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The early morning crowd that’s gathered in the large
conference room sits in anticipation awaiting the arrival of
the Guest of Honor. He is late, due to “transportation mix-
ups.” We’ve already endured the meandering commentary of one
random staff member and now get to hear from the manager of
the Expo, stalling.
The Screenwriting Expo has arranged for there to be several
Guests throughout the conference, those who’ve ‘made it’ to
come speak to those who have not. And with LA traffic and
tight schedules, sometimes things don’t run as smoothly as
everyone would like.
After a few answered questions and complaints, the door
finally opens and in he walks. Tan slacks, black button down
shirt, Michael Goldenberg has the classic lazily composed
uniform of a writer. Goldenberg doesn’t walk in with a pompous
air, he’s casual and shyly cool, the high school nerd made
good.
conference room sits in anticipation awaiting the arrival of
the Guest of Honor. He is late, due to “transportation mix-
ups.” We’ve already endured the meandering commentary of one
random staff member and now get to hear from the manager of
the Expo, stalling.
The Screenwriting Expo has arranged for there to be several
Guests throughout the conference, those who’ve ‘made it’ to
come speak to those who have not. And with LA traffic and
tight schedules, sometimes things don’t run as smoothly as
everyone would like.
After a few answered questions and complaints, the door
finally opens and in he walks. Tan slacks, black button down
shirt, Michael Goldenberg has the classic lazily composed
uniform of a writer. Goldenberg doesn’t walk in with a pompous
air, he’s casual and shyly cool, the high school nerd made
good.
On the twenty-sixth morning of October 2007, Rilian had the
opportunity to meet and chat with Michael Goldenberg, thanks
to the Screenwriting Expo organized by Creative Screenwriting
magazine.
Without further ado, here's Rilian's report:
opportunity to meet and chat with Michael Goldenberg, thanks
to the Screenwriting Expo organized by Creative Screenwriting
magazine.
Without further ado, here's Rilian's report:
One Thing Led to Another...
He speaks about his early career: starting out as a playwright
in New York. After the romance of being a struggling artist
wore off, he exploited a contact he had in Hollywood – the
friend of his aunt. He wrote what is called a spec script, or
an original screenplay. It got him a lot of attention and from
there he moved on to write and direct Bed of Roses with
Christian Slater and Mary Stuart Masterson.
He then received a call asking him to work on Contact, a novel
by Carl Sagan. Contact had been struggling through the
Hollywood circuit for quite sometime trying to become a movie
and many people shifted in and out of the project. Goldenberg
even left to make Bed of Roses and then came back to Contact.
By that time, Robert Zemeckis had come on board and
revitalized the project. The novel drifted around the studios
for ten years, and in 6 months with Goldenberg and Zemeckis it
was going into production with Jodie Foster and Matthew
McConaughey set to star.
Goldenberg then took a meeting with David Heyman, producer of
the Harry Potter movies. At the time, Heyman was looking for a
writer for Philosopher’s Stone. Goldenberg felt the first
meeting didn’t go very well, but offered the draft of the
opening sequence he wrote up prior to their meeting. Heyman
accepted the pages, though the final product doesn’t resemble
Goldenberg’s draft at all.
That, he feels, directly led to his next job which was writing
the latest Peter Pan adaptation. Though he has no proof, he
believes Heyman and that “dummy” scene somehow reached the Pan
producers: Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher and Patrick McCormick.
Goldenberg modestly describes the Pan producers’ desire for
him to write Pan with a sense of wonderment, like he doesn’t
quite understand why they came to him with the project, why he
was suddenly the guy for the job. This is why he believes
Heyman had to have played a role in it.
So thrown by the eagerness and the subject of the project,
Goldenberg even said no...twice! He said no on the grounds
that Pan is a classic story with so many adaptations, we
weren’t in need of another one at the time. Hook had most
recently come out and was a wonderful retelling. However, the
more he thought about it, the more he was able to see the
relevancy the story had to modern times and agreed.
