Red Rock Entertainment testimonials about 9 Surprising Filmmaking Facts
Have you ever heard of a film script written in a couple of weeks? Or that film’s ROI number could be almost 20,000%? Some directors make great humanistic gestures for their actors while the latter may have great phobias that change their whole working process. The film industry is filled with unbelievable, funny, weird, distinguished, and literally impossible facts frequently hidden from the great masses. Together with the production experts from Red Rock Entertainment Ltd today you will have a sneak peek on the behind-the-scenes stories that became history in the world of cinema.
Oscar winners were announced before the ceremony
At the beginning of the Academy Awards, the media representatives received the names of the winners before the actual event was held. It was done to give the newspapers time to print the news and release them right after the ceremony. However, the rule was not to publish anything before 11 pm. In 1940 the rules changed because The Los Angeles Times broke the promise and printed the results before the Oscar statue was handed out to the Gone With the Wind. Since that year and up until now the winners are not announced prior anymore.
John Landis loves shooting his colleagues
Rarely do film directors cooperate with their colleagues and invite them on set. However, every rule has an exception. John Landis loves not only inviting his fellow directors on his own sets but also filming them as actors in their projects. For example, The Blues Brothers had the case of Frank Oz and Steven Spielberg while George Lucas had an appearance in Beverly Hills Cop III. The famous film Into the Night featured David Cronenberg, Amy Heckerling, Jonathan Demme, and many others.
Paul Schrader and the two-weeks script
Two weeks is the time some script writers need only to consider the idea they are having. This is exactly the time Paul Shrader spent on developing a full script for Taxi Driver. Paul Shrader, the screenwriter, said that being on the edge made him look different at the whole world. He then just sat down and started writing. Once the first draft was finished he started developing the second (and final) one right there. And the total process took him less than two weeks.
Good Will Hunting and Harvey Weinstein
The now famous actors were then only screenwriters: Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. While writing the script for Good Will Hunting, they got curious whether anyone would read it from A to Z and so inserted an oral sex scene in the original script for the film. It appeared that only one Harvey Weinstein actually noticed the unnatural scene and this lead to the perfect cooperation between the writers and the Weinstein’s company and a perfect award-winning film.
A horror became the most profitable film ever made
Horror films do not usually have billionaire audience due to the rather sensitive content and topics they are screening. So the fact that a horror film became the most profitable project in film history was a surprise for everyone. In 2007, Paranormal Activity was released. The film attracted more viewers than expected but the status was earned due to the interesting combination of circumstances. The film had unbelievable box office success which in combination with the tiny budget (estimated between $11,000 and $15,000) delivered the project the ROI of 19,758%. The nearest number was spotted for the film The Gallows with the ROI of 6,843%).
First toilet flushing big-screen appearance
In the 1960s, talks and depictions of the private processes happening in WC were considered inappropriate for mentioning, not even saying for filming. But in his masterpiece Psycho Alfred Hitchcock decided to add even more shocking shots and headed to the forbidden room. He filmed a scrap of paper inside of the toilet providing an important clue — the failure to flush a toilet. The book was more delicate about the matter — a lost earring in the toilet, but Hitchcock played on contrast.
Schindler’s List original costumes
Steven Spielberg wanted his film to look as natural as possible, so the authenticity of every single prop used was of great importance for him. Since the film included a wide number of mass scenes and required about 20,000 costumes to gather, the costume designers had to act creatively. The end of the century was pretty rough for the Polish nation so the filmmakers have simply offered to buy that clothing from the 30s and 40s. Hence everything you see in the film was truly authentical for greater realism of the film.
The Lord Of The Rings and the dread
Do you remember that the first film of the trilogy was related to many wonders of the Fellowship of the Ring the in the mountains? Well, the filming of these shots required a lot of strength and stamina from one of the Fellowship members. Sean Bean, who played Boromir, is afraid of flying so he agreed to this only if such a trip was absolutely necessary. Usually, while everyone was still getting ready for the shot, he has already been climbing the mountain where the shot was to be taken. As a rule, such a trip took him four hours a day to do a back and forth trip. And keep in mind that he had to do it dressed as Boromir already.
Danny Boyle’s educational mission
Directors and production companies like Red Rock Entertainment are interested not in money Danny Boyle, who filmed Slumdog Millionaire, wanted not only to use the poor kids in his film and show them a different life but actually help them achieve something better. This is why the lead actors for the young Jamal Malik and Salim Malik, namely Ayush Mahesh Khedekar and Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, received a great present from the film production company. A trust was organized for them which was released to their hands upon their 16th birthday. Besides that, a personal auto-rickshaw driver was organized to take the kids to school every day until the same age.
You see that the number of curious moments in films is unlimited: from the actors’ phobias to the funny and brave showing off of the directors. The film industry has lots of other funny moments and stories. If you would like to share some more, feel free to entertain us with your stories in comments!
