Late last year, with the potential for Digicosm TV becoming more apparent to me, it became clear that I could put some of my older films online and give them a new lease on life, and many of them have been watched far more times in the past six months than in the past decade.

My thoughts turned to the feature films I directed in the past and how I could potentially show these on Digicosm TV. I knew that I could not put them online in their original form as watching a feature film in a video player window on a web site is not really practical, and the medium does not lend itself to long-form content. Only when the internet fully converges with high-definition television and higher download speeds in the future will this become a reality.

The only option would be to break the films up in to episodes, preferably running under ten minutes a piece. The feature film that lent itself the most to this conversion was my second feature film, GUARDIAN, which was completed back in 2002. The reason why the film suited this multi-part episode format is that it has a strict linear structure, and there were many opportunities throughout the film to clearly break up the story.

Going back through the film has been a fascinating experience. Aside from bringing up the fun memories of the shoot, it also reminded me of the processes we went through and what we were all trying to achieve with this film, from story-telling to logistics, to marketing and commercial aspects. At the time, this was a huge endeavour and a lot to organise from a logistical point of view. The film was also a pleasure to see unfold, as many of the visual and story aspects came together as I had hoped they would at the time.

I’ll write a more detailed retrospective on GUARDIAN in a later blog post, but suffice it to say, the film turned out the way I had hoped for back when I made it. Looking back, I can see my youthful naiveté in many parts of it, and if I made it today, the film would be a lot more efficient in terms of its story-telling, but for the most part, I think for where I was as a filmmaker at the time, it turned out all right.

The series should be completed later in 2010. At this stage, it is looking to be a seven part series, which each episode running approximately eight minutes. The trailer for the series, along with original behind the scenes material is now broadcasting on Digicosm TV.

Visit the official web site for GUARDIAN: THE SERIES here.