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Blue Like Jazz, the movie

Published by Donald Miller | Filed under journal entries

13 JUN 07Steve Taylor and Ben Pearson have been in Portland for the past week and we’ve pretty much completed the screenplay for Blue Like Jazz the movie. We’ve been working on the script for about a year, either with me flying to Nashville for a week at a time to sit around a table and hash out the story, or with Steve and Ben coming to Portland to stay at my house. When studios became more excited about the screenplay, we felt the need to wrap it up, and in the last few days we’ve pretty much done so. And I dont know if I’ve had more fun, or been more challenged, with any other writing project. I’m excited to see how the guys end up shooting the story.

To say we’ve given the book a Hollywood treatment is an understatement. The book itself would be, of course, difficult to turn into a movie, and so we took creative liberties. But in my opinion, the movie will be infinitely better than the book. Essentially we’ve taken the major, real life characters from the book, and gave them a story all their own. The end result is provocative and humorous and in my opinion quite moving. I cant wait for people to see the film.

We think production will be able to start next year, and the film will be shot on location in Portland. And I am as excited about showing off my town as I am about telling the story. I will keep you posted.

Don

June 13th, 2007


39 Responses to “Blue Like Jazz, the movie”

  1. » Blue Like Jazz, the movie Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 1:43 pm

    [...] Original post by bryan [...]

  2. Movies Lover :: Entries :: Blue Like Jazz, the movie Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 2:31 pm

    [...] From bryan [...]

  3. bryan Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 3:33 pm

    this is a test comment

  4. bryan Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 3:38 pm

    just another test comment

  5. bryan Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 4:03 pm

    Hey Don,

    this is just a test comment to make sure you receive this comment. Who’s going to play you in the movie? I vote for Keanu Reeves…

    Bryan

  6. Jeff Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 4:30 pm

    Will Hollywood be involved at all? I hope not. But if so, make sure they don’t do to your book what they did to Tom Clancy’s books (except Hunt For Red October — they did good with that one).

  7. aaron Says:
    June 13th, 2007 at 5:33 pm

    i can’t wait to see how you guys made blue like jazz into a movie. when i first heard you were adapting it i almost thought it was a joke, since obviously it wouldn’t translate exactly.
    i think i should be in portland by the time you start filming… could i be an extra? my extra resume includes little nicky and spider-man.

  8. jk Says:
    June 14th, 2007 at 10:31 am

    as long as there are quentin tarantinoesk transitions into cartoon mode for don rabbit and don astronaut i will be happy. i think sexy carrot will be the first cartoon to turn heads since jessica rabbit. i wonder if jessica rabbit eats sexy carrots?

  9. Alyssa Says:
    June 14th, 2007 at 3:47 pm

    I’ve been sharing your campus confessional booth experience with random folks, and I am moved each time. Can’t imagine that not taking a large focus in the movie!?? Coming back to Texas soon?

  10. Denise Says:
    June 15th, 2007 at 4:09 pm

    I am excited about the Blue Like Jazz movie. After reading the book I gobbled up all of your books and have bought second copies of them all to use as loaners. I am also a big Rich Mullins fan, and many times while reading your books I have found myself thinking, ” wow, that is so like Rich Mullins ” I was wondering, have you read Rich’s biography, An Arrow Pointing to Heaven by James Bryan Smith? ( the story of Rich’s amazing faith and how he lived it out rocked my world) or have you been influenced by Rich’s life in any way? When I read this journal entry and saw that Steve Taylor and Ben Pearson ( associates of Rich ) were involved in your movie, it got me wondering all over again if this was just a coincidence or if there is a Rich link somewhere.
    Good luck with the movie, I will be looking foreward to it and your next book.
    Peace and all good.

  11. Janice Says:
    June 18th, 2007 at 10:59 am

    I don’t know about Keanu Reeves acting as Don…I don’t think he has the depth required to portray him in the movie :)I am exited to hear about the movie…and can’t wait to see it!

