Check out what Sheldon has to say about his background and influences as well as some of his aspirations for Barrier in our interview with Sheldon Whittaker. Here is an excerpt:

Xenite.Org: We'd like to know a little about your professional background. What's your education, projects, etc.?

Sheldon Whittaker: Well education-wise I left school early -- left home and started work at the tender age of seventeen, then over the following ten years, and spurred on by Babylon 5, I re-skilled myself in 3d animation.

I have been working in the broadcast television industry as a 3-D Animator / Technical director for the past seven years now. In that time I have met and made contacts with many cool 3-D people, writers, producers and directors.

Xenite.Org: What influenced your decision to develop a television show?

Sheldon Whittaker: Since I started out in the animation industry all I have really wanted to do is work on a scifi show like Star Trek or Stargate or Babylon 5.

But being in N(ew) Z(ealand) that kind of job has never come my way. So I decided to try and come up with an original show concept of my own and see how far I can push it through towards getting it produced. Two years on and many scrapped ideas later we have Barrier.

Also I have gotten a little tired with shows over the past few years where they always go military -- the galactic war where a small group of people takes on the evil empire or crooked alliance. I understand it's exciting to see war and military type shows, and Barrier does have an element of that, but the main premise isn't set in military conflict.

Even though I love these shows I always wanted to see a show set in and around a small group of non-military people trying to make their way in the world, that's not hampered by the evil government, that's instead being pulled from all directions by rivals, bureaucrats, family, financial concerns.

Not that the Barrier universe is completely at peace; there is a concept in the works for a Barrier spin off after season five of the series that is military set, but I can't say much more than that.