Randall Miller

Randall Miller (born July 24, 1962) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, and occasional actor. He directed ''Bottle Shock'', ''CBGB'', ''Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing & Charm School'', ''Nobel Son'', ''The 6th Man'', ''Houseguest'', and ''Class Act'' and produced ''Savannah''.

In 2015, Miller pled guilty in the train crash death of film crew member Sarah Jones, to keep his wife out of jail. The film was ''Midnight Rider'', which he was directing and producing. Miller served one year in jail and is completing nine years of probation. Miller is the only film director in history to have been convicted in the U.S. of the death of a cast or crew member.

Early life and education

Miller grew up in Pasadena, California. His mother, Leona Miller, was an internist and professor at USC County Medical Center and President of the Diabetes Association. His father, Alexander Miller, was a professor of microbiology at UCLA after completing his graduate studies at Cal Tech in Pasadena.

Miller attended UC Davis, where he studied biochemistry, inspired by his own parents' careers in medicine, though he transferred to the University of Southern California. He then received a master's degree in film from the American Film Institute.

Career

In 1993, Miller was nominated for CableACE Awards for his writing and direction of a short children's musical entitled ''Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School'' (later remade as a feature film with the same title). In 2000, he was nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Children's Programs for the ''Wonderful World of Disney'' episode "H-E Double Hockey Sticks". He directed a number of independent films, including his self-distributed 2008 film ''Bottle Shock'', which premiered at the Sundance Film festival in 2008. His previous film ''Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School'' premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2005; ''Nobel Son'' premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007 and ''CBGB'' in 2013.

''Class Act'', released in 1992, is a modern-day comedic take on ''The Prince and the Pauper'' about a pair of teenagers with switched identities.

In 1995, Miller helmed ''Houseguest'', another movie about mistaken identities. The ''Los Angeles Times'' said "''Houseguest'', a rowdy fish-out-of-water comedy, is as good-natured as its big, beefy star, comedian Sinbad." The film debuted at No.3 and went on to gross $26 million in North America, making it a modest commercial success considering its 10.5 million budget.

In 2005, Miller expanded his 1990 short ''Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School'' into a full-length feature, incorporating material from the short in the form of flashbacks. ''Nobel Son'' was written and directed by Miller, and was a 2007 American black comedy release about a dysfunctional family dealing with the kidnapping of their son for ransom following the father's winning of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. It featured Alan Rickman in the leading role.

In 2008 Alan Rickman returned in a leading role in Miller's movie ''Bottle Shock'', a dramedy about a 1976 wine competition wherein a California wine defeated a French wine in a blind taste test. Miller and his wife, Jody, were introduced to Marc and Brenda Lhormer, the founders of the Sonoma Valley Film Festival, in 2006 at the opening night of ''Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School''. In 2008, the founder couple presented the screenplay of a story involving the 'Judgement of Paris' to Miller and his wife. This story interested Miller and Jody and they took the story on board. They ended up writing, directing and producing ''Bottle Shock''.

Rickman returned for the third time to play Hilly Kristal in ''CBGB'', a 2013 historical film about the former New York music venue of the same name. Miller wrote the screenplay, produced and directed the film revolving around the life of Kristal, musician and owner of the CBGB club.

''Midnight Rider'' manslaughter conviction

In 2014, on the first day of production of ''Midnight Rider'', camera assistant Sarah Jones was killed during the filming of a scene. The film was never completed. A police investigation in the town of Jesup, Georgia, concluded that Miller and his crew were trespassing on an operating railway line and that the train was unscheduled. Charges for criminal trespassing and involuntary manslaughter were eventually brought against Miller, his wife, producer Jody Savin, producer/UPM Jay Sedrish, and 1st assistant director Hillary Schwartz for Jones's death.

On March 9, 2015, Miller agreed to a plea deal in exchange for having charges dropped against his wife. He was sentenced to ten years, the first two to be served in jail, followed by probation, along with a $20,000 fine and 360 hours of community service. Sedrish and Schwartz were sentenced to 10 years' probation with no jail time and ordered to pay fines. The terms of Miller's probation stipulated that he would be "prohibited from serving as director, first assistant director or supervisor" with responsibility for safety on any film production until his sentence was completed. Sedrish's and Schwartz's sentences contained similar provisions. Miller's conviction marked the first time a director was sent to prison for the death of a cast or crew member.

Miller was released from jail on March 23, 2016, after serving slightly more than one year owing to a two-for-one deal made during negotiations for the original plea agreement with Georgia Assistant District Attorney John Johnson requiring the court to revise the original sentence, as it was deemed improper. Sarah Jones's father Richard Jones said in his statement to the court, "When arah’s motherElizabeth and I agreed to this plea, it was our understanding that he would be serving two years in jail. If had we icunderstood that it would have been one year, we would not have agreed" and stated, "I want to be clear that we don’t want to inflict—we don't mean to inflict more pain to Mr. Miller's family. We understand that... it's been quite a lot of pain for their family, but this is, in our view, about a bigger purpose. It's about making the film industry a better, safer place. And in order to do so, we feel very strongly that this is an important element that Mr. Miller be held fully accountable for what he did."

In July 2017, Sarah Jones's family was awarded $11.2 million in civil damages. As reported in the ''Los Angeles Times'', " e jury found that CSX (the train's operator) was primarily liable for the accident and should pay 35% of the total judgment... Miller was found responsible for 28% of the amount of the latest ruling. Rayonier Performance Fibers, owners of the land where the accident occurred, are responsible for 18% and the rest of the liability is divided between individual members of the film's production company."

''Higher Grounds'' controversy

In 2019, Miller directed a film entitled ''Higher Grounds'' in Serbia, London, and Colombia, during his probation. After being made aware of this early in 2020, the Jones family alerted Georgia's district attorney's office that Miller was directing a film, in apparent violation of his probation. Former Georgia Assistant District Attorney John Johnson said that Miller had violated the terms of his probation and requested a warrant for his arrest.

Miller and his attorneys have said that they believed that he was allowed to direct a film, so long as he was not responsible for safety. Miller said that the first assistant director, Jason Allen, was designated as the person in charge of safety.
At the hearing, the defense called several witnesses, including Miller's California parole officer, his sister, and his father-in-law, who each testified that was also their understanding. Miller also testified that that was how he understood the term. Attorney Mike Smith had told the film crew of ''Higher Grounds'' that Miller was able to direct as long as he did not oversee safety, with the film's first assistant director reportedly tasked with safety compliance; however, Johnson noted that Smith likely has a conflict of interest as he is also the movie's executive producer.

A hearing was held on February 17, 2021, in which Miller said that he "misunderstood" the wording of the probation agreement, in particular claiming ambiguity over whether the phrase "responsibility for safety in any film production" allowed him to work as a director provided he did not have authority in safety compliance. At the close of the hearing, Judge Anthony L. Harrison ruled that Miller had not knowingly broken his probation, but said that the agreement should be understood to forbid him from directing any more films for the duration of his sentence.

Personal life

Miller has been married to Jody Savin since March 13, 1999.

Filmography

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Randall
1962 births
Living people
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American screenwriters
21st-century American male writers
21st-century American screenwriters
AFI Conservatory alumni
American male film actors
American male screenwriters
American male television actors
American people convicted of manslaughter
Film directors from California
Film producers from California
Male actors from Pasadena, California
Screenwriters from California
University of Southern California alumni
Writers from Pasadena, California