  12. Donald Miller Says:
    June 18th, 2007 at 8:13 pm

    Denise,

    I have read James Bryan Smiths book, and in ways, I owe James a great deal because he introduced me to his agent and that is how one of my first books was published. That said, I read his book before this and enjoyed it. I met Rich a few times when I was a kid and he inspired many road trips, deep thoughts and a general feeling that life was supposed to be contemplated and enjoyed. I still love his music and am honored when people connect him with my work. It seems like, now, many of his old friends are close friends of mine and I know he is missed.

    Don

  13. Gidge Taylor Says:
    June 21st, 2007 at 12:34 pm

    Help!
    I’m a non-verbal communication expert who worked for Nordstrom in Tyson,Va. (wash. d.c.).I’m wanting to develop an image program for mothers and daughters on the impact of validation.

    Question: Please give me reference guidance to Adam walking with God for a hundred years, before
    Eve was created. This program has been my hearts
    desire for over twenty five years. God has finally opened the door.

  14. Gidge Taylor Says:
    June 21st, 2007 at 12:36 pm

    Help!
    I’m a non-verbal communication expert who worked for Nordstrom in Tyson,Va. (wash. d.c.).I’m wanting to develop an image program for mothers and daughters on the impact of validation.

    Question: Please give me reference guidance to Adam walking with God for a hundred years, before
    Eve was created. This program has been my hearts
    desire for over twenty five years. God has finally opened the door.

    I’m not computer savy, please accept

  15. nish Says:
    June 21st, 2007 at 7:01 pm

    I was going to suggest Brad Pitt as Don… but Keanu will work, I guess.

    Blue Like Jazz as a movie? Sounds awesome. I’m glad you’ll be shooting in Portland, I love my home & it will be great to show it off to others through your work.

  16. Donald Miller Says:
    June 22nd, 2007 at 1:53 am

    Nish,

    Portland definitely becomes a character in the film. The more I travel, the more I realize there aren’t very many places like this place. I think it will make a great back drop….

    Don

  17. Jackson Says:
    June 22nd, 2007 at 12:49 pm

    This is great. BLJ was the most refreshing book I have ever read. It made me feel like I was not alone on my journey.

  18. Johann Wagner Says:
    June 22nd, 2007 at 2:07 pm

    Blue Like Jazz the movie. I’m pumped.

    Don, we met briefly at Willow last week. Any word from our mutual friend in the north? He said he would send an email. I’d love to have a further conversation with you.

    (hint: Dropkicks in Arkansas)

  19. Jackson Says:
    June 22nd, 2007 at 6:35 pm

    Awesome!

  20. Mark Moreland Says:
    June 23rd, 2007 at 12:42 am

    Dear Donald,

    After the movie, can we expect a Blue Like Jazz board game? Please say yes.

  21. Amy Says:
    June 24th, 2007 at 9:28 pm

    Hey Don,
    I’m reading Blue Like Jazz right now and it’s awesome! I can relate to it in many ways. You sound like a fun guy! Hope the movie-making goes well.

  22. David Buckna Says:
    June 25th, 2007 at 12:15 am

    http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/june/10.28.html

    “In keeping with the movie theme, Miller quotes at length from Robert McKee, the Hollywood screenwriting guru whose book Story (1997) is at once a detailed guide to the principles of narrative and a primer on the principles of meaning. Miller says that the criteria McKee instructs writers to use in editing their stories—Is there conflict here? Does my protagonist have a purpose?—are the same criteria we can use to edit our understanding of our lives and the Christian faith.”

    ===
    Hi Don,

    Did you know Robert McKee will be giving a writing seminar Nov. 2-4 in Vancouver, B.C.?

    http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/arts/story.html?id=3e4d6ce8-6a18-4088-a382-3a7ac887b3ef

