So we had our first big conference call today with all the attached people: Four of the five producers (two of whom are the writers also, me and Nils), the production lawyer, the director, the line producer, and two assistants. It was the first time all of us had been on one call at one time, and we had several issues to go over; budget issues, potential locations, casting issues, deal memos, financing issues, and travel.
We are casting in LA and NYC, and we were discussing the NYC travel arrangements for me, the director and the casting director, when one of the other producers asks me a question:
Pr "Do you fly first class or coach?"
TM "First class? What do you mean?"
Pr "You know what first class is, right?"
TM "Obviously, but I get the option?"
Pr "You can, yeah."
TM "This is an indie film, we have a tight budget, how does it make sense for me to spend $800 on a ticket when I can fly on the same plane, 30 feet away, for $250?"
Pr "Yeah, this is definitely your first movie."
I called one of the other producers and we talked about this for over an hour. I have learned a lot about Hollywood over the past four+ years of dealing with it, but still things surprise me. Apparently, most producers, especially the experienced ones, are prima donnas on a level akin to the worst actors. They have ridiculous riders (contract stipulations like "must stay in a four star hotel, must fly first class, a bowl of only red M&M's in their dressing room," etc.), they are assholes to everyone, and they just generally create all sorts of costs that don't go in front of the camera.
This is just flabbergasting to me. I mean, I KNOW how bad Hollywood is, I have sold my TV show twice, I have read all the books like The Big Picture and Billion Dollar Kiss and I have heard the horror stories, but still...it doesn't make sense.
I mean, if you aren't in this to make the best movie possible, why do it? If you care more about the thread count of the linens in your hotel, why are you making movies? If you are willing to take money away from the front of the camera to pad your experience behind it, why are you shocked when the movie sucks?
I then wrote this email to the line producer:
[Line producer], I talked to [the other producer] about this, but I wanted to make sure you knew also:For all travel on this movie, I will of course fly coach, and preferably the cheapest coach possible. For the NYC trip, I have several friends in NYC and will be staying with one of them, and won't need a hotel. I am not sure if I will go to Louisiana to scout, but if I do, the same will apply there (I have friends literally everywhere--we'd be hard pressed to shoot in a location I don't already know someone).
As a general rule going forward, if a cost I am incurring can be cheaper and still effective, let's do it cheaper. As much as possible, we want to save every dollar we can (without sacrificing what goes in front of the camera), because every dollar we save is ten dollars more we make on the backend. If this means I have to fly a middle seat in the back of a shitty plane and sleep on a friends couch, so be it, it's totally not a big deal to me at all.
This seems so obvious to me, and if you are a normal person, it probably seems so obvious to you too. I mean, what is the first rule of leadership? You have to put yourself last, and your followers first. Well how the fuck can I expect the cast and crew of my movie to put in their best effort on long, hard, twelve hour days if I am flying first class and staying in the Ritz when they are taking a bus and staying at the Motel 6? Why will they put in the extra effort for me if they are eating stale crackers and moldy cheese while I am eating filet mignon and caviar? That's bullshit. I wouldn't bust my ass for a leader who wasn't sharing my pain, why should they?
If you have ever wondered why Hollywood is so fucked up, this is it. This issue is emblematic of the bankrupt and destructive values embedded in the DNA of the system. Perks and status and bullshit are all put in front of the art. Don't get me wrong--I would LOVE to fly first class and stay in a nice hotel and all that shit. But when those unnecessary perks come BEFORE the movie, you have a serious problem, and that is what happens so often in Hollywood.
This is going to be a ongoing theme in this blog, I can already tell: Me being aghast at the standard way of doing business. Whatever--we are going to do things the right way on this movie. That means a laser focus on getting right what goes on the screen, treating people with respect (I'll get into that aspect later), and everyone shares in the profit (I'll get to this later too).
Do things the right way. Seems simple to me. Apparently not so much to the rest of the entertainment business.
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