MCN Interview: Neda Armian

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Neda Armian
Producer of
Rachel Getting Married

Jonathan Demme is one of the most fascinating directors out there because he doesn't often make films that stick to one genre. If you go back to his films before Silence of the Lambs, you'll find Married to the Mob, Melvin and Howard, and Something Wild and what all those films have in common is that they are offbeat and off-center. In each of those films, Demme playfully mixes genres as disparate as romantic comedy with something resembling a thriller (in Something Wild). And he always, always, had great taste in music - as evidenced not only by the songs he chooses for his films, but also because of his seminal documentary Stop Making Sense about the Talking Heads.

After two remakes, Demme is back this fall with Rachel Getting Married, another genre-bending film that follows Kym (Anne Hathaway) as she gets out of rehab to attend her sister's wedding. Hilarity, tears, wonderful music and lots of drama ensue. It's truly a film where you laugh and cry in equal measures.

Neda Armian has been working with Demme for about fifteen years now, moving up the ranks to become his go-to producer. She has worked, in some capacity, on each of his films since Philadelphia. Below is our e-mail exchange:

Noah Forrest: One of the questions I'm most commonly asked as somebody who writes about the industry is, "what does a producer do exactly?" I never quite know how to answer that question, so how would you define your role?

Neda Armian: Ingmar Bergman once said of his producer Lorens Marmstedt - "he was a genuine producer who fought and lived for his films from script to release". I love this quote!

I get asked this question a lot. And it's a good question because there are all kinds of producers. Each time I answer the question I'm reminded of a new layer of responsibility and nuance that embodies the position. Different directors have different needs. A friend of mine once said, "So you are essentially the "dream factory". And I couldn't help but laugh and agree. Directors have endless and boundless ideas. The good ones have laser like vision. A producer guides that vision - and all the parts that come along with it. We make ideas a reality. And in doing so you hire creative, smart, resourceful and kind people to help you and your director realize those ideas. Being a producer doesn't always mean saying, "yes" to an idea. But it is imperative to always execute a plan and research to see how that could be realized. I often will figure out how to make the impossible possible - but it's also my responsibility to the film to provide my opinion and thoughts about why such a thing might not be the right choice. My job is also very creative - as I have a strong hand in all developmental stages of the script and casting and crewing up and everything onward through the release of the film and beyond including the soundtrack, DVD and international release). So I'm totally satisfied on all levels when I make a film. Creatively and otherwise.

You need to be a good leader - and leading can be fun and a huge responsibility - so the pressure if often high - so being unflappable is a necessary quality to possess.

Noah Forrest: You are Jonathan Demme's right-hand woman, working on most of his projects since Philadelphia; how does your relationship with Mr. Demme operate? And what attracts you to working with him?

Neda Armian: My first job in the film industry - outside of the various internships I did while a student at university- was Philadelphia. I was an office production assistant. And I was thrilled to be a part of a real movie. I was 22 and excited to be a part of what I knew would be an incredible film but also a great experience for me. One of the first things I noted of Jonathan was his enthusiasm for every single person working on the film - and that always manifests in his films. People feel a part, an important part, of the journey that he has set on and you want to give it your all. He has an incredible knack for bringing out the best in you. So as a result his films both documentaries and feature narratives all have a big dose of humanity. So what attracts me to our partnership is the endless enthusiasm, the boundless ideas he has and the challenge for me to make them happen. Failure is never an option - so when he wants to do something - even if at first one might think, "how is that even possible?" - that's when I get excited. It can obviously be very challenging and tiring at times. But when you see the results, when you feel a heartbeat coming from the screen to wash over you - and you are moved somehow - well that's why I got into the movie business. Sounds cliché but it's all about the storytelling and how we can be transformed somehow to understand the human condition, to understand our place in the universe and to share in our commonalities and surpass any walls between us. Cinema is a language that we all can speak. To digress for a moment, it's why I admire the film company and talented team at Participant Productions. I had the good fortune to produce a documentary on President Carter (Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains) with them. This is a company whose mission it is to make films that make a difference and create social awareness and change. It's for me, the ultimate company and mission. That's my dream factory.

Noah Forrest: You've produced both documentaries and feature films; can you describe for us the difference between the two in terms of how you do your job? Do you have a preference?

Neda Armian: Documentaries and feature narratives can be very similar and incredibly different. It's project specific. But overall I would say that the core of what I do is the same. You make things happen. You make ideas a reality. You help shape a story. The documentary process is a little less structured and you tend to spend more time on them. And the budgets are usually zero or not too much more than that. I laugh and cry as I say this.

I love both and would never stop making one form of film over another. For me, they feed each other and force me to think outside of the box and approach stories and logistical needs in different and often times more exciting ways.

