Asian American Film: Features

The inside scoop from Overbrook's Soyun Roe

10.29 - Posted by Editor

Hollywood development executive tells all! The inside scoop from Overbrook's Soyun Roe

10.29.00 -- Ever wondered what Hollywood development executives really want? Read on, amigos! Soyun Roe answers all our questions -- and offers some great advice for screenwriters and filmmakers! Interview by Greg Pak.

AAF   Could you give us a brief bio? Where you've worked, how you got into the business, your education, etc.

SR  Hmmm, how do I make my bio sound interesting. Here goes: I'm a 2nd-generation Korean American, raised in New Jersey and Ohio. I didn't know what I wanted to do when I was in college so I was a biology major -- I still love watching Animal Planet but that's about as far as my college education serves me today. I immediately got into film & television, doing all kinds of low-level production-related jobs for a couple of years to learn about the business, all the kinds of things they don't teach you at Harvard (again, my college education has obviously really come in handy!). Then I went back to film school at USC because I wanted to make my own films, study film theory, etc., and in the meantime I worked on several low-budget, independent projects. I thought I had paid my dues before film school but then I learned if I really wanted to break into the 'business' (I knew I wanted to do features), that I would have to do something like be an assistant to an agent. Which is what I did. And that was like boot camp all over again. But then I got a job doing feature film and television development at Winkler Films, where I was for 3 years.

AAF   Could you tell us a little about your company and what you do there? What's your title and what are your responsibilities?

AL  I am now at Overbrook Entertainment, which is Will Smith's production company. The film department doesn't use titles so I'm called a development and production executive. We're a full-fledged production company (in other words, we do more than just projects for Will to star in). There is also a TV department and a music department. It's a young company so it doesn't have a track record yet but we're hoping to bring a movie to a theater near you very shortly! That's what I do, try to make movies.

AAF   What do you look for in a screenplay? What makes you excited enough to recommend it as a project for your company to develop or produce?

SR   There are so many things to look for. Good ideas. Good screenwriting. Good characters. Heart. Originality. Relevance. Is it a movie (in other words, is this really a movie, and not just a short story in cinema form, or an overly long TV episode). Does the script accomplish what it set out to do (i.e., is it funny? is the action good?). Not that a screenplay has to have all of the above, because it can be further developed. A great idea ("hook" or "concept") will take a bad screenplay a long way but it'll go so much further if it's also executed well! There are also lots of external factors - is anybody attached to it; if it's for Will, is it something he hasn't done or wants to do; is there soundtrack potential; have there been too many teen movies lately. In my particular case, on behalf of Overbrook, I'm looking for what falls under the awful rubric "mainstream, commercial Hollywood fare" as well as edgier stuff (like SET IT OFF or USUAL SUSPECTS).

AAF   Any thoughts on what's holding back films with Asian American leads from being produced in Hollywood? Is it the lack of stars, the lack of good writing, or something else altogether?

SR   I don't think it's fair to say it's any one thing, to blame any one area. I have a more historical/sociopolitical point of view - I think it has to do with critical mass, and timing. There haven't been that many Asian Americans in the business until recently, the population of Asian Americans is relatively small, and this population hasn't demonstrated the kind of economic presence at the box office that makes studios pay attention. Look at Jackie Chan, he's not an Asian American in the strictest sense of the term, but he brings in audiences, and then he gets more movies. Even though African Americans have been in this country a lot longer, have almost 3 times the population, and have been a force in American pop culture for decades, they are still struggling to make Hollywood an even playing field. But at least things are moving in the right direction. The progress gays & lesbians have made in entertainment is truly inspiring, and this is a result of many things coming together. I'm hopeful for Asian Americans but I also think there's a lot we can all do, to help try to bring our particular community forward. I look at the lack of an organized and unified outcry by Asian Americans against what happened to Wen Ho Lee and think, whoa, that's when someone's LIFE is at stake, what we're doing is just make-believe in comparison, what am I really expecting. But I think things will get better. The world is getting smaller. This is my humble opinion at this point, I'll get off my soapbox and let some others spout on this subject.

