For Your Consideration (2006)

Director:

Christopher Guest

Writers (WGA):

Christopher Guest (written by) &
Eugene Levy (written by)

Release Date:

22 November 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Three actors learn that their respective performances in the film "Home for Purim," a drama set in the mid-1940s American South, are generating award-season buzz.

Plot Keywords:

Actor | Hollywood | Agent | Reporter | Oscars

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Catherine O'Hara	...	Marilyn Hack
Stephen Rannazzisi	...	Studio Gate Guard
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Sandy Lane
Eugene Levy	...	Morley Orfkin
Harry Shearer	...	Victor Allan Miller
Christopher Moynihan	...	Brian Chubb
Christopher Guest	...	Jay Berman
John Michael Higgins	...	Corey Taft
Carrie Aizley	...	Pam Campanella
Stephanie Courtney	...	Boom Operator
Suzy Nakamura	...	First AC
Jim Piddock	...	Simon Whitset
Jane Morris	...	Script Supervisor
Jennifer Coolidge	...	Whitney Taylor Brown
Jordan Black	...	Whitney's Assistant
Parker Posey	...	Callie Webb
Paul Dooley	...	Paper Badge Sergeant
John Krasinski	...	Paper Badge Officer
Don Lake	...	Love It Film Critic
Michael Hitchcock	...	Hate It Film Critic
Lauri Johnson	...	Morley's Secretary
Simon Helberg	...	Junior Agent
Rachael Harris	...	Mary Pat Hooligan
David Blasucci	...	Second AD
Sandra Oh	...	Marketing Person
Richard Kind	...	Marketing Person
Bob Balaban	...	Philip Koontz
Michael McKean	...	Lane Iverson
Ari Graynor	...	Young PA
Scott Adsit	...	First AD
Fred Willard	...	Chuck
Jane Lynch	...	Cindy
Mary McCormack	...	Pilgrim Woman
Shawn Christian	...	Pilgrim Man
Deborah Theaker	...	Liz Fenneman
Nina Conti	...	Weather Woman
Scott Williamson	...	Skip
Sarah Shahi	...	Sanchez
Steven M. Porter	...	Floor Manager (as Steven Porter)
Ricky Gervais	...	Martin Gibb
Larry Miller	...	Syd Finkleman
Craig Bierko	...	Talk Show Host
Jeffrey C.J. Vanston	...	Talk Show Band Leader (as CJ Vanston)
Joe Satriani	...	Talk Show Guitarist
Oneida James	...	Talk Show Bassist
Curt Bisquera	...	Talk Show Drums
Anne King	...	Talk Show Trumpet
Sheila Gonzalez	...	Talk Show Saxophone
Lance Barber	...	Dinkie
Skyler Stone	...	Don
Mark Harelik	...	Round Table Host
Rick Gonzalez	...	Chillaxin' Host (as Rick Gonzales)
Loudon Wainwright III	...	Nominee Ben Connelly (as Loudon Wainwright)
Claire Forlani	...	Herself
Hart Bochner	...	Himself
Kevin Sussman	...	Commercial Director
Casey Wilson	...	Young Actress
Jessica St. Clair	...	Hula Balls Spokeswoman
Kevin Christy	...	Young Actor
Derek Waters	...	Even Younger Actor
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yoshi Ando	...	Ad agent (uncredited)
Pamela Clay	...	Oscar Nominee (uncredited)
Curt Clendenin	...	Dinner Guest (uncredited)
Christian Ojore Mayfield	...	Studio Delivery Man (uncredited)
Erin Spencer	...	Monique LeBlanc - Oscar Nominee (uncredited)

Directed by
Christopher Guest

Writing credits (WGA)
Christopher Guest		(written by) &
Eugene Levy		(written by)

Produced by
Karen Murphy	....	producer

Original Music by
Christopher Guest
Eugene Levy
Jeffrey C.J. Vanston		(as CJ Vanston)

Cinematography by
Roberto Schaefer		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Robert Leighton

Casting by
Richard Hicks
David Rubin

Production Design by
Joseph T. Garrity

Art Direction by
Pat Tagliaferro

Set Decoration by
Dena Roth

Costume Design by
Durinda Wood

Makeup Department
Judi Cooper-Sealy	....	hair and wig designer
Carol F. Doran	....	additional wigmaker (as Carol Doran)
Amy Hinkley	....	hair staff assistant
Felicia Linsky	....	key makeup artist
Vicky Phillips	....	key hair stylist
Theraesa Rivers	....	assistant hair stylist
Arturo Rojas	....	assistant hair stylist
Kate Shorter	....	makeup designer
Toni-Ann Walker	....	key hair stylist: additional photography (as Toni Walker)
Jennifer Zide	....	assistant makeup artist

