Since I began in this business, Oscar time has always been a seminal moment for me. I went to the Oscars once, a long time ago, and I vowed I'd never go to an awards show again unless I was nominated. It's not that I am marking the time until I walk on that stage (I mean, it's not JUST that), but that I use it as a time to evaluate how I've been doing--am I closer to my creative goals than I was last year at this time? There have been many years when that occasion has been a sobering moment. A crossroads. Should I continue? Cuz I ain't gettin' anywhere. There were more than a few years like that.

This year isn't one of them. This year has been the opposite--one of the best, not least of which is my job here at Shootout. I have two terrific parents--couldn't ask for better. But I always did want a Hollywood mentor, an industry father figure. And this year, I got two, Peter Bart and Peter Guber. I've learned more about this industry and my career working with them this year than I have the previous 15 years combined.

And the wisdom they offer me on a daily basis is on full display during our Oscar show, which airs Friday night, February 15 at 10:30 PM | 9:30C.

Continue reading "Producer's Diary: It's Oscar Time" »

One of the sobering facts about the business of Hollywood is its disregard for the voice of wisdom. It's much harder for a 35-year-old to sell a movie idea than it is for a 22-year-old. It is, of course, counterintuitive: A 35-year-old most likely has more life experience from which to draw. If you want an example of just how counterintuitive this principle is, watch our conversation with Barry Levinson and Art Linson, who came to our set to talk about their movie What Just Happened? It is about two weeks in the life of a movie producer (played by Robert DeNiro) and draws upon a book Linson wrote about his own similar experiences. With Guber and Bart sharing the screen with Linson and Levinson (the film's director), there is about 150 years of cumulative industry experience on that stage. And the conversation reveals why we should have more regard in Hollywood for experience, and why the gray list is such a ridiculous and destructive guiding principle.

Continue reading "Sundance Producer's Diary: Barry Levinson, Jack Black, and Hollywood's Gray List" »

It's been said that a high stress set leads to a good show. If that's the case, this'll be the best show ever. As I've written on this space before, shooting in a normal environment is stressful--shooting at a festival is like playing harmonica without a tongue. You're blowin' hard, but hitting all the right notes is tricky. (I have a tongue, of course, but I can imagine.) Tempers are short, people throw things, but fortunately for me anyway, all that matters is what's on the screen. We are at the Sundance Film Festival, and the show you'll see on TV will be very good.

(Editor's Note: Gary Marks, an executive producer with AMC's Shootout, is tracking his experiences doing the show from Sundance.)

We started with Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer, here for their film Transsiberian. It's a tight thriller and they are amazing in it, as a married couple. Emily and I have some good mutual friends, (Jared Harris and Emilia Fox, both great actors in their own right) and she is as lovely off screen as on. And Woody gave the type of interview that I think makes our show unique.

Next up, Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, and writer-director Martin McDonagh. Martin is the acclaimed English playwright who wrote Pillowman, which was nominated for many, many Tonys. It probably won a few, but I'm tired and this is a blog, so there's supposed to be mistakes. (But I will say, my friend Michael Stuhlbarg was in it and he was nominated for a Tony, so I've got that going for me.)

Continue reading "Sundance Producer's Diary: Woody Harrelson, Saffron Burrows, and the Open" »

There are few movie stars so transcendent we know them by just one name: Brando, Pacino, De Niro. Yesterday we had one: Denzel. Denzel is a noun. To be a Denzel, well, any guy should be so lucky to be described that way.  And to have a chance to interview Denzel is certainly a highlight: the guy who glared defiantly at us in Glory, about to be whipped, a single tear running down his cheek; the carpet cleaning Romeo, Demetrius, in Mira Nair's Mississippi Masala, a performance with such fierce humanity that even the most masculine guy is sucked into the love story; the same guy who then kicked our ass in Training Day and won a long overdue Oscar for doing so.

Now he's directed his second film, The Great Debaters, in which he also stars. I expected not to like it all that much—I mean it sounds like a struggle—a black debate team takes on Jim Crow and the Harvard debate team. But, it's pretty magnificent. Kinda breathtaking. So, when he showed up on set, I told him the first question should be "Is there ANYTHING you suck at?" He laughed and took the compliment with grace. As I've said in this space before, it is always nice when someone's brilliant screen persona is matched with an equally charming off-screen presence. And in that, Denzel did not disappoint. And if you want to see perhaps the best conversation I've witnessed in my tenure at Shootout, watch Sunday's show.

Gary Marks, Shootout's Executive Producer, reports about his experience at the Toronto Film Festival while the show covers the event.

After my stint as a guerilla verite director in the streets of Toronto, it was nice to once again stress out about the normal festival shoot. On Sunday, we had Aaron Eckhart and festival co-director Noah Cowan on the show. Noah was great on camera -- passionate, humorous, thoughtful, and articulate. Aaron Eckhart is a class act.

It's very refreshing when someone's onscreen talents and success are matched by an offscreen humility and grace, qualities he has in spades. 

Monday brought Todd Haynes, the director of "I'm Not There," the new Bob Dylan biopic, in which Dylan is played by about eight different actors, including Cate Blanchett (during his "Don't Look Back" phase.)

Continue reading "Producer's Diary: Aaron Eckhart and Todd Haynes" »

Gary Marks, Shootout's Executive Producer, reports about his experience at the Toronto Film Festival while the show covers the event.

Mid festival. We're feeling pretty good. Such a great vibe in Toronto: relaxed, crisp, inspired, electric. The show has gone pretty well so far. No. Not pretty well, very well. George Clooney, Jodie Foster, Julie Taymor on the first day. Don Cheadle the night before. All fantastic.

