I’ve been sitting at home, reading the headlines out of Cannes, and checking out the conversation Twitter. It feels like there are a lot of people out there clowning on Kevin Costner and Francis Ford Coppola, who each put part of their massive fortune up to make a passion project Hollywood refused to budget.
While their work is getting mixed reviews, we should be throwing these icons a parade down Hollywood Boulevard. and if you hate what they’re doing, I think you’re crazy.
Hollywood has been incredibly frustrating lately. We’re constantly fighting the battle between art and commerce, and now AI has entered the ring and is threatening to replace all of us.
On top of this, tech companies have a lot of power, as well as foreign money, and they’re driving a ton of creative decisions.
Well, know how you don’t have to deal with any of that stuff?
Put your money where your mouth is and make stuff on your own.
And if you have a lot of money, do that at the largest scale possible.
Francis Ford Coppola and Kevin Costner are beacons in all of this darkness. They’re hugely successful Hollywood figures who have bucked the system and decided to leverage their massive fortunes to chase a dream.
Their movies, Megalopolis and Horizon: An American Saga are stories that have burned inside their creators for a long time.
I find that to be so incredibly inspiring and beautiful. It gets to the heart of how we’re all here to tell a story we believe in. and they’re doing it, spending their own money, employing their friends, and creating something on a huge scale that they believe in.
A long time ago, I learned that Hollywood doesn’t owe you anything, but no one can stop you from self-producing a story you believe in.
What these two generational voices are doing feels like getting back to the root of how Hollywood should function, and I hope each of those movies is able to make their creators enough money to keep going.
The world is a much better place when artists are making art.
When I sat down to write this week, I sat there feeling inspired and believing that if I ever made it and made that kind of cash, I’d like to follow in these guys’ footsteps. And I hope more rich and powerful across Hollywood do similar.
Hollywood is still a place where dreams come true, and seeing these two continue to dare to dream should be inspiring to everyone watching.
And if it’s not… you’re crazy.
Author: Jason Hellerman
This article comes from No Film School and can be read on the original site.