He had to, as he says, “get in touch with his inner Wendy.” He
looked at the story as Wendy’s and wrote the screenplay with
her as the central figure. Though, director PJ Hogan had a
different view of how the story should play and eventually
rewrote the script, he did keep Wendy as the character through
which we view the world of Pan.
By that time, Steve Kloves was going off to do his own thing
and Heyman was once again looking for a writer. He turned to
Goldenberg.
Goldenberg admits with a bashful, self-conscious laugh, that
his first thought was “this’ll be the first thing on my
obituary.” It’s a line stolen from the brilliant William
Goldman, writer of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The
Princess Bride, among others. Goldman jested about winning an
Oscar that it’s the only thing for which you will be
remembered. Goldenberg knows that no matter what he moves on
to do, in his credits Order will always be listed first.
in New York. After the romance of being a struggling artist
wore off, he exploited a contact he had in Hollywood – the
friend of his aunt. He wrote what is called a spec script, or
an original screenplay. It got him a lot of attention and from
there he moved on to write and direct Bed of Roses with
Christian Slater and Mary Stuart Masterson.
He then received a call asking him to work on Contact, a novel
by Carl Sagan. Contact had been struggling through the
Hollywood circuit for quite sometime trying to become a movie
and many people shifted in and out of the project. Goldenberg
even left to make Bed of Roses and then came back to Contact.
By that time, Robert Zemeckis had come on board and
revitalized the project. The novel drifted around the studios
for ten years, and in 6 months with Goldenberg and Zemeckis it
was going into production with Jodie Foster and Matthew
McConaughey set to star.
Goldenberg then took a meeting with David Heyman, producer of
the Harry Potter movies. At the time, Heyman was looking for a
writer for Philosopher’s Stone. Goldenberg felt the first
meeting didn’t go very well, but offered the draft of the
opening sequence he wrote up prior to their meeting. Heyman
accepted the pages, though the final product doesn’t resemble
Goldenberg’s draft at all.
That, he feels, directly led to his next job which was writing
the latest Peter Pan adaptation. Though he has no proof, he
believes Heyman and that “dummy” scene somehow reached the Pan
producers: Douglas Wick, Lucy Fisher and Patrick McCormick.
Goldenberg modestly describes the Pan producers’ desire for
him to write Pan with a sense of wonderment, like he doesn’t
quite understand why they came to him with the project, why he
was suddenly the guy for the job. This is why he believes
Heyman had to have played a role in it.
So thrown by the eagerness and the subject of the project,
Goldenberg even said no...twice! He said no on the grounds
that Pan is a classic story with so many adaptations, we
weren’t in need of another one at the time. Hook had most
recently come out and was a wonderful retelling. However, the
more he thought about it, the more he was able to see the
relevancy the story had to modern times and agreed.
He had to, as he says, “get in touch with his inner Wendy.” He
looked at the story as Wendy’s and wrote the screenplay with
her as the central figure. Though, director PJ Hogan had a
different view of how the story should play and eventually
rewrote the script, he did keep Wendy as the character through
which we view the world of Pan.
By that time, Steve Kloves was going off to do his own thing
and Heyman was once again looking for a writer. He turned to
Goldenberg.
Goldenberg admits with a bashful, self-conscious laugh, that
his first thought was “this’ll be the first thing on my
obituary.” It’s a line stolen from the brilliant William
Goldman, writer of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The
Princess Bride, among others. Goldman jested about winning an
Oscar that it’s the only thing for which you will be
remembered. Goldenberg knows that no matter what he moves on
to do, in his credits Order will always be listed first.
The Start of a Beautiful Relationship
Receiving the call from Heyman, Goldenberg rushed to catch up
with the story. He ran out to the theaters to see Prisoner of
Azkaban and reluctantly bought the hardcover edition of Order.
