Spielberg Wants to Be Independent
Filed under: Independent, Paramount, Universal, Distribution, Dreamworks, Steven Spielberg, Cinematical Indie
Imagine a Spielberg film that isn't a tent-pole, either in the summer or the winter season. Imagine a Spielberg film that opens on two screens in New York City and Los Angeles before rolling out slowly to the rest of the country. Imagine a Spielberg film at Sundance. Can you possibly think of an indie film directed by Steven Spielberg, the most famous filmmaker of our time? Well, it might not be just a hypothetical idea for long, as the director of Jurassic Park and War of the Worlds has told AMC's Sunday Morning Shootout that he is interested in making smaller, lower-budget films for Dreamworks. It seems he was impressed by his competition at this year's Oscars, saying, "I would love to go off and make a picture like Capote or George Clooney's Good Night, and Good Luck."
Funny, I thought that Spielberg was powerful enough in Hollywood that he kinda has been making the expensive equivalent of indie films, but I guess with all his prestige, he still doesn't have complete freedom at the big studios. He claims the reason he didn't end up directing Memoirs of a Geisha (he served as producer instead) is because studio execs (at Sony, I'm guessing) wouldn't let him film it in Japanese -- and show it subtitled -- for a lower cost of $10 million. The thing is, Memoirs probably would have made more of its money back if Spielberg had gotten his way.
I think Spielberg doing smaller films is a great idea. After all, his movies are often about spectacle, but they are typically about the story first. He's one of the few who still uses special effects as a compliment to his storytelling rather than vice versa. Now, without the spectacle, he could go back to the kinds of thoughtful films he used to make. Take out the mechanical shark from Jaws, the mother ship from Close Encounters and E.T. from E.T. (I mean figuratively, not literally creating a void) and you still have excellent movies.
The episode and interview will be shown on AMC this Sunday.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-10-2006 @ 10:49AM
craig said...
The thing is- if you look at the industry- everyone is boxed into one place or another. Julia Roberts can't do Broadway (which is probably mostly true, but some of criticism probably goes from people not wanting to see her as anything other than Julia Roberts- big screen actress). Everyone gets typecastes- actors, writers, etc.
Reply
6-10-2006 @ 11:11AM
Mary said...
Regarding "Jaws": the movie didn't have a working shark for the longest time during the shoot. Speilberg had to work around the absense of the one thing that the film's producers said was the "star" of the movie. The scenes without the shark help make the movie a classic IMHO.
Although I admire the advances in computerized special effects, CGI technology is fast becoming a crutch for today's up-and-coming film-makers.
Reply
6-10-2006 @ 1:54PM
Ben said...
Speilberg is a genius!
http://www.cinephiliacs.com
Reply
6-10-2006 @ 4:06PM
Tom said...
Poor poor little Stevie Spielberg. He's just the most powerful director in film history, and nobody lets him make the films he wants. Poor little baby. Bullshit. Show me the picture of Spielberg with a gun to his head being forced to direct garbage like Indiana Jones and the Temple Of Doom, Always and Jurassic Park 2.
Spielberg makes overproduced shit because he wants to make overproduced shit. If he had really wanted to make Memoirs of a Geisha in Japanese for 10 million, who was stopping him? Why didn't he finance it himself? It's not like he hasn't made enough money to finance several small nations, fer Chrissake.
I've got a degree of respect for Spielberg's work, but when he gets all misty about wanting to be an independent director, my bullshit detector goes berserk. If he wants to make good movies, he should just get off his ass and make them. Period.
Reply
6-11-2006 @ 12:53AM
DJ Erickson said...
Tom, Tom, Tom. You just don't get it.
THE MAN is keeping Spielberg down! Forget his enormous personal wealth, treasure trove of awards, and being the most culturally impactful, powerful filmmaker of the last 3 decades, THE MAN isn't allowing him to do more personal, less commercial work, like, say, Schindler's List. Or Munich. Or A Color Purple.
Seriously though, I grew up on Spielberg's movies and love many of them, but when people in his position act like they're somehow being kept from doing the movies they REALLY want to do when they, you know, can, I think it a bit silly. Like when Lucas said he wanted to devote his post-Star Wars career to more experimental films -- what's stopping him from doing it now! Or ten years ago!
Oh well ...
Reply
6-12-2006 @ 8:15AM
Ryland said...
