Wish I Was Here | |
---|---|
Directed by | Zach Braff |
Written by |
|
Produced by |
|
Starring | |
Cinematography | Lawrence Sher |
Edited by | Myron Kerstein |
Music by | Rob Simonsen |
Production companies |
|
Distributed by | Focus Features |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 107 minutes [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $6 million [2] |
Box office | $5.5 million [3] |
Wish I Was Here is a 2014 American comedy-drama film directed by Zach Braff and co-written with his brother Adam Braff. [4] The film stars Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Josh Gad, Pierce Gagnon, Ashley Greene, Kate Hudson, Joey King, Jim Parsons, and Mandy Patinkin. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2014 [5] and was given a limited release on July 18, 2014 by Focus Features. This marked the final film appearances for James Avery and Allan Rich before their deaths on December 31, 2013 and August 22, 2020 respectively.
Aidan Bloom is a 35-year-old father of two struggling to be an actor in Los Angeles while his wife, Sarah, works a tedious data entry job. In order to send their kids, Tucker and Grace, to a Jewish school, they rely on help from Aidan's father, Gabe, who insisted they go to an Orthodox Jewish day school.
When Gabe reveals his cancer has returned, he tells Aidan that he has decided to put the rest of his money into a new stem cell treatment, meaning his grandchildren can no longer afford to attend their school. After school administrator Rabbi Twersky refuses to provide any aid to the Blooms, Sarah suggests that Aidan homeschool their kids, and their adventure of self-discovery begins. Through teaching them about life his way, Aidan gradually discovers some of the parts of himself he could not find.
Aidan takes the kids on a field trip, camping in the desert. Another day, they are able to test drive an Aston Martin, as Grace is wearing a wig and the salesman mistakenly believes she is dying. Another he works with the kids fixing up their yard, referring to it as Mr. Miyagi learning (referring to The Karate Kid ), working to repair the fence and pool. Aidan fools a wealthy neighbor's maid into believing he and the kids are there to clean the pool so he can teach Grace to swim.
Aidan's brother Noah is a virtual shut-in who can only be bribed to babysit for his brother. He also refuses to see his dying father, from whom he is estranged. Noah falls for his neighbor Janine who is a furry costume maker, which gives him the idea to impress her by making a costume for San Diego Comic-Con. He does go, and gets the girl. As Gabe nears death, he calls to ask Aidan to come, bringing his favorite ice cream and Noah. He surprisingly leaves the convention to join them at Gabe's side.
Aidan grows closer to his wife and children, his faith through the support of young Rabbi Rosenberg, his brother and his father. The family moves onward and upward. We see Grace happily starting high school. Sarah stands up against her harasser at work, she getting one year of severance pay, and he many hours of obligatory anti-sexual harassment training and is fired. Aidan gets a job teaching acting.
