The worst part of filmmaking\u2014speaking only for myself\u2014is staring at a blank page. 0 pages down, 120 to go, maybe 210 if I\u2019m feeling ambitious, which theoretically I am, but I\u2019m also lazy. How to fill this empty space? And not just with random words: if it isn\u2019t Madame Bovary, Middlemarch, Moby Dick, whose fault is it but my own? Nothing is standing between me and the greatest masterpiece ever written except my own mediocrity. The first thing to do is to stop exclusively comparing my unwritten screenplay to great novels. At least compare it to something that can be easily performed \u2014 like Hamlet.<\/p>\n
Why write a screenplay? Who’s asking for this? No one, of course. I have to will this into being under my own self-critical gaze, and in spite of my innovative procrastination techniques. Unfortunately the weight of not writing is too much to bear. The potential film, even in its unrealized, muddled form, is a demon possessing me and the only way to exorcise it is to get it onto the page and finally to the \u201cbig screen,\u201d to unleash it into the world. A poor metaphor. My film is not a demon, it\u2019s a divine thing coming from a place of love, integrity, virtue. Or ego: my fundamental need, shameful as it is, is to be seen and heard, to express parts of myself that have been denied.<\/p>\n
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Fotografiju ustupio Elementsofmadness<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n For the sake of this note, I dug up the very first thing I wrote for what eventually became A Different Man, which is being released in theaters around the country today. If a filmmaker (who writes) can get through those 120 or so pages, the fun part begins. Actually, every stage of filmmaking is full of torment and endless setbacks, but you\u2019re no longer alone. The truth is, I\u2019m never as happy as when I\u2019m making a film, not so much because I’m actively enjoying it; the unrelenting stress, the prospect of failure, the money flying out the window, it all takes a toll and shaves years off of my life. But I don’t have a second to waste. I have a mission, with an outcome I\u2019ve vaguely envisioned. I\u2019ve been granted an immense privilege, I\u2019m filled with purpose, the clock is ticking, and it\u2019s all or nothing.<\/p>\n What makes filmmaking so rewarding is the chance to work with so many talented people bringing pieces of themselves to a vision which was initially compromised by my own limitations. With their help, I\u2019ve transcended myself.<\/p>\n On one hand, the film is an accurate, nearly identical, reflection of the script I finished four years ago. On the other hand, that’s a preposterously self-serving view. It wasn\u2019t me who brought each of these characters to life, their physicality, the nuances of their speech; I didn’t scour vintage stores for their clothing, I didn’t set-dress their rooms, I didn’t design and apply the prosthetics that turned Edward Lemuel from a vague idea into a real person; I didn’t rig the lights, load the camera, push the dolly, I didn’t compose and perform the music which gives the film such emotional resonance; I didn’t manage the bank account, I didn\u2019t control the street traffic, or reassure (or pay off) annoyed proprietors of various locations.<\/p>\n I would block a scene, but I sat on an apple box while it was brought to life. I offered guidance, ideas and references but I was not personally responsible for the act of realizing most facets of the film, even if I always felt the weight of those responsibilities. Mostly I said \u201cyes\u201d or \u201cno.\u201d Occasionally “I don’t know, what do you think?” I’d accept, I’d reject, I’d adjust, I\u2019d refine, I\u2019d ask politely, I\u2019d put my foot down, I’d change my mind, though not too often, with only 22 days at our disposal. The first idea is usually the one we had to act upon. I cast great actors, I hired amazing collaborators, I trusted the right people, and they trusted me<\/p>\n I’m honored to share A Different Man with you today – to unleash it into the world after all. Though it belongs to everyone who made it, the film remains extremely personal to me, and even if it’s not Moby Dick, there are some feelings and ideas I’ve expressed in this film that I’ve longed to share for most of my life. I hope you get a chance to see it, and that it speaks to you.<\/p>\n Aaron Schimberg<\/em><\/p>\n Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, and Adam Pearson star in Aaron Schimberg\u2019s mind-bending, darkly funny NYC noir \u2018A Different Man\u2019<\/a><\/strong>. In theaters this September (2024.).<\/p>\n [izvor informacije A24<\/a><\/strong>]<\/p>\n
\nLet these half-assed scribbles serve as a reminder and an inspiration to me. This unpromising, barely coherent scene which once filled me with a sense of despondency has, through hard work, long periods of inactivity, manic bursts of inspiration, the faith of others, and the brilliance of many magnificent artists, been transformed into a film of which I am immensely proud.<\/p>\n