Ted Hope

Ted Hope (born 1962) is an American independent film producer based in New York City. He is best known for co-founding the production/sales company Good Machine, where he produced the first films of such filmmakers as Ang Lee, Nicole Holofcener, Todd Field, Michel Gondry, Moisés Kaufman, and Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini. Hope then co-founded This is That with several associates from Good Machine. He later worked at the San Francisco Film Society and Amazon Studios.

Among Hope's twenty-three Sundance entries, are three Grand Jury Prize winners: '' American Splendor'' (2003), '' The Brothers McMullen'' (1995) and '' What Happened Was...'' (1994). ''American Splendor'' also won the FIPRESCI Award at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival, the Critics prize at the 2003 Deauville Film Festival, and was nominated for five Spirit Awards and one Academy Award. Hope has also produced two Sundance Opening Night selections: Nicole Holofcener's '' Friends with Money'' (2006) and Moises Kaufman's '' The Laramie Project'' (2002), which was nominated for five Emmys.

In 2013, IndieWire named Hope to its inaugural list of Influencers. The ''Hollywood Reporter'' cited Hope and his partners at This is That among the twenty-five most powerful people in the Independent Film business.

Early life

Hope attended the undergraduate film program at New York University. He met his frequent collaborator and former business partner Anne Carey on his first day there. After graduating, Hope worked as a production assistant for approximately three years, while also working as a script reader for New Line and MGM.

Hope advanced from work as a Production Assistant to Assistant Directing and Production Management. During that time he started to identify projects and filmmakers he wanted to work with. Most notably Hope started working with Hal Hartley in the years prior to their first production. Hope's first productions were Hartley's '' The Unbelievable Truth'' and '' Trust'', on which he is credited as First Assistant Director and Line Producer, respectively.

Film career

The Good Machine

In 1990, Hope and James Schamus founded Good Machine, an independent film production company based in New York. They started doing line production for hire for Claire Denis, Dani Levy, and Jan Schutte. At Good Machine, Hope and James Schamus produced Ang Lee's early films including ''Pushing Hands'', '' The Wedding Banquet'' and '' Eat Drink Man Woman'' (both Academy Award nominees), '' The Ice Storm'', and'' Ride with the Devil''.

Hope produced Todd Solondz's Cannes Critics' Prize-winning ''Happiness'', which Hope and his partners at Good Machine released themselves when its distributor dropped the film. Hope also executive produced Todd Field's '' In the Bedroom'', which earned five Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. Hope and Schamus brought David Linde in as a partner to Good Machine, in order to start their foreign sales arm, Good Machine International. In 2000, the Museum of Modern Art honored Good Machine with a retrospective. In 2001, the partners sold the company to Universal. Schamus and Linde stayed on and merged the international sales company with USA Films to create Focus Features.

This is That

With fellow Good Machine producers Anne Carey and Anthony Bregman, and head of business affairs Diana Victor, Hope co-founded New York production company This is That in 2002. This is That's first release, ''21 Grams'', received two Academy Award nominations and five BAFTA nominations. The company's second release, ''Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'', won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Hope's production of Alan Ball's feature film directorial debut, '' Towelhead,'' marked his 18th production of a first time feature film director. In 2010, the company released '' The American'', which opened at No. 1 at the US box office on opening week, and completed ''Super'', written and directed by James Gunn, which was the first film to sell that year at the Toronto International Film Festival. After producing seventeen films, the company closed its doors in September 2010 citing financial struggles with maintaining the office space. Hope hinted that he and Carey could possibly produce together again in the future.

San Francisco Film Society directorship

On August 8, 2012, the San Francisco Film Society named Hope as executive director of SFFS effective September 1. He began work in mid-September, 2012. Upon taking the position, Hope stated that it was an offer he could not refuse: “to save Indie Film and build it better than it has been before.” Moving away from project-specific producing, Hope turned his focus on improving infrastructure. Hope announced he would resign as executive director at the end of 2013, citing the challenges of working with a staff of 26 and a board. He said he planned to remain in the San Francisco Bay Area and lead the Film Society's advisory board. In March 2014, Noah Cowen, former director of the Toronto International Film Festival, took over as executive director of the SFFS.

Amazon Studios

On January 8, 2014, Hope was named CEO of Fandor, a subscription online service for independent and international films. He left Fandor at the beginning of 2015 to become the head of production for Amazon Original Movies, stating, "To help carry the torch into the feature film world for such an innovative company is a tremendous opportunity and responsibility. Amazon Original Movies will be synonymous with films that amaze, excite, and move our fans, wherever customers watch." After July 2018 he served as the co-head of movies for the studio under Jennifer Salke.

Amazon has released 38 films since 2016, notably winning three Academy Awards in the studio's first year as a distributor for titles '' Manchester by the Sea'' and '' The Salesman''. In May 2020, Salke announced that Hope had stepped down from his role as co-head of movies to go back to being an independent producer. Hope made a first-look deal with Amazon that began on June 2, 2020. In 2021, he joined Arizona State University as professor in the Sidney Poitier New American Film School's Masters program.

Double Hope Films

Double Hope Films is a production company founded by independent film producer Ted Hope and his wife Vanessa Hope in 2010. Double Hope's first film, ''Dark Horse'' premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2011, and the company's sophomore effort, '' Starlet'', premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2012.

MPAA campaign

Hope was instrumental in organizing the successful 2003 antitrust campaign against the MPAA and its ban on screeners including testifying in court. Although the MPAA head, Jack Valenti, claimed The Screen Ban was about combating piracy, it was recognized by the court as stifling competition. Hope has claimed a double win in the court case, as it is also where he met his wife filmmaker Vanessa Hope.

Filmography

He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.

Film

;Second unit director or assistant director

;Production manager

;Miscellaneous crew

;As an actor

Television

;Second unit director or assistant director

Further reading

Hope is cited in the following books:

Rough Guide To American Independent Film
by Jessica Winter
* Down & Dirty Pictures by Peter Biskind

Wake up Screening: What to Do Once You've Made That Movie
by John Anderson and Laura Kim

Killer Life
by Christine Vachon

Reel Truth
by Reed Martin

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hope, Ted
Film producers from New York City
Living people
1962 births
American film production company founders