The Way In is to Write
Academy Award Winning Director
Robert Zemeckis talked about his career and shared advice with students, faculty, staff, and alumni on campus at the Media Production Center Thursday, October 25, 2012 before heading to the red carpet for closing night at the 48th Chicago International Film Festival where he screened his live action feature film
Flight. F&V faculty member
Ron Falzone led the conversation and q&a that focused on audience favorites including:
Back to the Future trilogy,
Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and
Forrest Gump.
Zemeckis shared that he went straight to the head of the studio to get his first feature,
I Want to Hold Your Hand, made. Early in his career, he was known as a good filmmaker, but unlucky. After a dry spell, he wrote
Back to the Future, “
Back to the Future II is the most interesting movie I made.” His most difficult movie to make was
Who Framed Roger Rabbit and when asked why
Forrest Gump worked, he replied because it had “all kinds of love and grief.” He joked about picking a favorite movie, “They’re like my children—can’t pick one.”
“You have to love the art form. Movies are hard to do—back breaking and nerve wracking.” muses Zemeckis. The writing process is important and he feels the way in is to write, “The world is desperate for good ideas.” He keeps the writers around and has never fired one. When it comes to directing, talent is the key, “casting is crucial.”
For
Flight, he was looking for a creative soul mate. He asked screenwriter
John Gatins to be on set with him for the entire production, “movies look so awful because of the non writer/director relationship.”
Flight opens in Chicagoland on November 2.
Presented by the Film & Video Department and Allied-THA