He laments over having to carry the heavy book back and forth
to London to make his notes while he was having those first
meetings with everyone.
He visited the set while the Goblet of Fire was still in
production describes them all as “lovely people.” Rowling
herself he found to be “agreeable and supportive” to his
proposed changes.
He had conversations with her about adapting novels which he
has done several times now. The adaptation of a novel is
always about compression, he says. The process now is
“practically intuitive” to him. He goes to find the spine of
the story and then everything that supports that and chops out
the rest, more or less. It may be a lovely part of the book
but if it’s not necessary to the spine, it shouldn’t go into
the movie. He says it’s about “being ruthless when translating
it to a different medium.”
He spoke with Rowling, whom he calls Jo, about using a
“different muscle set” for going between writing a novel and a
script. They both thought it was like “different ends of the
telescope.” For the script, the process “distills it down” to
the basic story.
When he looked at Order he found that though it was much
thicker than its predecessors, there wasn’t necessarily more
narrative. He actually found it much easier than other
adaptations he’s done in the past. The choices were “obvious,”
there was a “strong storyline with strong, established
characters and a great villain.” He laughingly describes it as
“cherry picking.”
However, the first read through of the script with the entire
cast was a giant reality check for him. The process finally
went from abstract to reality. He got his first taste of how
enormous an enterprise Harry Potter actually is in sitting
down with the cast, directors and producers. This was larger
than anything he had done before. “It’s a global phenomenon
and you have to subordinate yourself to that.”
Goldenberg gives credit to Heyman for his casting. He did a
great job casting Goldenberg himself and David Yates, the
director. The two hit it off immediately. They both wanted to
do a good job and prove themselves to Rowling. He connected
with the themes of alienation and anger so he feels he was
well-suited to the story. He wanted to convey to Rowling how
seriously he took it. He and Yates were earnest in their
desire to produce a good product.
with the story. He ran out to the theaters to see Prisoner of
Azkaban and reluctantly bought the hardcover edition of Order.
He laments over having to carry the heavy book back and forth
to London to make his notes while he was having those first
meetings with everyone.
He visited the set while the Goblet of Fire was still in
production describes them all as “lovely people.” Rowling
herself he found to be “agreeable and supportive” to his
proposed changes.
He had conversations with her about adapting novels which he
has done several times now. The adaptation of a novel is
always about compression, he says. The process now is
“practically intuitive” to him. He goes to find the spine of
the story and then everything that supports that and chops out
the rest, more or less. It may be a lovely part of the book
but if it’s not necessary to the spine, it shouldn’t go into
the movie. He says it’s about “being ruthless when translating
it to a different medium.”
He spoke with Rowling, whom he calls Jo, about using a
“different muscle set” for going between writing a novel and a
script. They both thought it was like “different ends of the
telescope.” For the script, the process “distills it down” to
the basic story.
When he looked at Order he found that though it was much
thicker than its predecessors, there wasn’t necessarily more
narrative. He actually found it much easier than other
adaptations he’s done in the past. The choices were “obvious,”
there was a “strong storyline with strong, established
characters and a great villain.” He laughingly describes it as
“cherry picking.”
However, the first read through of the script with the entire
cast was a giant reality check for him. The process finally
went from abstract to reality. He got his first taste of how
enormous an enterprise Harry Potter actually is in sitting
down with the cast, directors and producers. This was larger
than anything he had done before. “It’s a global phenomenon
and you have to subordinate yourself to that.”
Goldenberg gives credit to Heyman for his casting. He did a
great job casting Goldenberg himself and David Yates, the
director. The two hit it off immediately. They both wanted to
do a good job and prove themselves to Rowling. He connected
with the themes of alienation and anger so he feels he was
well-suited to the story. He wanted to convey to Rowling how
seriously he took it. He and Yates were earnest in their
desire to produce a good product.
