The Hamster Factor (and Other Tales of 12 Monkeys)

The Hamster Factor chronicles Terry Gilliam’s struggle to make “a European art film in the Hollywood system.” With verité footage shot throughout the entire production and editing of 12 Monkeys--from Gilliam’s efforts to undercut the celebrity status of his lead actors to his reluctant encounters with the market testing process--the documentary traces how ideas are realized, compromised, and eventually funneled through the industry’s marketing machine into salable commodities. The Hamster Factor is an intimate portrait of Gilliam’s filmmaking methods and an unprecedented glimpse at the strange marriage of art and commerce in Hollywood filmmaking.