White House Is Getting Into Hollywood Act

A short film titled “Hollywood Celebrates the Spirit of America” may be the first test of a new relationship between George W. Bush’s administration and entertainment industry executives as both express an eagerness to support the war effort through media.

In the next three weeks, White House representatives are expected to tell some of Hollywood’s power players which creative projects, including “Spirit of America,” might improve America’s image, according to producers Lionel Chetwynd and Craig Haffner.

Having the White House, in a loose sense, greenlight or endorse certain Hollywood projects emerged from a meeting last week pulled together by Chetwynd and Haffner after a request earlier this month, from the Bush administration to meet with members of the industry. The two-hour meeting included 35 producers and artists, but Chetwynd and Haffner are adamant that no one is awaiting “content orders” from Washington as a result.

“We feel the administration will come back and clearly tell us what they gleaned in the meeting, and we’ll have a body of information to react against,” said Haffner, executive producer of the 1999 documentary “Civil War Combat: The Wheatfield at Gettysburg.”

The White House has been notified of the five-minute “Spirit of America” film currently in production by Michael R. Rhodes, who launched the project in the days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Rhodes, a four-time Emmy Award-winning producer, envisions “Spirit of America” as an inspiring voyage through the history of U.S. film that includes clips depicting Americans’ divergent beliefs. Its concept of a montage of clips has already drawn initial praise from the board of directors of the National Assn. of Theater Owners, which represents 28,000 of the 35,000 movie screens across the country. But it remains unclear what the White House would do if, for example, it is displeased with the film.

“It’s not going to be jingoistic,” said Rhodes. “That’s one thing we’re very clear about.”

Rhodes is chief executive officer of Film Clips, which distributes short scenes from about-to-be-released motion pictures to educators around the country, free of charge. Richard Wong, president of the American School Counselors Assn., said on Friday he has spoken to Rhodes about possibly providing a longer version of “Spirit of America” to thousands of school counselors around the country as a vehicle for student discussions about the concept of patriotism.

White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan said the film is an example of a patriotic project created organically, without government input. She said the White House found the concept of the film “interesting.”

“The film has been discussed with the White House,” she said, declining to elaborate about what, if any, further input the Bush administration might have.

Resistance to possible White House suggestions, however, has been set aside as creative types--traditionally skeptical of discussing their material with government officials--reacted to the attacks on America and the subsequent realization of the deep hatred for Americans in some parts of the world. Several people at the meeting said if the White House wanted to explore polishing the national image during peacetime, it might have been met with trepidation. But now, they said, patriotism feels appropriate, and the threat of censorship seems far off.

“If people that represent the White House want to talk to us in this time of crisis, of course, we want to talk to them,” said Bryce Zabel, chairman of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. “The main issue [at the meeting] was an attempt at asking, ‘What is our message as a nation and who should it be communicated to?”’

Chetwynd, who wrote and executive-produced the 1995 TNT movie “Kissinger and Nixon,” said critics who are worried about the “slippery slope” of propaganda and censorship are obligated to voice those concerns, loudly and often.

“But by being part of this and trying to help America through a difficult period, we should be able to ask our leaders how do we do that without fear of being called statists,” he said. “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.”

But several industry observers, including Robert Rosen, dean of UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television, say overtures by the White House must be monitored.

“I think the notion of talking about the responsibilities media might have in relation to society is always a good thing--even more so considering the moment we’re in,” said Rosen. “On the other hand, if this implies the involvement of the government in the shaping of content in media there are real dangers there. Being American is affirming American values, including those of artistic expression and speech.”

Another byproduct of the deadly terrorist attacks is the nonpartisan atmosphere across the country. If ever there were a moment for Bush to make inroads into predominantly Democratic Hollywood, this is it. After eight years of Bill Clinton’s cozy relationship with the engineers of pop culture and strong friendships with rainmakers like Barbara Streisand, Rob Reiner and Harvey Weinstein, Bush has a tough act to follow.

“Bush is appropriately reaching out to Hollywood,” said Bruce Ramer, who hosted last week’s meeting at his Beverly Hills law firm. The White House representatives--Adam Goldman, associate director of the office of public liaison; and Chris Henick, deputy assistant to the president--made it clear that Bush was interested in nurturing a relationship with entertainment industry leaders. The representatives were in Los Angeles for less than 24 hours.

“There was no multitasking,” Chetwynd said. “They were here only for this meeting.”