When I was about 12 years old I knew I wanted to make films. I wasn't totally sure what that meant and how I could do it. But I knew my interests lie in storytelling and the media somehow. And I couldn't imagine that I could be a part of the movie business with "movie stars" so I think my - at the time - shortsighted view was I could make "those things that are playing on PBS" which were documentaries. Little did I know that I could do both. And certainly never imagined how things would turn out. And of course this was pre You Tube and home video cameras. I think we are in the midst of super exciting times where everyone can be a filmmaker. And there are resources both to make and distribute them. You wanna make a movie? - do it. Borrow a camera if you don't have one and go at it. The possibilities are endless and while technology and the speed at which we are advancing scares me, it is also very exciting. Everyone has a voice and I love that technology for the most part, makes our voices being heard and more democratic.

Noah Forrest: Mr. Demme's previous films behind the camera have been two remakes of seminal films - The Manchurian Candidate and Charade - what drew you and he to remake films that were so perfect? I actually enjoyed the remakes quite a bit, but did Mr. Demme or you see something in the originals that needed fixing or updating?

Neda Armian: I didn't produce The Manchurian Candidate. I did, however, produce The Truth About Charlie and I think it's less about fixing anything than it is about diving into a creative idea to re-imagine something and to turn it upside down. Much like covering a song. We all love a song that has been covered by our favorite band. It's giving it a twist, a wink, a nod and shout out. I think remakes get a bad rap. Certainly if you compare it to adapting a book -- books get adapted all the time and there seems to be less voiced criticism. I'm always intrigued by documentaries that turn into feature narratives. I saw a documentary several years ago that I thought was prime for a remake as a feature narrative and in discussing this with you now, I am reminded that I should revisit that idea!

Noah Forrest: Your new film, Rachel Getting Married is Jonathan Demme's first original picture since Philadelphia. Was that a conscience decision on his part to look for a script that was almost a throwback to the genre-bending, offbeat films that he had directed in the 80's?

Neda Armian: Jonathan is rarely actively looking for something. Things find him. They speak to him. They may even haunt him sometimes. He is on an interesting journey, knows many people from different backgrounds and is genuinely interested in life and all that comes along with it. Good and bad. Sidney Lumet, a friend of Jonathan's sent him his daughter Jenny's untitled script. Asked him if he would have a read. Jonathan wasn't looking to do anything at the time, he wasn't reading, he was blissfully knee deep in his family life. And her script sat on his night table for quite some time. He eventually read it and her story grabbed his attention. He still wasn't ready to do very much about it at the time but he was intrigued and I believe took an option on it so that he could safely have it to revisit. And I believe he began meeting with her to work on the script - even before he officially decided to direct it. It was during that process, and I know that they had a lot of fun and it was a productive and energetic time for the two of them, that he decided to direct it.

The script is perfect for Jonathan. It is a story based on rich characters and the fine dynamics between a family - and all the complications and beautiful moments that come with that. The nuance of relationships and the dialogue throughout the film is just ripe for performance. And he's all about performance.

I had read various drafts of the script. And in May 2006 I read the latest draft and we met to discuss the project. We had burgers in Chelsea and he began to talk to me about his vision for the film and I remember getting enthused at his ideas and though this sounds corny he had a light in his eyes. He wanted to approach this in a very indie manner and to shoot it in a different less conventional way. I was on board immediately.

He brought up Anne Hathaway at that lunch and I got more enthused. I was a fan of hers but I was also jazzed by the idea of casting Annie in a part that one might not at first think of her for. It was a different role than she had played in the past and I thought it was exciting to explore that idea.

I asked Jonathan if I could send the script to her - I "asked" because I knew that once we sent it out - the train would be leaving the station. He had lived with this script for sometime in a very private and quiet way and we were now going to transition into a more public phase.

He told me to send it and that if she were interested he would meet with her.

I called her agent Josh Lieberman at CAA - we had a great conversation and I sent him the script overnight. She read it very quickly. And Jonathan and Annie met immediately after in a café in Greenwich Village. They had a great meeting. Jonathan called me when they finished and said "Annie just went from first choice to only choice". That was a good day! And a fun call to make to Josh.

Noah Forrest: This is Mr. Demme's first feature in quite a while that doesn't have Tak Fujimoto as the cinematographer - Declan Quinn does a masterful job anyway - and I wonder how that decision was made to bring in some new blood behind the camera. Can you provide a bit of insight?

Neda Armian: We made a conscience decision to work with everyone - both in front and behind the camera - to be from New York. This was a New York production in every sense and the plan was to shoot it very quickly on a low budget. This idea of shooting quickly and from the hip allowed us to think outside of the box a bit and shake things up. I was very excited to surround Jonathan with new people. And this is absolutely not a reflection of any sort to the amazing crews that we have historically worked with but it was a chance for Jonathan to exercise different creative muscles and encounter and collaborate with new people. The freshness of that approach and direction our production was going to take is what I think lends itself to our film. This was also a lower budget movie compared to Demme's other films and it was a good discipline to streamline things.

