Project Greenlight

Last updated

Project Greenlight
Also known asProject Greenlight: A New Generation (season 5)
Created byAlex Keledjian
Developed by Eli Holzman
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes43
Production
Executive producers
Camera setup Single-camera
Production companies
Original release
Network HBO (2001–03)
Bravo (2005)
ReleaseDecember 2, 2001 (2001-12-02) 
May 12, 2005 (2005-05-12)
NetworkHBO
ReleaseSeptember 13 (2015-09-13) 
November 1, 2015 (2015-11-01)
Network Max
ReleaseJuly 13, 2023 (2023-07-13) 
present (present)

Project Greenlight is an American documentary television series focusing on first-time filmmakers being given the chance to direct a feature film. It was created by Alex Keledjian, developed by Eli Holzman and produced by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Sean Bailey, and Chris Moore through their production company LivePlanet, along with Miramax Films. Project Greenlight first aired on HBO for two seasons (aired 2001–03) before moving to Bravo for season three in 2005. The series returned in 2015 for a fourth season airing on HBO. On July 26, 2016, the series was canceled. [1] In May 2021, HBO Max (later Max) picked up the series with an 8-episode order and will be produced by Issa Rae through her production company Hoorae Media. [2] The revival titled Project Greenlight: A New Generation premiered on July 13, 2023. [3]

Contents

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
Season premiere Season finale Network
1 12December 2, 2001February 10, 2002 HBO
2 13June 22, 2003August 24, 2003
3 9March 15, 2005May 12, 2005 Bravo
4 8September 13, 2015November 1, 2015HBO

Season 1 (2001–02)

The script contest ran from September 2000 to March 2001. Over 7,000 screenplays were submitted, and Pete Jones was selected as the winner for Stolen Summer , which he then filmed on location in his hometown of Chicago during the summer of 2001. The first season of Project Greenlight, helmed by show runner and co-executive producer Liz Bronstein, chronicled the selection of Jones's script and the filming of the movie, aired on HBO from late 2001 through early 2002. Stolen Summer premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2002, then went on to a limited theatrical release which brought in just under $140,000.

Season 2 (2003)

For its second run, the contest was split into two categories: writing and directing. The winners were chosen on January 18, 2003. Erica Beeney won the writing contest for her script The Battle of Shaker Heights , and Kyle Rankin and Efram Potelle won the directing contest. The film stars Shia LaBeouf, Elden Henson, Amy Smart, and William Sadler. The series aired in the summer of 2003, detailing the production of the film in Los Angeles. The Battle of Shaker Heights opened in limited theatrical release on August 24, 2003, earning just under $280,000 during its box office run.

Season 3 (2005)

Script submission began and ended during February 2004. After two seasons on HBO, the series moved to Bravo and season three began airing on March 15, 2005.

The selected screenplay was a horror script titled Feast written by Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton. The director was John Gulager. The film stars Balthazar Getty, Krista Allen, Jason Mewes, and Eric Dane and was produced by Dimension Films and Neo Art & Logic.

The film ran for a special late night showing on September 22 and 23, 2006, almost a year after its premiere. Feast earned just under $690,000 during its box office run. The DVD was released on October 17, 2006, earning an additional $4,687,595. [4] The film spawned two sequels: Feast II: Sloppy Seconds and Feast III: The Happy Finish .

Season 4 (2015)

No. in
series
No. in
season
TitleOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
351"Do You Want to Direct This Movie?"September 13, 2015 (2015-09-13)0.154 [5]
Finalists of a nationwide talent search to direct Not Another Pretty Woman, a broad comedy screenplay, as a film for HBO are narrowed down by producers Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Bobby & Peter Farrelly, Effie Brown, and Marc Joubert, Pearl Street Films President Jennifer Todd, and HBO Films President Len Amato. After a series of submissions and in-person interviews by all the finalists, finalist Jason Mann is selected as the project's director.
362"Going Rogue"September 20, 2015 (2015-09-20)0.113 [6]
373"Gun to Your Head"September 27, 2015 (2015-09-27)0.218 [7]
384"Duly Noted"October 4, 2015 (2015-10-04)0.342 [8]
395"Picture's Up"October 11, 2015 (2015-10-11)0.141 [9]
406"The Pivot" [a] October 18, 2015 (2015-10-18)0.212 [10]
417"Accident Waiting to Happen"October 25, 2015 (2015-10-25)0.143 [11]
428"Hug and Release"November 1, 2015 (2015-11-01)0.205 [12]

