July 13, 2023

Sneak Peek: Tom Hanks on what it takes to make a movie

00:02:23

Summary

Main Topic: The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, a novel by Tom Hanks, and the behind-the-scenes story of filmmaking.

Key Points:

Tom Hanks' novel, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, tells the fictional but based-on-truth story of how a multi-million dollar superhero movie gets made.
The book highlights the contributions of many people, including experts, technicians, and crew members, who work together to solve problems and bring a movie to life.
Tom Hanks emphasizes that filmmaking is a collaborative process, and the making of a movie is not solely about the director, screenwriter, or stars.
He shares his personal experiences and insights into the filmmaking process, drawing from his own experiences working on various movies.
The novel is a tribute to the people behind the scenes who work tirelessly to create the magic of filmmaking.

Participants: Tom Hanks, the author of The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, and Shamita, the host of Apple News in Conversation.

Takeaways:

The making of a movie is a complex and collaborative process that involves many people working together to solve problems and bring a story to life.

Show Notes

Tom Hanks has learned a thing or two about moviemaking during his decades-long career. Ultimately, he says, it’s not about one person’s vision or direction; it’s about the countless people behind the camera — and a few in front of it — who make a movie possible. That’s the foundational idea behind his debut novel, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece. Hanks spoke to Apple News In Conversation host Shumita Basu before SAG-AFTRA, the union that represents actors, decided to strike. But his book and their conversation are a reminder of all that goes into creating the entertainment many of us take for granted. Listen to the full interview on Apple Podcasts.

Transcript

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Shamita Basu: Hey there, it's Shamita here. This week on our interview podcast, Apple News in Conversation, we have an exciting guest, Tom Hanks. He's been making movies for almost 50 years.

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Tom Hanks: But if you ask me, I'm not the star, or at least not the only star of the show. The making of the movie is not about some individual vision. It's not even about the laser-like attention of the director or the screenwriter or anybody in it. That movie is made by an awful lot of people who, using their expertise and their taste and their practice talents, solve one problem after another.

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Shamita Basu: This is the foundational idea behind Tom Hanks' debut novel called The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece. It tells the fictional but based on some truth story of how a multi-million dollar superhero movie gets made. Literally every part of it. The comic book that inspires the movie, the casting of its stars, the grueling days on set.

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Tom Hanks: I caught up with Tom before SAG the union that represents actors decided to strike joining the writers union. And although we didn't talk about the strikes in our conversation, his book is a good reminder in this moment when Hollywood is in such a state of crisis about what it takes to make the entertainment many of us take for granted.

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Shamita Basu: Tom writes in rich, real detail about the people behind every step. When I had the opportunity to say, "OK, well, would you like to write a novel?" because I had written a collection of short stories. And I said, "Of course, I want to write a novel. What should it be about?"

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Tom Hanks: My editor, Peter Gathers, says, "Well, you know, you have a job that people would love to hear more about." I said, "I'm not interested in writing something about, oh, and here's how this movie got made." But as soon as I said that, I said, "But I would like to write about the people that I make movies with because they are actually how movies are made."

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Shamita Basu: We talk about the magic of filmmaking, the real-life experiences that inspired his book, and lots more. To hear the full interview, check out Apple News in Conversation in the podcast app.