    Master screenwriter to give storytelling course
    Yvonne Zacharias, Vancouver Sun
    Published: Saturday, June 23, 2007
    In the movie business, Robert McKee is hardly a household name. You won’t hear it bandied about at cocktail parties or swank lunches.
    Yet his course on screenwriting is behind some of the best cinematic magic.
    His students wrote the screenplays for A Beautiful Mind, Cinderella Man, Lord of the Rings I, II and III, Law & Order, The Daily Show, Frasier, Seinfeld and The Da Vinci Code.
    Actors Kirk Douglas, Meg Ryan, Julia Roberts, Faye Dunaway and Diane Keaton have taken his course. So have most of the writers for The Sopranos and the entire staff at Sex and the City.
    His students have won 27 Academy Awards. Some of the best and most prolific writers, both on the screen and off, have sung his praises.
    McKee, who will be returning to Vancouver Nov. 2, 3 and 4 to offer his story seminar again, knows a good script when he sees it. The Michigan native also knows a bad one.
    Interviewed from his home in Arizona, he totally panned the screenplay of the recently- released Ocean’s Thirteen. Despite a star-studded cast including Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Matt Damon, “it is very badly written,” McKee said.
    Titanic, the 1997 billion-dollar blockbuster, got a similar thumbs down from McKee. “There are terribly stereotypic characters and manipulative storytelling. Many key moments of the story are utterly unmotivated.
    “During the climax of the film, when she is floating on that spar and he is floating up to his neck in the freezing North Atlantic, why doesn’t she pull him out of the ocean? Why doesn’t she try to save the man she loves? There is just unbelievably false writing.”
    The 66-year-old one-time actor, director and author of a book called Story is the first to admit that the screenplay doesn’t determine whether a movie will be a success at the box office. Titanic was a success, he says, because “it is a romance novel for the screen and adolescent girls loved it.”
    Yet he maintains that a good screenplay is the foundation for everything in a movie.
    “The writer is the only original artist in the making of film and television. After the writer, everyone else is an interpretive artist.”
    McKee had no intention of giving away all his tips in an interview. He reserves them for his 33-hour course that costs $595, plus GST.
    But he did share a key one. It’s called the “inciting” moment. Every good script has it. Simply put, “it’s an event in the life of a character that throws that life out of balance.”
    Here are some key examples: In Kramer vs. Kramer, Mrs. Kramer decides to walk out on Mr. Kramer, throwing his life out of balance. In Jaws, the mangled body of a vacationer washes up on shore, with the shark being the prime suspect. In Roberto Benigni’s Life is Beautiful, the Gestapo hauls the Jewish bookkeeper Guido and his family off to the death camp.
    The inciting moment can be right at the beginning or somewhere within the first third of the film, but it must be there. “It’s the pitching of life out of balance that begins the story,” McKee says.
    After 25 years of teaching the course to more than 40,000 screenwriters, filmmakers, TV writers, novelists, industry executives, actors, producers, directors and playwrights, McKee has become a keen critic of movies and an observer of how various countries are faring in the film world.
    On that score, he said francophone Canada makes the odd excellent film, citing Denys Arcand’s Jesus of Montreal and Francois Girard’s The Red Violin as examples.
    But English Canada has not fared well. “I cannot recall the last good anglophone Canadian film I have seen.”
    One of the reasons, he says, is because it is difficult for someone with talent to sustain a career in Canada. The really good ones migrate to Hollywood.
    “Your culture has not been the warmest and [most] welcoming to really difficult and sharp filmmakers.”
    He cited director David Cronenberg as an example. Because Cronenberg makes horror films and very dark dramas, he was denounced in Parliament. “That was the blindness of politicians who were unable to see that Cronenberg was a real talent and a real master filmmaker. It’s sad, so Cronenberg left.”
    He said Koreans are now making some of the best films. “They are very brave and they have thousands of years of tradition to draw from.”
    McKee said one of the best films he has seen lately is a Korean production titled Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring Again.
    “The storytelling is just heartbreaking and profound. It’s about a relationship between a child and his spiritual guru master.”
    Writers from around the world find their own worlds populated with their own characters. They tell their own stories. McKee wants to make sure they tell the story beautifully. He wants to make sure they have mastered the art and craft of storytelling so they can express their vision in a powerful comic or tragic way.
    He wants to give them the tools to move the hearts and minds of human beings.
    yzacharias@png.canwest.com
    - - -
    Robert McKee’s 30-hour story seminar will be held Nov. 2, 3 and 4 at the Vancouver Jewish Community Centre, 950 W. 41st Ave., from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. all three days. To register, call toll-free 1-888-602-9361 or go online to http://www.whitedogseminars.com.

