Steve Jobs
Can a great man be a good man?
Steve Jobs (2015)
Production
Budget
$30 000 000
Revenue
$34 441 873
Director
Scenario
Composer
Producer
Actors
Michael Fassbender
Steve Jobs
Kate Winslet
Joanna Hoffman
Seth Rogen
Steve Wozniak
Jeff Daniels
John Sculley
Michael Stuhlbarg
Andy Hertzfeld
Katherine Waterston
Chrisann Brennan
Perla Haney-Jardine
Lisa Brennan (19)
Ripley Sobo
Lisa Brennan (9)
Short description
Steve Jobs is a biographical drama built around three product launches rather than a full life story. It moves through the 1984 unveiling of the Macintosh, a 1988 presentation tied to NeXT, and the 1998 introduction of the iMac, using each event as a window onto the personal and professional conflicts surrounding Apple's co-founder. Among the recurring figures are marketing executive Joanna Hoffman, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, chief executive John Sculley, engineer Andy Hertzfeld and Chrisann Brennan, the mother of Jobs's daughter Lisa.
Danny Boyle directed the film, the twelfth of seventeen features in his filmography, following Trance and preceding T2 Trainspotting. Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay, and Boyle produced with Scott Rudin and Mark Gordon. Michael Fassbender plays Jobs, with Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels, Michael Stuhlbarg and Katherine Waterston in supporting roles. The production involved 58 credited cast members and 128 credited crew members.
Released in October 2015, the film runs 123 minutes and was made for about 30 million US dollars. It earned roughly 34 million dollars worldwide, a modest return against its budget. On IMDb it holds 7.2 out of 10 from around 187,000 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6.8 out of 10 from about 4,500 votes. A film critics' rating of 7.7 out of 10 from 313 reviews places it above both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film consists of three parts, which were shot in chronological order. The actors rehearsed the first part for two weeks, then spent another two weeks filming it, followed by the same amount of time rehearsing the second part. Kate Winslet claims that by the beginning of rehearsals for the third part of the film, Michael Fassbender had stopped checking the script because he had already memorized it.
- Steve Wozniak, one of the founders of Apple, served as a consultant to the screenwriter.
- Seth Rogen spent a lot of time with Steve Wozniak to better understand the inner world of his character. Rogen carefully studied recordings of Wozniak's public appearances. In addition, he re-watched video footage from the 1980s that captured the prototype of his character. The actor later admitted that he had no idea who Steve Wozniak was before filming this movie.
- Jessica Chastain was considered for the main female role.
- Initially, Aaron Sorkin wanted Tom Cruise to play the role of Steve Jobs.
- The events of the final part of the film take place in 1998; however, the visuals and dialogue include references to new products that Jobs would later help create (the iPad, iPod, and iTunes).
- Ike Barinholtz auditioned for the role of Steve Wozniak.
- Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin admitted that he had not known Steve Jobs personally and had only spoken with him on the phone three times.
- When Steve Jobs reviews notes for his presentation in the final part of the film, a rectangular table is visible in the frame. With Steve's notes lying on it, the table resembles a giant iPhone.
- Negotiations were held with Natalie Portman regarding her participation in the film.
- The version of the film shown to audiences at the premiere in Telluride, Colorado, was several minutes longer than the release version. In one of the episodes subsequently cut, Steve and Joanna discuss computer malfunctions, and at that very moment, the computer in the film glitches twice (thus demonstrating that the filmmakers did this intentionally). Typical of Danny Boyle's directorial style, this episode was cut from the release version without any explanation.
- Steve Wozniak personally served as a script consultant. However, he did not demand to see the final version of the script, considering such a request unethical.
- Several key moments in the film are products of artistic license. These include episodes where Jobs' daughter draws on his computer screen, where John Sculley, played by Jeff Daniels, makes peace with Jobs, many scenes of arguments with Steve Wozniak, and the final scene involving Jobs and his grown-up daughter. On the other hand, an episode where the filmmakers hint that Jobs stuck his feet in the toilet tank to cool down and calm down actually happened in real life. Jobs was generally known for his extravagant antics. Fassbender asked the filmmakers to include this scene in the plot, as it was not in Aaron Sorkin's script.
- The parts that make up the film were shot on 16- and 35-millimeter film, as well as digitally. In this way, the filmmakers show how the technologies of "Apple" changed over the 16 years of the main character's life.
