tagged w/ Movies and Film
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David Seidler first sparked to the idea of writing a movie about the life of King George VI in 1980. A stutterer himself, he found the real-life narrative of the English monarch's struggles to overcome a debilitating stammer moving and profoundly relatable, but Seidler understood that it wasn't going to be easy to see his script turned into a feature film.
First, he had to wait for the Queen Mum to die; he had asked the royal matriarch for her blessing to tell her husband's story, and she had requested that he wait until after her passing, since the memories of that time were still too painful. And then, the 73-year-old Seidler explains, there was another, possibly even more significant hurdle: "It was the subject matter.
"If I had gone into any executive office in Hollywood to pitch a story about a dead king who stutters, I would have been out of there in 30 seconds," he said. "They would have thought I was out of my mind."
Seidler has a point. For years now, the notoriously risk-averse Hollywood studios have been spending their money on the safest bets possible, big-budget projects and potential franchise properties that usually are based on a book, a video game, a toy or even an amusement park ride. It's a trend that shows no signs of abatement, with Universal working to bring Stretch Armstrong to the screen, while Paramount develops a Magic 8 Ball movie among many other projects that have been co-opted from the toy aisle.
"We used to make toys based on our movies, and now we are making movies based on toys," said Nina Jacobson, former head of production at Disney who's now an independent producer. "We used to be the generators of intellectual property, not just recyclers of it."
It's a fact that's helped drive many of the industry's most highly acclaimed screenwriters — people such as Steven Zaillian ("Schindler's List") and Akiva Goldsman ("A Beautiful Mind") — to devote more of their time to plum writing assignments such as Zaillian's current work on "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and Goldsman's adaptation of Stephen King's "The Dark Tower," rather than develop their own ideas.
And it paints a grim picture for many screenwriters hoping to tell original tales, even ones drawn from the lives of compelling people. Among the nominees who will be competing for the original screenplay Oscar when the Academy Awards are handed out Feb. 27, writer-director Christopher Nolan spent 10 years on his mind-bending dream heist thriller "Inception" before the film made it to the screen. Stuart Blumberg and Lisa Cholodenko went through countless drafts in the five years they labored on the script for the Annette Bening-starrer "The Kids Are All Right." And Scott Silver and Paul Tamsay & Eric Johnson, among others, worked on "The Fighter" for five years before cameras rolled on the Boston-based drama in July 2009. (Mike Leigh, the fifth nominee in the category, stands apart from the group; his script for the low-budget indie "Another Year," like many of his films, was workshopped extensively with his actors during a long rehearsals process but was made fairly quickly.)
The other four contenders, though very different, have one thing in common: a long, difficult path to the big screen.
"An adaptation often has an easier road," says Seidler, whose credits also include 1988's "Tucker: The Man and His Dream" and 1999's animated telling of "The King and I." "[The studio] has a security blanket with a book. [They say], 'We've optioned a book, it was a successful book.... Now, if the script doesn't turn out well, or the film doesn't turn out brilliantly, then that's not my fault. That's the writer's fault.'"
Harder times for originality
At one point not so long ago, a well-known writer could pitch an idea to a movie studio, and if it had potential, he could reasonably expect interest — and often cash to turn it into a screenplay. But things really began to change after the writers strike in 2007-08. The appetite for original material markedly diminished as studios took the opportunity to cut a lot of the expensive development deals in place at the time.
"The era of the middle-class writer who makes $250,000 a script and people like them, they don't necessarily deliver movies but they do a good job and they are pleasant to work with, that's done," said an agent who represents screenwriters and directors but asked for anonymity. "That was the staple writer business 10 years ago."
As a result, producers are forced to take on a greater role in advocating for original scripts. "Several years ago, you could walk into a studio with a one-liner and a writer who's written some scripts and sell it in the room if it was commercial enough," says Todd Lieberman, a producer on "The Fighter." "Now you have to prove that there is a movie there, and the best way to prove that is to have the writer write the script."
Nowadays, those scribes must complete a screenplay and often must land an actor — in the case of Seidler, Geoffrey Rush was the crucial lynchpin that moved "The King's Speech" closer to a greenlight — or a director before bringing it to the studio. Blumberg and Cholodenko worked closely with Julianne Moore for years before Bening came on board and financing finally came together on "The Kids Are All Right."
But in the case of "The Fighter," not even a movie star helped. The story of boxer Micky Ward, his struggle for success and his tempestuous relationship with his half brother, Dicky Eklund, was hindered because it would likely carry an R rating, it was a drama targeted to adults, and it was expensive. In one iteration of the film, its budget hovered around $70 million, with Brad Pitt set to star opposite Mark Wahlberg, also a producer on the film, and Darren Aronofsky directing.
"At the point when Brad Pitt wants to do a movie and you still can't get it made, it made me think, 'I've got to start doing something else,'" joked Silver, one of three credited writers on "Fighter." "But a $70-million film about two guys in Lowell, Mass. — one of whom is a crack head — is a huge risk."