Freedom from Rowling
When he finally met with Rowling, he expected her to be jaded
and cynical, he expected it of Heyman as well, with Order
being the fifth in the franchise, but neither was like that at
all. He reveals that she wanted to take a step back from the
story. She trusted them to make a good movie. She did read
several drafts and was always available for questions, but in
large part, left them to it. For this, they felt even more
strongly the desire to make good for her.
Goldenberg admits to practically begging her for notes.
Rowling was happy with what he’d done, but eventually emailed
him. He says it was “little stuff.” She never ripped him
apart, her notes were more on things like wording and
phrasing, and “how the characters speak.” He even asked Heyman
about how little she criticized. Heyman said that was typical
Rowling. Heyman conveyed to him that she has an ear for the
characters’ diction and that’s basically all she comments on.
Goldenberg said after a while of writing the characters, he
too could work out the characters’ speech without thinking
much about it.
The one major correction was when he’d cut Kreacher from the
film. He figured since we hadn’t seen much of House-Elves
since the second book, they weren’t relevant. When he received
that note, he admitted to coming up with the Kreacher scene we
have in the film in about five minutes.
When asked about how he was able to pull of the torture scene
with Umbridge’s quill, he replies that they were able to “use
the capital of [Rowling’s] popularity to push how far you
could go” in a ‘children’s film’. There was more freedom
because Potter is so established and since it came from the
book, there wasn’t much of a fight over what was appropriate
to show.
and cynical, he expected it of Heyman as well, with Order
being the fifth in the franchise, but neither was like that at
all. He reveals that she wanted to take a step back from the
story. She trusted them to make a good movie. She did read
several drafts and was always available for questions, but in
large part, left them to it. For this, they felt even more
strongly the desire to make good for her.
Goldenberg admits to practically begging her for notes.
Rowling was happy with what he’d done, but eventually emailed
him. He says it was “little stuff.” She never ripped him
apart, her notes were more on things like wording and
phrasing, and “how the characters speak.” He even asked Heyman
about how little she criticized. Heyman said that was typical
Rowling. Heyman conveyed to him that she has an ear for the
characters’ diction and that’s basically all she comments on.
Goldenberg said after a while of writing the characters, he
too could work out the characters’ speech without thinking
much about it.
The one major correction was when he’d cut Kreacher from the
film. He figured since we hadn’t seen much of House-Elves
since the second book, they weren’t relevant. When he received
that note, he admitted to coming up with the Kreacher scene we
have in the film in about five minutes.
When asked about how he was able to pull of the torture scene
with Umbridge’s quill, he replies that they were able to “use
the capital of [Rowling’s] popularity to push how far you
could go” in a ‘children’s film’. There was more freedom
because Potter is so established and since it came from the
book, there wasn’t much of a fight over what was appropriate
to show.
Goldenberg describes the minefield of working with different
directors and the strains that can have on the final product
as really unnecessary. It’s the job of the writer to serve the
story in the best way possible, while also trying to please
the director, the studios and the public.
It’s also about navigating the creative gap between the writer
and the director. In reality, there shouldn’t be a gap as they
are both different aspects of the same job of storytelling,
but in effect, since there are so many pressures in filmmaking
there can be clashes and even brutal separations. Sometimes
these conflicts can ultimately damage the story.
Each director has a different style. The director on Contact
before Zemeckis came on board always asked the question “what
would really happen.” Zemeckis thought more about how things
would work/look cinematically. In that sense, Goldenberg felt
he had to guard the story to keep it real. With Hogan, since
he had a very clear image of how the story should look and
feel, Goldenberg felt it was best to give Peter Pan over to
him.
He and Yates were inducted into this new universe together;
both were the new kids on the block. Since they both felt they
had something to prove and they both took Potter seriously,
they formed a quick bond.
David Yates started his career in Britain working for the BBC.
