Ben Affleck says Netflix’s ‘assembly line’ approach to making quality films is ‘an impossible job’

CNN
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Ben Affleck talks about how movies are made in the current era of Netflix and other streaming platforms, which offer an ever-increasing abundance of content.

The actor, producer and director, who is starting a new movie studio with friend and colleague Matt Damon with RedBird Capital Partners, shared his take on Netflix’s approach to filmmaking, which he likened to an “assembly line.”

Making movies “is something that takes attention and dedication and work and it withstands the kind of assembly line process,” Affleck shared in reference to Netflix, while attending the New York Times 2022 DealBook Conference last week.

“[Netflix’s head of original films] Scott Stuber is a very talented, smart guy who I really like, but it’s an impossible job,” he added.

The ‘Argo’ star also said that if you ask Netflix co-CEO and chairman Reed Hastings about their ambitious approach to making 50 great movies, “he’d say, ‘Hey, we went for quantity to make a footprint. to create.’ I’m sure there’s wisdom in that and I’m sure they had a great strategy, but I would have said, ‘How are we going to make 50 great movies a year? How is that possible?’ There is no commission big enough. There aren’t enough of them – you just can’t.”

Affleck acknowledged that “there’s a bigger audience for action movies than little dramas. I get it. Certain genres play wider and you can’t ignore that. But let’s get it right, let’s surprise the audience, let’s make them care.”

At Artists Equity, which is branded as a creator-led studio, Affleck and company hope to reshape the relationships between studios, artists and crews working in the industry.

As seen in Variety, Artists Equity already has a first project in production – a yet-to-be-titled drama about the beginnings of Nike’s incredibly popular sneaker brand Air Jordan. Written and directed by Affleck, the film stars Damon as the executive who landed the endorsement deal for the shoe with Chicago Bulls superstar Michael Jordan.