06.26.08
The Summer Update
John Carroll Lynch checks in from Boston
It is a warm and sunny day in Boston as I write this. Rowers are out on the Charles and look as beautiful and graceful as ever. At least it appears that way from my perspective on the bridge. I know from my limited personal experience on the water that rowing is far from beautiful and graceful when you’re in the boat. It’s grueling – one of the most difficult sports there is.
I am still in Boston, well past the time when my part of the film Ashecliffe should have been wrapped. The film, from the book Shutter Island by Denis Lehane, stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Sir Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams and many others. It is a huge film and has gone, like many things, not as planned. But it will be a great movie, I believe, because the script is great and the people making it are some of the best in the film business – particularly our director, Martin Scorsese.
Remember Minnesota, is coming along, too… not as we planned but it is coming, and since our last newsletter we have made great leaps forward. Like the film I am working on now, when it is made it will be the best because the script is great, and the people who are putting it together are the best. Our recent rewrite has honed an already strong script into what Mikael Salomon, our director, said is one of “the best he has ever read.”
Mikael scored another huge success with his latest miniseries The Andromeda Strain which aired on A&E Network in May. Starring Benjamin Bratt, Eric McCormack, Ricky Shroder and Andre Braugher, the 4-hour film is based on the book that made writer Michael Crichton a best-selling novelist in 1969. It was Mikael’s second miniseries project with producers Tony and Ridley Scott.
(Benjamin Bratt, Mikael Salomon and Daniel Dae Kim at the premiere)
I am struck by how great it is to have Mikael aboard and very fired up. We are lucky to have him.
We are also extremely fortunate to have our newest producer Diane Nabatoff so fully committed to our project. She spear-headed our recent rewrite and is helping to finish up the last of our financing. She’s such an important part of our team, we’ve written more about her below.
While these may not be household names, they are the very best at what they do and they will serve this picture well.
In the last two months we have been in a calm and the wind is picking up again. The best thing about rowing is that you don’t need to wait for that. You just need to grab an oar. So grab one with us, take to the river, and see what happens.
All best, John Carroll Lynch
Diane Nabatoff brings a world of experience
Among the more impressive facts about Diane Nabatoff are that she holds an MBA from Harvard University and that she’s a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In addition, she’s worked in theater with the legendary Joseph Papp at The New York Shakespeare Festival; consulted with a London-based documentary film company; worked in programming at HBO; understudied both female roles in the Broadway Production of I Love my Wife; and performed in off-Broadway shows, nightclubs and television commercials as a singer-actress.
Now onto her impressive roster of film experience. She began as an associate producer before claiming the title of Senior Vice President of Production for Henry Winkler’s production company. From there, she was a Producer at Interscope Communications, where she developed and produced films that include: Very Bad Things, written and directed by Pete Berg and starring Christian Slater, Cameron Diaz and Daniel Stern; The Proposition starring Kenneth Branagh, Madeleine Stowe and William Hurt; Operation Dumbo Drop, directed by Simon Wincer and starring Danny Glover, Ray Liotta and Denis Leary; Separate Lives starring Jim Belushi and Linda Hamilton; Holy Matrimony, directed by Leonard Nimoy and starring Patricia Arquette; and Body Language starring Tom Berenger.
As an Executive-Producer she has worked on projects with Heather Graham, Sissy Spacek, Alan Cumming, Ted Danson and Charles Dutton. In 2000, Diane founded Tiara Blu Films where she has produced Take The Lead starring Antonio Banderas, and Narc starring Ray Liotta and Jason Patric. She is currently developing projects at studios and cable networks as well as several features that will be independently financed.
Rowing is in the news
China’s Pride: A 24-Karat Olympic Machine
From the New York Times, June 1, 2008
QIANDAO LAKE, China — When Igor Grinko, a former Soviet coach with an impressive résumé, agreed to take over the Chinese rowing team four years ago, Olympic officials outlined their expectations with a simple equation: one gold equals 1,000 silvers. “Silver? It means nothing here; you might as well finish last,” he said. “Coaches like me come, help them win gold medals, or we are fired.”
In anticipation of China’s debut as an Olympic host, officials here have seized the opportunity to prove their country is a world power in sports. Rowing is at the heart of China’s plan to capture, for the first time, more gold medals than any other nation at the Olympics.
Final Olympic Qualification Regatta
From World Rowing, June 19, 2008
POZNAN, Poland — A grand total of 100 nations competed in rowing’s Olympic Qualification process which began at the 2007 World Rowing Championships in Munich and continued through 2007 and 2008 with conti-nental qualification events around the world. This is 15 nations more than the 85 from Athens and 75 from Sydney, and is a huge step forward in rowing’s global appeal.
Fifty-eight nations will be represented in the sport of rowing this summer in Beijing, three more than at the Athens Olympics in 2004. The 29 boats qualified today bring the tally that will compete in Beijing to 204 and the total number of athletes to 550. Australia now has a full house with 14 boats qualified, while Germany and the USA will each send 13 boats to Beijing.
The Ins and Outs of Rowing
From the Detroit Free Press, June 13, 2008
The boat: It’s about a foot wide, barely wide enough to cradle your feet, firmly lashed into Velcro-topped athletic water shoes. The seat is mounted on top of the boat, riding on rails. And the oars each extend about 9 1/2 feet on either side.
Getting in: It takes some coordination. There is a single strip where it is safe to stand as you get in. If you step anywhere else you can punch right through the fragile shell.
The stroke: Done correctly, the end result feels something like sitting on a tightrope, the long oars acting like a balance bar and the gentle pressure of the water serving to keep you balanced upright.
The real deal: Once you get the hang of the delicate interplay between water and oar, once your body settles into the rhythm that uses 85% of the muscles you have, it’s delightfully… easy.
