by Sam Wasson
First published 2023
Francis Ford Coppola stands at the pinnacle of Hollywood success, but The Godfather fame isn't enough. He envisions a future where tiny digital cameras will democratize filmmaking, putting the power to create movies into anyone's hands. Coppola launches Zoetrope Studios to turn this vision into reality, determined to transform how films get made. The studio becomes his laboratory for experimenting with new technologies and storytelling methods. Success and failure alternate as Coppola pushes against industry conventions. His personal relationships strain under the pressure of his ambitious projects. Financial crises threaten to destroy everything he's built. Yet Coppola persists, driven by his belief that cinema can be more accessible and more innovative. Sam Wasson follows this larger than life filmmaker through the peaks and valleys of his career, showing how one man's pursuit of a cinematic dream reshaped an entire industry.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, non-fiction, 21st-century, film
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: ambitious-protagonist, pursuit-of-a-dream
Setting: Hollywood
Period: 20th Century, 21st Century
561 pages · Kindle Edition · Faber & Faber