Roven ready for genre-busting summer
Producer of the Year: Charles Roven
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"I've never had this much going on," says the producer, who will receive his honor on Thursday. "Some years, I've had two movies, but never four. It's definitely hard, but doable. My wife accuses me of being a workaholic."
The quartet comprises recently opened drama "The Bank Job," "Get Smart" (June 20), "The Dark Knight" (July 18) and "The International" (Aug. 15). It's a typically broad-based mix for him, with the two pics in the center being high-profile ventures and the first and last proving smaller and more cerebral. All four boast impressive casts.
Roven's involvement in each has been comprehensive, though he's quick to credit producing partners and talent, both in front of and behind the camera.
"I consider myself an all-around producer," he says, "from finding material to development of the script to financing. I enjoy the whole process."
The mix of genres -- working on a Steve Carell comedy ("Get Smart") and a new Batman franchise ("The Dark Knight"), for example -- is part of the attraction.
"That really keeps it fresh for me," he says. "I have varied interests, so making different kinds of movies is better for my skill set."
Occasionally, Roven travels the sequel road, as he's now doing with "The Dark Knight" and did earlier this decade with two "Scooby-Doo" pics. Yet, despite a film's familiarity, the process doesn't necessarily become easier.
"There's always a yin and yang," he suggests. "If you're working with the same team, you develop a shorthand. By the same token, you're making a sequel to a successful film, so you have to raise the bar. In a lot of ways, it's even more challenging."
In the end, Roven reduces the process to a few principles: "Quality, making successful films and having a positive collaborative experience is important to me. Certainly there's times where I either haven't achieved them all or achieved very few. But those are my goals."
