SHORTING ‘CUTS’ : And Don’t Forget to Nominate Those Writer Guys
Fine Line Features’ President Ira Deutchman might want to practice what he preaches.
In a recent letter to members of the Writers Guild of America promoting Robert Altman’s movie “Short Cuts,” Deutchman stresses how the “contribution of the screenwriter is one of the most difficult to assess and therefore frequently overlooked.”
He urges members not to forget the “amazing” work of those who adapted Raymond Carver’s short stories for “Short Cuts”--which New York-based Fine Line is distributing--yet manages to commit the same sin of omission he left-handedly is accusing the industry of sometimes doing.
While he remembers to quote a couple of critics’ favorable remarks about the film in his letter, Deutchman himself never mentions the adapters’ names anywhere . (They are Altman and Frank Barhydt.)
“This is just so typical--they manage to insult us even when they’re trying to suck up to us,” said a WGA member. (Both the WGA and Oscar nominations are due this week.)
When reached for comment, Deutchman admitted his boo-boo.
“We are going to send out a letter of apology . . . it was just an oversight,” he said.
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