Passion, Risks, Truth
Commentary people, critics.sometimes miss the point. Because there’s no right or wrong. It’s just truthful or untruthful.
― Robert Duvall
Home Team Productions proudly premiered BRAVO PROFILES ROBERT DUVALL in October, 2002, on BRAVO.
Produced and directed by Stephanie Silber and Victor Zimet, the hour-long program was written by Silber and edited by Zimet. For both, the process of making the documentary was the experience of a lifetime; to spend time with the intriguing Mr. Duvall, an artist who is as authentic a human being as he is an actor, and the opportunity to travel not only to the southern hemisphere, but also to some of the most beautiful country in the United States -Utah, Texas, New Mexico – in search of the story, was an unforgettable privilege. The documentary won a Telly Award and an Aurora Award, 2003.
This exclusive portrait of the life and times of one of the world’s most esteemed actors focuses on Robert Duvall as not only a performer, but as a filmmaker. The program finds Mr. Duvall on location in Argentina, where he was directing his latest film, ASSASSINATION TANGO, which he also wrote and stars in. And, we visit his home in Virginia, where Duvall practices the tango religiously, with his companion Luciana Pedraza, in a barn he converted into a dance studio.
“A young actor once asked me coming up, he said, what do you do between jobs, I said hobbies, hobbies and more hobbies, it keeps you offa dope,” Duvall says, stuttering his trademark laugh.
The sumptuous images of Buenos Aires, a city beloved by Mr. Duvall, and the seductive moves of tango dancers like Pablo Veron provide a backdrop to the profile, and a revelation into what drives Robert Duvall.
“He’s the most passionate guy I’ve ever met in my life,” says James Caan.
Through Duvall’s own words and those of close friends and distinguished peers like Caan, Gene Hackman, James Earl Jones, Wilford Brimley, Horton Foote and others, the hour-long program offers an inside look at the creative process of a complex man. While both the subject and the interviewees steer well clear of the sensational or merely gossipy, a finely tuned picture emerges of a many-faceted artist reflecting candidly on his long career; on love and work; loss and longing; and the nature of contentment. No ordinary man – no ordinary profile.