.  

Incidentally, the photo depicts a historic cinema in the city of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii.  Cinemas aren't nearly as big as they used to be, and the excess space of this one has been utilized by newer businesses.  For example, a restaurant operates directly beneath this marque.  Imagine going into a restaurant, like we did, and wondering where we buy our tickets, and finally having one of the patrons give us directions on how to get to the present cinema.  I guess it's just as well we arrived early that night.

Dragon Dave

Related Dragon Cache entries
John Carter
The Second Coming of John Carter
Actors, Heroes, and Ambitions

Last Chance Harvey
Propelled By Hope

Men in Black
Men in Black: Inspiring a Franchise

Paul Blart, Mall Cop
Paul Blart, Thanksgiving Man

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Sherlock Holmes: The New Bond

Star Wars
A Quiet Man in the Star Wars Universe 

In Awe of Percy Jackson

I never planned on seeing “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.”  After all, I had seen the first movie in the cinema, “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: the Lightning Thief,” and not been overly impressed by it.  Don’t get me wrong.  It wasn’t as if the film was bad.  It had featured a lot of actors I admire.  Sean Bean (Think Boromir from “The Lord of the Rings”) had played Zeus; Kevin McKidd (Lucius Vorenus in the HBO miniseries “Rome”) had played Poseidon, Percy’s father; Uma Thurman (She’s been in too many good movies to count) had played the snake-haired Medusa, and Pierce Brosnan (“Remington Steele” and James Bond, James Bond, James Bond!) had played the centaur instructor Chiron.  Any movie featuring the above names would be worth watching.  Still, I hadn’t been overly impressed with the first movie, and as Hollywood hurls so many good movies at us during the summer months, I just figured that I’d skip the second.

Then I recalled that my wife had gotten into Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson novels, that she had read four of them, and that she had seemed to enjoy them.  I remembered a conversation from a few years previous with my speech therapist, during which he had said that the books were infinitely better than the first movie, and that he and his children had spent many happy evenings reading them together.  And finally, I saw the Blu-ray for the first movie in the store, with an offer for free movie cash to watch the second one in cinemas, if only I purchased the first.  Well, twist my arm, Hollywood, why don’t you? 

What I can report is that I really enjoyed “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.”  I mean, I was really overwhelmed by it.  Now don’t misunderstand me.  I’m not saying that the special effects will compare with “Iron Man 3” or “Star Trek Into Darkness.”  Nor am I saying that the second film featured any of my favorite actors from the above list (although Nathan Fillion has a small role, and as with most things he does, he’s awesome in it).  What I’m saying is that I really liked the story.  I bonded with Percy and his friends.  I enjoyed his struggle to prove that his first quest wasn’t a fluke, and that he deserved to be a demigod.  I loved how he found out, suddenly, that he had a half-brother, that it wasn’t someone whom he and his friends could readily accept, but at least, in human familial terms, it meant that he wasn’t alone any more.  And along with and above all that, I really enjoyed how Rick Riordan’s knowledge of (and love for) Greek mythology undergirded the entire story. 

Greek myths and legends have been retold and reinvented endlessly.  The recent “Clash of the Titans,” and “Wrath of the Titans,” serve as two contemporary examples.  But there’s something infectious about a person who has fallen in love with a particular field of knowledge or storytelling, and desperately wants to share it with you in any way he (or she) can.  That’s what I got out of “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.”  The film not only made me want to read Rick Riordan’s novels, but also to delve into the old myths, legends, plays, and stories that had informed them.  Why?  They were powerful stories that connected strongly with people for hundreds of years.  In the ancient world, nation frequently fought against nation.  Empires rose and fell.  But Hellenism (Greek culture, religion, and outlook) became a dominant force that influenced cultures all over the world.  So okay, Zeus, Poseidon, and all the rest of you up on Mount Olympus: I’m amazed by your enduring impact on humanity.  Okay, Rick Riordan, I’ll read your novels.  Okay Olympians, I’ll make it a priority to read more of your ancient myths, legends, plays, and stories.  I know I’ve made similar vows in the past, but really, I mean it this time.  Just give me one more chance!

Dragon Dave

P.S.  In Greek mythology, Zeus was the god associated with lightning and thunder.  In Norse mythology, Thor was the god associated with lightning and thunder.  Has anyone noticed that the director of “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters” is someone named Thor Freudenthal?  I mean, that’s got to be just a coincidence.  Right?