|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chris Moore - Aidan's Requests
First of all thanks to all those who watched the show. I hope you enjoyed it. Now that we are finally making the movie I think it gets more interesting. This week the budget battle rises and Ben Affleck makes a move to call Harvey Weinstein to cut through the process and get an answer on the budget.
On another note, this week's episode hits casting in a way people may have only heard about. We have another article on the site about actors and their requests, but I really want to talk about Aidan Quinn. In the show it may look to people, not familiar with movie making, like he is asking for an unusual or extreme list of things in order to do the movie. It is important to me that anyone reading this understands that this was not the case.
I am writing this before you see the episode in the hopes that you will read this and add some perspective to your viewing pleasure.
Actors have three areas in which they request things for themselves when they negotiate to star in a film. First is their personal pay and lifestyle while working on the movie. The other article hits this well but, basically, this area covers their pay; their support staff like trainers, assistants and chefs; their trailers and homes; and their travel. Some big stars carry their requests pretty far into clothing, trailer decoration, and food. But, most people just want a good lifestyle while they are working and as much money as they can get. As a producer, I accept these things and understand them. Actors work hard and the hours suck and it is not that glamorous. They also must leave their lives and homes behind. So being able to practice golf or work out or have a chef just helps them have a life while they are working.
The second area of requests from an actor is approvals over the creative aspects of a film. This can mean the script, the other cast members, and sometimes the director. Here the actor is basically saying: "If I am going to star in this movie, I want to make sure it's going to be good." Usually they get "meaningful consultation," which means that if the studio, producer or director is going to change the script or hire an actor, the star must be notified and asked what they think. Bigger actors tend to ask for approvals and producers tend to want only to give meaningful consultation, and the negotiation usually ends somewhere in the middle. Aidan got consultation on some things and approvals on others. Actor approvals and consultations can be annoying and, obviously, it can get hard to make decisions with so many people in the loop, but the request for creative input comes from a good place of wanting to make the movie great.
The final area of requests for an actor is in the physical production realm. This would include the number of shooting days, the DP, and sometimes the wardrobe people. This, again, comes from a place where you want to make sure the movie is as good as it can be and so the star wants to be involved in these types of decisions. In the case of "Stolen Summer," where we have such a low budget and a first time director, it made complete sense for Aidan to request some approvals in this arena.
It is when these requests are unreasonable that things get difficult. Aidan asked nothing unreasonable and none of the things he requested went to him personally. They were all about having enough time and enough input so that he believed the movie would be successful. I am so grateful to him for his backbone and desire to make the movie good.
So as you watch Pete and Pat and Miramax and me worrying about Aidan's requests on the show, just know it is because we'd rather make those decisions ourselves than fight with Aidan. But, we all (including Aidan) just want to make the movie better. In fact, Aidan's request for the 25 days and 5-day weeks so helped the movie that I was right there with him. He was a big enough star to convince Miramax to do it. I want you all to know how rare it is for a star to use their power to benefit the movie and how much Aidan's position helped Pete.
On Sunday, I will get much more personal and talk about my "memos" that provoke Ben and Jon Gordon to embarrass me on national television. I will defend myself.
As always thanks for reading . . .
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