On April 24, 2013, director Zach Braff launched a Kickstarter campaign for his comedy film Wish I Was Here, aiming to make $2 million to boost the project, based on a script he co-wrote with his brother Adam J. Braff. [4] Larry Sher was set as director of photography, [6] and Michael Shamberg and Stacey Sher were set to produce. [4] The campaign raised $2 million 3 days after the project was launched. [7] On May 15, 2013, Worldview Entertainment stepped in to gap finance the project, which at that point had raised over $2.6 million. [8] The campaign ended on May 24, 2013, and raised $3,105,473 from 46,520 people. [9]
At the film's New York premiere, actress Joey King stated that she donated money to the film on Kickstarter before she was even attached as a cast member. [10]
The movie received considerable criticism for its funding model. Over $3 million of the around $5 million budget came from crowdfunding, then Worldview Entertainment stepped in to top up the budget to $5 million. The unconventional funding model meant that crowdfunding supporters were promised 'bonuses' for their pledges, yet production company Worldview Entertainment stood to make a financial return on their investment. Braff has stated that he believes the negativity regarding the movie's crowdfunding campaign contributed to the movie's box office failure. [11]
At the time the Kickstarter was launched, Zach Braff and Jim Parsons had already been cast. [4] Braff plays Aidan Bloom, a struggling actor, husband and father trying to find his purpose. [12] On May 14, 2013, Mandy Patinkin joined the cast, playing Gabe Bloom, Aidan's father. [13] Josh Gad also joined the cast to play the role of Aidan's brother. [14] On May 15, Anna Kendrick signed on to play Janine, a young woman who is into cosplay. [15] Kate Hudson joined on May 20 to play Sarah Bloom, Aidan's wife. [16] Joey King was set to play Grace Bloom, the 12-year-old daughter of Aidan and Sarah Bloom, on July 2, 2013. [17] Pierce Gagnon was added to the cast on July 9, to play Tucker Bloom, son of Aidan and Sarah. [18] On July 17, it was announced that Ashley Greene would replace Anna Kendrick as Janine. [19]
Principal photography took 25 days, beginning on August 5, 2013 in Los Angeles and ending on September 6, 2013. [20]
The film's first trailer was released on April 9, 2014. [21]
The film had its world premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival in January 2014, 10 years after the premiere of Braff's directorial debut Garden State . [22] Focus Features bought the distribution rights for $2.75 million after a bidding war with The Weinstein Company, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Lionsgate and CBS Films. [23]
After its opening at Sundance, it was announced that the film would open on July 18, 2014, exclusively in New York and Los Angeles. The release ended up a bit wider, playing in 68 theaters during its opening weekend. The release then expanded on July 25. [24] The special preview screening in London was attended by Kate Hudson and Zach Braff on September 18, 2014. [25]
Wish I Was Here received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval of 47%, based on 133 reviews, with the site's consensus reading: "There's no denying Wish I Was Here is heartfelt, but it covers narrative ground that's already been well trod – particularly by director Zach Braff's previous features." [26] On Metacritic the film has a score of 43 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [27]
The box office failure of the movie, attributed to negative publicity surrounding the movie's crowdfunding campaign, has meant that it is the only high-profile film, as of 2022, to have used the crowdfunding model. [11]
The soundtrack for the film includes an original song by The Shins, an original song by Bon Iver, and an original title track by Coldplay, recorded with Cat Power.
Mandel Bruce Patinkin is an American actor and singer, known for his work in musical theatre, television, and film. He is a critically acclaimed Broadway performer known for his collaborations with Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber. He is known for his leading roles on stage and screen and has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a Primetime Emmy Award as well as nominations for seven Drama Desk Awards, three Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Garden State is a 2004 American romantic comedy-drama film, written and directed by Zach Braff and starring Braff, Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, and Ian Holm. The film centers on Andrew Largeman (Braff), a 26-year-old actor/waiter who returns to his hometown in New Jersey after his mother dies. Braff based the film on his real life experiences. It was filmed in April and May 2003 and released on July 28, 2004. New Jersey was the main setting and primary shooting location.
Donald Adeosun Faison is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his leading role as Dr. Chris Turk in the ABC/NBC comedy-drama Scrubs (2001–2010), and a supporting role as Murray in both the film Clueless (1995) and the subsequent television series of the same name. He also starred as Phil Chase in the TV Land sitcom The Exes (2011–2015). Faison has also co-starred in the films Waiting to Exhale (1995), Remember the Titans (2000), Uptown Girls (2003), Something New (2006), Next Day Air (2009), Skyline (2010), and Kick-Ass 2 (2013).
Zachary Israel Braff is an American actor and filmmaker. He portrayed J.D. on the NBC/ABC television series Scrubs (2001–2010), for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2005 as well as for three Golden Globe Awards from 2005 to 2007. He starred in The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000), The Last Kiss (2006), The Ex (2006), and In Dubious Battle (2016). He has done voice-work for Chicken Little (2005), Oz the Great and Powerful (2013), and the Netflix series BoJack Horseman.
