A Naval veteran returns home after World War II unsettled and unsure of his future until he becomes intrigued by a philosophical movement and its charismatic leader. The film The Master was written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson over 12 years and was produced by several companies with a budget of $35 million. It stars Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman and follows a Naval veteran who joins a philosophical movement in the 1950s led by Hoffman's character.

1. The Master
S

2. The Master
A Naval veteran arrives home
from war unsettled and
uncertain of his future - until he
is tantalized by The Cause and
its charismatic leader.

3. Pre-Production
The idea for The Master came from the Director, Paul
Thomas Anderson and he had been working on a script
and it had been an idea in his head for 12 years. He
created the script by combining unused scenes from
There Will Be Blood, stories from the navy and the life
stories of John Steinbeck and L. Ron Hubbard. The film
was produced by The Weinstein Company, Annapurna
Pictures and Ghoulardi Film Company, it was originally
set up with Universal but it fell through due to scripts and
the budget. Paul Thomas Anderson directed, produced
and wrote the film.

4. The Weinstein Company
Founded by brothers Bob and Harvey Weinstein after
they left Miramax films. Films such as Rambo, The
King’s Speech, My Week With Marilyn, Silver Linings
Playbook and more. Fairly successful.

5. Production
The film was shot in California, USA and wasn’t shot
in any studios. Phillip Seymour Hoffman was always
considered for the lead role but he was rumored to
be acting alongside Jeremy Renner but was later
given to Joaquin Phoenix. Reese Witherspoon was
considered for the female role but Amy Adams was
cast instead. The budget for the film was
$35,000,000. After the film fell through with
Universal, Anderson did several rewrites.

6. Distribution
The main issue that Universal had with the project was
that the budget was too big at about $35 million. It was
later reported that River Road was in serious talks to fully
finance the film. In February 2011 it was reported that
Megan Ellison, daughter of billionaire Larry Ellison, would
finance The Master under her new production company
Annapurna Pictures. Harvey Weinstein later picked up the
worldwide rights to the film in May 2011. The DVD and
Blu Ray will be released in the USA on February 26th
2013, and UK, March 11th.

7. Box Office
The Master grossed $242,127 at five theatres during
its opening day on September 14th 2012, setting a
single day record for an art house film. During its
first week nationwide, the film grossed $4.4 million
in 788 theatres. The total gross income for The
Master is $16,057,745

8. When it was released…

9. …and now.

11. Marketing
The first teaser poster for the film
appeared in May 2011 at the Cannes
Film Festival with the title ‘Untitled Paul
Thomas Anderson Project’. A teaser
trailer featuring Joaquin Phoenix was
released online and several minutes of
footage from the film were shown at the
2012 Cannes Film Festival. A second
teaser trailer was released which
featured Phoenix as well as Philip
Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams. A
theatrical trailer was released online by
The Weinstein Company. The film was
given an R rating in the United States by
the Motion Picture Association of
America.

12. 70 mm Screenings
Over one month before its first official screening, at the
Venice Film Festival, The Master was shown as a "surprise
screening" in 70 mm. The film was shown with no
opening titles (except for the title of the movie) or closing
credits. Advanced screenings in 70 mm continued in New
York, Los Angeles, London, Chicago, San Francisco,
Seattle, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Austin, although
this was done because there was strong consideration
that The Master was unlikely to be shown. The film was
eventually displayed during its run in 70mm in most
cinemas.

13. Awards
The Master was nominated for Best Actor, Best
Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress at the
Golden Globes and the Academy Awards. The film
won the Silver Lion for Best Director (Paul Thomas
Anderson) and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor (given to
both Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman)
at the 69th Venice International Film Festival.

14. Reviews