On April 2, 2015, Project Greenlight announced the first annual Greenie award winners. [13]

In September 2015, Project Greenlight became the subject of controversy when an episode aired of Matt Damon disagreeing with producer Effie Brown over the subject of diversity. A later controversy developed over the titling of the season's sixth episode as "Hot Ghetto Mess" involving Brown's attempt to make sure one of the films did not partake in racial stereotypes, which was to be corrected before airing and replaced with "The Pivot", but was never resolved before airtime. [14] [15]

The Leisure Class debuted on HBO on November 2, 2015.

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
2002 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Non-Fiction Program (Reality) Ben Affleck, Sean Bailey, Liz Bronstein, Billy Campbell, Matt Damon, Tina Gazzerro, Eli Holzman, Chris Moore, Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein, Tony YatesNominated
2004 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Reality Program Ben Affleck, Sean Bailey, Dan Cutforth, Matt Damon, Eli Holzman, Jane Lipsitz, Chris Moore, Bob Osher, Randy Sacks, Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein, Tony YatesNominated
2005 Primetime Emmy AwardOutstanding Reality ProgramBen Affleck, Sean Bailey, Jennifer Berman, Frances Berwick, Rich Buhrman, Andrew Cohen, Dan Cutforth, Matt Damon, Gayle Gawlowski, Eli Holzman, Marc Joubert, Casey Kriley, Jane Lipsitz, Alexandra Lipsitz, Chris Moore, Kevin Morra, Bob Osher, Barbara Schneeweiss, David Serwatka, Larry Tanz, Harvey Weinstein, Bob WeinsteinNominated
2016 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Jane Lipsitz, Dan Cutforth, TJ Barrack, Perrin Chiles, Marc Joubert, Marshall Lewy, Alexandra Lipsitz and Gaylen GawlowskiNominated

Australia

Series 1

In 2005, Project Greenlight Australia was launched with Pay-TV Movie Network in partnership with Screentime producing the show and offering the A$1,000,000 financing to the winning film. [17] The entries were received online with last entries being accepted on February 14. The screenplay selected from the 1200 submissions was Solo [18] by Morgan O'Neill. [19]

Series 2

In 2006, comedian and filmmaker Paul McDermott hosted the series. The screenplay selected from the 700 submissions was The View from Greenhaven [20] by The MacRae Brothers.

Notes

^[a] The episode "The Pivot" was originally titled "Hot Ghetto Mess." However, the scene contextualizing the title was removed in last-minute editing. The original title was not corrected for television listings before air due to what was described as a "production error" by HBO. Future airings, along with HBO Go/HBO Now use "The Pivot" as the episode's title. [21]

Related Research Articles

<i>Survivors Remorse</i> American TV series (2014–17)

Survivor's Remorse is an American comedy-drama television series created by Mike O'Malley that aired on Starz. It premiered on October 4, 2014, and ended on October 15, 2017. The plot centers around the lives of Cam Calloway and his family after he signs a pro-basketball contract and moves his family to Atlanta. The series is produced by NBA player LeBron James. On August 24, 2016, Survivor's Remorse was renewed for a fourth season, which premiered on August 20, 2017. On October 10, 2017, Starz announced that the series would come to an end after its fourth season.

<i>Happyish</i> American dark satirical comedy-drama series

Happyish is an American dark satirical comedy-drama television show created and written by Shalom Auslander and starring Steve Coogan, Kathryn Hahn, Bradley Whitford, Ellen Barkin and Hannah Hodson. Ken Kwapis helped develop the program and directed its pilot and three of the first season's episodes. It first aired on Showtime on April 5, 2015, as a sneak preview, before its official premiere on April 26, 2015. On July 24, 2015, Happyish was cancelled by Showtime due to low ratings.

<i>Divorce</i> (TV series) American television series

Divorce is an American comedy-drama television series created by Sharon Horgan, set in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, and starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Thomas Haden Church as a middle-aged divorcing couple. The series premiered on HBO on October 9, 2016. The pilot episode was written by Horgan and directed by Jesse Peretz. On November 14, 2016, HBO renewed the show for a second season, which premiered on January 14, 2018. On November 2, 2018, HBO renewed the show for a third season, which was later announced on its premiere date to be the final season.

