♪♪
Gainor: WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, AS A KID, I NEVER SAID,
"YOU KNOW, SOMEDAY, I'M GONNA RUN A DIVISION
OF A MOTION PICTURE STUDIO."
INSTEAD, WHEN I WAS GROWIN' UP,
I WAS SAYIN', "I WANNA TELL STORIES"
AND, SO, TO ME, IT'S SORT OF A DREAM COME TRUE.
♪♪
I'M GLENN GAINOR AND I'M PRESIDENT OF PHYSICAL PRODUCTION
FOR SCREEN GEMS, A DIVISION OF SONY PICTURES.
WHAT I DO IS FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THE FILM.
WHEN I GET THE SCREENPLAY, YOU READ IT, ENJOY IT,
AND THEN, YOU'VE GOTTA GET RIGHT INTO FIGURING OUT
HOW YOU WOULD PRODUCE THE MOVIE.
WHERE YOU WOULD PRODUCE THE MOVIE.
THE KINDS OF CREW MEMBERS THAT WOULD BE APPLICABLE
AND APPROPRIATE FOR THAT KIND OF MOVIE.
WE ARE ON THE SONY LOT.
THIS IS ABOUT 43 ACRES.
IT'S A THIRD FACTORY, IT'S A THIRD EXECUTIVES,
AND IT'S A THIRD RENTED-OUT SPACES.
FOR OVER 100 YEARS, WE'VE TOLD SOME GREAT STORIES HERE.
IF I NEED INSPIRATION, I DON'T HAVE TO LOOK ANY FARTHER.
♪♪
THESE ARE THE BACKLOT STAGES.
THIS IS WHERE THE MAGIC HAPPENS.
NOW, YOU USE EACH STAGE DIFFERENTLY.
LIKE STAGE 30 IS ONE OF THE TALLEST STAGES IN THE WORLD.
I NEEDED THAT STAGE ONCE BECAUSE WE WERE MAKING A FILM
CALLED "PRIEST," AND WE HAD JUST FINISHED A FILM CALLED "LEGION."
"LEGION" NEEDED TO DO A RESHOOT, NEEDED A MOUNTAIN;
AND "PRIEST" NEEDED A MOUNTAIN, SO I SAID, "WELL, I GOT AN IDEA.
"LET'S MAKE THE SAME MOUNTAIN FOR BOTH FILMS."
AND SO WE WENT TO STAGE 30.
WE LITERALLY BUILT A MOUNTAIN, SHOT THERE, IT WAS FANTASTIC.
I'VE BEEN AT SCREEN GEMS FOR A BETTER PART OF A DECADE NOW.
WE'VE MADE A LOT OF FILMS TOGETHER.
I GREW UP IN SOUTHEASTERN MASSACHUSETTS,
IN A SMALL TOWN CALLED SOMERSET.
WHEN I WAS A KID, I WAS JUST A KID.
I LIKED TO TELL STORIES. I LIKED TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE.
MY PARENTS WERE QUITE CONSERVATIVE.
MY MOTHER BASICALLY SAID, "LOOK, YOU GOTTA DO
WHAT YOU'RE HAPPY ABOUT. I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT TO DO.
AND, IF YOU WANT TO GO IN THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY,
I CAN'T HELP YOU. I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT."
WHEN I DID TALK TO MY FATHER ABOUT THAT, HE DID SAY,
"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, STEVEN SPIELBERG?"
THE IDEA OF HOLLYWOOD WAS REALLY FOREIGN.
IT WAS THIS MAGICAL PLACE, IT WAS IN LOS ANGELES,
IT WAS ONLY IN LOS ANGELES.
BUT THOSE KINDS OF THINGS DIDN'T DETER ME.
WHAT DROVE ME, ALWAYS, WAS THIS NEED TO TELL A STORY.
WE MOVED TO L.A. BECAUSE MY PARENTS WERE DIVORCING
AND MY GRANDPARENTS HAD MOVED TO LOS ANGELES,
MY UNCLE HAD MOVED TO LOS ANGELES,
SO IT MADE A LOT OF SENSE TO MY MOTHER TO SAY,
"WELL, LET'S PACK UP. LET'S MOVE WEST."
