The DragonLance Movie Project

Welcome to the DragonLance Movie Project website.

This site allows fans of the DragonLance Chronicles to submit material for a movie, where it will be gathered and compiled.

Our eventual aim will be to convince film companies that the DragonLance novel will make a viable movie.

NEWS

21 January 2026

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year (yes I know it's late..sorry.) It's nice to see the MSN group being used as much as it is. Really cuts down on the website maintainance (ahem.) I urge everyone to sign up to this so they can join in the discussion and keep bang up to date with everything that is going on. There's a few more updates on the letters page. I've also added the new revision of Rino's script! I've done a few storyboards which I am waiting to be updated by Eddas. Once these are done I'll add them on the site too. I will also be making a PreViz of the first scene. This wil basically be the storyboards, matched up with the screenplay and soundtrack and running in realtime. Should give everyone (including any production companies, hint hint,) an idea of how good this thing will be...as well as how long!!

I really need to find out who has the option for the movie so I can offer our services, so if anyone has any details, let me know. I may even fly to the states and try to arrange a meeting with W & H this year (if they agree.)

Thanks guy's

12 August 2026

Hi Everybody. Just a quick update. I've added an MSN Group to the top right of the website and a link in the menu. If you join the group I can e-mail you with updates, chat in the chat room, leave messages on the message board and also add any work you've done to the pictures and documents section. I hope you all spend 30 seconds joining (its free) as it will be really nice to chat to people 'live' and get a feeling of what people thoughts are. I will e-mail people if myself, Rino or Christian are going to be in the chat room at certain times.

25 July 2026

Hello Everyone. It seems that 'life' has this knack of getting in the way of my dream :) Anyway, here's another update. The usual letters page is updated. I have also uploaded the much anticipated screenplay updates from Rino. I was thinking (yes it hurt!) about the storyboards and I may buy some artists dummies. I can take photos of these in the correct positions etc. Once I have some storyboards that follow the screenplay, I will put them into a Flash animation along with my intro, the soundtrack and subtitled dialog from the screenplay. It 'should' look quite cool and give everyone an idea of running times. Talking of running times, heres some comments from DLMP producer Rino:

On the suggestion of changing the fight scenes from a word for word retelling from the novels to a more "movie friendly visually stunning" type of fight scene:

If the finer details of the fight scenes could differ from the novels, that would be just fine with me. Obviously the main outcomes and so on would have to be there, but changing the nitty-gritty of the fights sounds good to me. Again though, my limitations as a screenwriter would come through there. I love writing, but that doesn't mean I have the hang of writing out a fight scene for a motion picture. Rethinking the fight scenes to make them more pleasing on a movie screen yet keeping the outcome the same, while also balancing the different weapons everyone has is a daunting task. I like the idea, and maybe a fight choreographicer would be able to plan those scenes out? I'll modify the screenplay to reflect the possibility of having the fight scenes planned out by a fight choreographicer.

On the question of whether there is enough action in the film as is:

I think if you look at the scenes, you see that there is a pretty good flow of action. Remember, not all action has to be fights and killing draconians. :-) The scene with the group following the white stag is action in the sense that it will keep people interested because you don't really know if Sturm's lost his mind or he is actually seeing a white stag no one else can. Also I'm hoping that by the later points in the movie, people will like the characters and a character-building scene between Tanis, Goldmoon and Riverwind will be interesting as well.

Rino's never ending battle with time and the length of the movie:
Looking at the outline so far you also see that we're definitely looking at like a 5 hour movie here if it keeps going this way. Just like in Lord of the Rings where they completely cut out the whole part of the book with Tom Bombadil, we may have to start thinking about what large chunk of the story we can do without, or explain really quickly and move on. Although part of the length of the film I've written so far is because I've actually written the fight scenes as is from the book. If we modify those for a more movie-friendly kind of fight scene, we might gain some time there. I'm kind of in a bind because I love writing the scenes, and I write one and say, "That is a great Character A and Character B scene, and we gotta keep that in" but at the same time I know some will have to be cut.

On Scene 3 and Goldmoon's song:

After some thought, I've taken out Goldmoon's song. Sure it pays off at the end of the movie, but I don't think audiences will want to sit through a song in an action/fantasy movie. It's just one of those things that work in a novel, but not in a movie.

