Simon Kinberg recently burst onto the scene with his script for xXx: State of the Union; he has since worked on comics-to-film adaptations for Elektra and Fantastic Four. He penned the third film in the X-Men series, X-Men: The Last Stand. Kinberg's breakthrough hit, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, began as a script he wrote in college. It became one of the top grossing movies of 2005. Listen in as he reveals his inspirations, from breakdancing movies to mentor Akiva Goldsman, and what you do and don't learn at film school.Your Host: Producer Mike De Luca is responsible for some of the most groundbreaking films of the last 15 years. After enrolling in New York University's film studies program at 17, De Luca dropped out four credits shy of graduation to take an unpaid internship at New Line Cinema. He advanced quickly there under the tutelage of founder Robert Shaye and eventually became president of production. The Mask (1994), Se7en (1995), Boogie Nights (1997), Dark City (1998), Pleasantville (1998), and Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) were all released under his supervision.
In 2003 De Luca left New Line to become president of production at DreamWorks. After a brief tenure there, he left and signed a deal with Sony Pictures, where he produced Zathura (2005) and Ghost Rider (2006). A writer as well, De Luca wrote the screenplays for Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991) and In the Mouth of Madness (1994).
