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Ever thought about what happenswhen a legendary director’srelentlesspursuit of authenticitycollideswith cutting-edge technology and a stellar cast?In the newest film fromThe Godfatherdirector Francis Ford Coppola,Adam Driverportrays Caesar Catillina, an architect trying to rebuild New York into a science fiction city after it is destroyed.
A recent article by The Guardian described the dramatic behind-the-scenes action on the set of Coppola’s much-awaited flick,Megalopolis, including a riveting account of Driver’s first day on the set. It seems that the director’sdisdain for digital effects ledhim to make somequestionable choiceswhen it came tocreating certain visual effectsfor the film.
Digitally creating that particular effect would have been quick and easy, according to one of the crew members. Nevertheless,Coppola devoted“half of a day”to an activity that could have been completed in ten minutes.
Megalopolis: Francis Ford Coppola’s Stance on Digital Effects and its Effect on Adam Driver
Francis Ford Coppola’s scorn for digital effects led him to make some hard decisions (for Adam Driver) when it came to creatingcertain visual effectsfor his upcoming flick,Megalopolis. Instead of utilizing modern, quick, and easy digital techniques, he insisted on using old-school methods involving projectors and mirrors.
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One of the crew members recently stated, as reported byThe Guardian:
“That’s great, except nobody can move.”
This led toThe Man and Boystar, 40, spending six hours strapped into a chair and having an image projected onto the side of his head using a “$100 projector,”as the crew member stated:
“So they basically strapped Adam Driver into a chair for six hours, and they literally took a $100 projector and projected an image on the side of his head. I’m all for experimentation, but this is really what you want to do the first day with your $10m actor?”
As the crew member pointed out, this could have been done in“10 minutes”digitally, but Coppola’s commitment to his vision led to unnecessary suffering for the Oscar-nominated actor:
“So he [Coppola] spends literally half of a day on what could have been done in 10 minutes.”
Coppola’s aversion to digital effects and his wish to adhere to classic techniques seem to have ultimately caused a great deal of suffering for Driver.
Francis Ford Coppola’sMegalopolis: Everything You Need to Know
TheteaserforMegalopolis, which starsAdam Driverand Nathalie Emmanuel, was recently released. As expected, after witnessing the exquisite teaser, fansare in awe. Even the director, Francis Ford Coppola, calledMegalopolishis “best work to date” (viaInstagram).
The story of the film, which is set in the city of New Rome, centers on two opposing characters: Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), and Cesar Catilina (Driver).
Megalopolishas not been an easy ride for Coppola, however. After helping to fund the$120 million project himself, the filmmaker, 85, who has been working on the project since the 1980s, was finally able to give it the green light in 2019. We learned fromDeadlinethat Coppola had to sell off a portion of his wine business, in order to, finance the movie.
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Driver even likened Coppola’s artistic curiosity to that of his own character (Cesar), as the actor toldThe Face:
“It’s kind of undefinable, which feels very general until you watch the movie…There’s not a lot of precedent for it and it’s wild on a big scale…Cesar is a visionary. He’s very much Francis [Ford Coppola], in a way, where he’s investigated every way of how people can do something and is trying not to get stuck on the right answer. That’s an idea that’s moving to me – and one that reflects Francis.”
Note that the movie has struggled to find a producer (viaTHR). Therefore, only time will tell if Coppola’s gamble pays off or ifMegalopoliswill be remembered more for its production woes than its cinematic achievements.
The film also starredNathalie Emmanuel, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Talia Shire, Aubrey Plaza, and Jason Schwartzman.
Megalopolisis expected to be released later this year.
Siddhika Prajapati
Senior Journalist & Content Head
Articles Published :3310
With over 3,300 articles carved into the digital walls of FandomWire, Siddhika Prajapati excels at creating, curating, and elevating engaging stories. She takes pride in giving these stories a home and, of course, she’s got a Google Knowledge Panel to prove it!Whether it’s reviewing the latest drop on Netflix, Amazon Prime, or Apple TV+, or analyzing the cultural echoes of a streaming hit on Paramount+ or Max, Siddhika is always writing three steps ahead of the discourse.