We had a small crew. And we shot it very quickly. We went into production with a 39 day schedule and wrapped in 33 days. And a few times we wrapped in the afternoon and one day we even wrapped by noon! I joked with Jonathan that he was giving Sidney Lumet a run for his money - because he is a director known to shoot quickly and wrap early.

Declan Quinn is magnificent. Both as a person and as a cinematographer. I had the great fortune of working with him on our previous film Jimmy Carter: Man From Plains. He and Jonathan worked wildly wonderfully together. Jonathan loved working with him and they began to talk about how exciting it would be to approach a feature narrative like a documentary. And their conversations and ideas flourished and manifested itself beautifully.

Carol Cuddy was introduced to us through Ilona Herzberg. She's a legend and if you can ever capture Carol's attention - you grab her and don't let go. She is calm under fire, she is smart, loves film and understands filmmakers and how movies get made. We loved working with her.

Ford Wheeler, our production designer, had worked on Jonathan's films before as a set decorator but never as a production designer. So it was exciting to watch those two collaborate. Ford is a genius. Has an eye like no one I have ever met. And so much of the look and feel of our film can be attributed to Ford's brilliant work.

A mutual friend introduced Susan Lyall our costume designer to us. I had arranged for a meeting with Jonathan. Susan came in with a ton of ideas and did a sort of presentation. After the meeting I asked Jonathan how he thought the interview went - he said that the lunch was not an interview, rather a "working lunch". She got the job immediately.

HH Cooper. I had heard about him from others and his resume was impressive to say the very least. He came in and Jonathan offered him the job on the spot. He is terrific and brought an excellent vibe and pace to our set and I'm so grateful to H for saying "yes".

We had heard that Tim Squyres was available. When someone like Tim is available you run to him, not walk. I arranged for a lunch. He came in and was incredibly nice and smart and understood the script deeply and what Jonathan was going to do. He got it. He was on board.

Jeff Pullman had met with the producers first because Jonathan was out of town. We threw him every hurdle you could think of and he never flinched. We explained how we had planned to shoot the film, how we planned to record the score live while filming, that we were shooting fast, that his crew needed to be small. He not only didn't show any concerns but he was enthusiastic to join us on the journey. Jonathan met with him very soon after and adored him from the start.

Kendall McCarthy was our post production supervisor. She is the best post supervisor I have ever worked with. So smart and has a love of film like no other. And understands all the new digital technology to the point where we would joke that Kendall speaks another language. She is also very gracious with her knowledge and was always willing to explain things and the process with whoever was interested.

Noah Forrest: Tell me if you could about the casting for the film, which has a lot of unexpected players in unexpected roles, including the magnificent Bill Irwin as the patriarch and TV on the Radio's Tunde Adebimpe as the groom-to-be. How did you find the right actors for these parts?

Neda Armian: Casting on a Demme film is so much fun! Because anything goes. You can gender flip, you don't have to limit yourself to race and you don't only have to think of "professional actors". One is encouraged to think outside the normal channels of casting. We were not looking for only movie actors. We looked to the wonderful New York theater community, we looked to musicians, and we looked to writers, to real people to street performers. The lists we make are creative to say the very least. I always tell our team to never edit their ideas. I'm a firm believer that "bad" - which is all relative anyway -- ideas often lead to good ones. So if you think of that great villain in your favorite soap opera that you Tivo - then write him/her down. If the clerk at your local video store is interesting both in manner and looks - jot them down. It's always fun to explore musicians because they are inherently creative folks and often can be very good actors. I think anyone who sees the film can see that even in Demme standards, we have outdone ourselves. The group we put together is extraordinary and every single person contributed profoundly to the film. Whether literally on screen or by helping create a vibe amongst the group and creating the wonderful real feel to our story.

We worked with the great Bernie Telsey and his associate Tiffany Little Canfield. And I can't explain how but they know everyone in the New York community of actors and brought in brilliant actor after actor and Jonathan was overwhelmed in the best sense of the word with his choices. And so many of our cast came from Bernie and Tiffany's ideas.

Bill specifically was Jonathan's idea. They have worked together before several times and Bill and Jonathan live in the same town. Bill is magnificent on and off screen. What a privilege to work with him.

Tunde was an idea that came from my friend Helen O'Neill. She is my music genius friend. And when I told her about the project and began to pick her brain about musicians, she immediately brought up Tunde. I had known him from TV on the Radio but had never seen his film work. She directed me to some of his work. Jonathan was a huge fan of TV on the Radio himself so when I brought up Tunde - he told me to arrange to get the script to him and set up a meeting if he were interested. You know what happens after. It's a fun note but for the role of Sidney. Jonathan had flirted with the idea of the director and his friend Paul Thomas Anderson. Paul even came to our reading and sat in and read the part of Sidney. This gives you an idea of how outside of the box we think. Paul declined stating that he would stick to directing.

