What does a movie producer actually do for a living? Is 'producing' any more than writing cheques and smoking fat cigars? Helen de Winter, herself an intrepid young producer, discovers a job that requires the combined skills of a wheeler-dealer, a diplomat, a stern but doting parent, and a clinical psychiatrist.
The producers of everything from The Lord of the Rings, Bridget Jones's Diary to The Constant Gardener and My Big Fat Greek Wedding talk to her about: * How do you smell a hit? * How do you raise adequate sums of other peoples' money to get a film made? * How do you handle feuds, fights, or even fatalities on set? * And what can you do to drag the general public off the street and into cinemas to study the fruits of your labour?
The results make enlightening reading, whether your interest lies in movies or money, or whether indeed what you really want to do is produce...
The role of the producer is one of the most misunderstood and under appreciated aspects of the filmmaking business - this is the book that remedies that ignorance!
Employing a range of interviews from a collection of different producers, all nurtured from nurtured from varying backgrounds and all concerned with different filmmaking preferences, Helen de Winter presents the true allure and entrepreneurial spirit of producing.
Being ten years old now, the book and filmmkaing practices discussed are a little out of date; particularly in regards to the mass growth of user generated content and the current rise of the entrepreneurial filmmaker. However, there is still plenty of sound practical advice to be had and the book serves as a testament of "the ways things were" in the traditional model of film producing and film production.
If you are interested in becoming a producer or getting into filmmaking then this book serves as a definite introduction to many of the realities and challenges that are involved.