Production Management
Pamela Louise Griner	....	post-production supervisor (as Pamela Griner)
Dhana Rivera	....	production supervisor (as Dhana Rivera Gilbert)
Chrisann Verges	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Cas Donovan	....	first assistant director
Ivan Kraljevic	....	second assistant director: additional photography
Milos Milicevic	....	first assistant director: additional photography
Kristen Ploucha	....	second assistant director
Jennifer Reiss	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Bart Barbuscia	....	swing gang
Jonathan Bobbitt	....	lead man
Jose Bonilla	....	gang boss
David Chow	....	set designer
David Corral	....	set dresser
Skip Crank	....	assistant property master
Nella Davies	....	art department staff assistant
Francis Davis	....	laborer
Ken Deubel III	....	head paint foreman (as Ken Deubel)
Terry Deubel	....	paint foreman
Aaron Dornhoefer	....	set painter
Gregory M. Elley	....	construction assistant
Randy Eriksen	....	property master: additional photography
Bryan Garcia	....	labor foreman (as Brian Garcia)
Ron Gielow	....	foreman
Humberto Jimenez	....	general foreman (as Humberto T. Jimenez)
Humberto Jimenez	....	propmaker (as Humberto T. Jimenez)
Rutilo Jimenez	....	propmaker (as Rutilo L. Jimenez)
Mervyn Johnson	....	construction coordinator
Peggy Johnson	....	set painter
Thomas V. Johnson	....	set painter (as Thomas Johnson)
John Paul 'J.P.' Jones	....	property master (as J.P. Jones)
Eric Knight	....	scenic painter
Robert E. Knight	....	head paint foreman
Jennifer Lagura	....	swing gang (as Jennifer La Gura)
Esteban J. Lascarez	....	propmaker (as Esteban Jimenez Lascarez)
Julia K. Levine	....	set designer (as Julia Levine)
Al Lewis	....	set dresser
Leslie McCarthy-Frankenheimer	....	set decorator: additional photography (as Leslie Frankenheimer)
Jon Nicholson	....	on-set dresser
Kathy Orlando	....	set decoration buyer
Edmund C. Quintero	....	propmaker (as Edmundo C. Quintero)
Ron Rhodes	....	general foreman
Kim Richey	....	assistant property master
Raquel Ruiz	....	laborer
Stephen Runningen	....	graphic artist
Mike Sudrow	....	on-set dresser
Debi Shirk Tagliaferro	....	art department coordinator (as Debi Shirk-Tagliaferro)
Louis Terry	....	swing gang
Jana Treadwell	....	tool keeper
Mark Vena	....	storyboard artist (as Marc Vena)
Penny Wesney	....	set painter
Cate Whittemore	....	portrait: young Rachel Pischer
Chad B. Daring	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Lawrence L. Commans	....	boom operator (as Larry Commans)
Mark Fay	....	boom operator
Mark Fay	....	utility sound
Alison Fisher	....	adr supervisor
Alison Fisher	....	dialogue editor
David Giammarco	....	sound re-recording mixer
Tim Gomillion	....	sound recordist
Robin Harlan	....	foley artist
Tom Krajecki	....	consultant: audio
Travis MacKay	....	adr recordist
Paul Massey	....	sound re-recording mixer
Oscar Mitt	....	assistant sound editor
Sarah Monat	....	foley artist (as Sara Monat)
Randy Singer	....	foley mixer
William Stein	....	re-recording engineer (as Bill Stein)
Hamilton Sterling	....	sound designer
Hamilton Sterling	....	supervising sound editor
John Joseph Thomas	....	foley supervisor
Eric Thompson	....	adr mixer
Mark Weingarten	....	sound mixer

Special Effects by
Robbie Knott	....	special effects coordinator: The Effects Group

Visual Effects by
Mandy Arnold	....	digital restoration artist
Saeed Faridzadeh	....	digital artist
Vincent Lavares	....	data manager: Laser Pacific
Lee Roderick	....	lead compositor (as Lee Rod Roderick)
Matt Sell	....	dustbuster
Mai Suzuki	....	digital restoration artist
Corinne Villa	....	visual effects editor
Diane Wright	....	digital asset manager: Laser Pacific

