Venerable producer discusses the biz, Tim Burton and how to pitch

Although Richard D. Zanuck has spent more than five decades in the movie business,
the Oscar-winning producer is only interested in looking ahead — specifically toward
the May 11 release of his sixth film with Tim Burton, “Dark Shadows.”

“The rules may have changed, but if we want to stay in the business, we have to
consider these the good old days,” he says. Zanuck recently sat down in his Beverly
Hills home with Christy Grosz to discuss the film that surprised him the most, the
unpredictability of box office and the resilience that being a producer requires.

CG: Is there a secret to producing you learned early on that would benefit young
producers?

RZ: You have to be able to take rejection. You have to really be able to look in the
mirror and ask yourself, “How many doors have to be slammed in my face?” Because
if you’re not up to that, you’ll get eaten up.

With “Driving Miss Daisy,” we were turned down by every studio, sometimes two or
three times. We would plead the case, but when you start talking about an old lady
and a black chauffeur, you can just see the executive’s eyes roll in the back of his
head. That took four years. “Cocoon” was about eight years. And the picture that we
ended up calling “Deep Impact” was a story that David Brown and I had been
working on for 18 years. We hadn’t been working on it all that time. We just put it
away. Then suddenly we thought maybe we should go back and present that idea.
The secret is, don’t give up. If it’s a great idea, it somehow will break through.

CG: When you’re pitching ideas, is that stubborn persistence also a factor?

RZ: If I’m pitching, I’m not running for the door: I’m staying in my seat; let them
run for the door. When I have a piece of material, much like casting a picture, I try to
match the studio head (with) the property. I think, “This will touch so and so. This
will excite somebody over there.” I’m trying to narrow down the chances of being
eliminated.

CG: Do you think there are misconceptions about what a producer does?

RZ: I think there’s been a devaluation of the concept. Maybe too many people have
used the term “producer” when they weren’t qualified. That’s what the Producers
Guild has been fighting for years. I was the chairman of the producers’ branch of the
Academy for about 10 years, and we were constantly trying to find ways to prevent
this proliferation of credits. A producer should contribute from the very beginning
until the very end, in all aspects. I’m there at the set every day, on every shot. Not
that the director, particularly Tim (Burton), needs me, but just in case. There are
producers who don’t even watch the dailies, who have some contact with the project
and get their name slapped on there. That’s what we’ve been trying to get rid of.

CG: How the role of the producer changed over the years?

RZ: I grew up in that era of moguls. Each studio at that time had a staff of producers
who worked exclusively for them. They all reported to the studio head, but they were
really in charge of the movie from beginning to end. Directors in those days were not
nearly as powerful — they came in, directed, and sometimes would go right to

another picture, not even go through the editing process. It was up to the editorial
department and the producer. It wasn’t all coordinated through the eyes of a
director.

CG: Is there any way you can predict something like “Alice in Wonderland” making a
billion dollars?

RZ: If anybody could predict those things, they wouldn’t be working. They’d be
enjoying life by the pool. “Alice” had wonderful ingredients, but a billion dollars is a
big number to hit. As it was growing and we were releasing in more territories and
we were getting these unbelievable numbers, we’d ask ourselves, “Why?” It’s one of
those things you don’t understand. But it was a story that had been around for 160
years. It was so well known, but you still can’t really figure it.

CG: Are there movies that have surprised you?

RZ: When I was head of (Fox), it was “Valley of the Dolls.” I used to preview in San
Francisco a lot. We’d take a small jet out of the Santa Monica Airport and fly up
there, have dinner at Ernie’s, and then preview and then fly back. We thought we had
made a good picture, corny but something that audiences would really enjoy. And the
(reaction) cards were unbelievably bad. It was just terrifying. On the way back, I was
afraid the director, Mark Robson, was going to jump out of the plane, he was so
beside himself. But we released it a few weeks later, and it became a big, big hit.

Mostly, it doesn’t work that way. When a preview’s bad, it’s going to play bad. I still
get an awful feeling before a preview, nervousness and anxiety. That’s just how I am.
You spend a year working on something, and you’re using somebody else’s money,
and you want it to be successful.

CG: “Dark Shadows” puts you together with Tim Burton for the sixth film in a row.
What about that collaboration works so well?

RZ: This would be a dream come true for any producer. I’ve worked with so many
top directors — William Wyler and George Cukor and Franklin Schaffner and
Vincente Minnelli — and each one is brilliant in their own right. But Tim is the only
real artist, literally an artist, of the group. His creative genius is to combine the
physical image with some emotional values, and people don’t give him enough credit.
Working with Tim, it’s like I was in the early days with (Steven) Spielberg. I try to
free them up as much as I can. I want that mind to be uncluttered, so it can work on
the picture.

Studios think a director just walks on set and things happen, but (directors) have to
do endless weeks, months of homework if they’re any good. Most agents and studios
know that they have to go through me if they want something answered. I’ll only
bring the important things to Tim.

Between set-ups, Tim will pick out a spot about 50 feet long and pace. I’ve never seen
him sit down. One time we put one of those pedometers (on him) at the beginning of
the picture, and it was amazing how many miles (it registered) — he could have
walked around the world. (Sometimes) I’ll walk and pace along with him. I’ll say, “I
know you’re doing your laundry list, but we have to have an answer on this or that.” I
think it’s part of his way of thinking, but also keeping people at bay.

But it’s an amazing collaboration for me at this point of my life. Not that I wouldn’t
have gone on (producing) without meeting Tim, but it’s made it so much more
fascinating. It’s really been a wonderful part to a long, long career.

Richard D. Zanuck: At a glance

Made producing debut in 1959 with Richard Fleischer’s “Compulsion,” which
screened in competition at Cannes. The pic took acting prizes at the fest for Orson
Welles, Dean Stockwell and Bradford Dillman.

Named prexy of Twentieth Century Fox in 1962 at age 28. Formed the
Zanuck/Brown Co. in 1971, which, with partner David Brown, produced such hits as
“Jaws,” “The Sting” and “Cocoon.”

In 1991, Zanuck and Brown were honored with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial
Award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Zanuck’s father, Darryl
F. Zanuck, had been given the Thalberg honor in 1944.

Nominated for Oscar’s best picture:

“Jaws ,” 1975
“The Verdict,” 1982
“Driving Miss Daisy,” 1989 (winner)

Number of films produced with director Tim Burton: 6

“Dark Shadows,” 2012
“Alice in Wonderland,” 2010
“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” 2007
“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” 2005
“Big Fish,” 2003
“Planet of the Apes,” 2001

By CHRISTY GROSZ – VARIETY – Sat., May. 5, 2012