“I would ask you if you could remain emotionally detached, but I don’t think that’s your problem. Is it, Bond?”

The Next Reel’s Speakeasy is a new ongoing series of ours in which we invite an industry guest to join us and bring along one of their favorite movies to talk about. In this month’s episode, visual effects supervisor and director Matthew Gratzner joins us to talk about one of his faves, Martin Campbell’s reboot of the James Bond franchise that introduced us to Daniel Craig’s 007, “Casino Royale.” We talk about Craig and the rest of the cast, including Dame Judy Dench, Eva Green and Mads Mikkelsen, and look at what they bring to the table. We discuss the story and its origins, from Ian Fleming’s original novel and the rights to the book, to where the franchise had been with Pierce Brosnan as the previous Bond, and finally to the screenwriters Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Paul Haggis and what they delivered here. We chat about Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson and how they’ve worked so hard as a driving force to keep the franchise alive, consistent and relevant. And we chat effects, from the amazing stuntwork and the incredibly limited CGI to the model work. It’s a fantastic movie in a franchise we all love and we have a great time talking about it, so grab a drink and join us in the Speakeasy!

About Matthew Gratzner

 @MatthewGratzner

Matthew Gratzner is a triple threat talent who balances directing, design and technology fluidly when creating content. Matthew has a pioneering spirit and is always willing to create with new tools while remaining grounded in story and character.

Best known for his visual effects work on the biggest feature films over the last decade as Visual Effects Supervisor and co-founder New Deal Studios, Matthew is also an accomplished director. He has two feature films in post, several commercials, huge visual effects sequences, digital shorts and is now pioneering cinematic virtual reality content. He was the first to direct a cinematic live action virtual reality short called The Mission. He has directed live sports VR for the NHL. HIs Music Video for Galvanized Souls for the song “New Generation” that has been hugely popular this summer. His latest is virtual reality short is Mutiny for Nokia and their OZO camera. 

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