It wasn't until the project was retooled as a $25-million production — an initial first act that took place at the time of Eklund's famous fight against Sugar Ray Leonard was cut to reduce costs, Christian Bale was cast as Eklund, and director David O. Russell took the helm — that it found a home. But even then it wasn't financed by a studio; Ryan Kavanaugh's Relativity Media put up the money for the film.
Lieberman says being required to deliver a complete package to a studio — a great script with a star and/or filmmaker attached — actually can be empowering.
more at http://www.theenvelope.latimes.com/news/la-ca-original-screenplays-20110220,0,4852176,full.storyDavid Seidler first sparked to the idea of writing a movie about the life of King... more
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Independent Film Finance Consultant Louise Levison shares some key takeaways on the current state of the film business from the 2010 American Film Market.Independent Film Finance Consultant Louise Levison shares some key takeaways on the... more
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There is one thing this forum does not lack and that is a wide variety of sickos, wackos and freaks. Halloween weekend is here. What movies scare the crap out of you? What would you recommend to watch Saturday night to assure nightmares?There is one thing this forum does not lack and that is a wide variety of sickos,... more
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r0nan
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added this
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1 year ago
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The time has come to look at which adversaries of Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway and, God help me, Archer excel at being truly awful. Since a list like this one would cover all of the various Star Trek movies and films, whittling it down to just a handful would be a task larger than Harry Mudd's underpants. So in an attempt to be as inclusive as possible, the decision was made to focus on 30 of the final frontier's biggest bastards. Who would make the cut? Keep reading for a look at everyone from obvious villains (i.e. KHAAAAANNNNNN!) to more obscure peeps who have brought their intergalactic douchebaggery into our hearts.
http://www.toplessrobot.com/2010/07/the_30_greatest_star_trek_villains.php?page=1The time has come to look at which adversaries of Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway and,... more
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Quite a fine crew,...judging from the work.-
The seem to do,...uhm,...everything,....and do it well.
"Massive Black is based in the South of Market area of San Francisco, where the team has learned to laugh, play, love, and live together. With our satellite studios in Shanghai and Bangkok, Massive Black is ideally located in areas known for art, culture, and enterprise.
Our team has come together, through natural discourse and shared interest, to form one of the most successful outsourcing studios in the industry. This unique collection of talent and ability, has culminated in a fine-tuned group of professional artists able to aid and enhance any project".
"Massive Black is a full production artwork and asset outsourcing studio that has contributed to over 85 projects for multiple video game platforms, film, print, toys, comics and more. Our team strives for excellence in all areas of production and prides itself in the creation of unique and compelling designs over a wide variety of genre".
http://massiveblack.com/mbNew/html/illustration1.shtmlQuite a fine crew,...judging from the work.-
The seem to... more
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Vin Diesel and David Twohy to Finally Make 3rd CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK
It turns out that Vin Diesel is no longer full of shit. After many years of what seemed like manufactured buzz from the actor to keep his fans interested, Variety now reports that Diesel and writer/director David Twohy will finally make the third installment in the Chronicles of Riddick franchise. Diesel has continued to keep hope alive in a sequel ever since the cliffhanger ending of 2003’s The Chronicles of Riddick. Despite the lackluster box office of part two, the film did manage to gross $116 million worldwide and spawn two successful videogames (Escape from Butcher Bay and Assault on Dark Athena) Universal has decided to finally give the greenlight to telling the next chapter in the tale of the eye-shinin’ anti-hero.
Hit the jump for details on the project and speculation on why it’s finally come to life.
MORE----------
http://www.collider.com/2010/02/11/vin-diesel-and-david-twohy-to-finally-make-3rd-chronicles-of-riddick/Vin Diesel and David Twohy to Finally Make 3rd CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK
It turns out... more
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Several Behind the Scene pictures have been spotted. Thanks to AvPGalaxy and aceshowbiz for these great pictures.
20th Century Fox eyes to release the film on July 7 for the new Predators movie.
The Film stars Topher Grace and Adrien Brody, Danny Trejo and Laurence Fishburne.
Click the link to see the pictures!! they are awesomeSeveral Behind the Scene pictures have been spotted. Thanks to AvPGalaxy and... more
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Television used to be full of space skirmishes... that looked kind of bogus. And yet, they're totally beautiful and make our inner children giggle with excitement. Here's why we love the faux space battles.
The 1990s were really the heydey for wonderful but not-quite-convincing space skirmishes. We used to see tons of ships flying around our screen, often too many to count. Unlike Battlestar Galactica's quick cuts and weird handheld camera footage, these 1990s space wars were usually filmed with an unflinching eye or a slow pan, letting you see every computer-generated line and explosion.
And it's totally awesome.
You can compare these massive space shoot-outs to video games, but it's not entirely accurate — because the absolute best of these TV shoot-em-ups have more sensory overload, and you can't even imagine trying to interact with them. (I have seen a few video game cut scenes that approach this level of overload though.) You get ships flying in every possible direction, or a hundred individual starships on screen at once, and all you can do is sit there and drool. It doesn't look real, but your imagination fills in the gaps, which only makes it better.
