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When I began to think about the head of the family, the storyteller, the rise of television which became the new storyteller, the break-up of the American family as an idea and then Avalon came.

Barry Levinson

It’s always hard to explain why an audience ultimately responds to a movie.
BARRY LEVINSON

Audience Hard Respond Ultimately
A lot of time mistakes are very interesting – you look for the behaviour that’s not the one you expect.
BARRY LEVINSON

Interesting Looks Mistake
I got a chance to work with Mel Brooks on two of his films: Silent Movie and High Anxiety.
BARRY LEVINSON

Anxiety Chance Country Film Person Two
I’m fascinated by documentaries, to begin with. Because of the nature of television, as opposed to theatrical, documentaries can be in this long form and take you on a journey.
BARRY LEVINSON

Documentary Fascinate Journey Long
I think test screening works at its best when the audience knows what it’s getting.
BARRY LEVINSON

Audience Screening Test Thinking
Studios just sometimes make decisions on their own that you’re always flabbergasted by. It just happens that way for whatever reason – not even pointing fingers, it just is.
BARRY LEVINSON

Decision Happen Reason Sometimes
You have a movie and it proves itself and then certain things happen.
BARRY LEVINSON

Certain Happens Proven
There’s no downside to having too much experience.
BARRY LEVINSON

Downside Experience Much Too
I don’t know that you can do an absurdist film and just have everybody embrace it in terms of filling out cards. I just don’t think it happens. So you have to prepare an audience.
BARRY LEVINSON

Embrace Film Thinking
I play around with human things, human relationships and that, and allow that kind of talk to work in that way, on that level.
BARRY LEVINSON

Human Human Relationships Kind Relations
First of all, just to get Diner made would have been an achievement in that I got a chance to direct.
BARRY LEVINSON

Achievement First
I’ve had a lot of movies that didn’t get great numbers on test screening, but a lot of times the film was able to survive, or the studio still stayed and supported it.
BARRY LEVINSON

Film Movie Number Screening Survive Time
I would give the cameras to the kids in the swimming pools and they would play with them, and then I would collect them and we would upload it. If you’re in the process, you’re there.
BARRY LEVINSON

Kids Playing Swimming
I think certain movies work and that is part of the magic of it all. We can’t truly define why something succeeds.
BARRY LEVINSON

Magic Succeed Thinking
All I try to do is create an atmosphere that seems comfortable enough, that it removes tension and everyone feels free. If they feel free then behaviour happens, small moments happen and that’s what ultimately works the best for me.
BARRY LEVINSON

Atmosphere Behavior Trying
Ronald Reagan was this actor who was going to be president, and he was very charming. What he had was, he talked about America in ways that got people all caught up in it. He was creating this America – it could even be the mythical “America” – that we subscribe to.
BARRY LEVINSON

Charming People President

When I began to think about the head of the family, the storyteller, the rise of television which became the new storyteller, the break-up of the American family as an idea and then Avalon came.

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When I began to think about the head of the family, the storyteller, the rise of television which became the new storyteller, the break-up of the American family as an idea and then Avalon came.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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