During the final months of 2007, DGA members in New York and Los Angeles will have the opportunity to attend member screenings followed by Q&As with the films’ directors.
WES ANDERSON: The Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson discussed the making of his new film The Darjeeling Limited, a tale of three estranged American brothers whose plan to rekindle their bond on a train journey across India which goes awry when they find themselves stranded alone in the desert with eleven suitcases, a printer and a laminating machine. Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich) served as moderator of the discussion that took place after the Los Angeles screening on October 7.
PETER BERG: The Kingdom
In the Los Angeles DGA Theatre on October 13, Peter Berg spoke about the challenges he faced during the making of his new feature, The Kingdom. The film tells the politically charged story of an elite FBI team sent to investigate a terrorist bombing inside a Western housing compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and soon find themselves in a fight for their own lives. Director Joe Carnahan (Smokin' Aces) served as moderator.
ROBERT BENTON: Feast of Love
Robert Benton gave the New York audience members insights from behind the scenes of Feast of Love, a romantic drama about people in a tight-knit Oregon community, searching for the secret to love and romance under the watchful eye of a local professor. 2005 DGA Award nominee Bennett Miller (Capote) served as moderator of the discussion that took place after the screening on October 12.
JOEL & ETHAN COEN: No Country for Old Men
The Coen Brothers regaled the audience of the Los Angeles DGA Theatre with background about their western thriller No Country for Old Men on November 4. Set in West Texas, the film follows the aftermath of what ensues after a hunter stumbles on dead bodies, a load of heroin and $2 million in cash, then finds himself running for his life. Three-time Academy Award-winning editor Walter Murch (Cold Mountain) served as moderator.
MARC FORSTER: The Kite Runner
2005 DGA Award-nominee Marc Forster (Finding Neverland) spoke to audiences in both Los Angeles and New York about his new film The Kite Runner. In this tale of a search for redemption, a man returns to his childhood home of Taliban-ruled Afghanistan to help a childhood friend and to confront the secrets that still haunt him. 1971 DGA Feature Film Award-winning Director William Friedkin (The French Connection) served as moderator of the discussion that took place after the Los Angeles screening on October 23, and Director Rose Troche (The Safety of Objects) moderated the discussion following the New York screening on October 26.
TERRY GEORGE: Reservation Road
Terry George discussed the challenges of making his thriller Reservation Road before the audience in the DGA New York Theatre on October 3. The film tells the heartrending story of two fathers whose lives become intertwined after one causes a hit-and-run accident that kills the son of the other, and the emotional aftermath of that occurrence. Director Griffin Dunne (Fierce People) served as moderator.
TONY GILROY: Michael Clayton
Tony Gilroy spoke about directing his legal drama Michael Clayton to the New York audience on October 1. In the film, a hotshot attorney is called in to “fix” a problem and finds himself enmeshed in double dealings and dark corporate shenanigans that could ultimately threaten his life. 1996 DGA Feature Film Award-winning Director Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) served as moderator.
PETER HEDGES: Dan in Real Life
Peter Hedges amused the New York audience with anecdotes from the making of his romantic comedy Dan in Real Life. The film relates the misadventures of a widower newspaper advice columnist and father of three daughters as he struggles to get his own life together. Director Gary Winick (Charlotte’s Web) served as moderator of the November 7th Q&A.
GAVIN HOOD: Rendition
Gavin Hood discussed the challenges of making his politically-themed thriller, Rendition with Director Phillip Noyce (Rabbit-Proof Fence) and the DGA Los Angeles audience on October 28. Rendition follows an American woman’s fight to secure the release of her Egyptian husband from a secret detention facility when he’s targeted as a terrorism suspect.
NEIL JORDAN: The Brave One
Neil Jordan discussed filming his action drama The Brave One with Director Jim Sheridan (In America) and the New York audience on September 9. The Brave One explores what happens when a woman sets out on a mission of revenge after she is savagely beaten and her fiancé is murdered in a violent street attack.
SEAN PENN: Into the Wild
Sean Penn spoke about what went into the making of his dramatic biopic Into the Wild, a film based on the true story of Christopher McCandless, who abandoned his possessions, gave his entire life savings to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Penn discussed the film with 2007 DGA Award nominee Alejandro González Iñárritu (Babel) in Los Angeles on October 7, and Director Arthur Penn (no relation), a two-time DGA Feature Film Award nominee (Bonnie and Clyde, The Miracle Worker) in New York on October 19.
JASON REITMAN: Juno
Jason Reitman spoke about creating the offbeat comic world of his title character Juno, a whip-smart Minnesota teenager who sets off on an odyssey to find the perfect parents to adopt her unborn child. Director Alison Maclean (Jesus' Son) served as moderator of the discussion that took place in New York on November 9.
JAMES C. STROUSE: Grace is Gone
James C. Strouse revealed what went on during the making of his family drama Grace is Gone, the story of a young father who takes his two daughters a cross-country road trip to put off having to tell them that their mother has just been killed while in the line of duty in Iraq. Director David Jones (Ghost Whisperer) served as moderator in New York on November 2.
