Generally speaking, when we want to learn about a film, we talk to the director. But those that make films, know how much they are really collaborations. What makes a fruitful collaboration? What do you do to enhance the collaborative process?
Respect. It is hard to collaborate with someone you
don’t respect. I’m not going to lie and tell you I respect everyone – I
don’t. I think there are a lot of morons
out there, and I tend to wear my feelings on my sleeve. I’m condescending and somewhat sharp-tongued,
so if I don’t respect you – there’s a chance you know it. And if I don’t
respect you, how on earth can I take insight from you? I can’t. There are things that can elevate
you if you are not necessarily the top at your field – hard work. I can respect
that.
It is said that there are only six stories. Maybe twelve.
It’s all been done before. And we have seen it all. What do you do to keep it
fresh? Is there anything that you can do to subvert the process to keep it
original?
That may be true, but there are many
ways to tell the same story. I think the
most drastic is where you choose to set your story. Look at two movies about human organ
trafficking – Turistas and Dirty Pretty Things. The former is based on a bad script, with a
mediocre director and crew set in South American jungles. The latter is an amazing script, with a top
notch director and crew set in London.
To keep it original I try to write
about locations I know. That way my
characters feel more real and authentic.
I like to think that when I watch a movie, no matter how fantastical,
that I’m being shown a glimpse of that world – almost like a documentary. And if those characters and places don’t feel
real, the movie crumbles for me.
We get noticed because of our successes – but we create them
on the back of our failures. We learn best from the experiences where it
doesn’t work. And yet we still only discuss the success, not the failure.
What failures (of your own) have you been able to learn from? How did they
change you and your process?
This is a hard one to answer without
throwing certain people under the bus. I will try. My first feature is at the
same time my biggest success and biggest failure. We were able to build an
animation studio from scratch, get an animated film made from start to finish,
put together a really solid A-level cast, and get serious theatrical
distribution (and be on the first wave of 3D). It was also short listed for a
Best Animated Feature Academy Award. At the same time, it’s not a movie I can
even sit through. It’s boring and tedious – and I hated the script. I also
think the directing is somewhat flat, with fairly weak production design.
I learned to not get into business
with people I wasn’t on the same page with creatively – always talk about the
end goal. Don’t get caught up in the
process – always keep your eye on the final film. If you do, you’ll be able to
vet all decisions made. And if you’re not seeing eye to eye at the beginning,
it will only get worse. More than anything, it taught me to spend as much time
on the script as you can (same goes for my recent film White Space – which was being pushed forward by two (or three)
differing ideas on what the script should be).
I often say one of the best methods of producing is
“engineering serendipity.” Have you encountered serendipity in your work and do
you think there is anything that you can do to bring more of it into your
creative process? Why or why not, and if so, what is it that you and your team
can do?
Research. I find serendipity – or
happy coincidences – in my writing almost every script lately. That is because I do a tremendous amount of
research. And I find that the more I dig
into a topic, the more things start tying together. Do your homework. Become as well versed in
the subject you’re writing as you can. From the big things to the small.
If each member of the production
keys does their homework and research – then you can engineer serendipity at a
higher rate and with more ease.
Films evolve through the creative process – sometimes most
dramatically in the editing
process. It’s often really hard to reconcile the difference between what
we desired and what we achieved. How have you encountered this and how do you
move through it?
When I sat through the last short I
directed. The first assembly was brutal. It was cringe worthy and had me
thinking – ‘man, I suck. I can’t write and I can’t direct.’ In the post process
it was cultivated into something I am proud of.
Even the final product isn’t exactly what I envisioned – limitations
with lighting, set, camera equipment (which all boil down to money). Part of it
is discovering that what reads well on the page doesn’t always translate well
to the screen. I’ve learned this a lot when translating my scripts to graphic
novel/comic form. That process has actually helped me tremendously.
You move through it by accepting
that it will never be what is in your head from the start. That is perfection,
and nothing is perfect. It may even be better than what you had in your head,
but since it is different it won’t matter to you – however, you need to accept
it and as Brock Lesnar says, ‘turn chicken shit into chicken salad.’
“It all starts with the script.” Maybe not, but when do you
know a script is ready to shoot, and what is your process of getting it there?
Hard question – because for me,
personally, I’ve went into both my features as a producer with a script I
wasn’t that confident in. Battle for
Terra especially. I hated that
script. But sometimes you just want to make a movie so badly, you put that
aside. And the most important thing I’ve
learned is – that is a huge mistake. You
should always be able to fall back on the script. And if you are working with a director who
tells you – the script is a blue print – unless he’s seriously proven himself –
walk away.
As a writer/director, I have one or
two people I completely trust in terms of their opinion. If they tell me it needs work or something
doesn’t make sense, I address it.
Usually they are calling bullshit on things I took a shortcut around,
and deep down I know it needs to be fixed – I just need to be called out.
Everyone will have an opinion about every script out there – no matter how good. You have to have confidence in what you’re doing and again, be confident that if anything happens, you can fall back on that script. Poke as many holes in it as possible. Dissect it.
Most of my scripts are becoming
graphic novels, so I have these visual guides to help me – and there will
inevitably be sections that are boring or lame and I can see that pretty
readily. It’s a luxury to have that –
but if you can find someone to storyboard your script for you – do it. You can cut those storyboards up and edit
them into a movie on your computer (getting anyone you can to provide the
voices). You will definitely find the
rough patches and holes – at least the glaring ones you may miss in the
read. Just don’t fall in love with your
own writing. I make this mistake all the
time. Then a few months pass, I reread
it and ask myself, ‘What the hell was I thinking? Why do I think I’m so sweet?’
Several directors have told me that most of directing is
actually casting. Regardless of whether that is true, some actors have
“it” and sometimes they need something to make “it” pop. You’ve spotted
that “it” and captured “it”. What is “it” and how do you find “it”?
For me, realism. Do I believe the words coming out of this
person’s mouth? Some actors just say their lines – and they can be said
well. Other actors actually understand
what they are saying and get you to believe them.
I often wonder why anyone would want to direct. Why would you
want to always have 100 decisions in front of you and have over 100 people
waiting on your answer?
If you’re a storyteller – it is the
ultimate medium. Plays are in the moment. With films you can create this
everlasting story that has more dimensions than a book – and you can use so
many more techniques to tell your story.
You have the color palette, the actors you choose, the performances you
pull from them, the production design itself, the camera you choose, the stock
of that camera, etc… they all play a part in how the story is perceived. They all matter. Who wouldn’t want to have access to that kind
of storytelling ability?
Film, perhaps more so than any other popular art form, is the
compromise between art and commerce. How has your art been shaped by both the
money you have had or not had? Do you create with budget limitations in mind?
I used to never write to a budget –
but over the last three years or so, all of my projects have been written with
a budget in mind. The fact is, you can’t get your projects made over a certain
threshold as a young producer/director.
That said, two of my scripts – Chasing Rabbits and Bulderlyns – are big, but are being produced as graphic
novels. So, I have that going for me.
Which is nice.
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