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Hope for film: from the frontlines of the independent cinema revolutions PDF

321 Pages·2014·1.125 MB·English
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“I’ve always said that I was a ‘Ted Hope-trained director.’ From the very beginning of my Uu.S.s. .$ $2255.0.000 career and over the course of quite a few films, Ted and I grew together, as he helped me find the practical path towards realizing my creative vision. I’m just one of many filmmakers x u ouDreA whIon hthaivs eb oboenk,e Tfiettde dH ofrpoem d Treadw’ss roens ohuisr coews,n heixsp sekriilel nacned t oe nsthhouwsi aysomu .h ow to make a movie you H from tHE frontlinEs of tHE c Molly De ctoa nu saef folirmdi,t einds treeasdo uorfc ewsa tsoti nmga tixmime iizne dcerveealtoivpimtye annt;d a nadrt imstoicr ef riemepdoormta.n Ttlhye, rhee itse ancohbeosd yyo uin h tohwe o Independent CInema RevolutIonS © oto independent film world quite like Ted Hope. His wisdom and heart shine through every page.” or ph —Ang Lee P HoPE An inspiring, tell-All look At the h Aut E Ainnd eipnesndpeinrt ifinlmg b, utseinlelss- Afrloml looneo okf thAet intdhues- “Essential for the aspiring filmmaker—read it before you plunk down $150k on film school!” try’s most passionate producers, Hope for Film —TODD sOLOnDz incadpeptuerneds ethnet rfielbme llbiouusisn peussn kf rsopmiri t oonf eth eo fi ntdhiee fiinlm- f dustry’s most passionate producers, Hope for TED HOPE is one of the most respected voices boom in 1990s New York City, its collapse two Film captures the rebellious punk spirit of the in independent film. In 1990 he co-founded with “Ted Hope’s remarkable career makes for fascinating reading. He has lived in the center of o decades later, and its current moment of technol- indie film boom in 1990s New York City, its col- James Schamus the production and sales pow- independent filmmaking for almost three decades. His insight into the challenges and pro- ogy-fueled regeneration. Ted Hope, whose films lapse two decades later, and its current moment erhouse Good Machine. His seventy-plus films cess of independent film offers any reader, whether you’re a film student or indie movie fan, r have garnered twelve Oscar nominations, draws f o r of technology-fueled regeneration. Ted Hope, include many highlights and breakthroughs in a unique glimpse into how specialized films really get made, sold and released.” from his own personal experiences working on whose films have garnered 12 Oscar nomina- independent cinema, including The Ice Storm, —eDwArD burns the early films of Ang Lee, Edward Burns, Alan tions, draws from his own personal experiences American Splendor, 21 Grams, Happiness, Mar- f Ball, Todd Field, Hal Hartley, Michel Gondry, Ni- working on the early films of Ang Lee, Eddie tha Marcy May Marlene, and Adventureland. “A relentlessly useful insider’s guide to independent film from a longtime practitioner . . . cole Holofcener, Todd Solondz, and other maver- i Burns, Alan Ball, Todd Field, Hal Hartley, Michel Known within the industry for his extraordinary Invaluable for film students.” —KIrKus l film Gicoknsd, rrey,la Ntinicgo tlheo Hseo ldoefcciesnioenr,s Ttohadtd b Srooulognhdt zh,i ma nthde ability at recognizing emerging talent, Hope has occasional failure as well as much success. m other mavericks, relating those decisions that more than twenty first features to his credit, and bWrohuegthhte rh inma vtihgea toincgca nsieognoatli aftaioilnusr ew aitsh wHeallr vaesy has launched many actors’ careers. As the cre- mWucehin ssutecicne ossv.er final cuts or clashing with high- ator and editor of and a regular contributor to powWerheedth CerA nAa vaiggaentitnsg o nveegr otthiaetiiro nclsi ewntisth, HHoapr-e HopeForFilm.com, Hope provides a must-read voefyf eWrs ebineshteinind -tohvee-rs cfiennaels csutotsr ieosr cfrloamsh inthge wwitihld forum for discussion of critical issues facing film- haignhd- pofotewne rheeda teCdA wAo raldg eonf tlso wo-vbeur dtgheeti rc incelimenats—, makers and artists. Now as CEO of Fandor, the w Hwohpeer eo fafertr sa bnedh cinodm-tmhee-rsccee ncoesll idsteo.r iAess fmroemd iathtoer daingdit aml aeknertes,r tHaionpmee onpt ecroamtems aunt itthye onfe xfiulsm o fl otevcehrs- nett ithAn t wcbfienielrdetswm heaaien—sn d uw tnhohieqfestuereene t waphoreet r aosatppenepddco tsicwvioneomg rf lmoidnre t eroacrfleel s lmtcoso,wa lHkl-iebdoruepsd.