As film fans (or obsessives, depending on your definition), we watch a ton of film content over the course of a year. Combined with the fact that each year sees hundreds of new films that hit theaters, streaming, and On Demand, there are just those favorites that we tend to watch over and over again, as well, leading to many days in front of a screen. Good news for those of us that fall into this category of avid movie watcher – Steven Soderbergh is among our brethren. Every year, the famed director decides to publish what content he consumed over the course of the 365 days, and you’d be hard-pressed to find another more detailed list than this.
In 2018, Soderbergh documented each and every TV series, short, film, novel, and stageplay that he watched or read. This daily content diary shows that even if you go into production on two feature films, which the filmmaker did in 2018, you can still find the time to not only watch all the major film releases of the year, but also make sure to rewatch some of the best films of all time.
If you need a laundry list of some of the greats works of the last 50 years, just take a look at this list. Soderbergh rewatched “Jaws,” “The Godfather,” and a ton of other great films when he had the time throughout the year. Who needs rom-coms on Valentine’s Day? You know what would be better? “Three Days of the Condor.”
Also, another interesting thing pointed out by this daily journal of film/TV watching is just how quick the filmmaking process can be for Soderbergh. One of his upcoming films, “High Flying Bird,” which is said to be shot on an iPhone, as the filmmaker is known to do, began production on February 27, 2018. Due to his speedy editing process, Soderbergh was watching the first cut of the film on a mere three weeks later on March 17, 2018.
And for his upcoming awards contender film “The Laundromat,” which has an all-star cast featuring numerous Oscar winners, Soderbergh was only a little less speedy. Principal photography began on October 15, and the director said he was watching an early cut of the film less than two months later on December 13.
So, feel free to pour over the entire 365 days of 2018 and see if you can compete to the sheer number of films and TV series consumed by Steven Soderbergh. Odds are, he’s probably got you beat. However, it’s a new year! Let’s try again in 2019.