AAF   So if a brilliant screenplay with Asian American leads came across your desk, would it be possible for you to push it into development or production? Do the realities of the business make this a viable possibility?

SR   Don't forget, it would also depend on a lot of other elements (the screenplay, director, subject, cost), but yes, it would be a viable possibility to make a movie with Asian American leads. The TV department here at Overbrook is trying to get a one-hour action drama going that has an Asian American lead. We're very interested in entertainment that looks like the world the way we see it.

AAF   Tell us a little bit about Asian American executives in Hollywood. Do people get together and hobnob? Is there any interest among Asian American executives to produce Asian American films?

SR   Yes, there is hobnobbing and networking. There are some organizations that foster this, and then there are lots of smaller, more informal get-togethers. A friend, Susan Yoo, and I just recently hosted an event for Koreans and Korean-Americans in Entertainment and Multimedia. There had never been any such gathering before, and even though it sounds pretty ethnically specific we thought people might be interested in seeing how there's a growing community here, and lo and behold to everyone's surprise around 200 people came. And that wasn't even everybody! Since it's such a social business, personal connections are really important, and so however you can do it, go for the connection! I bond with people from Ohio, Korean Americans, former science majors. Asian American executives are also a diverse crowd, I'm sure there are those who want to make obviously Asian American product, and those who don't necessarily care a whole lot. I think most of us enjoy feeling some kind of personal connection to the projects we're working on but the reality is this is not a small task, and what this personal connection looks like can be many things.

AAF   What's your own dream project, the film you're dying to make someday?

SR   I would really like to do a movie about a transracial Korean adoptee. Preferably a comedy. It's a personal interest.

AAF   What advice do you have for writers?

SR   I can't speak about writers in general but I tell screenwriters that what they need to do to be successful (and by this I mean making a living at screenwriting) is half about writing (slave away at your craft! make it an art!) and half about the social/business aspects of this business (get out there and meet people, know how to do a meeting, be a good collaborator, have some business sense).

AAF   Any advice for filmmakers trying to get their features financed?

SR   My one fortune-cookie thought for the day is: Team up. Work together. It's so hard to get movies going, it helps when people with different strengths and interests can team up ("you want to direct? I want to produce!").

AAF   Anything else you'd like to add? Any questions I should have asked?

SR   Here's one: How has being Asian American and female impacted your career path in the entertainment industry - Has it hurt? Made it easier? I think it was easier for me to get a job as an assistant because Asian American females are often raised to be good assisters, and it fits the stereotype. But then, on the other hand, I don't know many Asian Americans of either gender who've been able to move forward with the kind of support and understanding from home that can really help people get through this unique, competitive business. I mean, Kate Hudson can say it only helps her so much that her mom is Goldie Hawn, but how many of us have that kind of knowledgeable, personal guidance available to us? My parents aren't even sure who Will Smith is. We're still a largely immigrant community, without a big legacy or foundation in entertainment to fall back on - we're building it as we speak.

AAF   What are your favorite movies of all time?

SR   I have a very eclectic list of favorites. Someone can do a personality test and get back to me what they think this list means. Let me lead off with the caveat that this list shouldn't be taken as definitive: STAR WARS, LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, BABE, THE PIANO, SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, KINGPIN, THE STING, HOWARD'S END, THE MATRIX.

AAF   Your favorite Asian American films?

SR   My favorite isn't even really strictly "Asian American." It's a 1989 Japanese film called YUN'S TOWN, a coming-of-age story about a Korean girl growing up in Japan. It was written and directed by Kim U-Son, who is Korean-Japanese. It really struck a chord with me at the time, it was the closest thing to seeing my own experience on the screen so it's a personal favorite.

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