Dave Wolverton, a resident of Southern Utah, leaned back in his office chair as he recalled the moment he realized he wanted to be a producer.Dave Wolverton,a resident of Southern Utah,leaned back in his office chair as he recalled the moment he realized he wanted to be a producer. "Growing up,I didn't know what I wanted to be," he said. "The other children all knew. They wanted to be cowboys or Indians.My brother wanted to be a garbage truck driver because they were so strong.But I had no idea what I wanted to do." Nine months of wondering and obsessing came to an end as he watched a special about Walt Disney. "That's what I want to do," he told his parents. "I want to be him.""But no one can be like Walt Disney," they said."Real people don't have those kinds of jobs.""If they'd realized the kind of determination I had," said Wolverton,"they would have bought stock."Wolverton began his career as a prize writer in college,writing mainstream stories,and was doing quite well when in 1986,he submitted a story to the Writers of the Future Contest-the world's largest contest for amateur science fiction and fantasy authors-and won the Gold Award for the year. Publishers approached Wolverton to see if he would write a novel,and within a couple of weeks,he had a three-book deal with Bantam books.He began his career in science fiction,though his real passion lay in fantasy.His first novel hit high on the bestseller lists,was hailed by critics as "one of the deepest and most powerful science fiction novels ever written," and won the Philip K. Dick Memorial Special Award as one of the best novels of the year.So his career began.But after years of successfully writing in the science fiction genre,he decided he didn't want to be tied down and he assumed the pen-name David Farland. His fantasy series,The Runelords,took off,hitting the bestseller lists in several countries.He's now fulfilling his dream as few authors have ever done. He's producing his own movie from his own bestselling novel.What would possess an author to become his own producer? Wolverton explained it this way: "Why write a short story that will make $400 when you could write a novel based on the same idea that will earn $50,000? Why stop at a novel when you could turn the idea into a movie worth half a million?" He continued to explain his philosophy of creating a franchise of the idea,like Star Wars or the Mummy-both franchises that Wolverton has worked with."And why create a single novel worth half a million,when you could create a franchise that may be worth billions?"When an author signs a contract to have his book made into a movie,he's offered a set amount of money,and he's done. He never sees any of the big profits from merchandise and tie-ins. So Wolverton decided to follow the money trail and see just who was making the big money. "Many moderately successful producers were living in huge mansions in Hollywood,with swimming pools,and then there were the sea of actors,most of whom were driving beat up old Fords," Wolverton said."So I decided I wanted to be behind the camera instead of in front of it."Perhaps the only way to pull more out of a movie than the producer is to become a distributor,like Warner Brothers or Universal."When you're your own distributor,you can line up financing easier because you've got your American distribution in hand.And it also gives you the freedom to make any movie you want-freedom which you may not have if you're working with a studio."Wolverton admitted he may work into this in the future."It's the logical thing to do.I admire the way that Mel Gibson,for example,used his profits from Braveheart to purchase a foreign distribution company.It was a very shrewd move."Dave Wolverton,writing under David Farland,began his Runelords novels with the idea of making it big.He designed the novels to be adapted into movies,video games,and other mediums.Soon after,he met John Lee,a consultant to producers,who explained to him how he approached the sale and distribution of movies.Though other producers might think of Lee's approach as a bit unorthodox;since it's both time-consuming and expensive,and most producers take the easiest and least expensive approach,Wolverton said,"I could see instantly that his plan was brilliant. Basically,he was approaching movie sales in the same way that I approached the sale of a major novel.He spends much more time and money in developing the picture,establishing a foundation with global distributors that results in pre-sales of the movie that are used to finance the making of the film.There were new layers of strategy that I hadn't used before,but aside from the fact that it can cost three or four million dollars just to create a solid movie proposal,it was very much like what I was already doing in the book and videogame fields.As a producer,Wolverton has more control than most authors in the creation of his film.He pitches the movie,secures money for the film,lines up global distribution,hires the director and some of the key actors,and pretty much has final say over any changes from the book to screen.???????Pitching a movie idea is tough,Wolverton explained. The studios have their own projects,and if you're an outsider,they have no reason to believe you know what you are doing or how major independent producers make and deliver their pictures. They have strong financial incentives to move their own projects forward first. This didn't discourage Wolverton at all,who said,"If you have a compelling story,someone will get excited about it."With Lee's help,they've found a way in a back door.While the big studios may not be easy to approach,since they are often playing a defensive game,there are smaller studios that have put deals-pre-existing distribution agreements-with those major studios.And since these companies are smaller,they're playing more of an offensive game.Wolverton has not taken it upon himself to write his own screenplay,but he has worked carefully with a seasoned studio screenwriter,Terry Kahn,to make sure his film has the intended effect. It's a different type of writing,he explained. Although he has the final say,Wolverton's also open to suggestion. "My goal isn't to force my own vision on others.A director or visual effects designer may have an idea on how to make the flameweavers more interesting,for example,and I'm fine with that."He may take that suggestion and incorporate it into the film,making it better. On the other hand,he said,"I also get to tell them when their ideas are less than brilliant."As the author and producer,will his movie portray the novel?Not exactly.?He says,"The great thing about working on a novel that I wrote seven years ago is that I've had more experience since,and now have a chance to fix my mistakes.And the fact is that what works in a book doesn't always work in a movie.So,for example,in the movie,I'll have the chance to portray the ending as I'd envisioned it from the beginning.The ending I wanted was too visual to put into a book."But on screen he can fulfill that vision.There are also problems with internal dialogue that cannot be transferred easily from a book to the screen.To account for this,he has stepped back in time,taking a look into the childhood of the main character,Gaborn. This allows him to visually explain his magic system and the events that shaped Gaborn's outlook on life.Wolverton is working closely with designers to make his monsters appear as lifelike as possible. "I don't want stale creatures. I want them to appear to be real animals." He comments on the dinosaurs in the first "Jurassic Park" movie. He wants his creatures to be of that quality or better. He's defined his creatures' habits and habitat,taking up to three months to design just one of the monsters to be featured in this film.Wolverton worked on short films for film festivals,and it gave him some great experience,but the Runelords is in an entirely different realm. "The movie will cost between 60 and 75 million," he says. "We'll need another 45 million or more for advertising.""Surprisingly," he said,"this has been both the hardest and the easiest thing I've ever done.The hours are long,and you spend a good amount of time banging your head into walls."But he said that he wouldn't go back and undo it.In fact,if this film does well enough,there's a second and third Runelords that will be hitting the big screen."But it has been easy in the sense that John's strategies have worked like a charm.As a new producer,I've been surprised at how easy it has been to sell this film."Dave Wolverton is the author of more than 40 books. He has written adult novels,young adult novels,middle-school age books,children's books,and poetry. Wolverton is still writing,and his latest Runelords book,"The Lair of Bones," written under the name of David Farland,was released this past week.He is now working on the fifth novel in the Runelords series,which deals with a whole set of major new characters.He's also finishing a young adult book entitled "Of Mice and Magic," which should be released next year from Covenant Communications.

David FarlandGot a very cool Runelords movie poster mockup today, based upon some art that I've been developing. I love it when a plan comes together!

Corgan a écrit :Est ce que les livres sont au moins finis..;?

Atanaheim a écrit :Il aurait été mieux en Raj Ahten, non?

Gillossen a écrit :

Atanaheim a écrit :Il aurait été mieux en Raj Ahten, non?

Pour moi Raj Ahten n'est pas censé faire minet.