<i>Vice Principals</i> American television comedy series

Vice Principals is an American dark comedy television series starring Danny McBride, Walton Goggins, Kimberly Hébert Gregory, Dale Dickey, Georgia King, Sheaun McKinney, Busy Philipps and Shea Whigham. The co-creators were Danny McBride and Jody Hill. The series was ordered by HBO in May 2014 with an 18-episode pickup, and the series was split into two seasons for a designed finite run. The series began to shoot in 2015 and wrapped in mid-2016, and premiered on July 17, 2016. The second and final season premiered on September 17, 2017, and concluded on November 12, 2017.

<i>Those Who Cant</i> American TV series

Those Who Can't is an American sitcom that premiered February 11, 2016 on truTV. On December 1, 2015, the show was renewed for a second season before the first season aired. The pre-launch renewal is a first for the cable net, which ordered 12 episodes for the second season. On January 5, 2017, truTV renewed the series for a third season of 13 episodes, which began airing on January 14, 2019. The series was canceled on April 24, 2019. On December 1, 2020, all three seasons of Those Who Can't became available for viewing on the streaming service HBO Max.

<i>Crashing</i> (American TV series) American television comedy series

Crashing is an American comedy-drama television series created by Pete Holmes and executive produced by Holmes and occasional series director Judd Apatow. The first season aired on the HBO network in the United States from February 19 to April 9, 2017. It ran for a total of three seasons. The semi-autobiographical show revolves around a fictional version of Holmes, a comedian who pursues a career in stand-up comedy after his wife cheats on him, leaving him homeless. Several comedians play themselves in recurring roles, including Artie Lange and T. J. Miller, while others have guest appearances.

<i>Room 104</i> American anthology television series

Room 104 is an American television anthology series created by Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass, first broadcast on HBO between 2017 and 2020.

How To with John Wilson is an American television comedy docuseries created by filmmaker John Wilson. The series, executive produced by Nathan Fielder, Michael Koman and Clark Reinking, was ordered by HBO. It premiered on October 23, 2020.

References

  1. Schwindt, Oriana (July 26, 2016). "HBO Cancels 'Project Greenlight'". Variety. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
  2. White, Peter (May 18, 2021). "'Project Greenlight' Revival From Issa Rae Gets Series Order At HBO Max". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  3. Gelman, Vlada (June 21, 2023). "TVLine Items: Lisa Rinna on Horror Stories, Love Island USA Returns and More". TVLine .
  4. "Feast (2006)". The-Numbers.com. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  5. Metcalf, Mitch (September 15, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.13.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 17, 2015. Retrieved September 18, 2015.
  6. Metcalf, Mitch (September 22, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.20.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 22, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  7. Metcalf, Mitch (September 29, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.27.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 29, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  8. Metcalf, Mitch (October 6, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals & (Network Update): 10.4.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  9. Metcalf, Mitch (October 13, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.11.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 14, 2015. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  10. Metcalf, Mitch (October 20, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.18.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 21, 2015. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  11. Metcalf, Mitch (October 27, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.25.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 28, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  12. Metcalf, Mitch (November 3, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Update: 11.1.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
  13. "Congratulations to the winners of the 1st annual GREENIE AWARDS!". Facebook. April 2, 2015. Archived from the original on February 26, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  14. Harris, Aisha (September 14, 2015). "Project Greenlight Revealed Exactly Why Hollywood Still Has a Diversity Problem". Slate. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  15. Saul, Heather (September 15, 2015). "Matt Damon criticised for interrupting black producer Effie Brown and explaining diversity". The Independent. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Project Greenlight". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences . Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  17. "Project Greenlight Australia launched". Screen Australia. 2005. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  18. Solo (2006) at IMDb OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  19. George, Sandy (May 26, 2005). "Oz winner of Project Greenlight flies Solo". ScreenDaily. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  20. The View from Greenhaven (2008) at IMDb OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  21. Escobedo Shepherd, Julianne (October 19, 2015). "HBO: Naming Project Greenlight's Latest Episode 'Hot Ghetto Mess' Was a 'Production Mistake'". Jezebel . Gawker Media . Retrieved October 20, 2015.