EDITORS DESK
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Hollywood producer Charles Wessler, the mastermind behind the award-winning film Green Book, which took home the Best Picture Oscar in 2018.
Wessler also produced the blockbuster movie series “Dumb and Dumber” and “There’s Something About Mary.” His last project was the movie “Palmer,” released in 2021, starring Justin Timberlake.
The esteemed producer was elated to embark on his first-ever trip to the Philippines. His mission was to explore locations for his forthcoming movie, “The Jungle.”
“I love the Philippines. I was trying to figure out how to sleep the first few days. As soon as I woke up, I was introduced to fascinating people. And I love it here. It's beautiful. It's gorgeous here, and I love it. I know everybody thinks the same,” Wessler said.
While Wessler remained tight-lipped about the specifics, his eyes sparkled with excitement as he revealed that the movie revolves around two adventurers disoriented in the dense Philippine jungle. “They became lost due to terrible circumstances, but it's meant to be funny.”
Before leaving the country, Wessler arranged a masterclass at Mowelfund Institute in Quezon City, engaging local producers, directors, and movie stars in discussing the movie industry. They had a fun session with the American film producer. He also relished sharing stories about Tinseltown celebrities.
Wessler advised the Philippine movie industry on how they could be nominated at the prestigious Academy Awards in the US.
“I have to be honest. The truth is I have yet to see that many Philippine-made films. But to answer your question, a great movie probably missed it in the last 10 years, and nobody promoted it properly. So the real thing is even if you don't get amazing distribution, somebody like a billionaire has to pay for it to be seen. Some people specialize in bringing members of the academy who vote like me to see movies. To answer your question, I want to continue making great movies. That's the trick. There's no formula, no criteria for me. However, if there is a formula, I recommend you study the last five years of the nominated movies.”
Wessler also commented on big-budgeted summer movies that fizzed in Hollywood recently. He still believes that the low turnout of movie fans in theaters worldwide has something to do with the pandemic.
“It’s weird. I wish I were super knowledgeable about this because no one knows. No one knows. But I promise you it has something to do with this: Covid changed everything. It changed how we think about going to see a movie. And we know it became easy to come home. Make dinner, watch a movie, watch a TV show or binge. You sit there and watch a TV series for three or four hours because you have nothing else to do. You can go to the theater. So I think what's happened is, quite frankly, that people became used to not going to the theater, and they thought, wait a minute. It doesn't cost me any extra or less to watch on streamer. I don't have to go. If you’re a couple, you must get a babysitter, and you have to get popcorn. You have to get dinner, and it's like $60 to see a movie.”
Wessler articulated his compelling vision for the future of the US movie industry.
“I remember we're going to watch ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ and we were excited about it. But those days are gone. And so where we are now, and I learned this on ‘Palmer,’ is we're in the age of streaming, and that's the entrance. I think eventually there’ll be specialty houses and cinemas. Instead of having 5,000 cinemas, you will open in 500 (cinemas).”
(Robert R. Requintina is the Entertainment Editor of Manila Bulletin)