Francis Ford Coppola

format_quote I don't think there's any artist of any value who doesn't doubt what they're doing.

stars  As a hold-over from his days directing theater when he was young, he always engages his cast in a lengthy rehearsal period before filming. Occasionally, he finds film actors that are not used to this will bristle against the process.

stars  Since the mid-90s, he has been writing and re-writing an original screenplay entitled "Megalopolis". Described as "one man's quest to build utopia set in modern-day New York," the project has been delayed due to Coppola's constant tinkering with the script and the fact that the director is attempting to finance it himself. Several A-list actors have had their names attached to it and a great excess of second-unit footage (shot in 24p HD) has been captured by Coppola and the film's cinematographer, Ron Fricke of 'Baraka' (1992) fame.

stars  His wife arranged for him to meet Jane Powell as a 40th birthday present.

stars  Serves as the Honorary Ambassador of the Central American nation of Belize in San Francisco, California, USA. On their official roster of worldwide honorary consulates found on their official website, he is referred to as "His Excellency Ambassador Francis Ford Coppola," although he is not a Belizean citizen.

stars  Francis Ford Coppola has been in competition with Bob Fosse on several occasions. In 1972, Coppola was nominated for the Best Director Oscar (The Godfather), but lost to Fosse (Cabaret). In 1974, Fosse was nominated for Best Director (Lenny) but lost to Coppola (The Godfather Part II). In 1979, both were nominated as directors (Apocalypse Now and All That Jazz), but both lost. When Fosse won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival (Coppola won the previous year), he tied with Akira Kurasawa, whose movie was produced by George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola.