Todd Gilchrist editor At Variety’s 10 Producers to Watch panel, held March 31 at the Sun Valley Film Festival, the first order of business was defining what it means to be a producer, a title — and a role — that encapsulates a number of responsibilities on a film. “The way that I describe it is you’ve got to know a little bit about a lot of things in filmmaking,” said Rachael Fung, whose film “Fremont” later won best narrative film in the festival’s One in a Million category, recognizing features made for less than $1 million. “You’ve got to be able to understand and talk to every single person that touches the film at every single stage.
And also it’s about finding those directors and filmmakers and understanding their vision and figuring out the best way to get that to screen.” “There are practical things like getting money for the movie, casting, all the things that are part of the overall creative vision… you’re not just hiring any costume designer, you’re hiring a person that’s right for the project,” explained Karl Hartman, who recently worked with Michael Shannon on his directorial debut “Eric LaRue.” Said Jamie Gonçalves, who produced Juan Pablo González’ “Dos Estaciones,” “it’s protecting the film — sometimes even from the filmmaker.” “And [being an] on set therapist,” added Jolene Rodriguez, whose latest project, Anthony Nardolillo’s “Righteous Thieves,” opened March 10.
The panel marked the first partnership with Sun Valley for Variety‘s annual Producers to Watch list, a showcase of up-and-coming creatives whose work is already making waves across the industry.
In discussing her path to becoming a producer, Karina Manashil, who produced Ti West’s “Pearl” and the Netflix film “Entergalactic,” evidenced how
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