Henchmen - Richard Wilcox

Posted by Steve on 4 June 2010 | 0 Comments

Tell us about your sci-fi web series.

Henchmen follows the exploits of the eccentric overlord Dr. Xull, his trusted second-in-command Puppet, and two of his henchmen - Lock and Herbert. The series not only shows their attempts to thwart off hero attacks, but also how they keep other villains from taking over their fortress of evil.

Where did the idea/concept for your web series come from?

The idea originally sparked in my head after years of reading the comic strip Hagar the Horrible, which chronicled a pillaging Viking sea captain and his mediocre life. Being an avid graphic novel reader and action movie watcher, I wanted to tell the story the heroes miss after they save the princess from the castle.

Name some of your sci-fi influences. Any favorite movies, TV shows, novels?

My writing was influenced by some of my favorite storytellers like Douglas Adams, H.G. Wells, and Orson Scott Card, but also from movies and shows like MST3K, The Fifth Element, Mystery Men, Metropolis, Serenity, and Monty Python.

The visual look of the series that Andrew Nelson created was inspired inspiration by things like Aliens, Macross, Megazone 23, Battle of the Planets (aka G-Force, Gatchaman), CARtoons Magazine, the Descent video game series, Battletech and Harpoon, as well as influences from writers like Robert A. Heinlein and Tom Clancy.

Tell us about the technical production of your show. What camera & equipment did you use? Editing software & hardware? For visual effects, etc?

Everything was put together on a dual G4 800 Macintosh running OS9 and Panther, filmed with a Panasonic PV-GS39 camera, and edited with FinalCut Pro 2.0. The special effects are made with Lightwave 8.3, Photoshop 6.0, Freehand 8, along with practical effects and miniatures.

Can you tell us any interesting facts or trivia about your show? Any funny stories?

While filming the first episode the balaclavas the actors wore under their helmets had no eye holes and were so restrictive that flashlights were needed just so the actors would both look in the correct direction. I have a hard time thinking up original names so I tend to either make them up (i.e.: Dr. Xull) or name characters after inanimate objects. This happened when we gave Puppet his name and ultimately led to having an actual puppet play the role.

Henchmen can be found online here, on Facebook here, and on Twitter here.

Henchmen - SciFinal Page

Additional photos from Henchmen:

Henchmen weapons test

Dr. Hull works as a gaffer.

Puppet checking email.