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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

The interesting thing about movies, it’s not always – y’know, you have to have structure etc and all those things, but an audience responds, in many ways, we walk away and certain things stay in our heads that are memorable.
BARRY LEVINSON

Interesting Memorable Way
I worked at a local television station and I got a chance to direct and do all those things – worked kiddie shows, Ranger House show with the hand puppets and things like that.
BARRY LEVINSON

Hands House Television
There was a time when I said, “I’m going to go do a television thing,” after doing all these theatrical films, and heard, “Television? Why are you going to go back to television?” It’s an interesting place.
BARRY LEVINSON

Film Interesting Television
You do understand that you can’t force the situation, but in terms of how you edit, you can define that to take the audience along, whether it be a storyline or a character moment that we can play out. The more experience you’ve had, the more beneficial it is, period.
BARRY LEVINSON

Character Moments Play
I thought a great line in the What Just Happened movie said, “We’re just the mayonnaise.”
BARRY LEVINSON

Happened Line Mayonnaise Movie Thought
You have a movie and it proves itself and then certain things happen.
BARRY LEVINSON

Certain Happens Proven
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
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
I don’t know that you can do it as a satire. I mean, the business is crazy enough as it is. It’s like doing Wag The Dog – we took a thing that was almost completely absurd on one level, and then ultimately those things came about.
BARRY LEVINSON

Crazy Dog Mean
As soon as digital editing came about, I immediately made the switch to digital.
BARRY LEVINSON

Digital Editing Made
I never really wanted to be an actor. And that was the beginning of it, I began to write things down and eventually became a writer on a television show.
BARRY LEVINSON

Actors And Television Began Eventually Thing Writing
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
There’s no downside to having too much experience.
BARRY LEVINSON

Downside Experience Much Too
I think we are seeing a radical shift in the business in general. The studios are making much more of the real big extravaganzas and there are other kinds of films that are coming out. I think you are going to begin to see more diversification that we’ve seen in the past.
BARRY LEVINSON

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

Audience Hard Respond Ultimately
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
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 think test screening works at its best when the audience knows what it’s getting.
BARRY LEVINSON

Audience Screening Test Thinking
I think it’s a promising time which will show a lot of diversification that we’ve seen in the past.
BARRY LEVINSON

Past Shows 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
We’re never going to be the ultimate-insider look. You can do 50 insider looks at this Hollywood business, and the satire didn’t intrigue me. I think others can do that.
BARRY LEVINSON

Business Hollywood Insider Satire Thinking
Some actors are supposed to be very difficult, but I’ve not found that to be the situation.
BARRY LEVINSON

Actors Found Difficult
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 got involved with an acting school and studied for a couple years. They used to have improv exercises that you would work on and you would do improvs.
BARRY LEVINSON

Couple Exercise School
Even back in the ’90s, I shot certain things on something that wasn’t digital then, but it was on VHS with a smaller camera and we would up it to film.
BARRY LEVINSON

Camera Digital Film
I do know when you look at some ballplayer and all of a sudden he is the size of a truck something is wrong.
BARRY LEVINSON

Looks Size Truck Wrong

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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