Meeting the man..

So I had a meeting today with an exec producer, who shall remain nameless of course. He had produced a ton of material for television and had done a couple of successful feature films. This was my first serious meeting of this nature.. I was always wondering what it would be like. He was a great guy and I liked him personally.

How does one go about convincing someone else that they should trust you with a huge amount of money to make a feature? I have crewed on a few features, associate produced one feature, directed a few shorts, but I haven't directed a full feature before.

I felt that the best approach would be to communicate my vision for the script (one in development by his company) - show that I deeply understood the material - demonstrate potential to bring a unique perspective to it.. etc.

Well, I think I partly succeeded at that but.. half the battle is not letting yourself be boxed in by labels (AD's don't direct! Nobody will care you've AD'd! you're too old! you're in the wrong town!).. I had worked out rejoinders to most of these (Coppola's first credit was as an AD! Scott Hicks (Shine) worked as an AD! David Lynch took years to make "Eraserhead" at age 31! Scott Hicks lives in Adelaide Australia!)

The funny thing is that Coppola's first couple of films were cheesy horror/camp for Roger Corman - terrible films by today's standars, but a great place to learn for Coppola and his peers. These days a director's first feature is practically expected to be perfect!

The "boxing" statements kept coming. I have seen this from other producers - they keep on coming up with reasons why you can't do something - usually why you can't direct - but most of the reasons are total nonsense. The real reason is that they are trying to evaluate whether or not you can make a great feature for them, and without actually getting that first one in the can, they have no idea.. although a few good short films and a few good crew credits don't hurt. But the thing is, for serious finance, all of the other potential directors have those credentials also.. so thus, my strategy of talking about the script - I understood it like nobody else. Perhaps the "boxing" is also to see if you'll fight back - to see if you believe in yourself enough to do it - if you've firmly decided internally that you're going to do it.

I have no idea if I'll get the chance to direct for him.. but it was an interesting meeting, and I'll know what to expect for the next one!!
 
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That's awesome! Glad you got the opportunity :)

I think the "boxing" is definitely to help him judge character and resolve. Keep at it! If it comes to it ask him if you can shoot a scene from the script - one that's highly character related as a test.
 
That is a great idea. It is certainly a saner idea than what was going through my head: just start rewriting, budgeting, scheduling and casting the *(& picture w/ out their permission :cool:
 
That's great news. They wouldn't be talking to you if they didn't at least believe there was a possibility that you could work out.

My approach is always to be completely up front, "Look you wouldn't be talking to me if you didn't have a least a little bit of interest in the film, what is it you need from me to convince you to greenlight this project."

Then at least if he says 'We like the film, but we think you haven't the experience to direct it" you can negotiate from there.
 
The funny thing is that Coppola's first couple of films were cheesy horror/camp for Roger Corman

Some of them are pretty bad... I have "Dementia 13" buried away in a box somewhere. :cool:

Roger Corman is still an idol of kinds... lots of heart, but dubious success. This is one man who never says die.

_______

Take the bull by the horns, FilmSched, and make the most of any opportunities you may have for meetings like this. I know nothing about "the biz", but I do believe that if anyone wants something badly enough, they'll find the way to accomplish it.
 
Sounds like a great oppotunity. Good luck!
 
Your "boxing" metaphor is a good one. It's natural for others to tell you
what you "should" be doing in life. Natural - like athelete's foot!

Decide what you want to be, and be that.

Find somebody who you want to be like, and invoke their example as an example of why you can do it. Coppola's a great example, as an AD that rose to prominence as a fine Director (and your story is a good example of why the DGA "AD training program" doesn't necessarily lead to movie Directing!)

Henry Ford was a "failure" until the age of 46, then he entered a car race (prize $250) and won, and used the money to start the Ford Motor Company. (He never raced before or after!)

Abraham Lincoln's life was a long string of painful failures, until he was elected to President of the United States, in his 50s. Perhaps our greatest President, by the way.

There are lots of filmmaking examples. Sylvester Stallone got a lot of the "boxes" thrown at him. They said he wasn't big enough to play a contender for the Heavyweight boxing champion. Sly researched it, and found there were a number of HW Champs who were SMALLER than he!

He beat the Producers over the head with this knowledge, and got the lead, the only way he'd sell his script for "Rocky," which went on to win the 1976 "Best Picture" Oscar.

The only "box" that will stop you, is the one YOU put your head in. Don't let anybody stop you.
 
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