Conspiracy Theory - About The Filmmakers

Conspiracy Theory: About The Filmmakers

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Producer/Director RICHARD DONNER began his directing career in live television, first with theatrical adaptations and then with numerous successful series, including "The Twilight Zone," "The Fugitive," "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.," "The Wild, Wild West," "The F.B.I." and "Cannon," as well as the pilots of "Wanted: Dead or Alive," "Kojak" and "Bronk."

His film-directing credits include the hit thriller "The Omen," "Superman," "Inside Moves," "The Toy," "Ladyhawke" and "The Goonies" (which he also produced, with Steven Spielberg), "Lethal Weapon," "Scrooged," "Lethal Weapon 2" (which outgrossed the first film), "Radio Flyer," "Lethal Weapon 3" (which outgrossed the previous two), "Maverick," which united Mel Gibson with Jodie Foster and James Garner, and "Assassins."

Occasionally lending a directorial hand to the highly rated HBO series "Tales From the Crypt," Donner also serves as the show's executive producer, along with Joel Silver, David Giler, Walter Hill and Robert Zemeckis. He also served as executive producer of Warner Bros.' "The Lost Boys" and Warner Bros.' "Free Willy," "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home" and "Free Willy 3."

Producer JOEL SILVER is one of the most successful producers in the motion picture industry today, with the combined gross of his films at well over $2 billion. With last year's release of "Executive Decision," starring Kurt Russell and Steven Seagal, eleven of Silver's films have each earned worldwide box-office totals of more than $100 million.

Silver began his career at Lawrence Gordon Productions, where he soon became President of Motion Pictures. He associate produced "The Warriors" and, with Gordon, produced "48 HRS.," "Streets of Fire" and "Brewster's Millions."

Silver's first independent production under his Silver Pictures banner was "Commando," followed by "Jumpin' Jack Flash" and "Predator." Silver then produced (with Richard Donner) "Lethal Weapon," "Lethal Weapon 2" and "Lethal Weapon 3" (all directed by Donner), as well as "Die Hard," "Die Hard 2: Die Harder," "The Last Boy Scout," "Demolition Man," "The Hudsucker Proxy," "Richie Rich," "Assassins" (with Donner, who also directed) and "Fair Game." Silver also executive produced, with Richard Donner, two "Tales From the Crypt" films: "Demon Knight" and "Bordello of Blood."

Silver Pictures recently produced "Fathers' Day," starring Robin Williams and Billy Crystal and directed by Ivan Reitman, and is currently completing production on "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," based on John Berendt's best-selling book and directed by Clint Eastwood.

Executive Producer JIM VAN WYCK previously executive produced "Assassins" and "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home," and co-produced "Free Willy," "Wrestling Ernest Hemingway," "The Babe," "Radio Flyer" and the hit comedy-Western, "Maverick." He served as associate producer on "Dick Tracy," "Mermaids," "Funny Farm," "Three Fugitives," "Punchline," "Surrender," "Outrageous Fortune" and "Murphy's Romance."

Van Wyck graduated from the University of Oregon and went on to play triple-A baseball in Tacoma, Washington, before entering the film industry via the Director's Guild training program. He began his movie career as a production assistant on John Carpenter's telefilm, "Elvis," starring Kurt Russell, Van Wyck's former teammate in professional baseball. As a trainee, Van Wyck worked on such films as "Cutter's Way" and "Inside Moves," where he first met Richard Donner.

Co-Producer RICK SOLOMON is a graduate of Cornell University, after which he went to work as an agent at ICM. He left ICM to work with Lauren Shuler Donner and Richard Donner, serving for 12 years as president of Donner/Shuler Donner Productions. During that time he co-produced "Radio Flyer," "Free Willy," "Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home" and "Assassins," and developed "Dave" and "Maverick."

Most recently, Solomon has partnered, with Edward Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz, in their production company, The Bedford Falls Company.

Co-producer DAN CRACCHIOLO is a Los Angeles native who began his entertainment career as an agent trainee at ICM under Ed Limato. In 1991 he joined Joel Silver's Silver Pictures, with his first project there "Lethal Weapon 3," directed by Richard Donner and produced by Silver and Donner.

Since then, Cracchiolo has associate produced Silver's and Donner's HBO television series, "Tales From the Crypt" for two seasons, as well as the two "Crypt" feature offshoots, "Demon Knight" and "Bordello of Blood." He is also co-producing the upcoming television series "Perversions of Science." In addition, Cracchiolo co-produced the feature film "Assassins" and is executive producer on the upcoming Decade Pictures release, "Double Tap," which represents a producing partnership between Silver and Donner.

Co-producer J. MILLS GOODLOE was born in Florida. Prior to joining Richard Donner Productions, he spent two years working at Columbia Pictures.