Lawrence Sher, ASC is an American cinematographer and film director, best known for comedy films such as Garden State, The Dictator, and The Hangover series, frequently collaborating with directors Todd Phillips and Zach Braff. He made his directorial debut with Father Figures, which began a wide theatrical release on December 22, 2017, by Warner Bros. Pictures. He was nominated for an Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography for the 2019 film Joker, directed by Phillips.
Joshua Ilan Gad is an American actor. He is known for voicing Olaf in the Frozen franchise, playing Elder Arnold Cunningham in the Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, and playing Le Fou in the live-action adaptation of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. For his role as Olaf, Gad won two Annie Awards, and for his work in The Book of Mormon, he co-won a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album and received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical, both shared with Andrew Rannells as one of the two leading artists.
Gary Gilbert is an American film producer and businessman. He is the founder and CEO of Gilbert Films, a media production and financing company based in Los Angeles, California. He is also a co-founder of Rocket Mortgage, as well as a co-owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA team.
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of February 2023, Kickstarter has received US$7 billion in pledges from 21.7 million backers to fund 233,626 projects, such as films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, board games, technology, publishing, and food-related projects.
The Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series is one of the award categories presented annually by the Critics' Choice Television Awards (BTJA) to recognize the work done by television actors. It was introduced in 2011 when the event was first initiated. The winners are selected by a group of television critics that are part of the Broadcast Television Critics Association.
Worldview Entertainment was an American motion picture finance company focused on theatrical-quality feature films for worldwide distribution. The company produced over 20 films, including Fox Searchlight’s critically acclaimed hit “Birdman”, which was nominated for nine Academy Awards, won four Oscars, including Best Picture, and grossed more than $100 million in global box office revenue.
Pierce Gagnon is an American teen actor. He is known for his roles in the film Looper and in the CBS series Extant, as well as voicing Tim Templeton in the Netflix series The Boss Baby: Back in Business.
VHX was a digital distribution platform targeting independent filmmakers. The platform allows artists to sell content directly from their own website, providing design, social media integration, search engine optimization, and analytics tools. In May 2016, VHX was acquired by Vimeo.
Boss Fight Books is a Los Angeles-based book publisher and its eponymous series of books about video games. Similar to the style of 33⅓, a series of books about individual record albums, each book focuses solely on one video game. The company was founded by Gabe Durham in June 2013, and following a successful Kickstarter campaign in July, they released their first book, EarthBound by Ken Baumann in January 2014.
Video Games: The Movie is a documentary film by Jeremy Snead about video games. After Indiegogo and Kickstarter crowdfunding campaigns in 2012 and 2013 respectively, the film was released in 2014.
Seed&Spark is a film-centric crowdfunding and SVOD platform launched in 2012.
Going in Style is a 2017 American remake of the 1979 comedy film of the same name. Directed by Zach Braff and written by Theodore Melfi, it stars Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Alan Arkin, Joey King, Matt Dillon, Christopher Lloyd, Ann-Margret, John Ortiz and Siobhan Fallon Hogan. It follows a trio of retirees who plan to rob a bank after their pensions are canceled.
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over US$34 billion was raised worldwide by crowdfunding.
Mandy is a 2018 action horror film directed by Panos Cosmatos, produced by Elijah Wood and co-written by Cosmatos and Aaron Stewart-Ahn based on a story Cosmatos conceived. A co-production of the United States and Belgium, the film stars Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, Linus Roache, Ned Dennehy, Olwen Fouéré, Richard Brake, and Bill Duke.
Amateur is a 2018 American sports drama film about a young basketball future star struggling with his personal life in pursuit of his dream. The film was released in the United States on April 6, 2018, on Netflix.
A Good Person is a 2023 American drama film written, directed, and produced by Zach Braff. The film stars Florence Pugh, Molly Shannon, Chinaza Uche, Celeste O'Connor, and Morgan Freeman.