Joel and Ethan Coen
Forward Note: This is a little different than anything I've posted here before. This is a paper I wrote for my Introduction to Business class in the spring of 2012. It is therefore relatively light on the film analysis, and heavy on business concepts. The paper will pretty much say it all, but the assignment was to write a paper about a leader from our field of interest. We had to find one book about their life and careers, read it, analyze it, and write this 5-10 page paper containing at least 3-5 significant principles that our people have that makes them an effective leader. Then we had to explain how studying our leaders helped further our understand of the material covered in class, and how it applied to our future careers. Finally, the paper is cited using the APA (American Psychology Association) format. I have also added some photographs that were not in the original paper to add a little more flavor to the story.
Principles of Leadership: The Coen Brothers
The book on which this paper is based is ""The Coen Brothers: The Story of Two American Filmmakers, written by Josh Levine. This book chronicles the career of the two legendary filmmakers, Joel and Ethan Coen, from their childhood interest in movies to just prior to the release of their film "O Brother, Where Art Thou? in 2000". The chapters discuss in great detail the production of their seven films before O Brother, Where Art Thou?.
The information provided includes the inspiration for the films, the writing of the scripts, the casting, how the directors interacted with the cast and crew, pre-production, filming, post production, the release of the film, and the film’s critical reception. The object of this paper is to identify the principles of leadership the Coens possess, and how their leadership styles could apply to me if I was a leader in the business world. Among the key leadership principles discussed in the book are hiring skills, communication, planning and execution, technical proficiency, and integrity.
The Coen brothers, like all leaders, always have a vision for the film they are making. Whether it’s a gritty crime thriller like "Fargo", a slapstick comedy like "Raising Arizona", or a remake like "True Grit", the Coens always know exactly what type of film they want. They work hard at developing their film—from each of the characters and the scripts to each individual shot in the movie (Levine, 2000, n.p.). Having a vision is important for a leader, but that’s only the beginning. Just having a vision doesn’t make someone a leader. They have to communicate that vision to others in order to bring it to life.
The first of the key leadership principles that the book discusses Joel and Ethan Coen having is hiring skills. They pick the actors they think will do the role the most credit. They are never shy about casting unknown actors, and have made performers like Frances McDormand, Holly Hunter, Marcia Gay Harden and John Turturro, recognizable stars (Levine, 2000, n.p.).
The next leadership skill the brothers possess is communication—how they direct and motivate their crew. Levine (2000) describes Joel Coen, who does the bulk of the directing amongst the two, as not being an actor’s director. (p. 54). The Coens plan every detail of a shoot so carefully, from the dialogue to the storyboards, and do not like to see the actors deviate from their plans. Occasionally, they allow their cast some artistic license with certain scenes, but mostly they have the actors stick to the script (Levine, 2000, p. 54). John Turturro, who has starred in four of the Coens’ movies, said of them: “Sometimes a director can say everything and you don’t get anything. Other times, people can just be there and go through it with you and you get it. The Coens are like that” (Levine, 2000, p. 73).
Joel Coen directing "Fargo"--early 1995
Jon Polito, another frequent Coen brothers’ collaborator, says that have a deceptive approach to getting an actor to play a scene their way. As Polito recalled, “They sort of giggle and make you laugh along with them, until finally you realize you’re going in a way they planned years before. They have a wonderful way of catching you off guard” (Levine, 2000, p. 74). Using these methods of direction, the Coens have directed Frances McDormand to an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as police chief Marge Gunderson in "Fargo" (1996) (Levine, 2000, p. 136), and several others to award nominations (Levine, 2000, n.p.). In any business setting, a good manager knows what he or she wants and is not afraid to ask for it, even at the risk of frustrating their employees.
Frances McDormand as Marge Gunderson in "Fargo" (1996)
Planning and execution is another leadership skill discussed by Levine’s book. The Coens always prepare very thoroughly for each shoot. They write their own scripts, and have been known storyboard absolutely every shot of the film before any shooting is actually done, which is what they did with their debut film, "Blood Simple" (1984) (Levine, 2000, p. 26). Using their communication skills they direct their cast and crew through the film’s production, till they have the best product that they can get.
Understanding the technicalities of their crews’ jobs is also a leadership quality the brothers possess. Barry
Sonnenfield, cinematographer of three films for the Coen brothers said of them: “They do everything, they write it, they cast it, they work on the editing, they’re involved with the music. They don’t hire people to go out and do things. They are so insularly self-confident, it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks” (Levine, 2000, p. 73).
The Coens are very careful in their coaching of the people filming the movies. During the filming of "Raising Arizona" in 1986, Joel Coen would instruct Sonnenfeld to film scenes using wide angle lenses, so that rather than the shot being restricted to one subject, the whole landscape could be filmed, giving the scene a more open feel (Levine, 2000, p. 55).
Wide Angle Lense shot of the desert from "Raising Arizona" (1987)
The brothers also have technical mastery of film editing, which they acquired from the making of Blood Simple (1984). After filming had ended, the Coens didn’t have money to hire a professional editor. In the end, they would edit the film themselves, using the pseudonym Roderick Jaynes (Levine, 2000, p. 28). Under this alias, the brothers would be nominated for an Academy Award for the editing of their film, "Fargo" (1996) (Levine, 2000, p. 136). Filmmaking is a complicated, multilayered process. Leading by example by showing technical proficiency with each of your crew’s jobs is a very important skill for any successful leader in the film industry.
