Gary Ross talks about his film version of THG
NY Times bring us anwsers Gary Ross give to the fans about the film version of THG
Q.Given the tremendous pressure to make this movie a blockbuster, there must have been even more of a tension than usual between your artistic vision and the commercial one. How did you have to modify that artistic vision to arrive at the movie as released? - Ken N., San Francisco
A. Actually, I felt the only way to make the film really successful was to be totally subjective (Suzanne wrote in the first person present). So I tried to put “commercial” considerations out of my mind. You can’t really make a movie by worrying about the marketplace and I always felt the only way to realize this story was to make it as personal as I could. I also felt this couldn’t feel or look like other “franchises” without sacrificing the naturalism the story needed. It helped being in the woods a long way from Hollywood.
Q. After watching the film, I felt you choose some specific spots for the pacing of the film. How did you decide on what you felt were important moments to emphasize and moments to move forward on? - Marcelo, Orlando, Fla.
A.Some of this is done in the screenplay and some of it is done editorially. After you’re finished shooting, the areas that the movie needs to accelerate or slow down become apparent. For instance we take a long time with the reaping, but the last third of the film is accelerated more than it was written in the screenplay. These things only become evident once the cut is complete. There are always surprises but that’s a good thing. It keeps you engaged in a process of invention even after you are done shooting.
Q.Was a lot of thought put into how far you could push the satirical element inherent in the story without undermining the emotional reality of Katniss’s journey? I was really impressed by the balance. - Adam L., Albany, N.Y.
A.Yes, I think “tone” is the main challenge in adapting the novel to the screen. Some things that read fine on the page (especially in terms of the Capitol’s excess) might have broken the tension of the film if pushed too far. A novel (because it is left to the readers imagination) has more latitude tonally than a film does. I had to be careful that in depicting the excesses of the capitol it never felt too broad or as you say “satirical” on screen. It is a question of maintaining the tension and dread that the book did so well.
Q. How did your team develop the idea to create a NASA type control room for the arena? It is not in the book, but I think it was an important and clever addition to the movie. - Jalling, Groton, Mass.
A.In the book, Katniss speculates about the game-makers manipulations while the games are going on. Of course, in the film, we can’t get inside Katniss’s head, but we do have the ability to cut away and actually show the machinations of the Capitol behind the scenes. I created the game center and also expanded the role of Seneca Crane for those reasons. I thought it was tonally important. So much of the film happens in the woods that it’s easy to forget this is a futuristic society, manipulating these events for the sake of an audience. The look of the control center, the antiseptic feeling of it and the use of holograms were all intended to make the arena feel “constructed” even when you weren’t seeing the control room.
Source and complete note: NYTimes.com
Q.Given the tremendous pressure to make this movie a blockbuster, there must have been even more of a tension than usual between your artistic vision and the commercial one. How did you have to modify that artistic vision to arrive at the movie as released? - Ken N., San Francisco
A. Actually, I felt the only way to make the film really successful was to be totally subjective (Suzanne wrote in the first person present). So I tried to put “commercial” considerations out of my mind. You can’t really make a movie by worrying about the marketplace and I always felt the only way to realize this story was to make it as personal as I could. I also felt this couldn’t feel or look like other “franchises” without sacrificing the naturalism the story needed. It helped being in the woods a long way from Hollywood.
Q. After watching the film, I felt you choose some specific spots for the pacing of the film. How did you decide on what you felt were important moments to emphasize and moments to move forward on? - Marcelo, Orlando, Fla.
A.Some of this is done in the screenplay and some of it is done editorially. After you’re finished shooting, the areas that the movie needs to accelerate or slow down become apparent. For instance we take a long time with the reaping, but the last third of the film is accelerated more than it was written in the screenplay. These things only become evident once the cut is complete. There are always surprises but that’s a good thing. It keeps you engaged in a process of invention even after you are done shooting.
Q.Was a lot of thought put into how far you could push the satirical element inherent in the story without undermining the emotional reality of Katniss’s journey? I was really impressed by the balance. - Adam L., Albany, N.Y.
A.Yes, I think “tone” is the main challenge in adapting the novel to the screen. Some things that read fine on the page (especially in terms of the Capitol’s excess) might have broken the tension of the film if pushed too far. A novel (because it is left to the readers imagination) has more latitude tonally than a film does. I had to be careful that in depicting the excesses of the capitol it never felt too broad or as you say “satirical” on screen. It is a question of maintaining the tension and dread that the book did so well.
Q. How did your team develop the idea to create a NASA type control room for the arena? It is not in the book, but I think it was an important and clever addition to the movie. - Jalling, Groton, Mass.
A.In the book, Katniss speculates about the game-makers manipulations while the games are going on. Of course, in the film, we can’t get inside Katniss’s head, but we do have the ability to cut away and actually show the machinations of the Capitol behind the scenes. I created the game center and also expanded the role of Seneca Crane for those reasons. I thought it was tonally important. So much of the film happens in the woods that it’s easy to forget this is a futuristic society, manipulating these events for the sake of an audience. The look of the control center, the antiseptic feeling of it and the use of holograms were all intended to make the arena feel “constructed” even when you weren’t seeing the control room.
Source and complete note: NYTimes.com