S04.E01: Do You Want to Direct This Movie?

[Tara Ariano]

In the Season 4 premiere, 13 finalists are chosen from a pool of thousands of aspiring filmmakers and travel to Los Angeles to meet the series' judges, who discuss the merits of each contestant's short-film submission before announcing a winner.

[Primetimer]

And other not-quite-burning questions about the glorious return of Project Greenlight.

Read the story

[Bill]

Yay it's back!  And yayyy it was just as dysfunctional as I remember.  Thanks Sarah for perfectly capturing my thoughts on the selection... clearly they picked the worst possible director for this project specifically to make this show work better (in their minds).  I mean, the female producer (not Effie) was almost gleeful after the newly minted director wanted Stolen Summer Pete off the writing team seconds after winning... so yeah, good times.  

 

Of course, the weird thing is that Damon is still so overly invested in this "Project" to find some great director and in writing being the key to moviemaking, as yes, that was his start, so it's just weird that he was the driving force (on what's shown) in picking the ultimate winner, who is clearly a train wreck of personality and would never deign to watch Dumb and Dumber again or otherwise even consider directing a script culled from that formula that's been stale for at least a decade or more (much like Farrelly brothers careers).  

 

I did enjoy the obvious Affleck "I can't believe I agreed to come back for this mess" attitude during most of the meetings and especially in the aftermath of the announcement "Yeah, ok you can do it on film.  What's your other thing, I really don't want to be here anymore."  This is going to be a hilarious season.  I hope.

[infomofo]

Jason was the one who insulted everyone the second he sat down in the chair during the interview- so if they're making the choice based on what will cause the most conflict and ultimately be the most exciting TV show, then they picked right.

My favorite part was when Effie tries to point out the fact that a room of predominantly white men quickly narrowed the field to make the choice end up between four white men (which- c'mon that takes some serious guts to speak up in a situation like that), and got MANSHOUTSPLAINTERUPPTED by Matty D.

As with all the rest of these shows- I'm just tuning in for the tv show and will probably never sit through the actual movie they end up producing. If they make a total trainwreck of a movie that produces a ridiculously dramatic tv show that is completely free of logic and reason, then I am all in!

[Paws]

My favorite part was when Effie tries to point out the fact that a room of predominantly white men quickly narrowed the field to make the choice end up between four white men (which- c'mon that takes some serious guts to speak up in a situation like that), and got MANSHOUTSPLAINTERUPPTED by Matty D.

OMG this. He barely let her speak! At all! I never thought I would see the day when Ben affleck was more likeable than Matt Damon but boom, there we are. That was some serious white male privilege speaking. In the interview he says "we can't change the rules of the contest" which, ok fine. But that's not what he said to Effie, and , if they wee having a hard time making a choice why not choose based on diversity as a tiebreaker? He just shouted down her thoughts and interrupted her like a drunk tea party uncle on Thanksgiving.

[Racj82]

This isn't a popular opinion these days but I have zero problem with what Damon said. There has just come a point for me where I think things are getting boiled down to gender/diversity issues way too often. Like everything is. I don't think everything needs to be examined through that lens. We always need someone to speak up in situations like these for a party that isn't always represented. I totally respect that. I didn't get any feeling that anyone in that room didn't respect that either. But, the focus here should be on who would be best for the position. Looking at their work, etc. From what I saw, that's all Matt was trying to say. I'm also sure he didn't want to get pigeonholed into a category he didn't want to get put in so he spoke up real quick. Also, man to I hate the term mansplaining or anything along those lines. A man can defend himself without having labels like that thrown at him. I didn't see anything offensive there. Man, woman, black, white, if I'm running something like this, I'm worried about who can give you the best project. Based on some of them saw, Jason was clearly the best. If that had a Asian Woman who had did his movie, I don't think their opinion would have changed at all.

 

Also, really, Matt is doing what he always does. Every one of these seasons, he has went to bat for who he thinks is the best director. Shitty interview or whatever be damned. This just falls in line with that.