That's really the key — these space battles are super elaborate and over the top, and that helps them draw on your imagination.
Remember when you used to imagine what a whole fleet of Federation and Klingon Starships flying into battle would look like? And then Star Trek: Deep Space Nine finally gave it to us, and it was completely unreal looking, yet amazing:
For people who grew up on space battles as shown on the original Trek, Space: 1999, Blake's 7 or even the first few seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, these dogfights are revelatory. If space battles in the late 1970s and 1980s were all about trying to match the dog-fighting feel of Star Wars, then 1990s space battles were all about massive fleets going at it, sustaining massive casualties and fighting on. And yes, the massive casualties are a big part of why these battles rock so hard — you don't ever quite believe that each of those Federation starships has hundreds of crewmembers aboard, dying every time there's another flare on your screen, but it's still kind of horrifying and exciting to think so.
It really is all about suspension of disbelief — these battles ask more suspension of disbelief from you, but they give more back as well.
There's some amazing battle footage, showing crowds of ships swarming, from Star Trek - DS9, Babylon 5, Andromeda, Dr. Who, Stargate, and more, at the link . . .
And feel free to add more!
http://io9.com/5420145/why-fake+looking-cg-space-battles-are-beautifulTelevision used to be full of space skirmishes... that looked kind of bogus. And yet,... more
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Twilight fans can keep their shirts emblazoned with Robert Pattinson's face. The rest of us know that the only Team Edward worth belonging to is Team Edward James Olmos. And know you can wear your affiliation proudly.
http://io9.com/5417371/the-only-team-edward-shirt-youll-ever-needTwilight fans can keep their shirts emblazoned with Robert Pattinson's face. The... more
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I saw the movie Blind Side like 20 mins ago. Please don't even bother because i know everyone has heard this story at least 100 times.
Poor kid living on the street, getting beat, moms a crack head, and dad is dead. Fortunately rich white folks take him into their homes and make all of his dreams come true plus making him a big superstar.
Happily ever after, everyone is happy and rich.
Not reality, and defiantly not a message to be sending to young people.
It's like being average or being an over achiever is not good enough anymore. no no no no, to follow your dreams or to make your self noticed you have to have a terrible life and child hood.
Its like, me personally, i am an average student i get alright grades, not the best. I struggle, and i have dreams too! My mom is a good mom, i love her. I dont really talk to my dad, but we're okay. And i have dreams to be a well known writer/journalist. But whos gonna make a movie out of that lame life? So i guess, i should start doing crack, and maybe i should be a prostitute. And maybe my dad should beat/rape me. Then i will live on a street and tell you that a nice/snotty rich woman will take me in her home, clean me up and make all my dreams come true. Because thats what people love to hear. Thats what's interesting in today's society. So imma go get right on my dream, but before i do that i have to go find a guy that will abuse me first. OHHHH and maybe he will be in a gang too! oh yeah thats good, Right?I saw the movie Blind Side like 20 mins ago. Please don't even bother because i... more
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Grand Master Frank Frazetta's cover painting for the Lancer paperback, Conan the Conqueror by Robert E. Howard, sold this week to a private collector for a reported $1,000,000. The previous record price for a Frazetta painting was the $251,000 All Star Auctions fetched for the cover to Escape on Venus by Edgar Rice Burroughs in 2008.
There has always been something of a mystique surrounding Frazetta's Conan covers; partly because they were the "first" successful Conan paperbacks and the first exposure to the character for the Baby Boomer generation of readers; partly because Frank got the assignment at the time when his painting skills had improved significantly and he felt he had something to prove; partly because the Frazettas had kept all of the Conan covers for the last 40-odd years (except for Conan of Aquilonia, which was stolen from Lancer's office when the publisher went bankrupt). Burroughs and Vampirella paintings came and went, but Frank and Ellie wouldn't even entertain offers from interested buyers for the Conans.
http://www.spectrumfantasticart.com/full_content.php?article_id=1084&full=yes&pbr=1Grand Master Frank Frazetta's cover painting for the Lancer paperback, Conan the... more
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In an interview with MTV, Comedian/actor Dane Cook says that he would be interested in playing The Riddler in the next Batman movie.
Dane says "If they brought back the Riddler - a new Riddler the way they did with the Joker that would be badass. I would do that... When they were making the new one and they were doing the Joker, I always thought it [should be] kind of like The Crow - having that dark element but still comedic... [My performance] would probably have to be something in that vein, even though I think what Heath Ledger did with the Joker was the greatest comic book villain ever."
Source: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/news/a186413/dane-cook-keen-on-riddler-role.htmlIn an interview with MTV, Comedian/actor Dane Cook says that he would be interested in... more
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Spike Jonze has had his hands full with studio issues surrounding the film, but nonetheless some images have surfaced with a better look at the titular monsters from the film. Looks awesome, I hope this is released soon.Spike Jonze has had his hands full with studio issues surrounding the film, but... more
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