BoxOfficeGuru.com examines this year's major contenders with the new Oscar Spotlight column. Each Friday, editor Gitesh Pandya talks one-on-one with producers and studio executives behind some of the most acclaimed films up for recognition this season.

This week, Oscar Spotlight talks to Cathy Konrad, producer of the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line which is the only film among the Academy Award nominees in the major categories to have grossed over $100M. Honored with five Oscar nominations, the Fox release has already won numerous awards including an impressive trifecta at the Golden Globes taking home Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress in the Comedy or Musical genre. With Walk the Line, Konrad teamed up for the fifth time with her husband, director James Mangold, and sees her critical and commercial hit continuing its run.

Box Office Guru: How long did it take to develop this film?

Cathy Konrad: Well basically there was a two-phase development process. One, which I had nothing to do with, was James Keach. Prior to Jim and I meeting him, he was clearly pursuing the idea of doing a movie with John. He was working on it with Edgar Scherick. My attachment to it came in 1995 when I was working with Jim on Cop Land. Jim came to me with the idea. We were a couple of weeks into shooting, and being the producer that I am, I was thinking of moving on to what's next. And he said he always wanted to do a movie on Johnny Cash. Jim is a major collector of music and had collected these box sets that are distributed by a German music distributor. And they had three box sets of John's music broken down by decade in the 50s, 60s, and 70s. In each box set was a photo book, an amazing collection of really great photos of John on tour, John with Roy, Elvis, and all. Jim and I started going through that and what Jim painted for me as an idea for a movie, which I thought was really compelling and would be interesting to Hollywood, was more of a dramatic narrative which is the story of this boy, his relationship with his father, the death of his brother, and how that relates to one of our favorite movies East of Eden which was a template for Jim, combined with the classic biopic structure of Coal Miner's Daughter.

So when he pitched me that story, I said that sounds great, and I went out to find the rights and kind of bumped into James Keach who was the rights holder at the time. And he wasn't interested in Jim and I jumping on just yet because I believe that he had been working on something and had some interest himself to direct it. So cut to three years go by, it's 1999, Jim and I had just finished making Girl, Interrupted for Amy Pascal and I had a deal at Sony, and she asked what we were up to, and I said we don't have the rights to this but every year we call and make our presence known. It's Johnny Cash. She said that sounds cool.

Six months later when I called James Keach and asked again what's going with your movie, and can we come and tell you what our idea was, he said let's have breakfast. So we sat down at that time and it was clear that he wasn't able to further what he was working on in the spirit of getting things done so a collaboration could be good. He heard our take. We flew down to Hendersonville and pitched it to John and June. They loved what we had to say and we all joined forces. So from 1999 to 2001 Jim was working on the script. We got a script in 2001 that we were pretty happy with and gave it to the studio and Amy was like 'I don't think I want to make this.' What Jim and I decided to do, knowing that the script needed a tad more work, in our opinion, was to take the time to work on the script while it was still under option to work on it on our own while Jim was working on another movie and attach cast to it because we felt at the time that the studio was not seeing the youth of the picture. The biopic wasn't a genre that the studios at the time were interested in. No matter how many times we told them that this to us was a love story, it was about the birth of rock and roll, this was the beginning of everything - people were just crippled with the idea of Elvis in the white suit and Johnny Cash as the guy with a variety show. No one saw the young energy we were talking about. We felt the only way to get people to start seeing that, since sometimes it's hard for people to read ideas on a page, is to just do some casting.

BOG: How did casting of those two crucial lead roles take place?

CK: We gave the script to Joaquin in 2003 after Jim had done another pass with Gill (Dennis), and he said yes. He wanted to do it, but was doing The Village. And Reese was doing Vanity Fair. So we had to wait for them and we didn't really go to any other cast, I mean Joaquin was an idea that came to us two years into development. I had seen a picture of him when he was doing press for Gladiator. The Calendar section of the L.A. Times had done a story on him and it was a riveting picture. It was just a small postage stamp size picture. John was an incredibly complicated guy and it's rare that you can just see a picture that has all those complications in a still image. Clearly I was familiar with Joaquin's work and I thought he was a great actor. That picture really summed everything up. It was a picture that had his face in half darkness and half light. The expression on his face was John from 1950. He looked so much like John in 1953 that it was startling! The freedom that we had then in not being attached to a studio that wants to make the movie is that we can put whoever we want in the movie. Whoever is right. We don't have to run it through the system and have them spit out what their dollar value is and so let's just give it to the people who we think are right and if somebody wants to make the movie, then great.