The first projects on which he collaborated with producer/director Donner were "Radio Flyer" and "Lethal Weapon 3," which was also produced by Joel Silver and starred Mel Gibson. Goodloe later worked with Gibson again on "Maverick," which was produced and directed by Donner.

He has served in a production capacity on Donner's and Silver's hit HBO series "Tales From the Crypt" and is executive producer on the upcoming Decade Pictures release, "Double Tap," which represents a producing partnership between Donner and Silver.

Screenwriter BRIAN HELGELAND is a former commercial fisherman from New Bedford, Massachusetts. He changed his career path "following a big storm at sea on Thanksgiving, 1985," beginning to write for the screen shortly afterward.

Since moving to Los Angeles in 1986 Helgeland's credits include the hit horror film "Nightmare on Elm Street IV: The Dream Master" and two other chillers, "976 EVIL" and "Highway to Hell." He also co-wrote the action-thriller "Assassins"; adapted James Ellroy's acclaimed crime saga into the upcoming feature "L.A. Confidential," starring Danny DeVito and Kevin Spacey; and wrote the original script for "The Postman," starring and directed by Kevin Costner

Production Designer PAUL SYLBERT earned an Academy award for his work on "Heaven Can Wait" and, more recently, was nominated for an Oscar for "The Prince of Tides." His credits reflect a wide diversity of films and include such classics as "A Face in the Crowd," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Kramer vs. Kramer." His additional credits include "The Wrong Man," "The Drowning Pool," Mikey and Nicky," "Hardcore," "Resurrection," "Wolfen," "Blowout," "The Journey of Natty Gann," "Gorky Park," "The Pope of Greenwich Village," "Ishtar," "Nadine," "Biloxi Blues," "Rush," "Sliver," "The Grass Harp" and "Rosewood."

Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Sylbert studied art at Temple University in Philadelphia and trained with Hans Hoffman in New York City. During the golden age of television, he worked on a number of live shows and later directed episodes of "The Defenders" and "The Nurse."

In 1971, he made his feature-film directorial debut with "The Steagle," starring Richard Benjamin, from his own screenplay. The film "Nighthawks" was based on Sylbert's story and he is the author of the book Final Cut.

He has designed sets and costumes for the New York City Opera Company, where he directed "Oedipus Rex," and for the Spoleto Festival in Italy and the Theatre Kentribkon in Athens, where he has directed several productions.

Editor FRANK J. URIOSTE, A.C.E. received an Academy Award nomination for his work on "Die Hard," which also represented his first collaboration with Joel Silver. Urioste was nominated for two other Oscars, for "Robocop" and "Basic Instinct." Among his many other credits are "Battle of Midway," "The Boys in Company C," "The Jazz Singer," "Conan the Destroyer," "The Hitcher," "Road House," "Total Recall," "Cliffhanger," "Tombstone," "Terminal Velocity" and "Executive Decision."

Director of Photography JOHN SCHWARTZMAN, A.S.C. previously photographed "The Rock," "Mr. Wrong," "A Pyromaniac's Love Story," "Benny & Joon, "Airheads," "You Can't Hurry Love," "Red Surf" and "Rockula," as well as the telefilm "To Save a Child."

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Schwartzman completed graduate studies at the USC Film School and then spent a year as Vittorio Storraro's apprentice on "Tucker: The Man and His Dream." After photographing a few smaller features, Schwartzman began work on television commercials through Propaganda Films.

Collaborating with such lauded commercial directors as David Fincher, Michael Bay and Jeremiah Chechik, Schwartzman became one of the most sought-after cameramen in the industry. He created advertisements for such major sponsors as Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Cover Girl, American Express and Nike. He also filmed numerous music videos, working with such stars as Madonna and Paula Abdul.

Composer/artist CARTER BURWELL has scored all of the Coen brothers' films, which include "Fargo," "The Hudsucker Proxy," "Barton Fink," "Miller's Crossing," "Raising Arizona" and "Blood Simple." In addition, he has worked four times with Michael Caton-Jones, on the upcoming "Jackal" and on "Rob Roy," "This Boy's Life" and "Doc Hollywood"; and three times with James Foley, on "The Chamber," "Fear" and "Two Bits."

His other composing credits for film include "Joe's Apartment," "Bad Company," "It Could Happen to You," "Airheads," "Wayne's World 2," "A Dangerous Woman," "Kalifornia," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Waterland," "Storyville," "Scorchers," "Checking Out," "The Beat," "Pass the Ammo" and "Psycho III." He has also scored the upcoming films "Spanish Prisoner," directed by David Mamet; "Assassins," directed by Matthieu Kassovitz; and "Picture Perfect," directed by Glenn Gordon Caron.

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