Turning into the Woods from a Theatrical Play into a Film - Essay Example

Turning Into the Woods from a Theatrical Play into a Film Into the Woods is Stephen Sondheim’s musical and lyric of James Lapine’s book. It was originally debuted at the Old Globe Theatre, San Francisco in 1986 and later premiered on 5th/11/1987 at the Broadway. Since then, it has been repeatedly produced several times. These were, in 1988; 1990; 1991; 1997; 2002; 2010; and in 2002. Since I know much about the history of theatre and film, I will do my best to produce a film adaptation for the musical. In order to appreciate Sondheim’s work, I will have to employ a high level of theatrical skills that encompass the elements of Roman, Greece and the contemporary filming technologies in the production of my film adaptation. A proper understanding of the history of theatre and film will equip me with all the necessary information that can put me in a better position of making the right and informed decision on exactly what to do during the production of the film (Dixon 27). If I were to turn Into the Woods from a theatrical play into a film, I would ensure that I do a marvelous job. As a dedicated professional, I would use all my energy and time to produce my best. I believe that this is a very interesting play that if properly acted, can be one of the best films in my lifetime. So, I will become the producer to be in charge of the entire production process for the film. After carefully reading the play and having a proper understanding of it, I will take my time to consult some of the most reputable, experienced and highly trained professionals. They will offer me the right and appropriate set of counsel on which I will rely as I produce the film adaptation. Meanwhile, I will have to identify the right caliber of people to choose the crew to be involved in the production of the film. This will include the entire production crew consisting of a director, actors and the professionals who will be behind the screen. I will have to make the right choice of the crew that will enable me to accomplish my goal of producing the most interesting film adaptation for the theatrical play (Guernsey 114). For this reason, I will settle on Ronald Miranda as the director. Having known much about film production for a long time, I believe that Mr. Miranda will be the right choice for this job. He is an experienced director who has won numerous awards since he ventured into the film industry. He has a deeper understanding of films and might not disappoint if granted such a noble opportunity. He has excellent cinematographic skills and can be instrumental in the entire work of producing this film adaptation. When it comes to the actors, I will also have to be keen on whomever I give a chance to feature in the film. For me to make the right choice of the actors, in my capacity as the film’s director, I will have to thoroughly study and have a proper understanding of the characters. Since both the protagonists and minor characters will have to be featured in the film, it will be incumbent upon me to know everything about their behaviors, physique, communications and interpersonal interactions with one another throughout the play. This will make it much possible for me to make an informed decision on which actor to use. Nevertheless, I will precisely enlist the talents of Emily Blunt, John Depp, James Corden, Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski, Lilla Crawford, Anna Kendrick, Tracey Ullman, Chris Pine and Daniel Huttlestone. These actors can qualify to deliver the kind of message that Sondheim was intending to deliver to his audience in his musical version. I will particularly settle on these actors because, to me, they are the only ones who should take part in my film. They are highly trained and talented actors who have featured in numerous films. At the same time, they possess the desired features and traits to effectively represent Cinderella, the Witch, the Narrator, Little Red Ridinghood, Jack, Jack’s Mother, Rapunzels Prince, the Baker and Rapunzel. Having interacted with them and enjoyed some of their performances, I am convinced that the crew will be of much importance to me. After all, they have already established an audience base that will easily help in marketing the film. After giving them the right support and coaching and costumes, they will be given the scripts to acclimatize themselves with. Later, they will be allowed to rehearse and perfect their roles before eventually casting the film. This is the only way to help them to deliver their best services to their enthusiastic audiences. While making my preparations, I will not forget about the financial aspect of it. To execute all the activities as planned, I will have to set aside a large sum of money. Since it is a profit-geared project, I will be ready to part with huge sums of money. However, in my approximation, I project to spend approximately $61 million. In my opinion, this will be enough to buy all the required materials such as costumes, cameras, hire the crew and cater for any logistical during the preparation, rehearsal, and production, editing, premiering and marketing of the film (Nowell-Smith 97). I predict that this money will be enough to meet all the film’s production expenses. The film will have to be expensive because it will feature high cost celebrities who will in turn help in realizing large volumes of sales after the release of the film. Using adequate amount of money to produce the film will guarantee uniqueness and quality. These are the things which are considered by the audience while making the right choice of a film to buy or watch. As a matter of fact, if I allocate such a big money to the production of this film, it will definitely be a success. Rather than translating the theatrical play into a film, it will go an extra mile to produce an educative and entertaining piece. This will make it to be appealing to the target audience who already know something about the musical lyric or theatrical play or those who have not heard about it before. The other reason for the success of the film is the choice of its actors. Since it will feature prominent actors who have been ruling the film industry for a long time now, many people will have to associate with it. As a result, it will gain the confidence of a larger section of the market. On the other hand, I will as well owe the success of the film adaptation of the theatrical play to the high quality of the cinematographic technology to be applied during its production. The right choice of lighting, coloring and sound tracks will make it appeal more than expected (Green and Green 47). Since the film will be an adaptation of the theatrical play, it will be expected to feature it in entirety. For this reason, when producing it, I will not have to interfere with the plot, thematic concerns, characterization and stylistic devices used in it. All these will have to reflect without any addition or omission. By doing this, I will definitely make the film to share the same name with the theatrical play (Munslow 11). I believe that if I do not make any unnecessary changes to the play, I will produce a very interesting film that will definitely win several awards in the future. In the production of the adaption, I will not necessarily have to make changes because they might make the film not to be as original as it ought to have been. In conclusion, the film adaptation of Into the Woods will be a major step in the development of this great theatrical drama. By getting a chance to oversee the adaptation, I will feel honored. To reciprocate, I will have to show a lot of commitments and dedicate my time to demonstrate my prowess. I will need to act right by selecting a team of professionals to incorporate into the production crew. With a manageable and adequate budget of $61 million, I will not fail to bring my preferred actors on board and feature them in the film. The money will be enough to pay the entire crew, acquire high tech filming materials, suitable locations, transportation, marketing, food n al the other necessary incidentals. Further more, the film will be premiered at a festive time that requires a lot of marketing. Works Cited Dixon, Wheeler Winston and Gwendolyn Audrey Foster. A Short History of Film, 2nd edition. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2013. Print. Green, Stanley and Green, Kay. "Into the Woods", Broadway Musicals, Show by Show(5ed), Hal Leonard Corporation, 2007. Print. Guernsey, Otis L. "Into the Woods Listing", The Best Plays of 1988-1989, Hal Leonard Corporation, 2002. Print. Munslow, Alun. "Film and history: Robert A. Rosenstone and History on Film/Film on History". Rethinking History 4 (11): 2000. 11. Nowell-Smith, Geoffrey, ed. The Oxford History of World Cinema. Oxford University Press, 2010. Print. Read More