break. "There are two ways people get into our business. One way is: you
know somebody; the other way is: you get really lucky. I fell into the `I
got really lucky' category." Seeing an ad in Daily Variety announcing a
project in development, Clawson sent off a résumé, thinking they might
need help. "Funny enough, I got a phone call from the director. He said,
`We need somebody to come in and write a synopsis of the project so that
we can raise money. We have a screenwriter, but he's off writing the
script and we don't want to slow him down.'"
Clawson went in and met with director Elliot Hong, who pitched him
the story for They Call Me Bruce? The film was built around the act of
popular Korean comedian
Johnny Yune. Clawson took
copious notes and came back
with a treatment a few days
later. "I walked in the office
and Johnny was there with the
director and a couple of other
assistants. It was a really weird
vibe; like someone had died."
The screenwriter had delivered
the first thirty pages of the
script and they were terrible.
The group was about to scrap
the idea. "I'm sitting there and
all of a sudden they ask,
`What's he got?' I said, `Well, I
have the synopsis, but it
doesn't sound like you need
it.'" Reading the synopsis rein-
vigorated their desire to make
the film. The development
team simply needed to find a
good screenwriter. That is
when they turned to Clawson.
With Clawson hired to write
the screenplay, Yune brought in
his joke writer, David
Randolph, and some of his
comedian friends for inspira-
tion. "We created characters
around their acts. It was a
hilarious time." Money was
raised and the film was made
What do you like
least about your job?
"What I like least about
what I do is that there are
times when certain
people's agendas are dif-
ferent than what others'
are, and it creates a conflict there doesn't
need to be in the actual production of the
film. You try to create an open dialogue and
line of communication. Everybody is trying
to make the best film they can make, but
when people take it on their own how to get
that done and almost act maverick-ly about
doing it, that's when it gets to be not so
much fun."--Tim Clawson
What do you love most
about your job?
"What I love most about my job is actually
solving the problem. I use problems in a posi-
tive way, meaning every film and script has
its idiosyncrasies about how you need to
shoot it in order to tell the story. You add on
top of that issues that come with the cast that
are involved, and issues that come with the
director, then how much funding is available
to make the project. You take all those things
and boil them in the pot, and try to figure
out how to make the film and solve all those
issues so that none of them conflict with each
other. That's the challenge. It's really excit-
ing, figuring that out."--Tim Clawson
VOICES OF
EXPERIENCE
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