Lawyers for Terrence Malick said today that it’s not his Sycamore Pictures but London-based film financing company Seven Seas Partnership who is guilty of breach of contract over the director’s long-time-in-the-making Voyage Of Time documentary series. In a counterclaim (read it here) to SSPL’s July 19 complaint over the “epic film” filed Monday in federal court in New York, Malick’s company claims that the financier “concocted the story told in its Complaint and asserted its trumped-up claims as a pretext for the fact that it either ran out of, or never had, the funds necessary to meet its financing obligations under the Agreement, or otherwise decided not to continue funding VOT in breach of its contractual obligations.” Asserting that they’ve met every milestone required and calling the initial complaint “completely without merit,” Sycamore’s counterclaim also says SSPL is using its “claims to hold hostage VOT-the films Mr. Malick has been working on for most of his professional life.” In today’s filing, Sycamore is seeking either an enforcement of the parties’ agreement over the film or the return of VOT’s copyright and the extensive production materials and footage that SSPL has claimed as theirs. And with two very different sides of the story like this, let’s be clear – there’s a lot more filings to come.
Voyage of Time
Investor sues filmmaker Terrence Malick over failure to produce promised documentary
Famed director Terrence Malick said “Voyage of Time” would be his masterpiece. His investors say it was a $6 million cruise to nowhere.
One backer wants his money returned, charging in a federal lawsuit that Malick not only failed to make the promised documentary trilogy, but used investors’ cash on other projects, including the recent “To the Wonder,” which one critic called “two hours of ‘artistic’ torture.”
Malick, the reclusive auteur behind 2011’s “The Tree of Life,” sold potential investors on “Voyage of Time” as his crowning accomplishment — nothing less than the history of the universe in all its IMAX majesty — and a project he’d pursued his whole career.
But with nearly $6 million in financing in place, and years allegedly devoted to filming across the globe, nothing materialized, according to the lawsuit filed late last week by Seven Seas Partnership, a London-based company that kicked in $3.3 million. An unidentified nonprofit foundation, which is not suing, provided another $2.5 million.
Malick, through his Sycamore Pictures, was to make two 45-minute IMAX films and a feature-length movie. The films were to have been finished by May 2013.
“Sycamore consistently misrepresented that production of these films was moving forward for years, but now has missed production deadlines and blown through $6 million with little to show for it,” said Dan Webb, the lawyer for Seven Seas.
Terrence Malick Prepping ‘The Tree of Life’ Director’s Cut; ‘Voyage of Time’ Coming in 2014
Terrence Malick is notorious for deleting subplots and even entire characters during the editing process, but for a director’s cut of The Tree of Life he’s going to put some of that extra footage back in. Malick’s longtime editor Billy Weber recently revealed that the filmmaker is working on a new edit that’ll include some scenes that wound up on the cutting room floor.
But that’s not the only thing Malick has on his plate right now. In addition to Knight of Cups and another, untitled feature, Malick’s also been putting the finishing touches on his documentary Voyage of Time, and Weber says we could see that film as soon as next year. Hit the jump to get the details.
Weber discussed Malick’s plans for The Tree of Life while speaking with The Playlist.
“I don’t even know the total [amount of footage that was shot], it was a huge amount of film, because he shot so many scenes. And I’m pretty sure he’s doing a director’s cut DVD of Tree Of Life, and that will have some of those scenes deleted [placed back] in. But for the theatrical release, he really thought that it was going to be too much, and he just couldn’t put it all in.”
‘Voyage of Time’ Not Coming Anytime Soon
With Terrence Malick juggling so many projects we’ve been curious as to the timeframe we’ll actually see them. Last year gave as his astounding epic The Tree of Life, while this year To the Wonder is arriving on the fall festival circuit. Then he’s currently hard at work on back-to-back features, as well as his documentary spin-off of Tree, titled Voyage of Time. But why the sudden burst in creativity and when will the notorious perfectionist dive into completing each?
We’ve also finally got an update on what they describe as the “epic and ambitious” documentary Voyage of Time, which features narration from Brad Pitt and Emma Thompson. As previously reported the film is said to be “aesthetically unique and scientifically accurate” and will chronicle “the whole of time, from the birth of the universe to its final collapse.” It will follow “the first signs of life, bacteria, cellular pioneers, first love, consciousness, the ascent of humanity, life and death and the end of the universe.” As one expected, this will take quite some time and producers confirm, saying “there are large parts shot already but it’s a multi-year project so there’s a way to go yet. Terry has been envisioning it for several decades.” In other words, don’t expect it for awhile.
