Things I’ve Learned as a Moviemaker

by Ed Solomon | Published February 3, 2007

Kirsten Dunst and Billy Bob Thornton in Levity.

There are two types of films.

There are films that are made as pieces of expression-films that are made because people need to tell certain stories and need to get things out of them. Then there are films that are made because a group of executives around a conference table decide that they need to slot in Movie X during Release Pattern Y to fulfill Demographic Z.

You can live for a long time on sensation.

What makes me sort of sad is that the studios and advertisers know very well how to appeal to people and, sadly, I think our culture likes sensation. We substitute sensation for true feeling, just like we substitute pleasure for true joy. And you can live for a long time on sensation.

Subverting genres.

The way to subvert a genre is not to condescend to the genre, it's to embrace it and work within it.

The future looks bright.

The good news to me is that people are ravenous for films that are unusual and interesting.

The politics of screen credits.

There are many credits of mine that I didn't really have anything to do with, like Charlie's Angels. I have a credit on that. I wrote a draft with my friend Ryan Rowe that I loved, but they didn't use anything except the opening scene. There were 18 other writers or something like that, so I'm credited but it's not me. It's silly.

The politics of directing.

The editor of Levity, Pietro Scalia, said to me "It's not over 'til it's over and then it's over." [A film] just keeps telling you what it is; it keeps evolving. And if you keep listening to it, I think you'll ultimately end up finishing-usually because they take it away from you!

SHARE THIS STORY

TAGS
ed solomon levity moviemaker

COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT

Latest from the blog:

James Schamus Honored with Trailblazer Award at Woodstock

James Schamus, the man behind Focus Features (think The Constant Gardener, Atonement), was chosen to receive the 2008 Trailblazer Award from the Woodstock Film Festival. Prior to working at Focus he was co-president of independent production company Good Machine for 11 years and won numerous awards for his own work, including the award for Best Screenplay at the 1997 Cannes International Film Festival for The Ice Storm.

Posted 09.5.08 | No comments yet...