Matt Damon and Ben Affleck had a great idea to help rookie filmmakers get their movies made in Hollywood. The Oscar-winning duo were still at the start of their careers but wanted to bring some folks along for the ride. Developed along with Eli Holzman, Sean Bailey, and Chris Moore, PROJECT GREENLIGHT debuted on HBO in 2001. It lasted for three seasons, the final airing on Bravo in 2005. The resulting winners of all three seasons, including Pete Jones, John Gulager, Patrick Melton, and Marcus Dunstan, have had moderate success in the industry and the films have had showcases at various festivals, including Sundance.
After a decade long hiatus, Affleck and Damon are resurrecting their series for a fourth run and will be returning to HBO. Chris Moore will be launching a similar series over on Starz called THE CHAIR, but Affleck and Damon will see the new season of PROJECT GREENLIGHT through a digital submission contest all the way through the filming of the winning project as a feature film.
Ben Affleck said the following about the new season:
“Project Greenlight was ahead of its time,” Affleck said. “Now that technology has caught up to the concept, we thought it was a perfect time to bring it back. A whole new generation of filmmakers has grown up sharing everything, and the next big director could be just an upload away.”
I am sure there are still countless amateur filmmakers out there who have yet to embrace the likes of IndieGoGo or Kickstarter that are excited at the chance to work with Damon and Affleck. The stars are bigger than they have ever been which adds another layer to the new PROJECT GREENLIGHT. I mean, wouldn’t you want an Oscar-winning director on board for your project?
HBO has no air date for the new season, but we will bring you the details once they are known. Check out the trailers for the winners of the first three seasons below.