[LisaBLingLing]

Why bring back Project Greenlight if we're just going to watch Matt and Ben make the same mistakes all over again? I couldn't believe they picked the (potentially talented) asshole.

However, after reading the recap, OK, if you're putting the show before the movie, pick the asshole.

[LisaBLingLing]

Also, really, Matt is doing what he always does. Every one of these seasons, he has went to bat for who he thinks is the best director. Shitty interview or whatever be damned. This just falls in line with that.

 

I agree that's what Matt thinks he's doing.  Given the evidence of previous seasons though, his method of picking the best director is wrong.

[Paws]

This isn't a popular opinion these days but I have zero problem with what Damon said. There has just come a point for me where I think things are getting boiled down to gender/diversity issues way too often. Like everything is. I don't think everything needs to be examined through that lens. We always need someone to speak up in situations like these for a party that isn't always represented. I totally respect that.This isn't a popular opinion these days but I have zero problem with what Damon said. There has just come a point for me where I think things are getting boiled down to gender/diversity issues way too often. Like everything is. I don't think everything needs to be examined through that lens. We always need someone to speak up in situations like these for a party that isn't always represented. I totally respect that. I didn't get any feeling that anyone in that room didn't respect that either.

I did because he kept interrupting her and didn't let her finish a single goddamn sentence! He shouted her down. Watch again. Notice how many times she says something and he jumps out before she can finish. It's fine to disagree. The problem was that his reaction was way out of proportion to what she was saying. It took fucking guts for her to say that in that room.

[Racj82]

I agree that's what Matt thinks he's doing.  Given the evidence of previous seasons though, his method of picking the best director is wrong.

I'm not going to totally disagree with you there but I feel like the other seasons all had things that were bigger issues than the director. I don't think any of the directors hurt the films they made. First season, that shitty script/idea for the movie was the issue. Kubrick couldn't have made that work. Second season, we really don't know what movie they made because it got sliced into a all out comedy. Third season, Gulager actually did a really good job with the restrictions he had. I think they've had routinely gotten people that on the personality end, is puzzling. But, I didn't see anything to suggest that just in terms of directing, they were bad choices. I just finished season 3 and while Gulager was the most difficult to work with everyone was super happy with the finished product and it was the most successful on the three.

I did because he kept interrupting her and didn't let her finish a single goddamn sentence! He shouted her down. Watch again. Notice how many times she says something and he jumps out before she can finish. It's fine to disagree. The problem was that his reaction was way out of proportion to what she was saying. It took fucking guts for her to say that in that room.

We'll agree to disagree. We've seen dozens of conversation on this show in the past season go down just like that. Shouting each other down. Challenging each other. That shouldn't change because a woman is speaking up with a important point. Didn't see anything out of the norm.

[scrb]

I never watched any of the previous PGL movies.  Were any good?  One of them gave the world Shia Laboeuf didn't it, like it was one of his first starring features?

 

Yeah they brought up merit but probably the unspoken criterium in that room was which director(s) would bring the most drama, be the biggest diva.  The guy whom they chose was the only one to basically say the script sucked and he would want to change it.  So they can anticipate  that he'll be bitching about changing the script.

 

I'd have voted for whichever candidate(s) went into the room and said I want to do PGL as a gateway to fame, money, pussy, etc., you know exactly what you Matt and Ben got.

[TheodoraK]

wow, i seriously loathe this show. what is the point of it if they are just going to choose the person who will create the most drama? there were so many personable and talented choices. it was unwatchable last season. and it's the same thing again. i'm not even sure anymore what the Freak matt and ben get out of this. they act like giant entitled assholes and create something that might as well be a Real Housewives piece of crap. what is the point of bringing the Farrelly brothers on board and then choosing a jackass who doesn't want to make a comedy? i know i'm echoing a lot of what others have said. i'm just so freaking pissed off. this show could be great. but it never ever will be.