There are too many wonderful people to discuss in regards to casting but I do want to mention that Rosemarie DeWitt was introduced to us by Bernie. And she read for the part and her audition was sensational. We had her come in and she met with Jonathan and me after very briefly. Then we decided to bring Rosemarie and a few select others to come in one day and read some scenes with Annie. When the day ended - Jonathan looked to Annie and me and just said "how about that Rosemarie DeWitt"? We knew we had found our Rachel. It was a Friday. And we wanted to make sure that we didn't lose Rosemarie and to make sure she heard going into the weekend that she had gotten the part. Rosemarie is astonishing in the film. And she is exceptional as a person. One day while we were shooting - Jonathan looked over to me from the monitor and said, "Where on earth did she come from?"

Noah Forrest: Rachel Getting Married seems to be heavily influenced by Robert Altman films while the camerawork seems to be reminiscent of Thomas Vinterberg's The Celebration, but were there any other influences on the making of this picture?

Neda Armian: The biggest influence I would say was this idea of treating the film like a documentary. The cast essentially was in character the moment they left make up and wardrobe. So I wouldn't say that a specific film was our guide but there were certainly many influences by the Dogma approach. We had also seen After the Wedding by Susanne Bier, which was very inspiring. Robert Altman's work was certainly influential and I would say that it not only was reflected in picture but in sound. We had two sound teams running at all times led by the masterful Jeff Pullman. We were shooting our score and music live throughout the film and many people were always miked. The goal was to capture how it really sounds in real life. There's a lot of work behind that but our crew had a lot fun with it, as did the actors. It was liberating and efficient.

Noah Forrest: Which producers do you admire the most, historically or presently?

Neda Armian: Marc Platt is someone I've admired for quite some time. And in a way it's how he got involved in the project. In the very early stages Jonathan and I discussed bringing in another producer to empower our team. I immediately thought of Marc and suggested it to Jonathan. He barely let me finish my sentence and dialed Marc up -- told him about the project. And we overnighted it to him. He read it immediately and called and said he was on board. I had known Marc over the years and didn't have many dealings with him outside of his relationship with Jonathan but I had always appreciated his style and manner. He was smart and had good taste. So here I was able to join forces with someone I had long admired and in a new capacity and I was thrilled. And I have now had the extraordinary privilege to make this movie with him and he is everything I thought and more. He is unflappable, focused, responsive and so effective it would make your head spin. On top of all this, he is one of the finest people I know. He is kind, generous, and thoughtful and cares in a way that is truly rare. He cares about his family, his work, and his colleagues, about social issues. Marc Platt walks the walk. He doesn't just talk. And producers tend to "talk" a lot.

I must also mention the wonderful Ilona Herzberg and Ron Bozman two people I have had the privilege to work with and learn so much from. They both in their own way have had a very profound influence on me - both in terms of the nuts and bolts of producing but more importantly "how" I want to produce.

Noah Forrest: What's next for you and what's next for Mr. Demme?

Neda Armian: Jonathan is directing a documentary on Bob Marley. It will be epic and wonderful. I can't wait to see it!

He is also working on the post-Katrina New Orleans documentary - Right to Return: New Home Movies from the Lower 9th Ward which I serve as Executive Producer. The film consists of portrait documentaries filmed over the course of 2006 through present - and follows and charts the efforts of a group of extraordinary New Orleanians who attempt to reclaim their homes, their neighborhoods and rebuild their communities. Its very powerful!

I am developing various projects some through my production company Armian Pictures and others with partners. And I'm excited to dive back in and push them forward. All projects need to be nurtured and demand attention. I've been busy with Rachel Getting Married so I'm looking forward to refocusing my energies on these projects, which have been very patient with me. I have a script based on Elizabeth McCracken's "The Giant's House," which is one of my favorite projects. (Incidentally, I just finished reading the manuscript for her new book, a memoir -- "An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination" - and it is brilliant!) I'm developing with Krista Parris a bio pic on Francis D. Moore, a pioneer in transplant medicine, which is based on a fantastic New Yorker article by Atul Gawande. I'm also super excited about an original project written by an incredibly talented new writer Mary Tobler and we liken this project to the West Wing meets Nine to Five! A really fun and original script. I'm the executive producer on an terrific documentary from two talented filmmakers Michael Collins and Marty Syjuco. It's called Give Up Tomorrow and centers on the trial of Paco Larranaga accused of killing two Chinese-Filipino sisters. It's a case that has been championed by various international human rights organizations including the UN. The film plays like a real thriller and it speaks to my interests in human justice and is simultaneously very entertaining. The project recently got a grant from Sundance.

Noah Forrest: Finally, can you tell me some of your favorite movies?

Neda Armian: