More about production

Boyle also believed that the films lead, Dev Patel, would benefit from spending time in Mumbai before they started the recording of the film and Boyle also invited other actors to go to several other locations that they will need to get to grips with for the production of the film. Dev Patel felt the experience helped him build up a profile of the character outside the script as well as allowing him the chance to refine his accent and helping him understand what the lifestyle of the area and the local population helping the character build.

Next phase

After the stage of writing up the script and getting a basic understanding of the book, the director (Danny Boyle) and his crew members decided to put together a list of actors that could be possible characters in the film this included both Hollywood and Bollywood actors. For an audition Boyle mad them do a scene from the movie so if they were picked and the audition was a success then they could use that in the film and would mean they could finish the movie quicker because they only had a specific amount of time to record in India. This part of recording helped the production departments as any problems they had with recording they had time change any logistical or creative issues that happen very early on. This also gave more official time to the shooting schedule as well as giving extra if needed for extra material.

Production stage

The first part of production was getting sponsors to fund the recording of the film. This happened when the head of film 4’s book scout, Kate Sinclair, rung the head of film and drama at channel 4, Tessa Ross, to tell her that she had read an ‘extraordinary story’. After hearing the pitch for Sinclair, Ross decided to immediately option (make it into a film) the book. A lot of sceptics say when a film is in the production phase it can struggle to move forward due to; re-writes, new writers, delays as other films are in production… this was not the case in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ as it was called “a snowball that grew as it rolled down a hill” by Ross. This then helped move on to the other stages of production such as picking the cast, financial side of things, recording, and other production phases.