The Film Book

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Shaking The Money Tree, 2nd Edition: How to Get Grants and Donations for Film and Video by Morrie Warshawski Remade in 2010 with Sam Riley playing the dazzling antihero Pinkie, Greene’s book is constantly ripe for cinematic interpretation. It’s the 1947 version, though, that stands the test of time. Richard Attenborough sparkles as the psychopathic gangster, while the criminal underbelly of interwar Brighton is also brought chillingly to life. With a combination of classic lessons and modern techniques, it’s a film production book that you can rely on.

The Film Book: A Complete Guide to the World of Cinema

W hether you’re new to filmmaking, or you’ve studied it for years, you may find that your cinematic knowledge has plateaued. So, now you seek some great filmmaking books to push your skills to the next level.

The best book-to-film adaptations ever

Solid gold satirist Armando Iannucci took a slightly unconventional approach to his 2019 adaptation of David Copperfield. Colourblind casting sees Dev Patel lead, an inspired choice. There’s a lot of joy in this film version too, even as several of the book’s characters fall into destitution. Breezy, bright and colourful, The Personal History of David Copperfield is worth streaming There are so many books on screenwriting out there and so few of them actually matter. If you want to read about the industry and the way to craft stories, you want to read the best advice out there.

10 Best Filmmaking Books to Read in 2020 - StudioBinder 10 Best Filmmaking Books to Read in 2020 - StudioBinder

I’ve a real soft spot for books that go into forensic detail about the making of just one film. But even without that, David Itzkoff’s superb dissection about the making of Sidney Lumet’s classic Networkwould be a must-read. Penned by Robert Hofler, this biography charts the rise of producer Allan Carr, whose name adorns most infamously both Grease and the Village People movie musical, Can’t Stop The Music. Oh, and Grease 2. One part the making of a technology company, another part the story of John Lasseter’s thirst to make animated films, David A Price’s The Pixar Touch is a terrific read. In particular, Lasseter’s drive to make massive, film-changing breakthroughs in digital animation. The book by Matthew Logelin, titled Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss & Love, tells the story of losing his wife to a pulmonary embolism...27 hours after she gave birth to their daughter. So both the book and the movie, with Kevin Hart in the lead role, promise to be absolute tearjerkers. Innumerable TV and movie adaptations of Alcott’s 1868 novel Little Women have been attempted over the years. But Greta Gerwig’s 2019 version is comfortably the best. It’s effortless and playful, painting the relationships of the March family sisters without dipping into the saccharine sentimentality that has given several earlier versions an unwanted aftertaste. The cast is superb too. Florence Pugh, Emma Watson, Saoirse Ronan and Eliza Scanlen play the sisters. And both Laura Dern and Timothee Chalamet shine in supporting roles.What differentiates some film books is the enviable access they’d had to the right people. That’s certainly the case with Helen de Winter’s comprehensive What I Really Want To Do Is Produce. In it, she tries to get to the bottom of what film producing is about, and how to break into it. And in doing so, she talks to the likes of Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, Lawrence Bender, and Lord Of The Rings producer Bob Shaye. As with many memoirs on this list, Huston’s latest book, Watch Me, talks around the movies as much as about them. Yet there are real gems in here, not least her working with her father, John Huston, on his last film. Ellis’s novel skewers the vapidity at the heart of contemporary American culture with alarming accuracy – Harron’s film is slightly more comedic, and is a hugely enjoyable romp with a magnificent central performance from Christian Bale. A three-in-a-bed-violent-death romp, if you will.

Film Books That Are Well Worth Your Time | Den of Geek 63 Film Books That Are Well Worth Your Time | Den of Geek

And let's be honest: never let it be said that the people in the film industry aren’t a rum bunch. Rather than think of their own films to bring to the silver screen (does anybody still call it that?), they just let authors pen their finely crafted words and stories and then turn those into motion pictures (does anybody still call it that?). Like we said, a rum bunch. Published: 1 Oct 2023 In brief: Withnail and I: From Cult to Classic; Light Over Liskeard; Hellish Nell – review Film as dream, film as music. No art passes our conscience in the way film does, and goes directly to our feelings, deep down into the dark rooms of our souls.” What makes the best book-to-film adaptations? Well, for us it's not about loyalty to the source material, although that helps. It's not about keeping every single detail, nor is it about being faithful to the characters. What the greatest book adaptations do is elevate the prose, transposing it to a different medium but keeping the heart of the source material.

Routinely referred to as the quintessential anti-war film, All Quiet on the Western Front draws heavily from Remarque’s similarly harrowing novel. Upon its release in 1930 – just a year after the book was published – it was regarded as a powerful statement of intent from the then fledgling movie industry. Its potency hasn’t dulled in the intervening years. This tete a tete has two of the greatest directors of all time chatting openly about their movies, style, substance, actors, and just the process. It's a revealing look at the master of suspense and the way his mind works. Again, I'm not the best with this stuff, so I love reading and getting better. This book has the nuts and bolts of what goes into creating the looks of your favorite films but also stories of how challenges were overcome on set. It's a problem solver's dream. Marshall, the director of films such as Pretty Woman and Beaches, has written two memoirs, but I confess I’ve only read this one. It was worth it, though. The book explores his rise to prominence through his work writing, producing and directing on the liks of Happy Daysand Mork & Mindy. It then takes in his movie career (albeit, given when the book was written, stopping in the 1990s). While I tried to avoid screenplay books here, I did want to mention this masterful autobiography. Goldman is one of our greatest storytellers and he weaves an excellent tale detailing how it all happens. He doesn't shelter you from the ups and downs.

Books Made into Movies (859 books) - Goodreads Books Made into Movies (859 books) - Goodreads

When shown on television in 1979, the adaptation of John le Carré’s much-admired Cold War spy thriller ran to 315 minutes over seven episodes. How to squeeze that into a feature film? Well, Tomas Alfredson did it with aplomb. Gary Oldman is an inspired choice as the understated, stoic and anti-Bond George Smiley: the supporting cast – including Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt and Benedict Cumberbatch – just add extra excellence. Le Carré must have been happy with the result because he makes a cameo appearance.

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Elmore Leonard and Quentin Tarantino would appear a combustible mix on paper – either the latter’s adaptation of the former’s Rum Punch would be nothing short of brilliant; or, it would stink. Thankfully, it was the first version. Tarantino amended a few details – the name obviously, and the protagonist’s ethnicity, but, for an iconoclast he remained remarkably faithful to Leonard’s book. It pays handsome and stylish dividends. You don’t have to spend long with Google to find articles from people on why movies of a particular era mattered to them so much. What makes Hadley Freeman’s terrific Life Moves Pretty Fast stand out is that not only does she come up with interesting reasons as to why her films of choice worked so well, but that she’s woven that in alongside chats with some of the people behind them. Less a great book perhaps, more a really, really interesting one. For what sets Rubins’ story of taking his idea to the movies apart is he charts the before, middle and after of its development. All from the writers’ perspective. On top of that, you get the original script for Groundhog Day that Rubins wrote, which is notably different, before it went through the system. Scorsese has already said that he doesn't care about box office numbers since they are not a good way to measure art, but the box office is all that studios in Hollywood seem to care about. Inevitably covering Henson’s early work, experimental shorts and television breakthrough with the likes of The Muppets and Sesame Street, there’s also no shortage of material here for movie nerds to feast on.