One of the cons of being a leader is making mistakes, but a good leader has the integrity to own up to their own mistakes and doesn’t blame others. This is the final of the leadership skills outlined by Levine’s book. After a string of critical successes that were also box office failures in the late 1980s and early ‘90s, the Coens made
"The Hudsucker Proxy" (1994), which was made on a very large budget (Levine, 2000, p. 108).
Tim Robbins and Paul Newman in "The Hudsucker Proxy" (1994)
The brothers were aiming for a box office success, casting big box office names like Paul Newman and Tim Robbins (Levine, 2000, p. 109-110). The film however performed poorly at the box office, and wasn’t especially well liked by critics. It seemed that the brothers were so focused with making a big box office hit with lots of impressive visual effects, that they neglected the story that were actually telling (Levine, 2000, pp. 116-117). Even though the film wasn’t a mistake that any one person has to apologize for, the Coens didn’t point fingers at anyone for the film’s poor reception. Joel was even quoted as saying, “We don’t have anyone to blame for the weaknesses but ourselves” (Levine, 2000, p. 117). It’s not a big thing to admit you made a mistake, but it’s a very hard thing to do. It’s something that a good leader has to do.
Each of these leadership principles illustrate much of the material covered in this Introduction to Business course. Take the Coens’ style of communication for example. Nicolas Cage said that the Coens “have difficulty accepting another’s artistic vision,” and that they have an “autocratic nature” (Levine, 2000, p. 54). This cycles back around to the in-class and textbook discussions of the autocratic style of leadership, where decisions are made by management with little consideration for employee opinions. The Coens have a very clear vision in their heads of what each film should be. They tell the actors and other crewmembers exactly what to do in order to have that vision carried out. The dedication and enthusiasm that the Coens have for their work also indicates entrepreneurial leadership, though their overall leadership style leans more towards the autocratic side.
There’s a lot to be learned about planning from researching the careers of Joel and Ethan Coen. For each of their films, they are always very well prepared. They have a goal, to shoot and release a film by a certain date, and objectives, getting through the filming of each individual scene. They plan virtually everything, carefully writing their scripts and storyboarding every shot of the film, which is essentially making an operational plan.
It’s easy to compare the Coens’ routine of filmmaking with the basic functions of management. They plan their movie by writing the script and having it storyboarded. They cast the film, and organize, lead and motivate and control their cast and crew by rehearsing them, and being very clear with the actors and technical people what is expected of them.
The brothers work together in running the production of a film, resembling a partnership. While they take on different tasks, Joel doing the directing and Ethan doing most of the writing and producing (Levine, 2000, n.p.), they are both leading the production of each film. One may do one thing more than the other, but the brothers know how to do each others’ jobs. In a way, the Coens are also like a non-profit corporation. With the exception of "The Hudsucker Proxy", the films they make are for artistic satisfaction, rather than monetary gain (Levine, 2000, n.p.).
I don’t exactly know what I will end up doing as a career. More specifically, I don’t know whether I will end up as a business leader. However, if I do, there are certain of the Coen brothers’ leadership principles that I would apply to my career. More than anything else, I love the passion and the dedication that goes into each film they make. They always know what they want, even if that does mean they are very controlling.
I appreciate the risks they take in terms of casting a film. The Coens cast actors and actresses they think will perform a character particularly well. They’ve often cast unknown actors, who were not box office names. This plays back to the Coens’ dedication to the artistic aspects of their films. The actors they cast perform the characters well, and the actors usually do well by the films.
I admire how prepared they always are—that they always have their films so planned out. I’d want to be that good of a planner if I was a leader. I respect how proficient the Coens are with the technical aspects of a production, like with the cinematography and editing. I would also have the integrity to own up to my own mistakes as a leader, like the brothers did with the critical and commercial failure of "The Hudsucker Proxy", explaining that the weaknesses of the film were on them. I would want to be a leader with that kind of enthusiasm, bravery, organization, intelligence and integrity. Essentially, that is how I would adapt the Coen brothers’ style of leadership to myself if I ever become leader in a business setting.
I found Josh Levine’s "The Coen Brothers: The Story of Two American Filmmakers" to be a very enjoyable read. I’ve seen most of the movies discussed in the book many times, and I enjoyed reading about what went on during the shooting of each film. The book went into detail on the Coens, in terms of their lives and their careers as professional filmmakers. The writing itself was also very good. The sentences weren’t trite or repetitive, and the language was clear and effective, and not difficult to understand. The writing was all the more appealing for the stories it told. I’d certainly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about the Coen Brothers.
Since their first feature film in 1984, Joel and Ethan Coen have made fourteen films, and have won multiple academy awards. Their films constantly walk the fine line between real and surreal—providing impressive visuals and conceptually engaging storylines. They are giants in their industry, and they are effective leaders. They may not always get the box office records they shoot for, but their films usually receive high critical acclaim.
The Coens are incredibly passionate about their work, and are constantly putting faith in new talent to perform in their movies. Their autocratic style of leadership may not appeal to some, but there are those like John Turturro who said of the brothers, “I know they aren’t thought of as directors, but they’ve been as good as anyone I’ve worked with, if not better” (Levine, 2000, p. 95). Their leadership has lead actors and cinematographers to academy awards nominations and wins, as well as significant critical acclaim. That outstanding quality of the finished product is surely the truest measure of success.
Reference:
Levine, J. (2000). "The Coen Brothers: The Story of Two American Filmmakers". Toronto, Ontario: ECW Press.