“He comes from a culture that respects the writer.” He was
eager for Goldenberg’s input. Goldenberg was always invited to
set and viewed several rough cuts of the film. This is not
usually the case in moviemaking. The writer is generally
thought to be intrusive and annoying; often, he or she is
quickly separated from the project.
Goldenberg felt the difference immediately and appreciated it.
Their relationship was “less adversarial,” Goldenberg didn’t
feel he had to protect the story. He felt free to write openly
and experiment. He admits to writing scenes that Yates was
uncomfortable with, so they reworked them and produced a
better scene with which everyone was pleased.
Goldenberg found ways to find a solution to help whatever
problem the story was presenting to Yates. He feels that
“being that included and involved in the process made a better
movie.” The two filmmakers respected each other and worked
together to make as great a finished product as possible.
He was even able to invite his niece to the set. At that time,
she was nine-years old and an avid Potter fan, she had even
dressed as Hermione for Halloween. Goldenberg smiles with
obvious affection at the memory. He admits to being a Star
Warsgeek when he was younger so seeing his niece experience
Potter like that, with such awe, brought everything home to
him.
directors and the strains that can have on the final product
as really unnecessary. It’s the job of the writer to serve the
story in the best way possible, while also trying to please
the director, the studios and the public.
It’s also about navigating the creative gap between the writer
and the director. In reality, there shouldn’t be a gap as they
are both different aspects of the same job of storytelling,
but in effect, since there are so many pressures in filmmaking
there can be clashes and even brutal separations. Sometimes
these conflicts can ultimately damage the story.
Each director has a different style. The director on Contact
before Zemeckis came on board always asked the question “what
would really happen.” Zemeckis thought more about how things
would work/look cinematically. In that sense, Goldenberg felt
he had to guard the story to keep it real. With Hogan, since
he had a very clear image of how the story should look and
feel, Goldenberg felt it was best to give Peter Pan over to
him.
He and Yates were inducted into this new universe together;
both were the new kids on the block. Since they both felt they
had something to prove and they both took Potter seriously,
they formed a quick bond.
David Yates started his career in Britain working for the BBC.
“He comes from a culture that respects the writer.” He was
eager for Goldenberg’s input. Goldenberg was always invited to
set and viewed several rough cuts of the film. This is not
usually the case in moviemaking. The writer is generally
thought to be intrusive and annoying; often, he or she is
quickly separated from the project.
Goldenberg felt the difference immediately and appreciated it.
Their relationship was “less adversarial,” Goldenberg didn’t
feel he had to protect the story. He felt free to write openly
and experiment. He admits to writing scenes that Yates was
uncomfortable with, so they reworked them and produced a
better scene with which everyone was pleased.
Goldenberg found ways to find a solution to help whatever
problem the story was presenting to Yates. He feels that
“being that included and involved in the process made a better
movie.” The two filmmakers respected each other and worked
together to make as great a finished product as possible.
He was even able to invite his niece to the set. At that time,
she was nine-years old and an avid Potter fan, she had even
dressed as Hermione for Halloween. Goldenberg smiles with
obvious affection at the memory. He admits to being a Star
Warsgeek when he was younger so seeing his niece experience
Potter like that, with such awe, brought everything home to
him.
Directorial Relationship
Making a Scene
Being a writing convention, the conversation pretty much
revolves around writing and technique. So the topic moves to
individual scenes from Order. The moderator, who clearly has
not read the book, asks how Goldenberg came up with the
memorable scene of Luna standing barefoot in the woods. He
admits that it was that image that stuck with him as a viewer.
Goldenberg recalls the part of Order where it is mentioned
that Luna’s things were being stolen. He wanted to embed a
scene where Harry and Luna bond into the film, but he was
afraid that if he kept the scene straight from the book it
would get cut. A similar scene had already been cast to the
cutting room floor. So he included the characters sharing
information that bonded them together, their visions of death,
set it in the forest with the Thestrals and somehow the image
came to him of Luna barefoot. He made it so her shoes were the
objects stolen and he got the scene of Luna and Harry
connecting into the film.
