ASHLEY MAYNOR WRITES:
Our blog has been silent over the past few months, but don't let that fool you--we've been busier than ever! In this short span, Paul and I began work as managing producers for a new film production company dedicated to producing feature films in the American South (more on that soon); one of Paul's scripts was selected for IFP's No Borders Co-Production Market; and I spent a week at the Sundance Institute's Creative Producing Lab and Summit as the 2012-13 Sheila C. Johnson Creative Producing Fellow. Oh, and we've also been filming a feature film! More than anything, it's been a time of growth and change as creative producers, so I wanted to share a few gems I heard at the Lab & Summit on this under-appreciated role :
"You have to the calming center [for the production] ...but you're also the punching bag for everyone." --Lynette Howell, on the paradox of a creative producer's role.
"Producing is the credit that everyone wants and that no one values." --Anne Carey, on the constant struggle to define and protect producing credits.
"We're like cockroaches. When the nuclear blast hits and we have to eat plaster, we eat plaster." --Christine Vachon, on how she and her company, Killer Films, have stayed in the business for so long.
P.S. For even more of a love song to creative producers, check out this video, called "The Unsung Hero of Indie Filmmaking" made by the Institute.