Below the Line

By J.R. Helton

Movies have replaced the circus and the carnival as the traveling sideshow for the masses of America today, providing longed for escape from day-to-day reality. In the actual movie business, one is... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0965230309
• ISBN13: 9780965230308
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Samuel French Trade
• Length: 203 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 0.8" x 5.8"

Customer Reviews

A Must For Any Craftperson.

Hearty, true real life 'how it is' when you think the movie life is glam. NOT! I am proud to say my husband and I have had the privlige of working with J.R. in Texas on some films. If you are a craftperson of any kind, you will enjoy this book.

A behind-the-scenes look at film production.

In film production, actors & producers are "above the line",everyone else is below it, and some grueling & miserable scenes are played out down there. In this book, Helton, a Scenic Painter recounts the unglamorous, sometimes hilarious, often repugnant life of set builders & painters. No aliases are used, nor punches pulled. Some careers may have been ended by the publication of this book, especially that of Mr. Helton who apparently never encountered anyone he considered to be competent on set besides himself. Still, it is a true account of the ugly world of the lying, cheating, stealing, sadistic, ignorant and egomaniaical bastards who tend to thrive in this insidious business. A glossary of terms would have been helpful for those who have never been on a film set. This book is a must read for everyone who thinks that "it would be a lot of fun to work on a movie"; for the majority of the crew, especially the painters, it is anything but fun, although, as "below the line" illustrates, it does provide a rich array of lurid anecdotes. tw