He's the bomb. I hope he does do something smaller. And not only that, I hope he takes longer than six or eight weeks to edit the movie. I still think if he'd taken a little longer with MUNIC he could have made a masterpiece; there are flashes but it's still too long; it isn't preachy like SCHINDLERS, it's striving, and that's commendable.
Reply
6-12-2006 @ 12:22PM
M, Michael Hyatt said...
Can anyone remember a little TV movie named "Duel"? Looked pretty indy to me.
Reply
6-15-2006 @ 11:51PM
amstarr said...
Poor little rich boy.
Reply
6-15-2006 @ 11:52PM
bill bosco said...
yea, i think speilberg is the bomb , i mean he,s already got a bunch of classics under his belt , he,s become an excellent story teller , he can do whatever he wants to do as far as i,m concerned , i think he,s already left hollywood in the dust anyway .
Reply
6-15-2006 @ 11:55PM
Jenniluna said...
Tom, if you look at the quote, he said studio execs wouldn't let him film it in Japanese for $10 million. He probably would have if he owned the rights, but the studio bought them, and most likely being an expensive option/price, they wanted it to be a big flashy picture. He turned it down because they didn't want it made on a smaller scale.
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 12:29AM
john loe said...
Steven is to awesome. That man can sell beach front property in Iowa!
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 12:39AM
Guy said...
Steven Spielberg is not freakin' Bill Gates people. Sure, he's rich but this does not give someone complete creative license. Making a movie takes a whole team and usually the studios are in some way or another in charge of that team, getting the final word on projects, edits, concepts.
You guys act like he's some sort of god that can easily override the big dogs. He's just speaking from his position and to fault him seems foolish. He's telling you he doesn't have creative freedom and you are calling him a liar? How would you know?
He's not complaining about a hard life or whining like some actor, he's just saying he'd like more freedom to do those smaller films. Why ya givin' him crap over it?
I guess I just don't understand.
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 2:04AM
Jim said...
First, anyone who loves movies and don't think
Spielberg is the best film director of our times
needs a reality check. Example; the highest grossing
film in movie history is Titanic ($1.8 Billion), yet
you'd be surprised at how many people do not know who
directed it. (James Cameron). But mention any of
Spielberg's movies and his name instantly comes to mind. He's a genius, pure and simple. I knew the man
had talent from watching one of his earliest films
that was made for TV. Duel, starring Dennis Weaver.
It was about a man driving through the interstate
with a maniac truck driver trying to demolish his
car. And while I'm at it, I was really pissed when
some movie critics compared M. Night Shalyman to
Spielberg! Sixth Sense was a good movie, but don't
comapre it with Spieberg's films! There's no contest.
Need more proof? In an interview with Charlie Rose,
J. J. Abrahams, the director of Mission Impossible III
with Tom Cruise,(and is first theatrical film), he
was asked who inspired him most. His answer was....
that's right, you guessed it. Steven Spielberg!
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 2:11AM
Jim Montgomery said...
Spielberg+ director's chair= $$$$$$$$$! Nuff said!
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 2:20AM
Geoffrey said...
Maybe Dennis Hopper can show Steven a few things about making interesting movies that cost next to nothing but still attract great actors who care more about the work than the money.
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 2:35AM
Zo Wesson said...
Say what you will about Mr. Spielberg but the man I met at the DGA Awards took the time to talk to a nobody director and listened with genuine interest when I told him about the story I wanted to tell. The truth of the matter is that the studios hold all of the power and can say yes or no to even him.
It took him years to get Shindlers list made despite the fact that the film had tremendous relevance to a lot of management in Hollywood. I for one am encouraged that a man who has acheived so much still yearns for even more freedom and I can't wait to see what it might yield. So the rest of you don't hate! Appreciate!
Zo Wesson
Reply
6-16-2006 @ 4:16PM
RICK BADMAN said...
He has earned enough from his films that he could easily do independent films and never go begging for the cash or support. If Mel Gibson can use his own money to fund his masterpiece concerning the death of Jesus, Spielberg can use his multi-millions to fund many indy films. He could also fund new technology like video manipulation which uses a computer and video memory banks for the production of movies that look totally realistic. If five of his films can be considered inspiring, imagine such stories like that of Lance Armstrong battling cancer to dominate the Tour de France or the soldier that lost a foot who had a prostetic one to replace it who went back to Iraq because he cared about the men he left behind. He could become the next Frank Capra, if he wants.
Reply