Also, I took out the written, point for point from the novel, fight scene I have in this scene. It's been replaced by just a general description of what happens (who is where and what they're doing) and the one point that would need to be there for the Tas bit of humour I have that follows. (I know this entire fight is out of place compared to the novel but in a movie I think it's going to flow better to have them fight in the Inn and then have that as the big reason to get out of Solace.)

My rationale for this is actually because I've done some research into different writing, and this is based on what comic book writers do. Because they deal with an artist as well as what they want to see in the story, they usually give some freedom to the artist as to what the fights look like, but provide a general framework for what happens in the fight. I'm thinking that in the screenplay, I can just provide the general outline of the fights, and let the "artist" (in this case the director and/or fight cheoreographer) deal with the details of the fight. I think it sounds like a good idea in theory. We'll see how it works out and I can always add the blow for blow description of the fights later if we decide to go that way with it.

Rino

04 April 2026

Hi guy's

Been a while! There's some major updates now. The screenplay section has been revamped. We will add scenes as a when they appear. A new dragonlance logo can be seen here. A large letters update (thanks for all the response...we getting popular!)

I'm hoping that when people see the time span of the movie based on the current screenplay, they will get a good understanding of why we have had to cut sections of the book.

Anyway keep 'em coming.

08 January 2026

I got a letter which I felt needed to go here due to my large, rather important reply. I think I will start a new section called 'Vic's Rant!' Anyway, here it is:

victor,

Thanks for the update notice. Keep em coming.

Some points for discussion - does anybody think that with the release of LOTR:FOTR, and the impending releases of LOTR:TTT and LOTR:TRTK, that people will have had enough of fantasy-genre movies? Or will the LOTR trilogy whet the appetite of viewers? Likewise, did the D&D movie play a role and/or have an effect on LOTR's and other fantasy movies' success? Will we be able to live up to the incredible popularity of LOTR (Not that it would be a bitter failure if we didn't)? With LOTR out and more coming, would major corporations want to do another similar film in the not-so-distant feature? Personally, I really have no weight on my mind to answer either way to any of these questions. Just curious.

(My use of the word "we" if obviously out of place. I have no direct involvement with this project)

The screenplay looks good, in my opinion, but have you considered co-writing it? By the posts I see, you're getting alot of comments on the negative (if I may use that word). I agree with eveything in the screenplay so far, and the way it's presented. However, that's from the point of view of a guy who simply enoys the books, not a Dragonlance Purist. What I'm looking forward to mostly is the VISUAL. I know how the story goes. Most who would see the movie do. The story is old news. I'm looking to see what the characters look like and more importantly, see what Ansalon looks like! And then compare it to what I had in my imagination. That's the reason I would go see the movie. Sticking to the storyline is moot. Take some, leave some, but preserve the overall effect. LOTR left out the blindfolds in the forest and added Arwen/Aragorn. The movie is still B.O. #1. Anyhow, i got way off on a tangent there, but what I meant to say is that I think that many points of view should be taken into consideration so as to recreate the story in the most rounded way.

And somebody hire Nick Hendricks to this project, he's a freakin' genius!

Please post this!

Brett Vallenwood

My Reply:

Thanks Brett,

That is exactly the point I have been trying to get across. The movie should be an extension of the book, giving us some great battles, action, love, humour and a visual representation of Ansalon and the characters. The backbone of the story will never change, but it WILL shorten and in some ways evolve to suit the medium of film. I will not be adding horror where it isn’t in the books, I won’t be adding humour where it isn’t needed and I won’t be adding new characters or love interests. The beauty of DL over LOTR as a book is that it already has love interests, female characters and most of all depth to its characters. LOTR never had this, and Peter Jackson, quite rightly, made Gandalf a little more caring (hugging the Hobbits) and the Hobbits a little bit more charismatic (not as fat and hairy!!)

People care very much for DL, and you only get one shot with a movie, so they want to see done right. All I can say to the visitors is, don’t panic. We are in the early stages of a great idea. When I mention other great films, such as Star Wars, LOTR, and Aliens it simply means that there are elements that I would like to use. DL will not be a Star Wars or Aliens with swords. It will be Dragonlance. I want the Draconians to look scary enough that you would hide from one if it walked it your office now, but I won’t base the whole film on this idea. As we have said, it needs to be a PG. I think most people have Larry Elmore’s work in mind when picturing Draconians and the Heroes, and that’s what I would like to stick to. The trick is making it look realistic and not some tacky kid’s movie ala Harry Potter!

