The account on classic and hit films. Detail in our making of stories is from cast/crew or 3+ sources. To support what we do, please subscribe 😁
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Once Upon A Time In Hollywood started life as a novel. Tarantino referred to the project as his ‘Magnum Opus’ and developed it over 5 years. Over time, QT realised it would work better as a screenplay.
In 1959, American businesswoman Ruth Handler created a new fashion doll based on the German Bild Lill doll. Manufactured by Mattel, Barbie was an instant smash, and would go on to sell over a billion dolls and become one of the most famous toy lines in the world.
De Palma was editing Dressed To Kill (1980) with his sound designer Dan Sable. There was a wind effect which De Palma complained had been used a number of times, and sent Sable out to get some new effects. This gave him the seed of an idea for Blow Out.
In 1994, writer Robert Rodat received a gift from his wife: Stephen Ambrose’s D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II. He was interested in writing a script and, visiting Tonawanda cemetery in New York, came across a monument that inspired him further.
In 1992, student filmmaker Christopher Nolan and girlfriend Emma Thomas took a trip across the English Channel – a recreation of the Dunkirk evacuation route. Nolan said it took 19 hours, freezing cold, and very tough, but it did give him an idea…
In 2005, American Prometheus was published. Written by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, it told the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, a theoretical physicist who was director of the Manhattan Project, and known as “The father of the atomic bomb.”
Writer George Gallo was inspired to write a buddy movie based on the dynamic of his parents. He said “my father was very emotional whereas my mother was far more calculating. She would let him talk and lead him down alleys and then strike like a cat."
After the success of The Dark Knight in 2008, Warner Bros wanted Nolan to complete the trilogy. He hadn’t planned a third film and said "How many good third movies in a franchise can people name?” He said he would do it, but only if he could get a good story.
With the success of Alien, 20th Century Fox were keen on a sequel but it was delayed until 1983. At that time, James Cameron was sending his script for The Terminator to studios to find writing work. Fox read it and liked it.
After the success of Batman Begins, Warner Bros were keen on Christopher Nolan directing a sequel. Two factors convinced Nolan to return:
In the early 80s young screenwriter Edward Neumeier had an idea for a movie about a robot cop. He then came across student filmmaker Michael Miner who had an idea of a human cop who becomes a donor for a cyborg police officer. They felt they could combine the two ideas….
Nolan first pitched the idea of Inception to Warner Bros after his third movie, Insomnia, in 2002. He had an 80 page treatment about ‘dream-stealers’, and WB loved it. To keep creative control, Nolan said he’d show them a finished script in a couple of months.
In the mid-1980s, filmmaker Rick King was lounging on a beach and read an L.A. Weekly article stating that Los Angeles was the bank robbery capital of the USA. Taking in the waves, he imagined a movie about a gang of surfers holding up a bank.
Student filmmakers Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez met at the University of Central Florida in 1993 and bonded over a love of horror. Together they came up with an idea: a group stumble upon a terrifying house in the woods and aren’t able to resist going inside.
In 1976, animator Steven Lisberger came across the now-classic Atari video game Pong, and couldn’t stop playing it. Fascinated by the idea of computer-generated graphics, he had the idea for a movie set entirely within a digital-based world.
In the mid-80s, Rob Reiner and producer Andy Scheinman met writer Nora Ephron at the Russian Tea Room, NYC, to discuss working together. Having been through a divorce with Penny Marshall, Reiner pitched an idea based on his dating life, piquing Ephron’s interest.
In 1963, comic book legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby unveiled their latest creation. A superhero team based around a group of mutants born with superpowers, The X-Men #1 was published by Marvel in September and was an instant hit with readers.
After the Watergate scandal broke in 1976 and made global headlines, young filmmaker John Carpenter was inspired to write a script that reflected the public’s lack of faith in the government. Influenced by Death Wish, he penned a screenplay he called Escape From New York.
In the early 1990s, screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio were keen on reinventing the pirate genre for the big screen. They came up with ideas around a swashbuckling adventure based upon the Pirates of the Caribbean Disney World ride.
In 1943, Australian Spitfire pilot Paul Brickhill was shot down over Tunisia and taken to World War II POW camp Stalag Luft III in Poland. There, he was one of 600 men who played a role in hatching and executing an escape from the camp.
The Crane Iron Pentalogy is a series of 5 novels published in the 1930s and 1940s by acclaimed wuxia novelist Wang Dulu. The 4thbook in the series was called Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
