KCRW’s “The Business” radio show/podcast offers a great interview with film director Stephen Frears (roundabout 6-1/2 minutes in) on his experiences in independent and major studio filmmaking.
Frears has learned that he’s not suited to major studio films because the time and money are out of scale with the audience his films will draw. Major films take 100 days to shoot, he prefers 40 days. Majors spend lots of money while he prefers to save every penny he can.
From his comments, it’s clear that he feels a responsibility to the people financing the film — to earn them back their money, to do his part to promote. But he also has realized the scope and reach of his work is better suited to the smaller footprint of an independent film.
Finding the appropriate scale for artists and creative teams is a delicate and difficult dance. Some will flourish with more resources and more time. Others will become more and more about less and less. It’s interesting to hear an artist who brings such self-awareness to the question.