[Irlandesa]

This isn't a popular opinion these days but I have zero problem with what Damon said. There has just come a point for me where I think things are getting boiled down to gender/diversity issues way too often. Like everything is. I don't think everything needs to be examined through that lens. We always need someone to speak up in situations like these for a party that isn't always represented. I totally respect that. I didn't get any feeling that anyone in that room didn't respect that either. ..Man, woman, black, white, if I'm running something like this, I'm worried about who can give you the best project. Based on some of them saw, Jason was clearly the best. If that had a Asian Woman who had did his movie, I don't think their opinion would have changed at all.

In art, I don't think gender or race can be stripped out completely because it plays a huge part in point of view.  Not all women or POC or lesbians or gay men think the same, but it plays a role in how they view the world.  As does how one is brought up, or their religion, or any other belief system or influence they have.  We also tend to feel comfortable around people who share our worldviews. 

 

"Best" is subjective.  "Best" often comes down to POV and POV comes down to experiences and what speaks to us as individuals.  What a group of white men think is "best" may differ from what a group of black women think of as "best."  I believe everyone in that group legitimately is picking out who they think is best but it's being filtered through their individual lens.  Even with Effie.   But right now, white men rule Hollywood and they're more likely to feel comfortable and take chances on other white men even if they believe in diversity to their cores. (Which is why I did take issue with Matt saying they'd do diversity in casting the movie but not the show.  Diversity in behind the scenes stuff is important too.)

 

I think Effie made some legitimate points but they did kind of push her aside by saying the duo she preferred liked the script as is and others didn't.  The duo she liked thought about and wanted to make sure they treated the black prostitute correctly.  Yeah, Jason hated the script but it was because he doesn't do "broad comedy."  From what they showed, it was more about it fitting his filmmaking style than about the characters or story.

 

I wish we could have seen more of the discussion but I'm glad she's in the room.

[LisaBLingLing]

"Best" is subjective.  

 

I wish we could have seen more of the discussion but I'm glad she's in the room.

 

Amen to that.

 

I agree with the poster who said what Effie Brown did took courage.  Amen to that too.  She's my new hero (along with Liam Dutton.)  

[red12]

I don't think I will be watching this again because it's not good and I don't want to fully embrace how much I don't like Matt Damon. I am also pretty sure I will get hammered for the opinion below, but here goes...

 

But the scene with Effie illustrates what happens so many times in these types of rooms. I have seen it from school committees to corporate boards. There is one person in a room full of whiteness who is allowed to "represent" POC, or women or whatever and everyone it patting themselves on the back since they think it shows how fair the process is. Then that person speaks and does not agree with someone who is one of the Alphas. The lone wolf is cut off and/or assumed to be trying to accuse people of racism when he or she is just trying to present their opinion. They have to use language like "with all the love in my heart" and a posture of almost submissiveness so as not to be accused of being angry if the discussion escalates. The person also has to remain silent when it is clear they will not be heard because any attempt to press their point will make them easily written off as difficult and not a team player.

 

Also, 9 times out of 10, if there is a white woman in the room, and she is not herself acting as the sole diversity representative, she is sure to agree with the white males. This is possibly because she is allied with the other whites in defending her non-biasedness while maintaining the status quo, but many times, it seems she is most interested in infiltrating the power hierarchy and protecting her place as one of the (white) guys even though the minute the person of color is removed from the room she will still become "the girl".

[itainttippithebird]

Effie Brown is a damn hero. The way she gently reminded them that adding diversity means more than token casting and pushed back against the fallacy of "colorblind" decision making was masterful.

 

(Of course, as several of you point out about, it was all for naught, but I'm glad she pushed anyway.)

 

Also - after the Gulager Experience, I can't *believe* they would go with Jason! (Except for Makes for Good TV reasons, obvi.) You'd think that Matt would have been adequately chastened after the last time around to re-think his whole "the only thing that matters is the submission film" perspective - when you move from 1 man filmmaking to an entire fleet of production people, everything changes - as I've learned from WATCHING PROJECT GREENLIGHT. C'mon, Matt, watch your own show, maybe?

