Time Phrase
00:01:06 I was first sent the script in September 2000.
00:01:13 Everybody was scrambling around
trying to find their next movie...
00:01:16 because there was going to be a strike
of actors and writers in Hollywood.
00:01:21 Everybody was going crazy
trying to find something to do...
00:01:25 myself included.
00:02:26 but this whole news office was actually...
00:02:32 a set that we did in Austin, Texas.
00:02:37 The actors that I cast...
00:02:39 Many of the actors are local actors.
00:02:42 Cleo King, who you see here,
who plays Bitsey's boss...
00:02:32 a set that we did in Austin, Texas.
00:02:37 The actors that I cast...
00:02:39 Many of the actors are local actors.
00:02:42 Cleo King, who you see here,
who plays Bitsey's boss...
00:02:48 was actually cast in Los Angeles.
00:02:48 was actually cast in Los Angeles.
00:02:49 I cast in Los Angeles, in New York
and, obviously, in Austin...
00:02:53 where actors came in
from Dallas and Houston.
00:02:56 Many of the actors are...
00:02:58 This is Cleo King here.
00:02:49 I cast in Los Angeles, in New York
and, obviously, in Austin...
00:02:53 where actors came in
from Dallas and Houston.
00:02:56 Many of the actors are...
00:02:58 This is Cleo King here.
00:03:00 This whole news magazine set
was actually an empty building...
00:05:07 She worked very hard with a dialect coach
for many months...
00:05:15 for her accent to be as good as it is.
I think it's very good.
00:05:21 Lee Ritchey is one of the local actors
that I found locally...
00:05:25 who plays the editor.
00:05:27 All of this was shot in Austin, Texas.
00:06:14 and to try and be
as authentic and real as possible.
00:06:17 Gabriel Mann, who plays Zack,
was cast in Los Angeles.
00:06:22 I must have seen hundreds and hundreds
of young actors for this particular part.
00:06:27 Some very famous and some not so famous.
00:06:32 I always liked his quality.
00:20:10 Where Kevin really excels
is he's very comfortable with his celebrity.
00:20:16 He was fantastic with the kids.
00:20:18 Many actors, when they finish their scenes,
or whatever the day's work be...
00:20:23 put a baseball cap over their heads,
jump into their limo and disappear.
00:20:27 Kevin's not like that.
00:22:10 I don't think she was very comfortable
sitting down.
00:22:12 But there was a reason for that,
to anchor her in that position.
00:22:19 Sometimes actors disagree
with what you're doing and other times...
00:22:24 they cotton on to what you're on about.
00:22:29 I remember doing this scene.
00:25:02 and narrowed it down to Noah.
00:25:05 I had rehearsed with him a lot.
Working with kids is never easy.
00:25:13 It always helps when you get actors
that are good with kids...
00:25:16 because you have to be very gentle.
00:25:20 In the end, the director's job
is to create an environment...
00:25:16 because you have to be very gentle.
00:25:20 In the end, the director's job
is to create an environment...
00:25:23 where everyone can be at their best
and encourage the best out of the actors.
00:25:32 The party sequence was shot...
00:25:34 in a very nice house
in the suburbs of Austin.
00:25:34 in a very nice house
in the suburbs of Austin.
00:25:38 It was shot over a couple of nights.
00:25:42 Here you see the two actors
that I had cast locally.
00:25:48 Chuck Cureau on the right
and Sean Hennigan on the left.
00:25:52 This is the faithful Steadicam, of course...
00:25:57 trying to do things in one, which always...
00:26:02 helps with regards to the fluidity
of your shots.
00:26:05 It also helps when you've got terrific actors
that you can rely upon...
00:26:10 so you don't have to cut between it.
00:26:14 Again we have a Steadicam
coming back into the kitchen.
00:29:12 It's always difficult
when you're doing sex scenes in that...
00:29:16 Most importantly...
00:29:18 it's my job to make the actors
as comfortable as possible.
00:29:23 When you're doing these things
you try and minimise the crew...
00:29:28 so that there's few people just gawking,
but in the end...
00:35:42 Now and again,
Kevin will slightly improvise...
00:35:47 although he's the kind of actor
who does stay close to the text.
