Holiday Giveaway 2025

Happy belated Christmas — and Happy New Year! I’ve been thinking about a few topics that could make great future Making Of… or podcast episodes, and I’d love to share them: • Little Miss Sunshine (2006) With the film’s 20th anniversary coming up next year — and a brand‑new 4K UHD restoration debuting at Sundance with Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris, Michael Arndt, Abigail Breslin, Paul Dano, and Greg Kinnear all attending — this feels like the perfect moment to revisit its famously turbulent road to the screen. "Little Miss Sunshine" was almost never made. After producer Marc Turtletaub bought Michael Arndt’s script in 2001, the project moved to USA Films, which soon merged, along with Universal Focus and Good Machine, into Focus Features in May 2002. Focus spent two years clashing with Dayton, Faris, and Arndt over major changes — including relocating the story to Canada and centring it solely on Richard Hoover. Arndt was fired, replaced by "The Weather Man’s" Steve Conrad, then rehired when the rewrite didn’t work. By August 2004, after years of stalled development, Focus dropped the film entirely. Turtletaub then re-secured the rights via his production company, Big Beach (which he founded with Peter Saraf and Jeb Brody), for $400,000. He personally financed the full $8 million budget and got the film made independently, with cameras finally rolling on June 6, 2005. When it premiered at Sundance on January 20, 2006, the audience erupted into a massive standing ovation, which nine‑year‑old Abigail Breslin initially mistook for an emergency. A fierce overnight bidding war followed, with Fox Searchlight winning the rights for a then‑record $10.5 million. The film ultimately grossed $101 million worldwide and earned four Oscar nominations, winning Best Original Screenplay (Arndt) and Best Supporting Actor (Alan Arkin). It’s a perfect case study in how a nearly abandoned project became an indie classic — and would make a fantastic deep‑dive episode. • The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990) Brian De Palma’s widely despised film adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s novel is one of Hollywood’s most notorious behind‑the‑scenes disasters. Julie Salamon’s "The Devil’s Candy" — later adapted into Season 2 of TCM’s "The Plot Thickens" — offers a treasure trove of production drama that would translate beautifully into an episode. • Duelling Movies A fun, high‑energy episode idea: explore the phenomenon of studios racing to release films with nearly identical premises. Some great pairs (and one trio) include: Antz (1998) & A Bug’s Life (1998) Madagascar (2005) & The Wild (2006) Red Eye (2005) & Flightplan (2005) Deep Impact (1998) & Armageddon (1998) Finding Nemo (2003) & Shark Tale (2004) Flushed Away (2006), Ratatouille (2007) & No Reservations (2007) The Illusionist (2006) & The Prestige (2006) Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009) & Observe and Report (2009) The Specialist (1994) & Assassins (1995) There’s a lot to unpack about studio rivalries, development timelines, and how these films shaped each other.

happy holidays shitters and shitheads ☃️

IMF

i feel like i have to say JAWS since i helped make that video possible :D

IMF

IMF!

JAWS! Man, that hat sure isn't getting a lot of love, is it?

JAWS book about the movie made from the book!

I'm trying to figure out how I can win the lottery so I can hire you to do this podcast full time? Maybe rob a bank? Kill off a rich distant relative? How do I make this happen...I'm open to ideas 😆

JAWS! I could give a F if Steven Spielberg touched it. But that book mark... I could use that. Happy holidays everyone! On ps. I watched till the end of the video. The super special code word is "Clint's closet".......... Ppps. I hope that made some ppl who didn't watch till the end panic. MERRY CHRISTMAS

IMF

JAWS!

Hey guys! Happy holidays! The hat is really cool but being a bit of a bookworm, I've gotta go with JAWS. Love you guys and Merry Christmas!