Comic-Con International.The discussion panel began with a short video introducing Gilliam and gave a small retrospective of his career with clips from many of the movies mentioned above. It concluded with the filmmaker talking about "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus," which he described as "the most mature thing I've ever done, as well as the most juvenile thing I've ever done."Gilliam then came out on stage and was given a surprise by CCI representatives - an Inkpot Award for achievement in film arts! The filmmaker thanked everyone, and wondered aloud where it would fit in his suitcase. He added, "I'll probably get arrested [taking this back to England] because you can probably take over an airplane with a weapon like this."Moving onto the topic of "Parnassus," the writer-director explained that the story is about the immortal 1,000-year old Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer), who leads a travelling theater troupe that offers audience members a chance to go beyond reality via a magical mirror. Joining him in his troupe are a sleight of hand expert (Andrew Garfield), a dwarf (Verne Troyer), and his daughter (Lily Cole).
Filmmaker Terry Gilliam has led a challenging career. Some might even go so far as to call it unlucky, if it weren't for the fact that his career has seen tremendous highs to counter the lows. His first work of note was as the sole American member of "Monty Python's Flying Circus" in the early 1970s. He began with the troupe as an animator, creating the cartoons that linked the show's sketches together, but was later credited as a full member after acting and directing several Monty Python sketches and movies throughout the decade that followed.Gilliam then created the highly stylistic and decidedly dark film "Brazil" (1985), but had to battle with Universal Studios while trying to get it made. "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen" followed in 1988, but it was beset with budget issues and never received a wide U.S. release due to financial problems at Columbia Pictures. However, the movie was nominated for four Academy Awards. In 1991, the director's "The Fisher King" was nominated for five Academy Awards, and Gilliam saw his "12 Monkeys" become a huge box office hit in 1995. Unfortunately, he ended that decade on a down note when production was shut down on "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote" due to scheduling conflicts, a lead actor with a herniated disc, budget cuts, and a huge flood.Finally, in 2008, Gilliam was dealt one of his biggest blows while on production with "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" - his lead actor and good friend Heath Ledger passed away. While the death of Ledger did temporarily halt the making of the film, Gilliam persevered. The show must go on, right? With some alterations to the script - and a helping hand from actors Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell - the movie was completed. And this film is the reason, of course, the filmmaker was present atOn working with Ledger, the panelists had nothing but kind words. Troyer said, "I really liked working with Heath. It was an honor and a privilege."Gilliam added, "He was an exceptional actor and human being. He was one of the greatest actors of his - and other - generations."Another fan who stepped up to the microphone asked how Gilliam picked his projects. The filmmaker simply replied that he didn't. "My projects pick me," he said. "I get an idea or something inside me bristles and takes over. The only times that hasn't happened were 'The Fisher King,' 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,' and '12 Monkeys.' Those were scripts that I thought were so extraordinary but would never get through the [Hollywood studio] system, so I decided to make them to prove they could be made."When asked about his inspiration and where he gets his "wacky" view of the world, Gilliam responded, "I see my films as normal, but everyone else calls them crazy and weird. I just thought that's what the world was like. I was trying to be an honest documentary filmmaker, but it doesn't seem I come off that way, does it? Most of my inspirations come from literature, paintings, music, but not as much from films as you'd think."The final audience member to ask a question mentioned how much he had enjoyed Gilliam's films and wanted to know what he would be doing next. The writer-director said that he had reacquired the rights to "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote" (which he had lost due to all the production troubles mentioned earlier), and was planning on moving forward with the project. That said, it won't exactly be the same film this time around."After seven or eight years of not reading the script because it was perfect, I read it...and we've rewritten it," Gilliam confessed. "It wasn't perfect, so maybe that many-year gap has been good for the film. Jeremy Thomas is producing it, and I am now on the hunt for actors... and money."With that, fans gave the filmmaker - and Inkpot award-winner - a big round of applause.