![]() ![]() Apple’s publicity and awards team, led by Rita Cooper Lee, brought in a village of canny Oscar campaigners, from Terry Curtin to Strategy PR - and screened the hell out of the movie. That energy delivered the first-ever Best Picture win for a streamer. “We could tell from the beginning that it was going to be a film that they were going to really fight for.” Rousselet said Apple presented its awards strategy before the film’s August 13 release with “all the ideas, what what they wanted to do, with all the divisions working together, between marketing, international, theatrical, and video,” he said. Apple TV+ committed to an Oscar campaign when they bought the movie. “That was a delight, to sit there and realize that the potential for humor in sign language is vast,” Heder told me last August, “because it is such a visual language.” 4. Heder learned American Sign Language before production and figured out how to translate her words into living, breathing sign language that was often funnier than the original, especially in Kotsur’s expressive and improvisatory hands. Yes, I stuck to my guns and there was a long time when I thought ‘OK, because of what I believe and because of how I feel this movie should be made, it’s never going to be made.’” “I would rather see the movie die and never get made than get made the wrong way. ![]() “It’s frustrating being an independent filmmaker, that you’re supposed to run out and get movie stars in your movie and that’s how your film gets financed,” Heder said backstage on Oscar night. “La Famille Belier” featured hearing actors. Kenneth Branagh, Sian Heder, Eskil Vogt, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Denis Villeneuve, Adam McKay and Zach Baylin attend the Writers Panel during the 37th Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival Photo by Rebecca Sapp, (Photo by Rebecca Sapp/Getty Images for SBIFF 3. The script impressed the producers so much that they hired her to direct as well. The producers hired the right writer, Sian Heder.Ī veteran TV writer and showrunner (“Orange is the New Black,” Apple’s “Little America”) who made her directorial debut with the 2016 drama “Tallulah,” Heder pitched Lionsgate on moving the setting to the beleaguered fishing community in Gloucester, MA., where she summered growing up. When Wachsberger left the studio, Rousselet bought back the rights and the two reteamed.Ģ. The movie was based on a proven success.Īfter the original 2014 film “La Famille Belier” became a massive hit in France, Rousselet sold the remake rights to his old pal Patrick Wachsberger at Lionsgate. That’s one reason why “The Power of the Dog,” which scored 12 nominations on the strength of its production values, couldn’t win the 10-picture preferential ballot on craft and international support alone. With eligible Academy voters growing to nearly 9,500 since #OscarsSoWhite in 2015, there’s been a jump in voters who only vote for Best Picture. The movie not only fit the Apple demo - family-friendly, accessible, inclusive - but also played as a soft lob to mainstream Academy voters. Seth Rogen’s ‘Platonic’ Costumes Are Peak Eastside L.A.Īpple TV+ plunked down $25 million to acquire the small drama, a number theatrical distributors couldn’t justify when the pandemic closed theaters. It swept the festival’s awards, winning the Grand Jury, Audience Award, Best Director, and Ensemble Acting prizes. Buyers didn’t need a theater to see an Oscar contender: It was a well-made, accessible heart-tugger with strong performances from British newcomer Emilia Jones and the deaf actors playing her mother (Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin), father (Kotsur), and brother (Daniel Durant). The film’s Academy Awards campaign began at virtual Sundance 2021. I have about 550 text messages this morning.” “People are very much aware of the movie. “Today the movie is being seen everywhere,” said Rousselet. Now, more people than ever will see “CODA,” which returns to theatrical release April 1 after winning Oscars for writer-director Sian Heder for Adapted Screenplay, Troy Kotsur for Supporting Actor, and Best Picture. And, if we lose, we’re going to be the losers overnight. But after a string of wins, “you start losing sleep, you go from the challenger’s seat to almost the frontrunner. “In the last few weeks, as long as we were in the challenger’s seat, I was perfectly fine,” he said. The morning after the Oscars, “ CODA” producer Philippe Rousselet was ready to get some sleep. ![]()
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