Edited September 14, 2015 by itainttippithebird

[Racj82]

As it was also pointed out, they have a room full of people to push against things like the pimp scene, so again, I don't have a issue with Damon in this instance. People had the opportunity to narrow this group to 10 and they chose based on the projects. There happened to be a lot of white guys in that pool. The top ten wasn't very diverse to begin with. I'm happy Effie doesn't back down and not fight for what she believes in but I aint calling her a hero either. She should be speaking her mind. That's her job. She's part of the process with everyone else in that room.

 

It's going to be a interesting season. Just in terms of how he used the camera and style, they were wowed by Jason (on the whole) but he will not mesh well with the sensibilities of the movie he's making. Someone made a good point I read though. Jason (in theory) is just doing what's best for himself. It could be seen that he's being set up to fail being given a project that goes against his creative visions. So, he might as well take the reigns, get a hold of the project and try to get the product in line with what he does.

 

Oh and the movie Effie brought up is great (Dear White People). I saw it around the time it came out but it is streaming on Netflix right now.

[Kaoteek]

As it was also pointed out, they have a room full of people to push against things like the pimp scene, so again, I don't have a issue with Damon in this instance. People had the opportunity to narrow this group to 10 and they chose based on the projects. There happened to be a lot of white guys in that pool. The top ten wasn't very diverse to begin with. I'm happy Effie doesn't back down and not fight for what she believes in but I aint calling her a hero either. She should be speaking her mind. That's her job. She's part of the process with everyone else in that room.

 

That. Also, the Effie situation didn't sit particularly well with me, because in essence, it was just "look, he's asian, she's a woman, that makes them qualified to handle race problems better than the other contestants, they should win" when all the duo ever talked about was the fact that they didn't want the movie to slut-shame & judge the female character, without ever mentioning race or diversity. I get where Effie was coming from,but still, that was a particularly weak argument that didn't help her cause.

Edited September 14, 2015 by radishcake

[Paws]

Matt Damon got the Jezebel treatment! http://jezebel.com/matt-damon-interrupts-successful-black-woman-filmmaker-1730553152

My favorite bit from this piece: "Then he spits the same tired rhetoric about how if they worry too much about hiring diverse filmmakers, the’ll undermine the integrity of the entire project. The only factor they should be considering is merit, leaving “all other factors out if it.”

Obviously this is correct because we all know the only reason Hollywood is dominated by white men is because white men are the only creative people on Earth who know how to make films real, real good."

Edited September 14, 2015 by Paws

[scrb]

But Effie as line producer won't really have that much input into the creative decisions?

 

Sure she chooses the job based on how she liked the project but does she really get a say in how the movie is shaped?

 

It may turn out the producers inserted Pete Jones so that he's a pawn between the director and the producers over territorial disputes, again more drama potential.

[biakbiak]

But Effie as line producer won't really have that much input into the creative decisions?

They said she was also a creative producer in addition to the line producer.

[Bill]

Based on my initial reaction (as a white male) to the Effie / Damon interaction, Matt came off rather cringingly bad. I know they edited in a cut that explained his POV better but in the room , it appears he shouts down the only POC on the team for politely bringing up the fact that they were quickly narrowing down a group of mostly white men (and a couple white women) to a group of all white men. It did not speak well of Damon in that instant in my opinion. I thought Effie did a great job highlighting the need for a different perspective on a film with a black female prostitute as one of two leads and legitimately questioning whether the remaining white males could provide that perspective as well as the single diverse group left in the running That's a legitimate concern and got shouted down pretty damn quick.

[Kaoteek]

One thing's sure : good job, HBO, for deliberately manufacturing another round of internet outrage ®©™ through your editing, and thus creating enough mainstream buzz around a show that would have none otherwise. Works like clockwork.

