Par TV vet crafts prod'n firm
McCluggage sets shingle for pix, TV
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Craftsman, based on the Par lot, has sold a military action-adventure pitch to Paramount and will produce the project. The untitled feature, a fictional tale set in contemporary times along the lines of "Black Hawk Down" and "Top Gun," will be penned by writer-producer-director Christopher Crowe ("The Last of the Mohicans").
In addition, Craftsman has signed an exclusive two-year deal with Paramount Network TV, selling a two-hour drama pilot script dubbed "Homeland Security" to NBC for fall 2003. Potential skein will explore how the events of Sept. 11 changed the way America deals with internal and external threats. Crowe will write the pilot, with McCluggage and Crowe exec producing.
Overall, the company, which will remain nonexclusive in motion pictures, will seek to develop projects with strong commercial appeal. Plan is to hire creative execs shortly.
McCluggage said the Craftsman name was selected to reflect a planned focus on the artistry of the collaborative process, in addition to reflecting an affection for the architectural style of that name.
"We hope we can craft terrific movies that can reach a broad audience," McCluggage told Daily Variety. "I'm a big movie fan with fairly broad tastes. We'd like to be very active."
McCluggage said Craftsman is exploring a variety of options for financing its feature development activities, but hasn't settled yet on a specific strategy.
And although McCluggage stressed that the shingle will start out mostly focused on features, Craftsman will take advantage of his extensive experience in developing successful small-screen properties.
"It's just a question of emphasis, and I want to put more of an emphasis (on film) to re-establish a track record there," he said. "We love TV, and there are no plans to step aside from that area."
Exec said he's already talking to Par-based scribes David Milch and Dan Pine about potential projects. At least one other network project is expected to take flight this development season.
Crowe's nest
McCluggage, who left Par in January, said the chance to work with Crowe played a key part in his decision to come back to the business. The duo began their alliance on NBC's "Miami Vice," with McCluggage as supervising producer and Crowe as director. It continued with the feature "Nightmares" and TV series "Seven Days" for UPN and "The Untouchables" for syndication.
Even during his days as a top studio exec, McCluggage maintained a rep for taking a keen interest in the creative content of Par projects. Crowe said it wasn't unusual to see McCluggage in an editing bay at 3 a.m.
In his new role, McCluggage said, he'll be able to focus on "the fun part of this business, which is working with creative and talented people and helping them shape their ideas.
"The higher up you rise in the exec ranks, the tougher it is to find time to do that," he said. "It's extremely liberating to just be able to work almost exclusively on the creative side."
Hit parade
During McCluggage's 10-year run at Paramount, he helped develop the plan for UPN's launch in 1995 and shepherded such hits as "Frasier" and "Cheers," the "Star Trek" franchise, "Entertainment Tonight" and "The Arsenio Hall Show."
Before joining Paramount, McCluggage was president of Universal Television and developed such shows as "Quantum Leap," "Law & Order," "Northern Exposure," "Coach" and "Major Dad." He began his career at Universal in 1978 as a programming assistant and was subsequently promoted to senior VP, creative affairs, where he oversaw development and production for "Magnum, P.I.," "The Equalizer," "Murder, She Wrote," "The A-Team" and "Miami Vice."
In addition to co-writing "Last of the Mohicans" with Michael Mann, Crowe's feature credits include "The Mean Season" and "Fear." He also wrote and directed "Off Limits" and "Whispers in the Dark." TV credits include exec producer of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"; creator, exec producer and director of "Streets of Justice"; exec producer and writer of "The Untouchables"; and creator, executive producer and writer of "The Watcher" and "Seven Days."
Crowe is repped by ICM and the Bauer Co., McCluggage by Skip Brittenham.
