Hitchcock Began Adaptation by Conversing with the Author, Not from the Text

The Art Service of Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) – Bahareh Golparvar; Whenever suspense cinema with a psychological theme is discussed, no film lover fails to recall Alfred Hitchcock; a filmmaker whose style, based on classical narratives, constantly puts the audience in a state of anticipation and anxiety. His film ‘The Birds’ is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most prominent works, which, due to its directorial style, special effects, and psychological tension, remains a masterclass for cinema students.

Hitchcock had complete control over film details, including mise-en-scène, camera movement, acting, and lighting. He even paid attention to costumes and décor, and this meticulousness led to the creation of such works. His use of special effects in ‘The Birds’ was highly innovative for its time; a combination of real birds, models, and mechanical effects.

He was deeply involved in the details of these effects to ensure a believable image. Evan Hunter, the film’s screenwriter, played a key role in adapting Du Maurier’s short story into a complete screenplay. The book ‘Hitchcock by Evan Hunter’ delves into the details of this collaboration. We interviewed Yousef Najafi Jabalou, the translator of this book, which you can read below.

The book is about Hitchcock from Evan Hunter’s perspective. To begin, please tell us a little about this book and the relationship between the two?

Evan Hunter was an American writer and screenwriter who collaborated with Hitchcock on the screenplay for ‘The Birds.’ This is the first book to be published specifically about Evan Hunter, Hitchcock, and their collaboration. Of course, this book was published 30 years ago, and newspapers and magazines had written about it sporadically. Hunter himself began writing about this collaboration, and he has fully detailed all explanations regarding ‘The Birds’ screenplay in this book. This helped explain Hitchcock’s working style, editing, and the steps he took to improve the screenplay, allowing Hitchcock’s fans to become familiar with his screenplay editing style.

The book is about Hitchcock’s creativity and filmmaking style. What other points does the author mention besides these?

This book mostly focuses on Hitchcock’s social interactions and aspects of his behavior and ethics that we don’t know, because we know Hitchcock from his films, not his real personality; how his relationship with his family, friends, and associates was, and how he behaved with the studio and his colleagues. Evan Hunter completely shows his behavior at parties and with his wife and children. While explaining the style of ‘The Birds,’ Hitchcock’s lifestyle is also tangibly described in the book.

Does the book only talk about the film ‘The Birds’?

Yes. In fact, it aims to explain the process this artistic masterpiece underwent and emphasizes the screenplay and collaboration.

What artistic persona of Hitchcock do we encounter in the book, and what image of him is presented to the reader?

My opinion and the summary of this book is that even though Hitchcock excelled in writing, had storytelling abilities, and had worked with great writers and learned their styles, he still went to writers and adapted works from other authors. The most important point of this book is not to show off all the power you possess. He asks a writer to come to work every day and wrangles with him to make a film. This discipline and his trust in the writer are very important.

How was Hitchcock’s relationship with Hunter himself?

Their relationship revolved around wrangling over the screenplay to ensure the work was done correctly. They had disagreements about how the screenplay should conclude. The screenplay was drafted from scratch, reset, and work resumed. Hitchcock was like an organized and disciplined boss. If you read Truffaut’s book about Hitchcock, it describes his dressing style.

There’s an anecdote in this book where one day Evan Hunter goes to work in casual clothes, and Hitchcock tells his secretary to inform Hunter to come in a suit next time. This shows how obsessed Hitchcock was with the attire of his crew members. Hunter was somewhat surprised, but knowing he was working with a great director like Hitchcock, he accepted.