He reveals that the scene he wanted to see most in the film
the most was a St. Mungo’s scene. He admits that while reading
it he was entranced by St. Mungo’s and immediately began
imagining it on film. Originally, it started out as a 6 page
scene. He tried to anchor it by having the scene between Harry
and Sirius take place in the waiting room. He kept making it
shorter hoping it could make it in the final film. It ended up
being compressed to a 90 second fly through just enough for us
to see it, but it was eventually cut. That’s the scene he
misses most and still wishes could have been included.
And the scene he most connected with? Snape’s worst memory
provides the theme that struck a chord with Goldenberg. The
Pensieve memory is the classic coming of age moment where
Harry realizes James isn’t the hero he always imagined him to
be. It’s this loss of innocence theme that Goldenberg
connected with and was concerned would get cut. He feels it
was thematically important but not necessarily essential to
the Order storyline. He is proud he managed to squeeze it into
the film.
This scene is also the one that resonated with Daniel
Radcliffe. Connecting with the loss of innocence and coming of
age theme in the memory Harry witnesses, D. Rad shared the
same concern of it being cut. He even asked Goldenberg about
it during that first table reading. He really felt the scene
held a lot of significance to Harry’s character and wanted to
see it in the film.
Goldenberg is pleased with the finished product and, though he
would still like to visit St. Mungo’s, thinks all the major
points of the story were covered. He may be sad that some
things got cut, but in the end, he assures that is just proof
of those scenes not being vital.
revolves around writing and technique. So the topic moves to
individual scenes from Order. The moderator, who clearly has
not read the book, asks how Goldenberg came up with the
memorable scene of Luna standing barefoot in the woods. He
admits that it was that image that stuck with him as a viewer.
Goldenberg recalls the part of Order where it is mentioned
that Luna’s things were being stolen. He wanted to embed a
scene where Harry and Luna bond into the film, but he was
afraid that if he kept the scene straight from the book it
would get cut. A similar scene had already been cast to the
cutting room floor. So he included the characters sharing
information that bonded them together, their visions of death,
set it in the forest with the Thestrals and somehow the image
came to him of Luna barefoot. He made it so her shoes were the
objects stolen and he got the scene of Luna and Harry
connecting into the film.
He reveals that the scene he wanted to see most in the film
the most was a St. Mungo’s scene. He admits that while reading
it he was entranced by St. Mungo’s and immediately began
imagining it on film. Originally, it started out as a 6 page
scene. He tried to anchor it by having the scene between Harry
and Sirius take place in the waiting room. He kept making it
shorter hoping it could make it in the final film. It ended up
being compressed to a 90 second fly through just enough for us
to see it, but it was eventually cut. That’s the scene he
misses most and still wishes could have been included.
And the scene he most connected with? Snape’s worst memory
provides the theme that struck a chord with Goldenberg. The
Pensieve memory is the classic coming of age moment where
Harry realizes James isn’t the hero he always imagined him to
be. It’s this loss of innocence theme that Goldenberg
connected with and was concerned would get cut. He feels it
was thematically important but not necessarily essential to
the Order storyline. He is proud he managed to squeeze it into
the film.
This scene is also the one that resonated with Daniel
Radcliffe. Connecting with the loss of innocence and coming of
age theme in the memory Harry witnesses, D. Rad shared the
same concern of it being cut. He even asked Goldenberg about
it during that first table reading. He really felt the scene
held a lot of significance to Harry’s character and wanted to
see it in the film.
Goldenberg is pleased with the finished product and, though he
would still like to visit St. Mungo’s, thinks all the major
points of the story were covered. He may be sad that some
things got cut, but in the end, he assures that is just proof
of those scenes not being vital.
