Project Greenlight: A New Generation

The story they show thinks it's telling, and the reality hiding underneath, creates a fascinating tension. Ostensibly about a first time director, Project Greenlight quickly becomes about the production company, their demands, unrealistic expectations, lack of mentorship, and misguided advice.

Watching the production team twist themselves into knots to cast themselves as the stars and heroes of this documentary is truly magical television. Even with complete control of the edit, the production company comes across as passive aggressive, controlling, and vain. They tell the director constantly to speak up and stand up for herself, but when she pushes back on their suggestions they accuse her of arrogance and a refusal to listen. The "mentors" are completely absent and working on other projects, making their concerns (only expressed behind the director's back) ring hollow.

It's very telling when an HBO Max VP shows up to chastise the director. He admits that they really don't care about the movie; they're doing this for the reality tv show side. This prioritization was already evident from the many times the documentary production pulled key crew aside for talking head interviews about how they were over time and running late, or setting up shots in the way of the filmmakers.

One of the most entertaining things to watch is the tension between the producers' stated values and their actions. They want to empower the director to execute her "vision", and then undercut her every time her vision clashes with their own. They want to create a diverse set of newcomers, but then accuse the Black 1st AD of being "aggressive" when he tries to do his job of protecting the film's set and crew. They want to "do things differently", but then insinuate she doesn't care about the project when she asserts boundaries over her personal time and what additional work she will take on. They say they want her to succeed and will do anything to help, but give her a terrible and unfinished script, insufficient time, insufficient money, and a total lack of real advice. The cast and crew seem to respond really well to the director and all the crises are common on a low-budget set, so their frustrations seem overblown.

If you can refuse to give in to production's edited perspective, you'll have a great time watching the show!

Project Greenlight showcases a stark contrast between the exceptional talent of director Meeko and the frustrating behavior of the producers. Meeko's directorial prowess shines, but the producers' demands, insistence on diversity decisions, and constant interruptions create a tense and challenging environment. It's a revealing look at the complexities of filmmaking behind the scenes.

The producers' behavior in 'Project Greenlight' paints a disheartening picture of their relentless interference, incessant complaints, and inappropriate pressure tactics. Their actions not only undermine Meeko's creative process but also highlight the challenges faced by directors when subjected to unwarranted scrutiny and micromanagement. It's a stark reminder of the detrimental impact that such producer-director conflicts can have on the filmmaking journey.

This whole show just leaves you with an unpleasant feeling, watching unlikeable people strive to shift blame to a first-time director who, if you believe the edit we're shown, isn't putting much work in and has no vision for what she wants to do. The situation puts her in an impossible time crunch with a lack of resources, gives no helpful feedback other than "fix the script" (a script they gave her, not one she wrote herself), then to act surprised and disappointed when it doesn't work out. While Meko does not come off well, she had no chance of succeeding. We're repeatedly told that she's lazy (which is funny in a series meant to "give a woman a chance" the other women involved spend the whole time tearing her down), but no one flat out tells her this while the movie is being made. They hint and they bicker and they say it behind her back, passing the blame for a shoddy product away from the 10 useless producers and mentors to someone who had no clue and wasn't taught anything about how to make a movie. By the end you just dislike everyone involved and want them to stop talking.

Omg. This is torture. I'm routing for this show since I'm a female director and advocate for women directors but you need to hire someone who has a clear vision. On top of that, everyone is boring with no personality and with an energy level that's a four at best. Can't even finish it to see if her final film is any good. So disappointing. The other two finalists had a much clearer vision and point of view. Will this do more to set back female directors than to celebrate them? I saw female filmmakers who I know and who are talented as the finalists, but weren't ultimately chosen and they all have dynamic personalities. It's hard to be on camera when you're normally behind the scenes, but this is also a tv show where we want to relate to and route for the director, so she needs to be dynamic. Giving up on this show on episode 5. I tried. Frustrating.

My score of 8 is for Project Greenlight, but that said, it was incredibly frustrating watching chosen director Miko Winbush completely ignore producer's notes regarding shooting alternative versions of every shot. She was told time and time again to take advantage of the resources around her, but also to hold true to her vision. And all she seemed to hear was "stay by your vision" and ignored all the problems that were popping up from producers and the studio.

She was also told about problems occurring between the personnel from PGL being in the way of the movie making, as well as other issues and she shrugged them off as "not her problem." Well yes, all those things are your problem, you're the director! She came across as arrogant and unwilling to make any changes to her process of making a movie. At one point she took off to go to "look at the stars" during the editing process when she should have been there with the editor 24/7! I have never seen someone so uninvested in the opportunity given to her. I really wish the people choosing the director, at the beginning of the series, had considered her lack of communication skills so they could have chosen someone who was better at communicating because she was horrible at it.