I WENT INTO THE JOURNALISM PROGRAM
AT CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY AT NORTHRIDGE
AND I QUICKLY LEARNED YOU CAN'T MAKE UP STORIES IN JOURNALISM.
SO, I TOOK THE LEAP.
I IMMEDIATELY JUST GOT INTO FILM ACADEMICS AND HISTORY, YOU KNOW?
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, I THINK, IF YOU'RE LEANING ABOUT FILM,
START OFF 100 YEARS AGO.
KNOWING THAT THERE WERE SO MANY GREAT FILMMAKERS
THAT CAME BEFORE ME, THAT INSPIRES ME EVERY DAY.
Riley: MY NAME IS RILEY.
OOH! [CLATTER]
Gainor: THE FINAL FILM I MADE
UNDER THE UMBRELLA OF CAL STATE-NORTHRIDGE
WAS MY 30-MINUTE PILOT CALLED "ROUGH CUT RILEY."
NOT KNOWING HOW TO PRODUCE A FILM, BUT HAVING THE INSTINCT
AS TO HOW PRODUCE A FILM, I TOOK A LOT OF MEETINGS.
BY THE TIME I PUT THE WHOLE THING TOGETHER,
I REMEMBER STEPPING ON SET. IT WAS AT THE VAN NUYS AIRPORT
AND I LOOKED AROUND, I SAID, "WHAT'S THAT?"
HE SAID, "THAT'S YOUR GRIP TRUNK."
I SAID, "THAT'S HUGE!"
"WHAT'S THAT ONE OVER THERE?" HE SAID,
"THAT'S YOUR CAMERA TRUCK." "IS THE CAMERA INSIDE?"
"YES, IT IS." AMAZING!
SO, THE FIRST FILM SET I WAS REALLY ON WAS MINE.
IT WAS SUCH AN ENDEAVOR.
I DIDN'T HAVE THE FUNDS TO FINISH IT
AND SO THE DIRECTOR AND I WENT TO SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL,
CRASHED SOME PARTIES.
I MET TIM ROBBINS AND I PITCHED TO HIM THAT I HAD THIS PIECE
AND, YOU KNOW, HE WAS SO GENUINE.
HE SAID, "LOOK, HERE'S MY NUMBER.
CALL MY CREATIVE EXECUTIVE BACK IN L.A. WHEN YOU GET BACK."
AND SO I DID AND HE HELPED US TELL THE STORY.
BUT EVERY TIME I GOT AN OPINION FROM SOMEBODY IN THE INDUSTRY,
I WAS LIKE, "PUT THE ENDING AT THE BEGINNING NOW?
YEAH, OKAY," YOU KNOW?
SO, I LOST MY VOICE A LITTLE BIT, BUT, AGAIN,
ISN'T THAT WHAT YOUR FIRST FILM'S SUPPOSED TO BE ABOUT,
LEARNING?
Riley: MY NAME IS RILEY. ROUGH CUT RILEY.
Gainor: WHEN I HAD MY SHORT FILM, I GOT AN AGENT.
HE SHOWED IT AROUND TO A FEW PEOPLE.
AND I REMEMBER HE SHOWED IT TO A DIRECTOR AND HE SAID,
"LISTEN, YOUR FILM'S REALLY GREAT.
I WAS WONDERING, COULD YOU PRODUCE A SHORT FILM
FOR ONE OF MY OTHER CLIENTS?"
AND I SAID, "SURE, NOT A PROBLEM."
SO, WE WENT OUT, WE MADE A SHORT FILM,
AND, FROM THAT, I VERY QUICKLY BECAME
A PRODUCER MAKING INDEPENDENT FILMS.
"HAPPY, TEXAS," WAS ONE OF THE FIRST FILMS
THAT SORT OF GOT ME RECOGNITION.
IT WAS THE HIGHEST-SELLING PICTURE AT SUNDANCE
AT THAT TIME AND IT'S FROM THAT FILM
THAT WILLIAM H. MACY WAS DOING ANOTHER FILM WITH SOMEBODY ELSE
AND THEY MENTIONED MY NAME AND THEY SAID,
"YOU THINK GLENN'S GONNA BE OKAY TO HELP PRODUCE THIS MOVIE?"
