SCORSESE’S MONEY MAN

GRAHAM KING is the kind of producer Hollywood likes, in part because he’s good at raising money. Having developed an expertise buying and selling the foreign rights to films, the British native made a splash when he used foreign sales to secure much of the money needed to fund 2002’s “Gangs of New York.”

The film featured two of King’s most frequent collaborators, director Martin Scorsese and actor Leonardo DiCaprio. King also produced “Traffic,” which won Steven Soderbergh a best directing Oscar, and Scorsese’s “The Aviator,” which won a best drama Golden Globe.

This year, King, who turns 45 this month, produced “The Departed,” a crime thriller with DiCaprio that some Oscar pundits are suggesting could win Scorsese his first directing Oscar. King also is a producer on filmmaker Edward Zwick’s “Blood Diamond,” about civil war and the African diamond business.

Compare your producing roles on “Blood Diamond” and “The Departed.”

Night and day. Producer Paula Weinstein ran the show on “Blood Diamond.” I was asked to come in at a later stage. Paula and Ed were in the trenches. With “The Departed,” I was on the set every day. I don’t think there’s an actual need for a producer to be on the set every day unless for a specific reason, like they are financing it themselves. With Marty, I just love to watch him making his movies.

How would you describe your relationship with Scorsese? He’s known for being a perfectionist.

I love that about him. The relationship is very solid. We’re talking about doing all our movies together. I have grown to know the way he works, and that’s the key for a producer -- knowing the boundaries you can cross with the filmmaker.

How happy would you be if Scorsese finally gets a best director Oscar?

I think his time is long overdue. ... But he doesn’t make a movie to win an Oscar. It’s about his body of work. One day he’ll win the award, and I think he’ll be very happy about it mainly because people will stop bugging him about never winning.

Does Oscar campaigning make you uncomfortable?

I find it fascinating. I think people can watch a movie and vote on that movie. I don’t know if it takes doing a Q&A; to sway somebody -- “Oh, my God, what a great Q&A;! I’m going to vote for him.”

How much do awards matter to you?

It was very tough for me on “Aviator.” It’s very hard for a producer to accept and get kudos for an award when the filmmaker doesn’t. The producer can package, can finance, can cast and can do everything but shoot the movie people see. That’s the director’s work. It’s always been a puzzle to me when a film wins, why isn’t the director included?

And from a business point of view?

They matter a lot. Before the Golden Globes for “Aviator,” someone said to me, “You look really nervous. Is it because you might have to go up on stage?” I said, “No, our movie is dropping. Unless we win awards tonight and get to the next level, we could be over with at $50 million.” Winning best drama at the Globes gave the studio confidence to put money behind it for the Oscars and gave the audience confidence to go and see the movie.

james.bates@latimes.com