Camera and Electrical Department
Eric Anderson	....	camera operator: video camera
James W. Apted	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera (as James Apted)
David Barker	....	video assist operator
David Bartholomew	....	lighting technician
Paul Bode	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
Robin Bursey	....	camera loader
Kristen Eccker	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
Jerry Enright	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Thomas Enright	....	lighting technician
Tracy Estes	....	lighting technician
Tommy Garcia	....	grip
Matthew Gaumer	....	second assistant camera (as Matt Gaumer)
Sergio Gutierrez	....	dolly grip (as Sergio 'Ponch' Gutierrez)
Jesse Homan	....	grip
Anthony Huljev	....	lighting technician (as Anthony 'Twan' Huljev)
Steve Irwin	....	24 frame playback operator: Playback Technologies
Simon Jayes	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Paul Lambiase	....	grip
Jennifer Lane	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Harvey Letson	....	best boy grip
Kevin McMahon	....	camera operator: video camera
Arlene Nelson	....	director of photography: additional photography (as Arlene Donnelly Nelson)
George Palmer	....	key grip
Lawrence Rake	....	lighting technician
Dan Reilly	....	key grip: additional photography
Rod Robertson	....	lighting technician
John Rodgers	....	lighting technician (as John C. Rogers)
Marc David Schultz	....	lighting technician (as Marc Schultz)
Tom Schurke	....	24 frame playback operator: Playback Technologies
Scott Spencer	....	chief lighting technician
Suzanne Tenner	....	still photographer

Casting Department
Tammy L. Smith	....	extras casting: Smith & Webster-Davis Casting
Stephanie Stenta	....	casting assistant
Dixie Webster	....	extras casting: Smith & Webster-Davis Casting (as Dixie Webster-Davis)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Judith Bartnik	....	costume cutter
Judith Bartnik	....	costume fitter
Jamelle Flowers	....	costumer
Marcy Grace Froehlich	....	assistant costume designer (as Marcy Froehlich)
Jennifer Ireland	....	costumer (as Jen Ireland)
Aaron Millsap	....	costumer
Roselee Showe	....	costumer
Jennifer Starzyk	....	costumer
Mary Beth Sterling	....	costume staff assistant
Emma Trenchard	....	costume supervisor
Kanani Wolf	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Kyle DeVriendt	....	digital film recordist
Brian Hall	....	post-production coordinator
Heather Holty	....	digital intermediate producer
Jesse Kobayashi	....	digital intermediate producer
Danny Miller	....	first assistant editor
Mike Sowa	....	digital intermediate color timer

Music Department
Shelly Berg	....	orchestrator
Greg Bissonette	....	musician: drums (as Gregg Bissonette)
Fernand Bos	....	music consultant
Ed Cherney	....	music mixer
David Cole	....	music recording engineer
Paul Dugre	....	music recording engineer
Norbert Fimpel	....	musician: saxophone
Jerry Goodman	....	musician: violin
Christopher Guest	....	musician: guitar
Tom Halm	....	music copyist
Tom Halm	....	music production coordinator
Andrew R. Lynch	....	music recording engineer (as Andrew Lynch)
Dean Parks	....	musician: guitar
Joe Satriani	....	musician: guitar
Chris Tedesco	....	musician: trumpet
Jeffrey C.J. Vanston	....	music programmer (as CJ Vanston)
Jeffrey C.J. Vanston	....	musician: keyboards (as CJ Vanston)
Jeffrey C.J. Vanston	....	orchestrator (as CJ Vaston)
Adrian Van Velsen	....	music editor
Nick Weston	....	music recording engineer
David Williams	....	musician: guitar
Anthony Wilson	....	musician: guitar

Transportation Department
Rich Bennetti	....	transportation captain
Mary Catando	....	production driver (as Mary Catanado)
Keith D. Fisher	....	transportation coordinator (as Keith Fisher)
J. Armin Garza II	....	driver: camera car
Brick Graham	....	production driver
Scott Howard	....	transportation
William Jakubecy	....	production driver
Gerry Knight	....	transportation coordinator: additional photography
Andee McGuffee	....	production driver
Thomas McNeal	....	production driver
Charles Montgomery	....	driver: Mr. Guest
Shaun Ryan	....	production driver
Steve Shoemaker	....	transportation captain: additional photography (as Steve 'Shoe' Shoemaker)
Frederick Trogdon	....	production driver
Don Varela	....	production driver (as Don Verela)
William Wardlow	....	production driver