- Originally, David Fincher was supposed to direct the film. This idea did not materialize because "Sony" refused to meet his demands – a salary of $10 million and complete non-interference from the studio in the filming process. Fincher intended to cast Christian Bale in the lead role. When Danny Boyle replaced him in the director's chair, the lead role was offered to Leonardo DiCaprio. DiCaprio soon declined to participate in the project, and the filmmakers turned to Bale again. Bale was unsure if he was suitable for the role of Steve Jobs, and it went to Michael Fassbender.
- It is claimed that the actors at the auditions did not use Aaron Sorkin's script for the future film at all. They performed scenes from his television project "The Newsroom," which premiered in 2012.
- The filming of the shareholders' meeting in 1984 and the presentation of the first "Macintosh" computer took place where these events actually happened. This is the "Flint Center" on the grounds of De Anza College in Cupertino, California.
- Michael Fassbender said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in London that the role of Steve Jobs would have been perfect for Christian Bale, who left the project in 2014. "I suddenly thought: Christian Bale would have fit perfectly. Why isn't he playing this role?... I personally called him and told him so."
- Kate Winslet learned about the film "Steve Jobs" from her makeup artist on the set of "The Dressmaker" (2015). The makeup artist had just been hired for the upcoming film and told the actress about it. Winslet was so interested in the project, based on a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin, directed by Danny Boyle, and starring Michael Fassbender, that she wanted to learn more about the film and the female characters. She sent Boyle a photograph of herself in a black wig, then met with him, and as a result, landed the role of Joanna Hoffman.
- This is the third film about the life of Steve Jobs, following "Pirates of Silicon Valley" (1999) and "Jobs" (2013).
- Michael Fassbender jokingly stated at a press conference that he "borrowed" the image of the main character from Ashton Kutcher, who played Steve Jobs in "Jobs" (2013).
- This is the first work of director Danny Boyle since "Trainspotting" (1995) that is not distributed by "Fox/Fox Searchlight."
- "Sony Pictures Entertainment" and "Columbia Pictures" decided to sell the rights to the project to another film studio and relinquished their obligations for the production and distribution of the film. "Universal Pictures" took on the role of the other studio, having previously acquired rights to projects already started by others and having a successful track record in doing so. The film "Dumb and Dumber To" (2014) was launched by "Warner Bros.", and subsequently the rights to it were bought out by "Universal Pictures". The film grossed $36 million in its first three days of release. However, "Universal Pictures" also experienced failures in this area, such as with the film "Jackass 2" (2013).
- In one episode, John Sculley, played by Jeff Daniels, offers Steve Jobs a bottle of "Château Margaux", a wine from the French province of Bordeaux. In the film "Arachnophobia" (1990), Daniels played a doctor who carefully stores a whole case of this wine.
- When the film is set in 1984, a commercial for the "Apple Macintosh" personal computer flashes on the screen during a break in the final game for the National Football League championship. The commercial was directed by Ridley Scott. In 2012, he would direct Michael Fassbender in his film "Prometheus".
- Boyle noted that he considers his film part of an "unofficial trilogy" that begins with "The Social Network" (written by Sorkin).
- Wozniak admitted that the film's trailer, released on July 1st, evoked mixed feelings in him. In particular, the programmer was embarrassed by how Seth Rogen portrayed him. "I speak differently. On the other hand, although I didn't say the words that Rogen pronounces, their meaning is correct, at least partially. The trailer captures Jobs' spirit – albeit exaggerated," Wozniak said. Wozniak also disliked the film's portrayal of his conflict with Jobs, which, he claims, never existed. "I never accused anyone of stealing the graphical interface. And I never made any remarks about someone stealing my ideas," the programmer reacted angrily. Nevertheless, after viewing a rough cut of the film, the company's co-founder spoke positively about what he saw. He noted that compared to the previous film, starring Ashton Kutcher, the film with Michael Fassbender turned out to be more authentic.
- Before the official release of the film, Aaron Sorkin announced that it would consist of three 30-minute parts, covering 16 years of Steve Jobs' life. All scenes will foreshadow dramatic events that took place behind the scenes leading up to the launch of iconic “Apple” products. These scenes will unfold in real-time on two sets – a restaurant and a garage – with several flashbacks narrating key moments in Jobs' life.
- In the first part of the film, during an episode of a dispute between Jobs and Wozniak shortly before the presentation of the first “Macintosh” computer, Aaron Sorkin himself appears on screen. He is one of two men (the taller one) walking in the background.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