00:35:52 When you have actors
who improvise too much...
00:35:55 you can, as they say, improve it to death.
00:35:59 I'm always wary if we get too far away
from the written word.
00:58:54 and then, of course, he does cut his hand...
00:58:59 which is hard to act
and must have hurt a lot.
00:59:08 That's when you trust the good actors.
00:59:21 Here we see Laura, who with regards...
00:59:26 to the development of her character...
01:02:03 Because it has a very...
01:02:06 vibrant film industry...
01:02:10 there are lots of excellent local actors.
And I was very fortunate.
01:02:14 There aren't many places that you could go
outside the major centres and...
01:02:19 have such an incredible catchment
of really good actors.
01:02:10 there are lots of excellent local actors.
And I was very fortunate.
01:02:14 There aren't many places that you could go
outside the major centres and...
01:02:19 have such an incredible catchment
of really good actors.
01:02:23 You didn't know?
01:02:24 It helps because there is
also an authenticity and...
01:02:24 It helps because there is
also an authenticity and...
01:02:28 a freshness when you see...
01:02:31 actors playing parts such as this,
that you aren't overly familiar with.
01:02:38 We go through
the transition sequence again...
01:02:43 to seeing Gale obviously...
01:05:05 This is shot close to Taylor,
where a great deal of our filming was done.
01:05:12 Here we are
with the rain machines working again.
01:05:15 Extremely uncomfortable for the actors,
not to mention the director and the crew.
01:05:20 Oh, man, I never knew
$1 million could weigh so much.
01:05:23 - $500,000.
- It's still heavy.
01:11:14 One of the great difficulties
when you're making a film...
01:11:17 is that often you're shooting
out of sequence.
01:11:19 It's tough on the actors.
01:11:22 It's tough on the director,
because in the end...
01:11:25 you have to hold the whole movie together
in your head as you're making it...
01:22:06 So I kept it simple.
01:22:07 That one simple panning shot across
from the foot to the head.
01:22:12 Everything that's happening is happening
because the actors are making it happen.
01:22:18 What we're doing is observing it...
01:22:21 and the camera doesn't get in the way
of the drama.
01:31:35 The only reason it is a set is because...
01:31:38 tiny motel rooms are quite difficult.
01:31:41 It's hard enough getting the actors
in those tiny rooms...
01:31:44 let alone 40 film crew, as well.
01:31:47 That's why we make our life a little easier
by making it into a set.
01:32:42 This scene always amuses me...
01:32:43 when the two of them encircle one another
in desperation...
01:32:48 to do what is seemingly quite simple
but it is the hardest thing for actors...
01:32:53 to unplug things, grab them,
and still keep the action going without it.
01:32:59 In the real world, of course,
plugs never come out that easy.
01:35:29 I have to say a good word
about Kate and Gabriel Mann:
01:35:35 Incredibly nice people.
01:35:37 Kate, in particular, is one of those actors...
01:35:42 who not only help me
but every single person on the crew.
01:35:48 It seems that that would be normal...
01:35:42 who not only help me
but every single person on the crew.
01:35:48 It seems that that would be normal...
01:35:52 but in an industry
that's plagued with egocentric actors...
01:35:59 it's actually very rare that you get someone
who's so generous to everyone.
01:36:03 This was a particularly generous cast
to one another as actors, certainly to me.
01:35:52 but in an industry
that's plagued with egocentric actors...
01:35:59 it's actually very rare that you get someone
who's so generous to everyone.
01:36:03 This was a particularly generous cast
to one another as actors, certainly to me.
01:36:09 I remember these cells
when I first went into the prison.
01:36:14 The real prison at Huntsville
I found kind of creepy.
01:46:59 Obviously a huge amount
of acting going on...
01:47:02 but this is Kate reacting to her friend Laura.
01:47:05 The two actors...
01:47:07 She'd never seen this scene before.
01:47:10 Therefore a great deal of this pain is real...
01:52:00 It's a very sophisticated
media-management situation.
01:52:06 These quick snippets of people,
I had recorded all the way through the film.
01:52:11 They are not actors, they are real people...
01:52:13 giving me their opinions
of what they feel about the death penalty.
01:52:17 Unscripted.
(What's this?)