—e g Aoebsfte- nology and film culture armed with a sharp focus n E on the future. be tH d mtheedyia itno rth bee wtwoereldn othf ebsues tiwneos so popr oasritn—g oinnt ehroewst st,o n o a Hgoepnee roaftefe rcsr ehaisti vuen ipqruoej epctesr swphecilteiv ek eoenp inhgo wy otuor h n H ANTHONY KAUFMAN is a highly respected at y minatkeeg rmityo vinietas cwt,h ailned k eheopwin tog lyaouunrc ihn tae gsuristtya iinnatabclte n o film journalist who has covered independent cin- y Jo KA P abnuds ihnoewss toen ctererparteis ea swuhsitlaei nsatabylein bgu striunee ssto e nytoeurr-- ema since 1997. He was one of the founding edi- b u psreislfe. Aougta oinf stth aa t baarct kwdrhoilpe ostfa syeinisgm itrcu ceh taon gyoesu ri-n n f E tors of Indiewire.com and continues to write about o m stehlef. Aingdaeipnesnt dae nbta cfiklmdr oipn doufs tsreyi,s mfriocm c hcaonrgpeosr ainte films and the film industry for a variety of publica- rati An thcoe -oinpdtieopne ntod ethnet rfiilsme oinf dsuosctirayl, mfreodmia ,c oHroppoera ftoer t tions, including Variety and The Village Voice. He us cFoi-lomp tpiorno vtoid tehse nrioste oonf lsyo caina l emnetedriata, inHionpge afonrd ll ISBN 978-1-61902-332-1 has been published in The New York Times, Los d i 52500 Fiinlmtim partoev rididees tnhorot uognhly thaen uepnst earntadi ndinogw nasn odf itnh-e n Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Wall Street a T e d H o p e tibmuasitnee rsisd oef athrrto huoguhs et hmeo vuipess oavnedr tdhoew lansst towfe nthtye - t ISBN 978-1-61902-332-1 Journal, and Slate, and is also the editor of Steven e bfiuvsein yeesas rso,f baurtt ahlsoou sheo pmeo fvoier si tso vfuetru rteh.e last 25 Soderbergh: Interviews. ack SOFT SKULL PRESS 52500 with AnTHony KAufmAn years, but also hope for its future. J An imprint of COUNTERPOINT www.softskull.com Distributed by Publishers Group West 9 781619 023321 9 781619 023321 HOPE FOR FILM H O P E FO R F I L M From the Frontlines of the Independent Cinema Revolutions Ted Hope with Anthony Kaufman SOFT SKULL PRESS An imprint of Counterpoint Berkeley Copyright © Ted Hope 2014 All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Hope, Ted. Hope for film : from the frontline of the independent cinema revolutions / Ted Hope. pages cm ISBN 978-1-61902-332-1 (hardback) 1. Hope, Ted. 2. Motion picture producers and directors—United States—Biography. 3. Independent filmmakers—United States—Biography. I. Title. PN1998.3.H6865A3 2014 791.4302’33092—dc23 [B] 2014014012 Cover design and illustration by Jonathan Bennett Interior design by Sabrina Plomitallo-González, Neuwirth & Associates SOFT SKULL PRESS An imprint of Counterpoint www.softskull.com Printed in the United States of America Distributed by Publishers Group West 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To Vanessa, You are my hope and partner in all things. May we forever continue to help each other reach higher, deeper, and truer. To my son Michael, May you too find a path that allows your passion to sustain both itself and you, while never losing sight of the privilege such a gift is. Contents Acknowledgments ix Chapter 1—Inspiration 1 Chapter 2—Patience 27 Chapter 3—Joyfulness 51 Chapter 4—Commitment 77 Chapter 5—Ambition 103 Chapter 6—Collaboration 119 Chapter 7—Creativity 141 Chapter 8—Time 165 Chapter 9—Community 199 Chapter 10—Change 221 Appendix—141 Problems and Opportunities for the Independent Film World 255 Filmography 293 Index 295 Acknowledgments When people think about film producers, they don’t normally recognize a “body of work” and how the films fit together. That’s usually reserved for directors. But the films I make and love all have a powerful and personal story at their center. And the vision for those stories has a sin- gularity largely driven by the director, but not the director alone. The fact that I had partners all along, directors who were generally willing to listen, and an environment where everyone was willing to figure things out and make things better is the most fortunate aspect of my profes- sional life so far. If I hadn’t arrived in New York City when I did, gotten caught up in the indie film tide that was then rising and lifted so many, and happened to be in the same class that Anne Carey was taking, who knows how things might have gone? Drinking beers on the lift gate of a grip truck with Rich Ludwig led me to Hal Hartley, and riffing on Godard and aliens led me to James Schamus. Good friends and collaborators spoke well of me to Vanessa Guest, not yet suspecting she’d become Vanessa Hope, a collaborator in the greatest of ways—including filmmaking. For all filmmakers, collaboration with the producer and the whole creative team is essential. Collaboration is a class that film schools should add to their curricula now that they finally have producing ix

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