[Pogojoco]

The look on Effie's face listening to Matt was my favourite part. And you also know that wasn't the first time she's heard various white dudes explain diversity to her, so she's had lot's of time to perfect it for the camera.

[RemoteControlFreak]

red12, above, nailed it.  Nailed it. 

 

I've been in that room, many times, and been both part of the majority, the sole diversity representative (not because of race) and also the only white woman in a room not acting as the diversity representative.

 

This is exactly how it goes down 999 times out of 1,000.

 

Now with more specific  regard to Project Greenlight, if they really cared about diversity, they wouldn't:

1. Choose a script in which, apparently, the only black character is a hooker who gets hit by her white pimp.

2. Bring the Farrelly Brothers, masters of white guy comedy, in as producers/mentors. 

 

They might not be able to control who enters the contest or who has the most talent, but they can certainly control the material the winner will be working with and the staff with which they'll be working.

Edited September 14, 2015 by remotecontrolfreak

[itainttippithebird]

Nick Reinwald-Jones, you hit on EXACTLY why this felt so maddening last night! I couldn't quite put my finger on why the irony of that meritocratic argument was ESPECIALLY galling in the context of Project Greenlight, but you did it masterfully here.  It Matt & Ben (and bunch of studio execs) don't realize that they ARE the machine they are supposedly raging against, it's baffling.

 

I just watched all the old seasons this summer, thanks to Sarah D. Bunting's marathon diary and the EHG podcast, and Season 1's first episode was STARTLING in 2015 for just how white and male the submission pool was. In the moment, I thought, oh well, this is the late 90s/early aughts, so they weren't even thinking about the optics (much less the actual, depressing PROBLEM) of having such a homogenous list. Then I made my way through to Season 3 a week or so later and couldn't believe it when they were crowing over what a DIVERSE pool of applicants they got when literally 7 out of the 7 finalists for director were white men! Then again, when you looked at the evaluators for that season, it was little wonder:

 

 

For all my annoyance at the process last night, I guess I'm glad that Effie is there (even if she'll be dismissed by the team/some viewers), that TPTB in the PG editing bay left this discussion in, and that we finally, after four seasons, got a few minutes of show that addressed what's been endemic to the process from the start!

[radishcake]

We'll agree to disagree. We've seen dozens of conversation on this show in the past season go down just like that. Shouting each other down. Challenging each other. That shouldn't change because a woman is speaking up with a important point. Didn't see anything out of the norm.

Bolding the important sentence. I think you hit the nail on the head with that, which is EXACTLY the problem. 

[LisaBLingLing]

I still can't get over the fact that they picked this guy to make a comedy.  

 

He's making a comedy.  A comedy.  You know, a movie that is supposed to make you laugh.  

 

Quick - name your favorite comedy and what it is that you like about it.  

 

You all said cinematography - right?  (/sarcasm font/)

 

 If you're making a comedy and you don't pick the one that makes you laugh?  You're not actually making a comedy.  Cinematography and technical brilliance are nice things to have, but if a comedy doesn't make you laugh, it's a failure.  You add the extras on after you've got something funny going on.  The winning directors clip, what we saw of it at least, looked dark and depressing.  Sure, there might be comedic elements, like the gravediggers in Hamlet, but you aren't coming out of 90 minutes of that thinking about how funny it was.  

[Racj82]

I think I'm going to bail out of this particular discussion. I'm game for the season. All the things that make this show a interesting watch are in place. I don't particularly enjoy having these discussions about gender equality in Hollywood because my opinion isn't a popular one. All I want to see is good movies. Good characters. Good stories. I'm a black male and seeing other black people in positive roles is always great. I just don't want to turn every movie, casting choice, etc. Into a diversity issue. With this show, I just want to see them make a good comedy. Choose the best person for the job. Hopefully, Jason turns out to be the person. Diversity is and will always be an issue in Hollywood but sometimes I personally don't think everything needs to be turned into a cause. I mean, with this, the writing seems to be an issue in general. I hope that gets works on. I'll be tuning in.