And so, of course, we decide to get fancy. Peter Bart has an inspired dream moment -- how to do the open of the show. Last year, in Toronto, Sacha Baron Cohen showed up to the Borat premiere getting out of the trunk of a cab. Bart wants to recreate it. Guber will be nervously pacing in front of the store on his iphone, wondering where his co-host is. A cab will pull up, the trunk will pop, and out will come Bart.  Guber comes up with a tag for it at the end that is funny.  Let's do it. How hard can it be?

Yeah right. I explain that we'll have to shoot it like a film: several takes, several set-ups. They're into it. Let's try.

And, so, two hours later, we are out on the streets of Toronto, without a permit to shoot, very little planning, and one very befuddled Pakistani cab driver who doesn't know quite just what hit him. But a guy in a suit is climbing into his trunk. We're directing traffic, closing it off, dodging cars, using walkie talkies to communicate between two different camera set ups -- one on the street, one perched on a roof across the street high above. Police cruising by wondering what the hell is going on. Bart and Guber ready for their close-up. And me wondering how we got here. Complete pandemonium.

And, all in all, except for the cab driver smacking into a limo on the very last shot, it went pretty well. If it cuts together, you'll get to see it open our Toronto episode this coming Sunday.

Editor's Note: This is the final post in the Shootout Blog coverage of Cannes 2007

I have slept. Finally. And I feel almost human again. I've never been through anything like it and having come out the other side, there's a great feeling of relief and gratification.

It began with the hardly assured appearance of Roman Polanski on our set. He was in a good mood, delighted to see the Peters, as they were to see him. Then he sat down for the interview - forty-five minutes of compelling, witty, insightful discussion that made me proud to be associated with the show. Hugs all around, and Roman was gone.   We had time to shoot a couple of wraps (transitions) for the show, and then we had to quickly breakdown and head to the American Pavillion.

Continue reading "Shootout Producer's Diary: The Interviews" »

Editor's Note: Gary Marks, an executive producer with AMC's Shootout, is tracking his experiences doing the show from Cannes.

I am in bed. Wrecked.

In the last 24 hours we have interviewed Roman Polanski, Kurt Russell, Martin Scorcese, Michael Moore, Harvey Weinstein. William Friedkin, Josh Greer and Sandy Kleiman (producers of U23D), Javier Bardem, and Frank Miller.

Except for losing our Director of Photography, it all went off beautifully, without a hitch.

But it can wear a guy out. I’m going to write all about it as soon as I sleep. I can barely complete a sentence now.

Editor's Note: Gary Marks, an executive producer with AMC's Shootout, is tracking his experiences doing the show from Cannes. You can see segments from the interviews with Moore and Polansky by clicking their names.

Here's how TV production is like life: you never know what's going to happen next.

The day started in just about the most pleasant way possible. We had Sarah Polley booked as a guest. She's a juror, and as I said previously, she wrote and directed a very moving film, “Away From Her,” starring Julie Christie. I arrived at the hotel where she was staying, went up to her room, accompanied by our French make up artist Alan, and hung out with her while she had her make up applied. (She's staying in the same hotel as is Roman Polanski, so I kept my eyes peeled for him - no sign.)

Sarah Polley is lovely, gracious, humble,, self-possessed, and very talented. See her film. You'll know. Make up applied, we hopped into an official Festival car to speed through the traffic to the Palais, where our crew was waiting to tape an interview right in front. Access to the Palais steps for a set is rarely, if ever, given, and the interview turned out very well.

(Ed. Note:

Continue reading "Shootout Producer's Diary: Stalking Roman Polanski, Waiting for Moore" »

Editor's Note: Gary Marks, an executive producer with AMC's Shootout, is tracking his experiences doing the show from Cannes.

It's 2 am, day 4 or 5, depending on how you're counting. Unfortunately, counting has become impossible. Here's the snapshot of the last 24 hours.

What began as a disaster turned into huge smiles all around. Friday, after finally arranging our packed shooting schedule, the publicists for the Coen Brothers called us while we were at dinner. And, at that point, dinner was already two hours of waiting in a jammed restaurant, our having been served only undercooked artichokes thus far. The point of the call was this: the last chance to see the Coen Brothers' movie before the interview was 11:30 am, right in the middle of a series of interviews we'd already scheduled.

But, we're talking the Coen Brothers. So, five hours later (4:30 am), we rearranged the schedule to work it out.

Flash forward. We're interviewing the Coen Brothers. The Coen Brothers don't do a lot of interviews, and I don't know how you feel, but - they're the COEN BROTHERS. I mean, Barton Fink. Anyway, It was a great interview, and they enjoyed us so much, that they offered us Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Kelly MacDonald (the stars of the movie) for additional interviews.

Then, off to the party that AMC threw for Sunday Morning Shootout. Very gratifying to see Peter Bart, Peter Guber and Executive Producer (and good friend) Scott Sternberg get on stage to deserved accolades.

Later, I walked the red carpet and attended the premiere of the Coen Brothers' “No Country For Old Men.” To walk the red carpet at Cannes, looking down from the top of the stairs to the throng and flash of cameras, it gives you a new perspective to the power of film and the power of celebrity.

That would have been a great day. But, our line producer, Jackie Hakim (who rocks - I mean, ROCKS), caught wind of a rumor that U2 was performing live on the steps of the Palais. She secured an apartment across to shoot it, and the night ended with a three camera shoot of U2 performing “Vertigo” and “Where The Streets Have No Name.”  So, all in all, just an average day in the life of a producer.