Other crew
Howard Baral	....	post-production accountant: RC Baral & Co
David Blasucci	....	unit publicist
Jenifer Bonisteel	....	assistant production coordinator
Justin J. Carter	....	office staff assistant (as Justin Carter)
Louise DeCordoba	....	production accountant
Michael Dennehy	....	accounting clerk
Peggy Etra	....	stand-in
Katy S. Fox	....	assistant: Karen Murphy
Seamus Gibson	....	assistant chef
Justin Giugno	....	production assistant
Vanessa Goldberg	....	stand-in
Juan Gonzalez	....	assistant chef
Lori Grabowski	....	script supervisor: additional photography
Annie Guest	....	set staff assistant
Chris Hamblin	....	set staff assistant
Jason Hariton	....	studio stage manager
Kimberly A. Harrison	....	assistant: Jennifer Coolidge
Jessica Helmer	....	stand-in
Alison Hoberman	....	craft service
Jody Hummer	....	location manager: additional photography
Stephanie Klube	....	stand-in
Jon Ko	....	set medic (as Pom 'Jon' Ko)
David Krudis	....	payroll accountant
Courtney LaBree	....	office staff assistant
Lea Ann Lynch	....	key assistant location manager: reshoot
Craig Marks	....	stand-in
Donavan McDougle	....	title designer
Helen McGinn	....	script supervisor
Tony Mendez	....	assistant chef
Murray Miller	....	location manager
Jason Neudecker	....	production assistant
Lex Passaris	....	consultant: TV show
Robert Paulsen	....	assistant location manager
Julie M. Philips	....	production attorney
William Ramirez Jr.	....	craft service (as Billy Ramirez)
Paul Rathburn	....	chef
Joe Roddey	....	set staff assistant
Will Sandoval	....	set staff assistant
David Sanfield	....	catering: Deluxe Catering
Jackie Saygan	....	first assistant accountant
Jill Sayre	....	adr loop group
Cecily Schaefer	....	office staff assistant
Jaron Shain	....	stand-in
Ken Shapiro	....	consultant: TV show
Robert Stahoviak	....	stand-in (as Robert Stachowiak)
Jack Tate	....	location manager
Katie Taylor	....	production secretary (as Katherine Taylor)
Lisa Vijitchanton	....	production coordinator
Zane Weiner	....	production executive

Thanks
Joe Pugliese	....	acknowledgment: archival footage provided by

Production Companies

• Shangri-La Entertainment
• Castle Rock Entertainment

Distributors

• Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• Cathay-Keris Films (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2007) (UK) (theatrical)

Special Effects

• Effects Group, The (special effects)
• Gray Matter FX (visual effects: Mayflower sequence)
• Handmade Digital (digital opticals and visual effects)
• LaserPacific (digital motion picture laboratory services by)

Other Companies

• 20th Century Fox Studios  post-production and mixing facilities
• Avon Studio Transport  transportation
• Barking Dog Studios  music recorded at
• Bill Dance Casting  extras casting: additional photography
• Camera House, The  camera and lenses provided by
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera cranes and dollies
• Deluxe Catering  catering (as Deluxe Catering)
• Fortissimo Films  foreign sales
• Foto-Kem Industries  dailies processing (as Fotokem)
• Jeremy Walker + Associates  publicity
• LaserPacific  telecine
• Playback Technologies  24 frame playback
• QuietStreet Productions  music recorded at
• R.C. Baral & Co.  post-production accounting (as RC Baral Y& Co)
• Section Quartet, The  musicians: string quartet
• Shure  microphones by
• Smith & Webster-Davis Casting  extras casting
• The Treehouse, North hollywood, California  music recorded at (as The Treehouse)
• Transportation Resources  transportation equipment
• Warner Bros. Pictures  sound editorial
• Wilshire Stages, The  ADR recording facility

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual references and brief language.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Ireland:12A | UK:12A | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | New Zealand:M

Filming Locations:

Culver Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Shangri-La Entertainment

Trivia:

In a bit of life imitating art, Catherine O'Hara received a large amount of Oscar buzz for her performance in this movie. She was nominated for and won several precursor awards, and many awards experts predicted she would receive an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Like her character in the movie, O'Hara failed to be nominated.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The title of the French film the actress is nominated for is incorrectly named 'Le cheval obscurite'. 'Obscurite' is the noun form of dark, the adjective form 'obscur' should have been used. At any rate, the expression 'dark horse' isn't directly translated as thus in French.

Quotes:

Lane Iverson: You can't throw the baby out with the bathwater because then all you have is a wet, critically injured baby.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies" (1986)

Soundtrack:

It's Alright

A Sublime Comedy - Guest with a Twist

There is something both enchanting and disorienting about watching a Christopher Guest film that features conventional camera angles and a narrative structure. It is a brave, and ultimately, a rewarding choice for a director who has built his impeccable reputation on the strength of his mockumentaries.