I still can't get over the fact that they picked this guy to make a comedy.

He's making a comedy. A comedy. You know, a movie that is supposed to make you laugh.

Quick - name your favorite comedy and what it is that you like about it.

You all said cinematography - right? (/sarcasm font/)

If you're making a comedy and you don't pick the one that makes you laugh? You're not actually making a comedy. Cinematography and technical brilliance are nice things to have, but if a comedy doesn't make you laugh, it's a failure. You add the extras on after you've got something funny going on. The winning directors clip, what we saw of it at least, looked dark and depressing. Sure, there might be comedic elements, like the gravediggers in Hamlet, but you aren't coming out of 90 minutes of that thinking about how funny it was.

I agree. The type of person he is and his comedic sensibilities seem to clash with the product their making. That's what I think they should be worrying about. Whether or not he's a white male isn't a problem.

[Paws]

I just don't want to turn every movie, casting choice, etc. Into a diversity issue.

That makes sense. However, the issue, for me, is less that they shot down the idea than how that disagreement was handled---,it was shouted down. That's lack of respect for the one Person of color in the room. Do Damon and Affleck shout down each other or the Farrellys? From what I saw the only person shouted at was the black woman who politely voiced a differing opinion.

[RemoteControlFreak]

That makes sense. However, the issue, for me, is less that they shot down the idea than how that disagreement was handled---,it was shouted down. That's lack of respect for the one Person of color in the room. Do Damon and Affleck shout down each other or the Farrellys? From what I saw the only person shouted at was the black woman who politely voiced a differing opinion.

It would be a lack of respect even if the person shouted down were white and male.

 

Though, in reality, if Effie were white and male, Damon most likely would have let her speak.

 

And that's the point.

[radishcake]

Ha! #Damonsplaining is trending on twitter. hee!

[lyric]

O

 

Ha! #Damonsplaining is trending on twitter. hee!

Oh my dog - and the tweets are cracking me up...thanks for posting.  I needed a few good laughs today..

[Jesse]

"Best" is subjective.  "Best" often comes down to POV and POV comes down to experiences and what speaks to us as individuals.  What a group of white men think is "best" may differ from what a group of black women think of as "best."  I believe everyone in that group legitimately is picking out who they think is best but it's being filtered through their individual lens.  Even with Effie.   But right now, white men rule Hollywood and they're more likely to feel comfortable and take chances on other white men even if they believe in diversity to their cores. (Which is why I did take issue with Matt saying they'd do diversity in casting the movie but not the show.  Diversity in behind the scenes stuff is important too.)

 

 

YES. Of course they think they are picking based on straight quality. But when the decision-makers are all middle-aged white men, you end up with a self-perpetuating cycle. 

 

 

That. Also, the Effie situation didn't sit particularly well with me, because in essence, it was just "look, he's asian, she's a woman, that makes them qualified to handle race problems better than the other contestants, they should win" when all the duo ever talked about was the fact that they didn't want the movie to slut-shame & judge the female character, without ever mentioning race or diversity. I get where Effie was coming from,but still, that was a particularly weak argument that didn't help her cause.

 

I actually think Effie was talking about gender more than race, but that's hard to hear from a black woman. 

 

The look on Effie's face listening to Matt was my favourite part. And you also know that wasn't the first time she's heard various white dudes explain diversity to her, so she's had lot's of time to perfect it for the camera.

 

Seriously. And having to say out loud, when she hasn't even raised her voice, "I'm not angry." Just ugh.

 

Now with more specific  regard to Project Greenlight, if they really cared about diversity, they wouldn't:

1. Choose a script in which, apparently, the only black character is a hooker who gets hit by her white pimp.

2. Bring the Farrelly Brothers, masters of white guy comedy, in as producers/mentors. 

 

They might not be able to control who enters the contest or who has the most talent, but they can certainly control the material the winner will be working with and the staff with which they'll be working.