So we gave it to Joaquin on a Friday, and I'll never forget this because it rarely happens, he called Jim on Monday and he said, 'What do I have to do to be in this movie?' Jim said, 'Buy a guitar.' And that was it. We didn't have any money, and we weren't making the movie, and he was going off to make another movie, but in that moment, Joaquin was committed to this picture and it was really important for him to do this movie. So with him on board and committed in spirit to what we were trying to achieve, Reese came to our mind now that we had John to anchor the image of what this cast would be. Reese was a natural fit for us because we had met her before at Breckin Meyer's engagement party and she asked us a year earlier what we were working on and we told her about this project. And she said if you ever get a script that you like, give it to me. She said she played June Carter in her sixth grade play or something, and she said it's my heritage and I'd love to take a look at that. And we said great! She was perfect to play June.

We did not know if either could sing or couldn't sing. It was always Jim's vision that the actors would do their own singing. When everyone said yes, I then went back to Amy and said, 'Here's my package - it's Jim and me, and T-Bone (Burnett), and Joaquin, and Reese, and here's my budget - it's $25M. Waddaya say?' And she said no. As did everyone. Not to poke at Amy, every studio passed on that package - Sherry Lansing, Donald De Line, we met with everybody, and everybody said no. We certainly felt the movie would do well. The fact that we're over $106M now, it's kinda crazy! But, in January 2004, Elizabeth Gabler (at Fox) said let's have a meeting and I'm inclined to do this.

BOG: Of the numerous films nominated for Oscars in the major categories, Walk the Line is the only one to have grossed over $100M. Are you surprised by the response from audiences?

CK: For me, I make things that I'm interested in doing. I don't make things based on what the trends are saying you should do. What I always felt about this story was that it's a classic story and it's a classic good story. The story of John and June had a happy ending built in. It wasn't a tragic story, it was a story about redemption, it was a story about coming to terms with your life, it was about finding out who you are. It was about resolving who you're not and making peace with yourself and at the same time figuring out who you are artistically, where you are in love. It is the classic life struggle. Jim and I spent a lot of time with these people. We were at both of their funerals. I've never seen or been that close to people that seemed to be the people that we should all try to be. I think people related to that and I think that people need someone to believe in and in many ways John is a hero for people because he was the people's hero, he wasn't a man in purple tights saving the world. He was a guy who wrestled his own demons.

BOG: When you first learned that the film would open on the same weekend as the latest Harry Potter movie, how did you feel?

CK: Well, it was kind of a calculated move, I mean there's a lot of clutter in the pipeline these days. Trying to find a clean weekend is next to impossible. We were originally slated as an April movie, and you know April to me is a funny month. I think every studio says your movie is coming out in April, you know, April is sort of in limbo. And whenever I hear it, it makes me see red. It means no one really knows. But, what I was encouraged by, and it's rare in this town, were the test scores. The first screening we tested over 87% in the top two boxes, I mean it was big! People were cheering at the end and standing up. So then everybody redirected their attention to when was the best time. Clearly we wanted to be a movie that was considered in awards season. It think everyone felt the performances were of that caliber in the movie as a whole. And when that happens, things are rerouted and changed. We knew that Harry Potter wasn't our demographic, per se. And we also wanted to be in contention to run the holiday period. We knew a lot of these Academy movies were going to be limited releases in December on very small screens. Looking at the playing field, there were surprisingly few movies for adults. Then when we did the testing, the research came back saying we were a solid three-quadrant movie with young men always being the fickle audiences that never decide what they're seeing until Friday night. But the young men scores were surprisingly high so once you see you're a four-box movie, it's just about how to keep that tempo up and run the race for the long haul.

BOG: What are the pros and cons of being a husband-wife team where one produces and the other directs?

CK: Who's going to make dinner. (laughs) Well, I was pregnant when I made the movie, which added an incredible dynamic to the situation. I wrapped the film and six weeks later I gave birth. I was eight months pregnant in Memphis and we made the movie during the summer and for anybody that cares, don't do that! It's very hot! Basically, I'd say the hardship is that people try to bracket their personal life and their professional life because I think that's the sanest way to approach life. No one wants to live your job 24/7. I think the negative of being a husband-wife team in the business, and actually making the same thing, is that it never stops. We wake up with it, we go to work with it, we're there with it, we come home with it. It's very hard to shake especially given that making movies is a life commitment during the months you're making the movie. You are basically saying I will have no life but this movie. We love film so for us it's been, and especially since the baby's been born, it's about a process of trying to impose some brackets on our lives so it's not business 24/7. The pro, of course, is obvious. We get to be together and make our work happen together. This business is really hard and we are each other's support in a way that very few people have. The negative is the positive, and the positive is the negative. It's great that I can come home and I can tell somebody what happened and they totally get it.