I want people to gape in awe when the see a sword fight, like I did at the end of Phantom Menace. I want people to cry when they see Sturm sacrifice himself with unprecedented courage, like I did at the end of Braveheart. I want people to be scared of Dragons. This is what a film should be about, absorption and emotion. It’s just that absorption and emotion is a bit faster and hard hitting in movies than it is in books. Seeing this film should make people want to read, what we think is the greatest book ever, so they can read the bits that are missing, and read what the characters are thinking. Each character is important and needs a lot of work to get right. That is the reason I don’t want big names in the movie for our main characters, (plus it gives us more money to spend on getting the film right!!)

As a final note can I just mention some details on how I hope this project turns out? I have had a few people get in contact with film companies and WOTC. This is a bad thing to do. It is worth bearing in mind that we do not own the rights to DL and we WILL get closed down if the wrong people see this. Also at this early stage, there is nothing to stop a film company saying ‘yeah great idea, we’ll see Wizards if the Coast. Bye’. That means the film will get made without our ideas. Now I’m sure some people out there would be happy with that, but I don’t want ‘just another fantasy film’. I want to get ALL the material together (Screenplay, Soundtrack, Storyboards) and sell the idea to the movie companies when it’s finished. That way there is a chance (only a small one, I know) that they will keep us involved in some way and use our material.

Regards

Vic

07 January 2026

Hi Guys. Hope you had a good Christmas and New Year. I saw Lord if the Rings on the opening day and have to say I loved it (I could be opening a big debate here which I dont want!!) Is far as I'm concerned that is a step in the right direction for how DL should look (except DL is a better, more modern book!) It is exactly what have had in my mind all these years, but I'm sure we can still make Dragonlance better. I would have the fight scenes more clear to view and the music more emotional but thats it really. I hope it has brought to light what myself and Rino have been saying about having to cut stuff from the book.We all love Dragonlance, why else we we be doing this. But... You cannot make a six hour movie (please don't mention mini series...they would never do it justice.) The fact remains that the book is one thing and the movie is another. Neither should replace the other, simply complement. That doesn't mean the movie will be a Hollywood pile of crap. With dedicated fans involved in the movie, like LOTR, it should please most people.

The letters pages have been updated and I will have some storyboards up soon!! See ya next time!!

13 November 2025

Hi guys!! Sorry for the delay in updates but news was a bit slow. Anyway this will more than make up for it. First off Rino Cuzzetto has been made a DLMP for his amazing efforts with the sceenplay. We're really starting to make progress now. As I said before, if anyone can sketch some scenes based on the new screenplay, it would be much appreciated.

Letters page has also been updated. Thanks for the feedback. I may add a message board soon if this keeps up.

19 June 2026

Letters page updated. Added my Directors Wish List, which contains a list of 'Must Haves' and 'Must Nots' for the movie based on the letters that I agree with (or you've convinced me of!!) Please give me an artist...please!!

17 June 2026

Made some minor changes to the site and added a Letters section. The post from Nicholas has been carried on here, so take a look.

13 June 2026

Added some more artwork here. This was submitted by Craig Hall. Also Christian has a new website here. Check it out. I really need some sketchers to do the storyboards otherwise I'll have to do them myself (trust me....you won't want that to happen!!)

Dodger has sent some of the 'official' MIDI songs for DL. They are here. Also had some interesting comments from Nicholas Hendricks regarding the movie content. It reads as follows:

The most important parts of Dragons of Autumn Twilight (DoAT) as the first movie are going ot be character development, public appeal, and of course, the Dragons.

