Big names continue to appear on stage, as the 60th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) and the extended and expanded KVIFF Industry Days program on Tuesday were no exception – concluding with a conversation between Bedouin Producer Molly Asher and Dynamite house Producer Greg Shapiro talks about the art of building a list with purpose.
The latter surprised and amused the audience when he made an unexpected comparison: “I made this series of films called Harold and Kumar. The first was Harold and Kumar go to the White Castle. The second one came out and was made right before that Pain locker They were made, and they both came out around the same time. And everyone was scratching their heads saying, “How can you make it?” Harold and Kumarwhich has a lot of really low fart jokes and is a great comedy, and Pain lockera high-profile, very intense war film?”
His answer was simpler than anyone expected. “In my mind, I always thought they were kind of the same movie. I like low-key comedies, and I also like high-brow war movies, so for me it was just working on something I loved. I really liked those two movies.”
He was asked about the condition of the fourth Harold and Kumar The script is currently being written, Shapiro said. “Everyone is back,” he added. “We hope to shoot soon.”
the Harold and Kumar Shapiro revealed that the franchise has had its share of casting battles behind the scenes. “There were different directors on each movie, and they’re comedians, so you want to reach as wide an audience as possible. So there’s a couple of people in some of these three movies that the directors didn’t want. I can’t tell you who they were, but one of them ended up being just a wonderful surprise. And then there was another guy, an underground comedy star that the director wanted the studio to refuse to hire, and we somehow won that battle over that person. It’s just one of the funniest moments in the movie.”
The broader lesson cuts both ways, he said. “Movies are a series of compromises. The most interesting things often come out of compromise” — a dynamic he’s seen at play in casting as elsewhere. “I’ve made some movies over the years where the financier or the studio says you have to cast this person. Often it’s in a supporting role, and you think this is a terrible idea — he’s a YouTube star or a social media star. Sometimes this terrible casting idea ends up being something really interesting and surprising, and people enjoy the movie because of it, even though it’s completely at odds with the director’s vision. So it cuts both ways. It’s weird — sometimes the studio I hate to say it, but it’s true, and a lot of times, the director is right.”
The recent breakthrough success of Back rooms and mania It only deepened his optimism — and pointed to something bigger. “It’s Gen Z making movies for Gen Z,” he said. “We can get young people back into movie theaters. I think that creates a healthy ecosystem. So I feel weirdly positive, and optimistic about the business case.”
Here’s a look at other takeaways from the session:
Product voice
“We always talk about the director’s voice, but there’s also the producer’s voice,” Asher said. “I’m very focused on filmmaker-led projects,” she said, regardless of genre, highlighting her interest in certain voices above other considerations.
Learn from Nick Nolte
Shapiro was working as an assistant for Nick Nolte, what he called “my film school.” He noted that Nolte had “this approach of the actor as being in service to the director.” This includes situations where you don’t agree with the director.
Pros and cons of a decisive manager
A director’s decisiveness can be an advantage, but Shapiro admitted that it also left him in a “graveyard of projects” that never got done because filmmakers wouldn’t budge on casting. “Films are a series of compromises,” he added. “And the most exciting things often come from compromise.” This is a lesson he learned firsthand by working with Kathryn Bigelow. “When I work with Catherine, it’s a very easy dynamic, because she takes control as a filmmaker, so there’s a certain amount of security.”
Pivoting
Usher praised her frequent co-director Chloe Zhao for being “someone who has the real strength to know what she wants but also has the ability to pivot,” which is great for getting projects done. “She’s very good at pivoting.”
A rare pivot is needed when a producer and director receive a larger-than-expected budget, like the $5 million that Chow and Asher received. Bedouin. “We were like, ‘Oh my God, what are we going to spend all this money on?'” the producer recalls. “We could make five films. We were under budget, so we were able to figure that out. One way was to pay people well.”
What about artificial intelligence?
“I know it’s coming, and I’m going to use it,” Asher said. “I just want to make good films. I’m very passionate about young filmmakers. This is where the revolution will come if we need a revolution.”
Shapiro has been working with AI companies to learn about the technology, and his experience is that most people at AI companies say the technology will never completely replace humans. His conclusion was: “There is a human layer in the equation that will never disappear.”
