By RAY KELLY
Maybe it was kismet, fate or divine intervention, but it took four decades for the perfect moment to arrive to complete Hollywood’s most famous unfinished movie, The Other Side of the Wind.
That moment, according to the film’s post-production team, came in the form of a generous, supportive backer; state-of-the-art technology; and dedicated talent, who brought the Orson Welles film to the screen one year ago today.
Frank Marshall, a unit production manager on the 1970s shoot and producer of its completion, reflected on the long journey one year after the movie’s debut at the Venice and Telluride film festivals.
“It seems like yesterday we were on our way to the Telluride Film Festival for the North American premiere of The Other Side of the Wind — something I’d been promising (Telluride director) Tom Luddy for over 20 years,” Marshall said. “Reflecting back, I do feel all the delays and challenges happened for a reason, as the stars aligned and we were able to assemble the best possible post-production team, technology and financial support to complete Orson’s vision.”
Nearly two years after a crowdfunding effort raised just $406,605 toward post-production costs, Netflix agreed to bankroll the reported $6 million completion. It paired Academy Award winning sound and film editors with the latest technology, including artificial intelligence used to identify specific scenes contained in the 241,494 feet of 35mm film and 112,129 feet of 16mm film shot by Welles.
“I’m very proud of the fact that, except for a couple of VFX shots, all the footage in the film was directed and shot by Orson, which is kind of amazing,” Marshall said. “I feel it’s truly the best version of the film it could be — short of having Orson with us in the cutting room.”
Marshall, who produced the completion with Filip Jan Rymsza, said the most satisfying moment of the journey for him was the “screening in Telluride and the standing ovation for Orson as the credits rolled.”
“And now, thanks to Netflix, millions of people around the world have been introduced to the genius of Orson Welles, and the audience for his final film will be bigger than all his other films combined,” Marshall said. “That’s pretty cool.”
While Marshall and executive producer Peter Bogdanovich, who had spent decades championing the movie and was a key player in its completion, were on hand for the Telluride showing, Rymsza and editor Bob Murawski represented the movie at its gala world premiere that same weekend at the 75th annual Venice Film Festival.
Asked for his thoughts on the project a year later, Rymsza said, “It took me nine years to complete and it’ll take another nine to fully reflect on the film and my journey with it, but it’s humbling to know that I played some small part in the understanding and appreciation of Orson’s oeuvre.”
“What I feel now is a tremendous amount of gratitude and respect for everyone who dedicated themselves to ‘the cause’,” Rymsza said. “While I enjoyed the festivals and awards, nothing can measure up to the sheer thrill and adventure of finishing the film. Simply put, it was an honor and a treat to collaborate with so many talented artists and technicians – Bob Murawski, Ruth Hasty, Scott Milan, Daniel Saxlid, Ellen Segal, Mo Henry, John Knoll, Dov Samuel, Paul Hunt, Ray Boniker, Alyssa Swanzey and, of course, the recently deceased Michel Legrand.”
He added, “I often think about Michel and his infectious, rapturous enthusiasm. Michel had not seen the finished film prior to its Paris premiere at the Cinémathèque Française. He was always very warm with me, but I was aware of his well-reputed temper, so it made for an anxious screening. As the lights came on, he took my hand and, with tears in his eyes, said ‘I can’t believe you were able to do that with my music.’ Incredible. I still get goosebumps. Kudos to Bob and Ellen Segal, the music editor.”
“I remain grateful to Netflix for ‘buying an old house’ with ‘old house’ problems and never complaining about it,” Rymsza said. “They were incredible partners.”
“Speaking of Netflix, we’re still discussing the physical media release,” Rymsza noted. “I suspect it’ll happen, but I’m not going to speculate on when. But, when it does, it’ll be very comprehensive… and, hopefully, as with the film itself, well worth the wait.”
Following the completion of the film, Rymsza, who co-owns with Oja Kodar the 96 hours of negative shot by Welles, found a suitable depository for the footage — the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Rymsza said he wanted to publicly thank Academy President John Bailey. “That was a lot to store and, if not for them, I would have been at a loss.”
In marking the film’s anniversary, Rymsza provided a 13-minute video to Wellesnet (see below) of the National Board of Review gala, where The Other Side of the Wind and the Morgan Neville documentary They’ll Love Me When I’m Dead received the William K. Everson Film History Award.
“It was a joyous evening, many months after the launch. It was a reunion of sorts, with Frank, Bob, Morgan Neville, (Netflix executive) Ian Bricke and the Hustons, Danny and Jack,” Rymsza said. “That event and the New York Film Festival panel discussion, co-moderated by Martin Scorsese, were moments I’ll never forget”
Since the finished movie played at the Venice, Telluride and New York film festivals, it has been available to 154 million Netflix subscribers in 190 countries.
Netflix declined to provide Wellesnet with viewership numbers for The Other Side of the Wind. (The streaming giant typically does not reveal such information.)
Even though Netflix released The Other Side of the Wind to fewer than 45 theaters (including festivals) worldwide last year, it still found a spot on nearly four dozen Best of 2018 year-end lists, including Sight & Sound, The Hollywood Reporter, Film Comment, The Los Angeles Times and Vanity Fair.
In addition to the Everson Award, the movie was hailed by several other prestigious critics groups. Murawski was honored at the film’s premiere in Venice with the first-ever Campari Passion for Film Award.
Murawski said he remains “incredibly honored to have been part of this project.”
“And I’m very proud of the outcome and the fact that the work that we did was so warmly received by everyone. I could not have hoped for a better response,” Murawski said. “My only regret is that Orson and Gary (Graver, the cinematographer) could not have been there to share it with us. But I do feel they were there in spirit, just as I felt their presence every step along the way. ”
He added, “I’m also grateful that we had the opportunity to work with Michel Legrand on what would end up being his final score.”
“Like so many other aspects of this project, the timing of his participation almost seemed like an act of divine intervention.”
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