AND HE'S SAID, "OH, I LOVE GLENN. HE'S GREAT."
THAT'S WHAT THE INDUSTRY'S ALL ABOUT.
YOU MAKE A FILM FOR SOMEBODY,
YOU HAVE A GREAT EXPERIENCE WITH THAT PERSON,
THAT PERSON TALKS TO ANOTHER PERSON.
"HAPPY, TEXAS" WAS THAT MOVIE
THAT HELPED LAUNCH ME TO THE NEXT LEVEL.
FIRST STUDIO FILM I DID WAS
"DEUCE BIGALOW: EUROPEAN GIGOLO"
AND WE DID OUR PREPRODUCTION HERE AND THEN, YEARS LATER,
THE PRESIDENT OF COLUMBIA PICTURES SAID,
"LISTEN, WHY DON'T YOU READ THIS SCRIPT CALLED 'VACANCY'
FOR SCREEN GEMS." SO I READ IT AND IT SAID
FADE IN, NEW MEXICO.
PREDOMINANTLY, EVERYTHING WAS GONNA BE IN A MOTEL.
AND I MET WITH THE STUDIO PRESIDENT, CLINT CULPEPPER,
AT SCREEN GEMS AND I SAID,
"HOW ABOUT IF WE BUILD THIS ON STAGE 15?"
HE SAID, "WELL, WE CAN'T AFFORD THE BACK LOT."
I SAID, "DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. I KNOW THE LANDLORD.
WE'LL MAKE IT WORK." SO, WE BUILT IT.
THE GAS STATION WOULD BE IN THIS CORNER
AND THEN THERE'D BE A LONG ROAD.
AND THEN, OVER HERE, IN THE CENTER OF THE STAGE,
WE'D HAVE JUST A MASSIVE OAK TREE
AND THEN, YOU KEEP WALKIN' OVER HERE
AND THEN A MOTEL WITH ABOUT 15 ROOMS.
SO WE REALLY CREATED OUR OWN UNIVERSE
AND THAT'S THE GREAT THING ABOUT STAGES,
IS IF YOU CAN IMAGINE IT, YOU CAN BUILD IT.
WHEN WE SHOT "VACANCY,"
I THINK THE PRODUCTION WAS SUCH A SUCCESS.
I REMEMBER, I WAS ON A BACK LOT, READING A SCREENPLAY,
AND CLINT CAME UP TO ME -- AND CLINT'S THE PRESIDENT
OF SCREEN GEMS -- AND HE SAID, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"
I SAID, "OH, I WAS JUST READING THIS SCRIPT" AND HE GOES, "WHY?"
I SAID, "WELL, COLUMBIA PICTURES HAD A SORT OF FILM
THEY WANTED ME TO LOOK AT." HE SAID, "NO, NO, NO.
I WANT YOU WORKIN' FOR ME." A COUPLE DAYS LATER, HE CAME
BACK AND SAID, "YOU'RE RUNNING PHYSICAL PRODUCTION FOR ME."
♪♪
WHEN I FIRST STARTED MAKING FILMS,
THEY WERE ALL INDEPENDENT FILMS AND I WOULD DRIVE BY STUDIO LOTS
AND I'D LOOK AT THEIR STUDIO GATES, LIKE THOSE BEHIND ME,
AND I'D WONDER, "GOD, WHEN CAN I START MAKIN' MOVIES
FOR THOSE GUYS?"
AND, YOU KNOW, HERE I AM, OF COURSE, WE'RE MAKIN' FILMS
AND, YOU KNOW, HERE I AM. AND I THINK THAT'S
THE COOL THING ABOUT THE INDUSTRY, IS THAT,
LOOK, I'M A KID FROM MASSACHUSETTS
WHO MADE SOME GOOD FILMS AND NEVER GAVE UP
AND KEPT TELLIN' STORIES AND,
YOU KNOW, PEOPLE RECOGNIZED THAT.
WE NEVER KNOW EXACTLY WHERE WE'LL LAND IN THE INDUSTRY,
BUT WE KNOW THAT, IF WE'RE LANDING SOMEWHERE
THAT'S GOOD FOR OUR HEART AND OUR MIND,
THEN THAT'S A PRETTY FANTASTIC THING.
♪♪