The Exchange

Actors act. Directors direct. Producers…. If you have ever wondered what exactly it is that producers do, you are in luck! The Exchange recently chatted with Tom Johnson, Texas native and Head of Development for Flashpoint Entertainment, about the role of a producer, how films are developed, and why he decides to bring certain stories to the big screen.

Tell us about your background. How did you become Head of Development for Flashpoint Entertainment?

How much science can you fit into an hour-long television show? When you talk to Glen Whitman and Rob Chiappetta, executive story editors on the hit Fox series Fringe, it almost seems like the answer is “an unlimited amount.” Science seems to be crammed into every nook and cranny of Fringe, so much, in fact, that Fox offers high school lesson plans that explore the science of specific episodes.

BRRRAAAAINS!!! Steven Schlozman, M.D. isn’t a zombie but he is hungry for brains – zombie brains! An Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, Schlozman never dreamed his career would lead to exploring zombie physiology. As luck would have it, a local movie theatre asked Schlozman to give a lecture after a film, leaving the decision of what film up to him. He chose Night of the Living Dead and the rest is history!

Sure, we all wish we had superpowers at one time or another, but do we have any clue how to make those superpowers work in the real world? Well have no fear, physicist James Kakalios is here! The University of Minnesota professor, author of The Physics of Superheroes, and Exchange consultant has consulted on not one but three superhero films, including Watchmen, Green Lantern, and a project he can’t tell you about just yet. But what he can tell you is in the interview below.