The one thing that every Dragon Lance fan loves about the books are the characters. The unfortunate thing is that the real character development takes place in Dragons of Winter Night (DoWN). Laurana doesn't even show up until three quarters of the way through DoAT, and then as a spoiled little princess. The twin's story (the favorite of fans) doesn't even come out until Dragons of Spring Dawning (DoSD). Sturm's story is contained almost entirely in DoWN. And we only get hints of Kit in DoAT. Therefore, the movie has to rely on the characters of Tanis, Goldmoon, Riverwind, and Tas. And we can't spend too much time on the plainsmen because their characters really drop off after the first book. They don't even attend the final battle. Tas is the most beloved of the characters and will especially appeal to the younger audiences, but his character cannot hold up the movie. So Tanis is going to be the key. His background and turmoil has to drive the movie. However, his love story doesn't really begin until Laurana shows up. That's why a couple new characters might be beneficial. My suggestion would be a gentle love story and character quest entwinded in the main story throughout the series; one that doesn't interfere or change the books, but helps to keep the interest.The characters could be merely bystanders, or maybe like Tika, someone who isn't really imperative to the story, but really adds to it.Public appeal is the area that could really kill the movie. Fantasy movies are hard to predict, hard to sell, and hard to get into if you're not a fan. With the recent failures of The Dungeons and Dragons movie and Dragon Heart, the fantasy movie doesn't appeal to many people. Of course they were both terrible movies, relying more on genre, cgi, special effects, and poor performances by bigger named actors rather than on script and characters. But even the great character driven movie Willow didn't do well enough in the box office to spark a sequel. Of course, the successes of movies like the Matrix and the many fantasy television shows (Xena, Hercules, Dune) and the prospects of several big fantasy hits like The Lord of the Rings, Final Fantasy, and Star Wars II might give the ray of light the movie needs. There will be thousands who go to see the movie simply because of their love for the books, maybe even a few million; and with a few big enough stars, we could attract a few more, but it's going to take more than that to warrant a
sequel or a trilogy. The trick will be to stay away from a genre movie, but still use the fantasy environment to enstill wonder, excitement, and interest. That means the dialogue and story need to remain relatively simple, lean on the conversation about the Cataclysm and Kingpriest and the Graygem and other things that are irrelevant to the story, but incorporated into the world of Krynn. If that doesn't happen, audiences feel uncomfortable in a world they don't know, or (and this is the one main fault in The Matrix) we spend the entire movie and dialogue explaining what is going on. The new characters could help with this as well, being naive to Krynn for whatever reason, or at least needing explanations.

Which leads to the Dragons. Again, looking at past failures, there has never been a well done dragon in a movie that I know of. Dragons should not have human features. They shouldn't smile, or laugh, or express their feelings like humans. They should express feelings and have personalities (three of the greatest dragons, with the exceptions of Skie and maybe Cyan Bloodbane, are the dragons of DoAT- Khisanth, Pyros, and Matafluer), but should be as far from humans as possible. Most important, they should be beautiful and wonderous; and they should spark a little fear in the stomach,
appear invinsible until the battle at the High Clerist Tower.I have been a fan of Dragon Lance since I read DoWN in the fifth grade almost 13 years ago. I've dreamed of being a part of making the movie for
almost that long. I would like to help in this idea of yours in any way that I can. I can't draw, so my storyboarding is stick figures; and scary ones at that. I've never studied music and can't write it. I would like to help with the screenplay, but I imagine that you have plenty of people asking to write that for you. So rather than write, I would like to be a consultant. Movies are kind of my passion, and so I'm continuing to try to study as much about them as I can. I think my points are valid. As you might be able to tell, DoWN is my favorite in the entire series. I think that's where the series will really take off. If we can survive DoAT, the DoWN will make believers and fans of millions.

Let me know what you think. If we get enough debate, I may open a chat room!!

6 March 2026

Started work on the screenplay. Haven't done much, but I need to get the formating correct first. Obviously storyboards should be keep close to the screenplay scenes.

26 Febuary 2001

Added an extended teaser trailer. Christians opening music fits quite well I think. I'm looking to add a flyover of some forest next, so if anyone has some film of that sort of thing, let me know. Cheers.

20 Febuary 2001

Added the original 'Companions' artwork from Larry Elmore for use as costume and character guidelines. I think most people would agree that Larry has always done a great job a portrying the world of DragonLance. Check 'em here.

19 Febuary 2001

Added all the great music from Christian Marcussen to the Sountracks section. I have also made Christian a DLMP Producer for his contributions so far. Well done Christian!

18 Febuary 2001

Website open!! We are especially looking for people to storyboard various scenes from 'Dragons Of Autumn Twilight', starting from the beginning, obviously! Send your images here.