Tyler Perry Studios’ producer Reuben Cannon looked like a proud new
papa as he watched an endless river of moviegoers spill inside for the Madea Goes to Jail
screening in midtown Atlanta. You half expected the resplendent
producer to break out a celebratory cigar, and not just because he was
celebrating his birthday before the throng of Madea disciples. The
appetite is so strong for the heat-packing grandma’s hysterics,
histrionics and hilarious hijinks that Cannon needed to open up another
theater room to house the crowd overflow.
“What I always love
about Tyler’s films is that people come out feeling better than when
they came in. There is just a collective joy and enthusiasm, and you
don’t have to sell the movie because they’ve experienced it and the
word of mouth is now so good,” says Cannon, arguably one of the
greatest casting directors in Hollywood history. Madea fans swarmed
around Cannon for at least 45 minutes after the movie concluded. “They
will go tell 10 of their friends and build dates around it. They feel
privileged because they were there to see it – the first ones to see
it. So we expect a big weekend just based on the word of mouth and
those who have seen it will just help promote it.”
Madea Goes to Jail
features a poignant performance from angelic beauty Keshia Knight
Pulliam that jarred people’s image of the cute little Rudy Huxtable
from The Cosby Show. Fans are already clamoring for info for the next
Madea installment that begins shooting in March, which will be the
eighth motion picture to be shot in Atlanta. And Cannon is immersed in
the highly-anticipated Meet the Browns sitcom, not to mention handling the record-breaking House of Payne
series on TBS. Tyler Perry also recently started another studio, 34th
Street. That studio, in conjunction with another icon, Oprah Winfrey,
made a major movie acquisition at the Sundance Film Festival, Lee
Daniel’s emotionally-charged Push. Rumor has it that Cannon recently paused to take a deep breath, but it hasn’t been confirmed by press time.
Celebrations are often, but brief, for the squad of talented
moviemakers at Tyler Perry Studios. There’s too much to do and too much
ground to break to remain idle on the curb for long. Besides, Cannon is
a pioneering casting director who ignited the careers of Bruce Willis,
Winfrey, Danny Glover, Michael J. Fox and countless others. You can say
that he’s been through this before. These days he’s parlaying his
prodigious talents and experience into getting films financed.
“My job is to move on
what Tyler says. My job as a producer is to put together teams. The
creative direction of the company comes from him. My job is to make
sure that he has what he needs to make the best work,” Cannon says
before dispensing advice for aspiring moviemakers. “I would just tell
people to get the experience because given the way that we do our films
and the quality that we demand to see what’s on the screen, you have to
be on the top of your game. [And] Just training, training, training and
being committed to your craft.”
Cannon’s three keys to success as a producer:
1. Produce a good result.
2. Produce a good result.
3. Produce a good result.
