The film premiered at the 2010 South by Southwest Film Festival on March 14, 2010, and then was shelved for several years due to legal matters regarding its distributor and NBC. It was released on September 26, 2014 on Hulu.
The film begins at the Monday morning pitch meeting, in which writers submit jokes. By Tuesday, writers are staying up all night to complete their sketches for the following day's table read. Fifty sketches are submitted, and only nine are broadcast. The film follows the construction of sets, rehearsals, and the eventual live show.
Production
Rarely do you really get to see much of the actual process. And so I thought, if we get that, if we get to do that, then we'll have something that's: (A) new, and also, (B) I think really valuable, for anybody who's interested in comedy, or writing, or who is interested in the way certain kinds of television work.
The film was developed from a film class assignment assigned to Franco while he was attending New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2008.[3] Having recently hosted Saturday Night Live, he chose cast member Bill Hader as the subject of his observational documentary.[2] He first had to gain the approval of SNL creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels, as well as host John Malkovich.[2] In doing so, he decided to shoot more footage and create a feature-length documentary on the show's production process.[2]
After completion, much of the show's cast had to "sign off" on the picture, and gaining significant approval was no problem until Franco sought the permission of NBC.[3] During this period, there were many executive changes at the network, which made it difficult to secure approval. The film was bought by Ocilloscope Films sometime later, who intended to distribute it theatrically. The studio's founder, Adam Yauch, died in 2012, complicating matters.[3]
The film was uploaded to Hulu on September 26, 2014, in celebration of the fortieth anniversary of SNL.[3]
Reception
Upon its debut at SXSW, the film attracted positive reviews. IndieWire's Eric Kohn opined that the film's "attempt(s) to obtain a deeper truth gives [it] a greater sense of candor than your average fluff piece," summarizing, "Franco's portrait emerges against all odds as a compelling look at anachronistic media in action."[4] Karina Longworth of LA Weekly felt it "fascinating and absolutely worth seeing," though not flattering to the cast members/writers portrayed.[5]Dave Itzkoff of The New York Times deemed it a "fairly straightforward" look behind the scenes of the show, while noting, "the film turns up a number of details and tidbits that are like manna to comedy nerds."[6] In 2014, after its wide release on Hulu, The Wall Street Journal's Mike Ayers wrote that "For anyone interested in comedy and the creative process, it's essential viewing."[3]
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