OSCARS: Jim Burke & Jim Taylor Give Birth To Alexander Paynes The Descendants

Fox Searchlight’sThe Descendants opened in NY and Los Angeles in five theatres (2 in NY and 3 in LA) last night. The buzz beganwith the sellouts of the special screenings and tribute to George Clooney in Telluride, and continued to the Toronto International Film Festival as well as the closing night at the NY Film Festival and the London Film Festival and the recent Gotham Award nominations. It goes into the awards seasons withtrenedous momentum. The Alexander Payne-directed filme starring George Clooney and supported bynewcomers Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller willadd 11 new marketsplaying in 29 theatres on Friday. For the Thanksgiving period there will be a continued expansion to nearly450 theatres. Jim Taylor isPayne’s lesser-known writing partnerand shares credit on such films as Election and About Schmidt, and an Oscar for 2005s Sideways.For TheDescendants,Payne wrote solo while Taylor stuck to producing alongside Jim Burke, his longtime partner in Ad HominemProductions. On the eve of the films release, Awardsline contributor Ari Karpel spoke with Taylor (who goes byJim) and Burke (who goes by Burke) about the films favorable festivalstart, editing at Clooneys Lake Como villa, and why Taylor sat out the writingof this one: AWARDSLINE: FoxSearchlight optioned the book The Descendants for your productioncompany, Ad Hominem, about four years ago. Tell me about the process thatfollowed. JIM BURKE: I read a manuscript that was sent tous by a literary agent in London. I forwarded it to Searchlight. I think the agent who sent it to us, alsomailed it to a number of production companies like ours since there was a lotof interest from the competition.Fox Searchlight acted quickly on our behalf to acquire the option on thisbook before we had fully decided who would even direct it. Jim and Alexander atthe time were writing an original screenplay called Downsizing which was intended to be Alexanders next film todirect. So we figured The Descendants would be our next picture to produce at Ad Hominem and we proceeded along thoselines. We went out and looked for screenwriters to adapt the book and arrivedat Nat Faxon and Jim Rash. They did a terrific job but it became clear at somepoint along the way that Downsizing was going to be too big a movie, and take too long to be ready. Alexanderbecame more anxious about starting a production shoot and we realized it wasgoing to take longer to get Downsizing made. He became more and more attracted to Descendants and he decided, Ill take this one on. Because he decided that it could bedone more in the style that hes used to, with very little green screen. AWARDSLINE: DidAlexander take the script that those guys had written and start revising it? JIM TAYLOR: No. They wrote a great script, butthe way Alexander works is he needs to make what he directs, his own. He wentin and made it more personal for himself. AWARDSLINE: Soyoure saying that no matter how good their script was, he had to throw it outand start from scratch in order to write in his voice and make it his own? And theresthat WGA rule, as there always is, where they get credit as well. TAYLOR: Yeah, and they wrote a great script, but that is exactly whathappened. AWARDSLINE: JimTaylor, why didnt you collaborate on this script as you have with Alexander inthe past? TAYLOR: This is a little less comedic thanour other collaborations, so this didnt feel right for me. Together we tend towrite more comedy and the plot of this was more emotional. AWARDSLINE: The filmreceived a good response at festivals. How important is it to launch themarketing at a festival like Telluride? TAYLOR: I dont know. I think that if its a strong movie, no matter where itemerges, its still strong and people talk about it, whether its Sundance,Toronto or Telluride or whatever.Tellurides such a great festival to be at. Its such a filmmaker-oriented event. We likeit because its easy to see films there. AWARDSLINE: Its sohard for an adult drama to get attention now.It seems like a festival like that really helps it. TAYLOR: Definitely, it does.AndFox Searchlight, you know, theyre some of the only people really making movieslike that anymore, so were incredibly lucky to have our home there. BURKE: And I think that theyre equipped to deal with films that are not easilycategorized. I mean, they have many times in the past. Its not a marketersdream (this movie). A marketers dream is something from a comic book. TAYLOR: But it doesnt hurt to have GeorgeClooney in the movie. In a lot of different ways, not the least of which iswhat a wonderful collaborator he is. But also, I think that if people are justgoing looking for another Sideways,they might be thrown a little bit. So, its nice that the only draw isntanother Alexander Payne movie. Its also that a lot of people go to movies tosee George Clooneys performances. AWARDSLINE: Howdo you divide your responsibilities? Was one of you moreon the ground in Hawaii and the other holding down the fort in LA? BURKE: Aside from being business partners,all three of us are very close friends.I think its safe to say that were always there for each other, whatever we need. Its never been any kind of an issue, like you do this, youdo that. Im not an artist. Jim and Al are, so they have an artistic relationship, but they also value what I do for them and for us; and I, ofcourse, value and highly respect both of them.We just do what comes naturally to all of us. TAYLOR: Yeah, I think the term partnersreally implies whatyou know, were not always doing the same thing, but werea team, and we make sure that everything gets done. AWARDSLINE: Thismovie was edited by your longtime editor Kevin Tent, but I read that it wasactually edited at Clooneys Lake Cuomo villa. Is that right? BURKE: Its sort of right. It was really edited in Santa Monica at our office,but they went over there to his villa for a couple of weeks in the midsummer,just to sort of work and, obviously, hang out with George. AWARDSLINE: Theleading actor doesnt usually host the post-production so does that shift thedynamic a little bit? Dont you need to shut yourself out and make decisionsand not be worried about what the actors going to think? BURKE: Yeah. George, though, is more than just an actor. Not that thats notenough, but hes also a filmmaker himself. He just said, Hey, listen, man, Ihave an Avid in my villa.Why dont youjust come on over and be in Italy for a few weeks and cut it there?He wasnt intrusive at all.All he did was host dinner parties and thingslike that. And when Kevin and Alexander had a little sequence that they wereprepared to show him, they did. AWARDSLINE: Imcurious, of course, about the Oscar campaign for the film. Clooneyis certainly a natural contender; but he also has Ides of March. Is there a bit of a balancing act withthose two? BURKE: Here is how Id say we feel about an Oscar campaign: Its like the way Ifeel about getting on an airplane.Idont pay too much attention to it because I know its out of my hands. I believeweve made a really excellent film and that knowledge alone just edifiesme.I hope other people think that, butits so hard to make a movie that even you like, and often, one of our goalsfor the three of us at our company is to make movies that we like, that we would actually pay to see.I think wevedone it; and whether it wins an Oscar,I dont know whether it will or not.Its hard to know. As for Ides ofMarch, were really cool with George, too.I know that George understands what a great performance he gave in The Descendants. I just marvel at it and I feel like heunderstands that.He has to.Everybodys telling him that.