TheV

On the posters, film credits, and even on the DVD covers some say A FILM BY but do you know what that means?

I'd love to get a quick informal poll.

Thanks for the input.

BigPete

It varies ... I think it requires a combination of at least two of the following - writer, director, producer, star.

Inverse

Both writers and directors have tried to gain exclusive control at one point or another, but I believe it means nothing except "I have clout with the studio."

Crocker Jarmen

As far as I can tell, it's always the director that has the Film By credit. Offhand I can't really think of anyone else having that credit. (Although I think on some independant films it's included other people. I think on SMOKE it said a film by Wayne Wang (director) and Paul Auster (the writer).

For the most part, it really dosen't mean anything to me, other than being a pretty egomanical credit. I don't think the auther theory applies to everyone. But I don't mind it when it's a director who's established a certain amount of style or talent (like say Spike Lee, or Martin Scorcesses.)

It's way over used IMHO. I think there should be some sort of standard, like the way certain Cinematopgraphers are credited ASC or editors ACE (I always loved the way that looked), and the certified directors can have the Film By Credit.

RoboDad

As I understand it, it is generally synonymous with "An Insert Director's Name Film" (e.g., "A Ron Howard Film", or "A Film by Ron Howard"). However, it can mean more than that. So, I suppose the correct vote is that it is at least "the person directed the film."

Drexl

Jerry Bruckheimer does not direct.

KTIK

Adam Sandler's.... EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS!!!

It can be done for anything.

mwj

I would have guessed wrong. I thought only directors received A FILM BY ... credits.

lesterlong

It Means Nothing. Its a marketing ploy to sell more tickets!

mookiemeister

I always thought it was the person who directed it. But it could also mean something else too.

RocShemp

Though the opening credits of BABE state "A Kennedy Miller Film", later in the credits it states "Directed By Chris Noonan". Weird thing is Kennedy Miller isn't even credited as co-director or producer but it still says "A Kennedy Miller Film".

I've also seen (very rarely) the credit to go to producers or even the owners of a production company but I can't remember any examples off the top of my head.

Usually the credit goes to the director(s), though.

marty888

There may be some exceptions, but virtually every time this type of credit is used, it's for the director, even if the film is part of a series that sells itself, or has been made by a high-profile producer. For example, the Star Trek franchise goes with A Leonard Nimoy Film for IV amd Pearl Harbor is A Michael Bay Film.

William Fuld

"Kennedy Miller" is George Miller's production company. Byron Kennedy, now deceased, was his collaborator and production partner.

RocShemp

Okay, thanks. I was wondering about that.

The Nature Boy

But it doesn't not say a "A Film By Jerry Bruckheimer". They are different credits. Not far removed from "David O. Selznick presents..." He wasn't directing, but that was still the credit.

And I forget what director pointed it out, but it was a quite brillant lambasting of the "A film by..." credit, considering your average American film has 100 person crews or more, and the fact that the smaller the crew is, the harder they work and the more involved they are, and for a director to take that credit is really a slap in the face to them. I"m not advocating the guy who drives the Honeywagon is AS important as the director, but there are a lot of people making the director look good, and no one is disputing the vision.

RyoHazuki

It all depends on which name carries the most weight. Like "Wes Craven Presents Dracula 2000". That sounds better than "Patrick Lussier presents Dracula 2000"

lisadoris

Granted in most films it means the director or the producer, to me the tag line means nothing. As The Nature Boy pointed out, it takes a hell of a lot of people to make a movie so it seems rather vain to reduce it to one person. Even directors/producers with signature styles and tons of clout couldn't have made a movie by themselves.

jrsl76

As mentioned above, the titles "A film by..." or "A ___ film" typically refer to the director. This tends to be a prestige thing, i.e. this is my movie, I made it, and it goes back to the concept of the auteur. I don't think anyone really believes that most directors make their films themselves, but they are often the driving force that in making of the movie. They direct the actors, collaborate with the cinematographer, writer, editor and sound designer. They are one of the few people usually involved throughout the process and their wishes tend to count for more than other above the line crew members. That being said, in some cases, blockbusters mainly, the producer is the driving force. One only has to look to a Jerry Bruckheimer, Scott Rudin or a Joel Silver. In these cases you might see a line like "A Jerry Bruckheimer Film/Movie". In the case of something like Dracula 2000 where the producer is more famous, in this case a famous director, Wes Craven, the release it as "Wes Craven presents", because Wes Craven will attract people to the movie based on his past work more than the director Patrick Lustic (sic?) who at this juncture is an unknown, unquantifiable factor.

marty888

Well, a waiter "presents" your food, but he didn't make it.

filmerp

Not sure if this is the official way of credits, but this is what I would interpret the following:

A Steven Spielberg Film: Directed by, but not necesarily anything else.

A Film by Quinten Tarantino: Written & Directed by.

A Jerry Bruckheimer Production: Executive produced by.

Wes Craven (or studio name) Presents: Distributed by, but the name really had no involvement in the actual production of the film.

El-Kabong

It's just a brand name, nothing more. It's says: "The Marketing Guys think that by seeing my name before the title, you'll assoicated it with one of my previous movies that you hopefuly liked."

Groucho

Usually, it's the director...but it could be anybody. It's a meaningless phrase.

audrey

I don’t get the vanity and egomaniac comments; after all, plays are also a team effort, yet it’s not uncommon for the playwright (or in some cases the director) to receive a similar billing. And conductors often receive top billing over the orchestra. In general, the director is the individual most responsible for the outcome of the picture—what’s wrong with giving them recognition?

Groucho

I agree, but remember the DVDTalk Creedo:

* Director I Like = "Genius"

* Director I Don't Like = "Egomaniac"

Numanoid

People, you're getting way off base. The question was not what does "_____ Presents" mean, or waht does "A _____ Film" mean...the question is: What does "A Film By _____" mean?

Those are very specific words in a very specific order. In that case I'm pretty sure it always means the director.