 

Seriously.  I don't think diversity in any respect even crossed anyone's mind, other than Effie. 

 

This just seems like the most ridiculous choice possible. He barely wanted the job!!!

Also, everything Nick Reinwald-Jones said.

[FastLou]

The choice of director makes no sense if you go by nothing more than what they showed in the episode of the discussion in the room. However, it's inconceivable to me that they never discussed how it would play for the TV show. That's the only context in which the decision makes sense. In the room it was clear that the Farreley's 1) didn't like him 2) didn't want to work with him. They Must have been persuaded that it was best for the show.

I would have liked it far more if they didn't pretend such a consideration didn't exist. Showing all the producers weigh the two things would be more interesting, and possibly lessen the outrage of those angry at the choice.

[stanleyk]

I'll swim against the tide and say that, of the little bits of the three-minute scene we saw, I liked Jason's the best and I understood what they were talking about in terms of his providing a more interesting voice. I thought it was funny, and though he was inarticulate in his interview, he was describing essentially the comedy of discomfort, which has a pretty significant audience.  Of course it doesn't hurt that he will clearly cause major dramz for the show.

 

Which just highlights the fundamental question I have with their choice: if they think they're choosing the "best"...the best what? Best independent maker of a short film? I could agree that Jason may have been that. But what about all the other aspects of being a director (most significantly, leading a large group of people with clear communication and organization)? I guess Damon really truly believes that being an artist overcomes all? And the rest of them know that Jason will give them a good reality show.

 

I won't belabor the Damon/Effie situation since I'd just be repeating what Irlandesa and Red12 and others said up-thread, but I'll just add that in my professional life I've often been the only woman in a room. The look on Effie's face as she bit her lip and held her temper while Damon talked over her in his rush to tell her how she was wrong was, oh, very familiar to me.

[pasdetrois]

I wonder if there were earlier skirmishes about diversity, and Damon was loaded for bear should the topic arise on camera. He was so quick to dominate the conversation and try to shut it down and put spin on it.

 

The choice of director seemed a complete mismatch for the premise and the script. And I was distracted by his extremely slender frame. He was wearing quite baggy clothes yet still appeared too thin.

[Jesse]

I did also think it was telling that Matt referred to casting the show vs. casting the movie -- it would feel less disingenuous if there had been any mention of that guy making for better TV. (Although I think a directing duo also guarantees some shenanigans!)

[Surrealist]

On a superficial level, Jason looks like an albino skinhead. And I can't unsee that. His interview was one of the more uncomfortable moments for me.

 

I thought the decision would be between Adriano and Marko.

(Although I think a directing duo also guarantees some shenanigans!)

 

See, that's what I was wondering about. Was one reason the group decided against Effie's preferred director duo because of their past experience with co-directors? I mean, a conflict between directors could make for entertaining drama. That said co-directors Efram and Kyle were grating and the drama wasn't amusing in any way.

 

Jason's already bringing the drama though, which I guess is the ultimate point.

Edited September 15, 2015 by radishcake

[LexieBNYC]

I just checked Matt Damon's IMDB page.  He's never worked with a female director, which I found shocking.  All male, almost all white...

[FastLou]

Show vs Movie confusion.

I think I've seen a couple instances so far of people being confused whether the Greenlight "cast" was talking about the TV Show or the Movie at various points. Part of the problem is that many people in the industry refer to everything as a Show. Especially if they're talking about what show they're on, or what show they worked with someone on.

I have a feeling they may be doing that here, saying Show both when they're talking about Greenlight and the Movie. Or more likely, and pretty much supported by past seasons, they are almost never talking about the TV Show on camera. Especially about how things may be perceived. It is certainly confusing when we don't have the full conversation context due to editing.

[RemoteControlFreak]

I just checked Matt Damon's IMDB page.  He's never worked with a female director, which I found shocking.  All male, almost all white...

Given the small percentages of directors that are female or non-white working in Hollywood, is this surprising?