BOG: Was it surprising to not get a best picture nomination for the Oscars?

CK: Well, I'll be perfectly frank, yeah it was. I sort of think that partly because of the perception from everybody that was talking to us was so positive. Not just people in the business, I mean everybody we talked to from the beginning of this journey was like, 'This is my favorite movie of the year!' And it was surprising in the sense that the perception became our reality. It's not surprising in the game of Hollywood where there are always surprises. So, yes I was surprised because it just felt like everyone had sort of already said it was, as opposed to it actually being. This was a really great year for movies. I think that all the movies are really interesting. I am perplexed, as I think a lot of people are, that essentially to me the slate of pictures minus Munich that are nominated for Best Picture are exactly the Independent Spirit Awards. It's a little confusing. And I guess there's some redefining in town going on. And no one has really defined it yet.

BOG: In the months leading up to the domestic release, the film played at a handful of high profile festivals like Toronto and Telluride. How was the film received at these festivals and how important were they in building up excitement before the official release.

CK: I think it's really vital and really important for a movie that's solid and you know the competition in the marketplace. It's a great way to get dividends on your marketing dollars because you're letting the movie do the talking. When you're that confident about something and the movie plays so solidly, I thought it was a really smart way to go. I think Telluride is a great festival and I really enjoyed going there. It's the early launch and it's sort of like the old fashioned festival, it's not a competitive situation, it's more artistic. So it balances out what Toronto is. So it's the calm before the storm. I thought it was a good way to get the more important tastemaker critics to see the movie. Roger Ebert left that festival loving the movie! Heading into Toronto as an anticipated film was a nice feeling. I still remember the night of our premiere there, we got a standing ovation, and I know I got tears in my eyes. I know Reese did. I mean it was a rare moment. You do have to build a little cynical shell around yourself when you're in this business and there are those kinds of moments like that, that break it all down. It makes you say gee, this is what we're here for. It really solidified our position as a contender.

BOG: Many of the films you've produced are driven by female characters like Girl, Interrupted, The Sweetest Thing, and the Scream movies. Do you think financiers and distributors look differently at films led by women?

CK: I feel like when I look back at my bio, it's all about ensembles, as opposed to just women in general. There's maybe only one woman these days that could actually finance a movie, and that's Julia Roberts, in the traditional sense. You know, women-dominated movies are hard to make, and I don't really know why. I think there are plenty of great stories out there that could be driven by women. I just think that it's the times we live in, and we haven't caught up with it yet. But characters in general are what I like to look at my resume and reflect on. A character-based film in general is something that I love to make, and will always make. With these past few years, and the way that the markets have been running and clearly the success of Walk the Line, it's inspiring always because it gives you the shot for the next one. The more these movies succeed, the better off I feel about the choices I've made in my career. I've never made a movie that was over $45M. My bailiwick has been in the middle range which is always the area that's talked about as the range that everyone in Hollywood is cutting out. (laughs) So it's great that there's different ways to make these movies and that there's an audience for these movies, and honestly it comes down to a good movie and a good story.

BOG: Are there any aspects of the film industry that you'd like to see changed or improved?

CK: Well, further to what I was talking about, I think distribution is a really tricky area of our business. There's just too many movies for people to digest. And I think that people need to be more specific about the movies they're making and when they're putting them out and I just wish that movies wouldn't sit on top of each other. I remember I was working for Norman Jewison, this is in 1994, and I remember how much fun it used to be when you didn't know what was going to happen over the weekend. (laughs) It seems like so long ago, but there used to be an element of surprise in this business. No one would know anything until Monday. Now, you can't move without people already predicting your future. From a distribution standpoint, that could kill you. People know too much. Too many people know too much and there's not enough chance to create a path that might be right for rolling out your film. The competition is so incredible, and I'm all for good competition, but I think there's too much and stuff is just canceling each other out.

My greatest pride on Walk the Line, you know we've gotten so many calls these last few days and everyone telling us we've been robbed, and I say yeah, it would have been nice. But the reality is that I see my movie at the box office and my movie is still up in theaters eleven weeks later. That's like impossible these days! We were the number six movie on Wednesday, and we've been out for eleven weeks! That's something to be really happy about. People are still seeing the movie and I've never gotten more cards and letters or emails in my life about people connecting with this film. So for me as a producer who got in this business to tell stories, this has been a great ride.

Be sure to check back next Friday for a new installment of Oscar Spotlight.

2006 Academy Award nominations and grosses

Last Updated : February 3, 2006

Previous columns:

• Jan 20 - James Schamus, Brokeback Mountain
• Jan 27 - John Singleton, Hustle & Flow