Like its predecessors Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind, For Your Consideration is largely improvised, and reunites the same winning cast. Gone, however, are several of the conventions of Guest's previous films. For Your Consideration avoids the need to give every last character an extended 'interview' segment and instead weaves minor characters naturally into the fabric of the story. The narrative structure also prevents Guest from relying too heavily on cuts to b-roll sight gags that, while funny, are never more than gags. By challenging himself to tell this story in the absence of these and other mockumentary techniques, Guest is allowed to focus instead on scenes that show how his characters really respond to one another in the moment.

Half the fun of course is waiting for all the familiar faces to show up, and discovering what crazy character they have inhabited this time around. All the usual suspects are back in For Your Consideration, playing a colourful array of Hollywood types. Insecurities, foibles - and just a few quirks - are in full display.

Jennifer Coolidge is a brilliantly clueless producer, and Eugene Levy has a nice turn as a somewhat smarmy agent who has no faith whatsoever in his client (Harry Shearer's Victor Ann Miller). Guest himself is hilarious playing director Jay Berman, and one only wishes that we got to see more of his rehearsals with the actors, as these are some of the funniest scenes in the film. Mike McKean and Bob Balaban are a fun team as the cowriters of Home for Purim, the movie-within-the-movie. Making his first appearance in a Guest film, Ricky Gervais grabs perhaps the biggest laugh of all with a line that I won't spoil here. And while Fred Willard and Jane Lynch are dealt very broad characters, their send-up of Access Hollywood is laugh-out-loud funny, and provides the perfect vehicle for Willard's boorish shtick.

John Michael Higgins is in amazing form as Corey Taft, sporting surreal philosophies on actors and life that outdo even his colour-worshipping character from A Mighty Wind. And the doe-eyed and endlessly endearing Christopher Moynihan tosses off several absolute gems in response to the inanity going on around him. Much like his character in the film, he's likely to go unnoticed in favour of some flashier performances, but deserves accolades of his own. He and Parker Posey have a sweet, unrehearsed chemistry playing actors in puppy love.

While it is impossible to give due screen time to all of the troupe's mainstays, some deserved better. Jim Piddock is dealt a potentially juicier part than he's had in the past, as the irritable AD who is all too aware that he's surrounded by idiots. But his screen time is far too short to let it amount to much, and fans wanting to see him play against type are better advised to check out his brilliant performance in See This Movie. Meanwhile, Ed Begley Jr. is hideously miscast as the film's token flamboyant gay man. Furthermore, having such recognizable actors as Claire Forlani and particularly Sandra Oh show up for bit parts in For Your Consideration is more distracting than anything, and breaks the illusion of the self-contained world that worked so nicely in Guest's previous efforts.

Despite all of the comedic talent on display however, this is Catherine O'Hara's show, and she more than delivers in her role as fading screen star Marilyn Hack. Her insecurities, dreams, and vulnerabilities are handled with such poignancy and humour that O'Hara fully deserves whatever accolades may come her way in the months to come. She is luminous.

If For Your Consideration comes up a little short, it is in the story department. The outline devised by Guest and Levy suffers somewhat from a lack of focus. If, as Guest insists, this film is not intended as a satire of Hollywood but is rather the tragicomic tale of what happens to someone when they are told that they deserve an award, we should be spending less time on all the Hollywood in-jokes and parodies, and more time with the characters themselves.

We don't learn quite enough about our main characters – those portrayed by Catherine O'Hara, Harry Shearer, and Parker Posey – to really understand how monumental it is for them to be caught up in the Oscar hype. We see that, professionally, they desperately need the break. But we get no perspective on how this effects their personal lives, or changes the way that they relate to the people closest to them. Where are their families? Their friends? They don't seem to have any. And if that was the point in and of itself, it wasn't brought across clearly enough.

Whatever the film's shortcomings, it is the smaller details that are purely Guest which make this film a triumph and future classic: Guest's perfect intonation as he instructs one actor to deliver his line as though "Mommy is going… now?", Jennifer Coolidge jumping in at the absolute perfect moment with "But what about me!?" in the midst of a heated argument that has nothing to do with her, or the sight of Harry Shearer suddenly wearing Rachael Harris' hat to help him get into character. These are the small moments that give Guest's works the rare distinction of being films that get progressively funnier with each viewing.

My hope for the next Guest film is that it continues to stretch the troupe in the way that these last two films have done. Ideally, we'll see an improvised, narrative comedy with some heart, all the expected hilarity… and a little more plot structure. Until then, here it is, for your consideration…