    SOME STUDENTS OF ROBERT McKEE
    - Daniel Craig, general manager of the Opus Hotel: Craig has signed a three-book deal with a publisher, with the first book, Murder at the Universe, due out in September. He read McKee’s book, Story, three times and has taken his seminar. “I think what’s so inspiring about him is that he presents some basic rules of writing that seem so obvious once you learn them, but few people figure them out on their own,” Craig said.
    - Actors Kirk Douglas, Meg Ryan, Julia Roberts, Faye Dunaway and Diane Keaton.
    - Most of the writers for The Sopranos and the entire staff at Sex and the City.
    - Screenplay writers for A Beautiful Mind, Cinderella Man, Lord of the Rings, I, II and III, Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, X-Men 3, Finding Nemo and the television shows Law & Order, The Daily Show, Frasier, Seinfeld and The Da Vinci Code.
    © The Vancouver Sun 2007

  23. scott Says:
    June 26th, 2007 at 9:40 pm

    wouldn’t “through painted deserts” been easier to adapt to a screenplay? maybe i need to read BLJ again.

  24. angie Says:
    July 2nd, 2007 at 10:46 pm

    Don,
    Just HAD to thank you for your humor. BLJ was my first read of yours. I had to get up and leave a couple places because I was alone reading this and your humor would just jump out and bite me and I was simply laughing my ass off. (I had to beat the men coming for me with the little white jacket.) My fav. is the Moses and Don (stand-in for the Israelites) dialogue. Love the “Mosey” ref., sunburned and all…”what are you, on crack, Don!?!” I could just picture it…too funny. Thanks again! — OOO, and I wanna be Penny!!! OOO OOO, let me be Penny! just kiddn

  25. Grace Says:
    July 3rd, 2007 at 10:23 am

    OK, I was really surprised to hear about the movie, that’s great! Please, not Keanu or Brad. I think Blue Like Jazz needs someone with substance and not jsut a pretty face!

    I’ve read Blue Like Jazz and Searching For God Knows What. Both books came to my attention at an important time in my life. I was searching for a closeness with God, but wasn’t finding it in the traditions I was raised with. You put into words what I couldn’t . . . thanks & God Bless.

  26. Tiffany Says:
    July 4th, 2007 at 6:07 pm

    Okay, all this talk of who’s gonna play Don has got me wondering who the other characters are going to be. I’m thinking Scarlett Johansen for Sexy Carrot?

    I’m so excited about the filming in P-town, though! This place has a culture like no other! Don, where is that cafe you talk about in the first chapter? I want to find it!

  27. Kelly Says:
    July 10th, 2007 at 9:29 pm

    Why would anyone want Keanu or Brad? Obvioulsy Kirk Cameron is first choice. Look what he did for the Left Behind series. And for Tony the beat poet: Stephen Baldwin.

    (I feel a need to mention I am really just kidding before anyone lynches me with their internet rhetoric…)

  28. Rachel Says:
    July 11th, 2007 at 8:38 pm

    Totally Stephen Baldwin for Tony.

    Donald Miller rocks my socks off, just finished the book, it’s amazing, I have no words because I am not as freaking blessed a writer as that guy!

    Hmm, maybe just go ahead and get George Clooney for Don.

  29. Johnathan W Says:
    July 12th, 2007 at 12:56 am

    Maybe it will come off as hubris, maybe it will come off as humorous but I think I could pull off playing a younger version of you in the movie. Anyway, I’m really looking forward to the Blue Like Jazz movie. I’ve read the book four times, Through Painted Deserts twice, and I’m halfway through Searching For God Knows What and To Own A Dragon. They’ve all given me hope that maybe a guy like me can make it through with God’s help. Thanks for blessing my life with your writings.