Private Time
After the main interview concludes, the moderator opens it up
to some Q&A from the audience. Many questions mimic those
already asked, but one person manages to stump Goldenberg. It
was a specific Bed of Roses question. Goldenberg admits,
somewhat sheepishly, that it’s been a long time since he’s
looked at it so he couldn’t answer the question properly.
Our time with Goldenberg is through, but he sticks around a
bit to meet with people as everyone makes their way out of the
large conference room. Approachable and kind, Goldenberg
smiles at the visitors who have come out to see him as they
pass.
He smiles as I approach him and asks about the website when I
mention that I run one. We talk about how warm and loving
everyone who works on Harry Potter is and he admits to me that
now he’s afraid he’s spoiled. He spent three wonderful years
working on Order and now he must move on to other projects.
He gives credit to Heyman who works so hard to keep
“Hollywood” out. Heyman strives to keep the set and those who
work on it “down to earth.” Goldenberg describes it as living
in a “little bubble,” separated and protected from the
pressures of big studios with high demands for their
investments.
Though it is a global phenomenon, you couldn’t tell on set or
by working with the people. They do not have problems with
attitudes or other influences poking their noses into the
making of the film. It is secluded from that sort of thing and
surrounded only by those who believe in it and are serious
about producing a good product.
The people were great and he had a great time making the film.
He knows this has been a singular experience. It is rare when
such a great film with a dedicated group of collaborators come
around, and he realizes it’s unlikely he shall come across it
again. He’s honored to have been a part of it, that much is
evident in the grin on his face and the slight broadening of
his shoulders as he speaks about his time on Potter.
He was a fan of Harry Potter before being asked to come on
board. He’s read all the books and feels he was best suited to
adapt Order. He connected most with the subject and themes in
Order and, if he had been given the choice, it would have been
this fifth installment. And though he’s been completely ruined
by the indulgence of his working environment on Potter he
wouldn’t change a thing.
He finds it fulfilling to help other writers tell their
stories, but looks forward to getting back to some of his own
original work.
to some Q&A from the audience. Many questions mimic those
already asked, but one person manages to stump Goldenberg. It
was a specific Bed of Roses question. Goldenberg admits,
somewhat sheepishly, that it’s been a long time since he’s
looked at it so he couldn’t answer the question properly.
Our time with Goldenberg is through, but he sticks around a
bit to meet with people as everyone makes their way out of the
large conference room. Approachable and kind, Goldenberg
smiles at the visitors who have come out to see him as they
pass.
He smiles as I approach him and asks about the website when I
mention that I run one. We talk about how warm and loving
everyone who works on Harry Potter is and he admits to me that
now he’s afraid he’s spoiled. He spent three wonderful years
working on Order and now he must move on to other projects.
He gives credit to Heyman who works so hard to keep
“Hollywood” out. Heyman strives to keep the set and those who
work on it “down to earth.” Goldenberg describes it as living
in a “little bubble,” separated and protected from the
pressures of big studios with high demands for their
investments.
Though it is a global phenomenon, you couldn’t tell on set or
by working with the people. They do not have problems with
attitudes or other influences poking their noses into the
making of the film. It is secluded from that sort of thing and
surrounded only by those who believe in it and are serious
about producing a good product.
The people were great and he had a great time making the film.
He knows this has been a singular experience. It is rare when
such a great film with a dedicated group of collaborators come
around, and he realizes it’s unlikely he shall come across it
again. He’s honored to have been a part of it, that much is
evident in the grin on his face and the slight broadening of
his shoulders as he speaks about his time on Potter.
He was a fan of Harry Potter before being asked to come on
board. He’s read all the books and feels he was best suited to
adapt Order. He connected most with the subject and themes in
Order and, if he had been given the choice, it would have been
this fifth installment. And though he’s been completely ruined
by the indulgence of his working environment on Potter he
wouldn’t change a thing.
He finds it fulfilling to help other writers tell their
stories, but looks forward to getting back to some of his own
original work.
