The Amazing Journey of a Sci-Fi Screenplay: 100 Rewrites Lead to a Hit Film of the 2000s

Today when we talk about the film “First contact”, many will say that it is one of the best SF films of the 21st century. However, to achieve this result, Denis Villeneuve and Eric Heisserer had to rewrite the film's script 100 times ! Yes, you understood correctly, Eric Heisserer's adaptation work required months and months of reflection. The film First contact East inspired by the short story by Ted Chiang, Story of Your Life. This short story was published in 1998, and to make the film, Heisserer had to convince Ted Chiang to sell him the rights. The history of the short story and that of First contact share similar themes like perception of time or communication with extraterrestrials.

Find “First Contact on Amazon Prime

After convincing Ted Chiang to sell him the rights, Heisserer of course had to find a studio that would finance the project. To convince them, he made the first modifications to the script. The scenario finally attracted 3 agencies of production including FilmNation Entertainmentwho financed the film to the tune of 47 million dollars! The American filmmaker's last step to actually launch the project was to convince Denis Villeneuve to become the director. This is where the scenario became as we know it today. Well almost since the ending had to be changed a few months before filming began due to similarities with the ending ofInterstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan. In an interview with Collider, Eric Heisserer explained the last minute change:

In early versions of the scenario, what the heptopods leave behind is something like the blueprints of a spaceship, a sort of ark. And then Chris Nolan's 'Interstellar' came out and we were like, 'Well, that doesn't work now.' So we focused more on what we had in front of us, that is, on the power of their language.

A masterpiece by Denis Villeneuve

100 rewrites later, the First Contact story is finished. The challenge of the film lies in the ability to communicate with an unknown species. The protagonist of the film, played by Amy Adams, is a linguist, named Louise Banks. Its mission is to try to understand the intentions of spacecraft, that is, the species that owns the spaceships. Although the spaceships do not show signs of aggression, several countries are considering destroying their vessels for fear of their bad intentions. Louise Banks must therefore prevent a global conflict and decipher the language of spacecraft.

The Canadian director wanted to establish an atmosphere of constant uncertainty throughout the film, and thanks to the quality of the images, the viewer can feel it. The film released in 2016 was an international success with $203 million reported at the worldwide box office. The film received praise for the performance of the actors and his thoughts on intercultural communication. If you want to discover one of Denis Villeneuve's best films, you can find on Amazon Prime.