  30. Breanna Says:
    July 13th, 2007 at 2:48 pm

    Dear Don,
    As much as God used the book to completely change this college student’s life, I am ever so unbelievably excited about the film!!! The book gave me the confidence and inspiration to write from my heart, something I’ve always been insecure about. Thank you for allowing your talents to cultivate the talents of others! I’m sure this movie will another way of doing just that. I can’t wait- I’m going to start stocking up on Junior Mints and Mike & Ikes so I’m ready to take all my friends to see it!

  31. chin Says:
    July 16th, 2007 at 7:44 am

    hi don,

    thank you for writing blue like jazz.You’ve made me see our faith in a whole new perspective. I was so touched by so many points you’ve shared. I was especially moved by the confession booth part. sniff. Thank you again. I am your fan. :) (oh and i really enjoy the way you write!i felt like i was just conversing to an old friend the whole time i was reading your book) wonderful wonderful read:)

  32. Leah Says:
    August 31st, 2007 at 11:07 pm

    I really hope they get some fresh faces for the movie. Let’s face it- the movie industry desperately needs it. I think getting some unknowns goes really well with the whole independent feel of the book itself.

  33. Rachel Says:
    September 19th, 2007 at 6:10 pm

    I havent found a better or more moving book then “Blue Like Jazz”.

    And I couldn’t be more excited for the movie.

    It’s gunna be amazing

  34. Shelli Says:
    November 11th, 2007 at 9:36 pm

    Can I audition for this film? I am a 26 year old actress.

  35. Elisa Says:
    February 22nd, 2008 at 4:10 pm

    Don,
    I want to thank you for being the vessel of an amazing message. “Blue Like Jazz” really moved me to the core. I have often felt alone in my faith, and never really quite accepted by either “side”. I am currently looking for used copies of this book so that I can send them to loved ones and friends to recycle among their loved ones and friends. I feel this message of radical and genuine relationship is so relevant and so needed. Thanking for quenching my thirst through sharing similar experience.

  36. Sam Steere Says:
    February 27th, 2008 at 3:32 pm

    Are there open auditions? If so, when and where? This would definitely be a production I would love to be a part of. I’m a writer/musician/hope-to-be-filmmaker/actor type of person and the whole idea of turning Blue Like Jazz into a film is both strange and amazing to me. I was so encouraged, challenged, affirmed, and inspired by the book. May God bless your endeavors with the film to an even greater degree, if that is possible. With him, it will be. Blessings…

  37. Bob in KC Says:
    February 29th, 2008 at 11:36 am

    I have a great suggestion for Don’s part. There’s this great actor in Kansas City named Bob that would be perfect for the part. He’s willing to relocate for filming, and I know he loves the book. (I know because he’s a great friend of mine)

  38. Daniel Ely Rankin Says:
    March 7th, 2008 at 12:37 am

    I am in the indie film industry and i want to work on this film. there is an authenticity in your work that draws me to it. I did a music video for a christian mainstream band on atlantic records recently.

    i would love to facilitate in any role possible, major or minor. please contact me, the forum admins should have my e-mail address. I would love to sit down and let you get a feel for the way i think and work and what i could offer such a project.

    Dan

  39. Brent Says:
    April 1st, 2008 at 12:34 am

    This sounds cool. I really enjoyed Blue Like Jazz; it offered a really fresh perspective on christianity, and helped develop some things I had been working through. I’d like to see if this film does in fact prove to be infinitely better… in most cases, film tends to fall short of literary origins. Still though, I’m sure you’re up to the challenge, and I’m looking forward to seeing it. Now, I’m not going to bother offering my skills as an extra; my acting ability is far from adequate. On that note though, I’m sure Keanu Reeves will do an excellent job as the title character, and his skill in mixed martial arts will naturally be well suited and applicable to the role.

    On a slightly less ridiculous note, I’ve some questions;
    What sort of creative departure from the book will be present? Is the same tone and texture of the book going to be continued in the film? Are we going to be seeing a first person narrative,(and if so will you be providing the narration)?
    And, finally, how do the real people portrayed in your novel feel about their character’s expansion?

    I hope you can find time to answer these, and best of luck with your upcoming endeavors.

    Brent