As I mentioned in my previous post, the annual roundtable discussions curated by The Hollywood Reporter are conducted in this pandemic year via Zoom, rather than the participants being seated at an actual table.  In this post, we have directors and producers in discussion. In addition to The Hollywood Reporter, a second directors roundtable organized by The Los Angeles Times is also included. I watched these yesterday and earlier today, and found them engaging and informing. The first directors roundtable begins below.

_____________________________________________________

Directors Roundtable #1 (Running time: 55:44)

The seven directors taking part are listed below, along with titles and streaming availability of their films under discussion.

Regina King – One Night in Miami (Amazon Prime)

Spike Lee – Da Five Bloods (Netflix)

Chloé Zhao  – Nomadland (Hulu)

George C. Wolfe – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix)

Paul Greengrass – News of the World (Amazon Prime)

Lee Isaac Chung – Minari (Film Forum & A25 sites through February 25; streaming services TBA thereafter)

George Clooney – The Midnight Sky (Netflix)

This discussion is moderated by Rebecca Keegan of The Hollywood Reporter.

______________________________________________________

Directors Roundtable #2 (Running time: 48:12)

Aaron Sorkin

David Fincher

Regina King, Chloé Zhao, Spike Lee, and Paul Greengrass carry over from the previous directors roundtable, but what they discuss is basically new, covering  different aspects of the filmmaking process. They are joined by the following directors:

Aaron Sorkin – The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix)

David Fincher – Mank (Netflix)

This discussion is moderated by Mark Olson of The Los Angeles Times.

_______________________________________________________

Producers Roundtable (Running time: 41:51)

The six producers taking part are listed below, along with titles and streaming availability of their films under discussion.

Andy Samberg – Palm Springs (Hulu)

Ashley Levinson – Pieces of a Woman and Malcolm & Marie (both on Netflix)

Charles D. King – Judas and the Black Messiah (HBO Max)

Dede Gardner – Minari  (Film Forum & A25 sites through February 25; streaming services TBA thereafter)

Marc Platt – The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix)

Eric Roth – Mank (Netflix)

The presence of Marc Platt and Eric Roth adds some interesting perspective from an older generation of filmmakers. Marc Platt, age 63, has a long list of producing credits going back to 1987, with films projected into 2023. Eric Roth, age 76, is probably better known as a screenwriter. His films include Forrest Gump, The Insider, Munich, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and many more. Despite all their experience in the business, they both sound like they’re still excited and engaged by making films.

This roundtable is moderated by Tatiana Siegel of The Hollywood Reporter.

______________________________________________________

That’s all for now. See you next time. — Ted Hicks

NEWS FLASH! I just read that movie theaters will be reopening in early March in New York City, subject to limited capacity and other restrictions. This is good news. We’ll see how it works out.

_______________________________________________________