[itainttippithebird]

 

See, that's what I was wondering about. Was one reason the group decided against Effie's preferred director duo because of their past experience with co-directors?

 

You'd think, if they were basing it on previous experience, they wouldn't choose a technically good director who's also a poor fit/bad personality/entitled attitude. *cough GULAGER cough*

 

(Although it's hard to say what the deal with Gulager was - on the one hand, I think his season ended happily because...that's how the edit it every year, but on the other, he *did* go on to direct two Feast sequels, so he must not be SUCH a nightmare to work with that no one would take him up on a second chance! But lord, what a mess - I mean, ALL of them have been, but at least Pete, Kyle, and Ephraim kept their poor management/people skills under wraps for the interview portion...)

 

I feel like part of it is this like, cowboy sensibility, almost - yeah, this guy acts like he's too cool for the job, so let's get him, and yeah, it's a totally rogue, counterintuitive choice, but that's the kind of renegade thinker I am, or something...

Edited September 15, 2015 by itainttippithebird

[radishcake]

Given the small percentages of directors that are female or non-white working in Hollywood, is this surprising?

Well there are large amounts of women and POC working in Hollywood who do the work to be directors but then you have the awesome example of what happens to them on a daily basis here: Shit People Say to Women Directors & Shit People Say to Diverse Filmmakers

ETA: a link to this amazing article as well. 

 

ETA2: Sorry to remotecontrolfreak for not realizing that you were agreeing with me. :D

[RemoteControlFreak]

The Directors Guild of America keeps track of diversity among TV directors.

 

In the 2014-15 season, 84% of episodic television directors were male and 82% were Caucasian.  

http://www.dga.org/News/PressReleases/2015/150825-Episodic-Director-Diversity-Report.aspx

[LisaBLingLing]

I just checked Matt Damon's IMDB page.  He's never worked with a female director, which I found shocking.  All male, almost all white...

His very first professional acting job though was with the Nora Theatre Company in Cambridge, Mass which almost exclusively uses female directors.  If I'm not mistaken, company founder Mimi Harrington was his first director there.  

[RemoteControlFreak]

His very first professional acting job though was with the Nora Theatre Company in Cambridge, Mass which almost exclusively uses female directors.  If I'm not mistaken, company founder Mimi Harrington was his first director there.  

Which has almost nothing to do with the fact that since he's been in Hollywood, he works almost solely with men and in films that are about men and marketed to men.

 

Oh, and that production at the Nora Theater Company?  It was written and directed by a man.

 

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1992/1/31/theater-co-hires-two-students-pharvard/

 

http://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/news/06-2000/quick-wit-bob-walsh_825.html

 

And Damon only got the position because his mother was a supporter of the theater:

 

http://www.showofthemonth.com/theater/backstage/backstage_article.aspx?id=0905

[Glade]

There were no gay or trans directors in the final ten either, and the film features a heteronormative male/female pairing. No one spoke to that, and neither did Effie care about those issues at all (though unlike most commenters, I recognize the fact that we saw an extremely edited version of a very long conversation in which these people apparently got on the same page eventually.)  No one was autistic, disabled, or brought any unique and profound life experienes to the table.  There's a massive diversity of viewpoints, experiences, and artistic ideas among people who are white and male as well, but which are rarely if ever given a voice by the hollywood system. Personally aside from the pittsburg worship, I did prefer The Chair's choice of having two different directors tackle the same script.  But I also like who they chose here, and will enjoy watching this season.  

Edited September 16, 2015 by Glade

[itainttippithebird]

True, Glade, but I think Effie's point was specifically about the character of Harmony, a Black woman sex worker, and how easily her character could be depicted in  racist/sexist ways given the problematic script and the Farrely Bros. history.

Also, rest assured, you aren't the only one here to who understands television editing.

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

Which Is More Important: Good Show, Or Good Movie? / And other not-quite-burning questions about the glorious return of Project Greenlight.