Carol Baum is a movie and TV producer with 34 movies to her credit.
A former Vice President at 20th Century Fox and Co-President of Sandollar Productions, a company founded by Dolly Parton and Sandy Gallin, Carol has been a successful independent producer for decades.
Carol’s professional mission is to produce profitable films about real people at a crossroads in their lives. She has a special interest in helping writers develop their full artistic potential, and is known in the industry to have helped launch many writers’ and directors’ careers, including David O. Russell, Noah Baumbach, and Mike White. With the many newcomers she’s mentored, her emphasis is on instilling a work ethic, which includes organizational skills, networking, and keeping abreast of current trends and buyers’ needs.
Carol’s book, Creative Producing, was published by Allworth, a division of Skyhorse, on October 3rd, 2023.
CREATIVE PRODUCING: A PITCH-TO-PICTURE GUIDE TO MOVIE DEVELOPMENT
Go behind the scenes with the producer of Father of the Bride, Dead Ringers, and The Good Girl to learn all the skills necessary to be a Hollywood producer
As former co-president of Dolly Parton and Sandy Gallin’s production company, Sandollar, and as a successful independent producer, Carol Baum is an expert in the art of film production. Creative Producing provides a crash course in the often-misunderstood producer’s role and the many skills needed to survive and thrive in Hollywood. The book serves as a mentorship for anyone who wants to learn about the intricacies of development: how to write coverage, pitching, packaging, working with directors and actors, how to get the money, how to sell the finished product, whether to partner, and how to have a life while you’re doing all of this. Enhanced with behind-the-scenes stories from Baum’s career, and including a chapter of screenwriting advice suggested by her writer husband Tom Baum, Creative Producing offers an intimate look behind the Hollywood curtain to give film students, cinephiles, aspiring executives, and industry insiders a must-have guide to understanding the film business from successful pitch to hit picture. Carol is also available for media interviews and guest lectures.
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“Carol is one of the most decent, capable, and talented people I’ve ever worked with. She was the heart and soul of my company Sandollar during the years that she was with us.” ––Dolly Parton
“Carol Baum was the first real producer who saw my potential as a creator. She has always been one of the most astute, wise, kind, funny and indefatigable producers in our business and working with her was a total pleasure.” ––Mike White, Writer/Director, The White Lotus, The Good Girl
“For a director, Carol Baum is a dream producer. She champions your vision, has your back when crises arise, offers astute feedback, and makes every member of the team feel valued. Most importantly, after having produced successful features in every genre over many decades, Carol remains as passionate about movies as ever.” ––Ken Kwapis, Director, He’s Just Not That Into You, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Larry Sanders Show, The Office
“Anybody and everybody would gain from Carol’s wide-ranging experience and
knowledge. I myself have had the pleasure of working with her and speak from personal experience.” ––Larry Turman, Producer, The Graduate; Author of So You Want to Be a Producer; former Chair of USC’s Peter Stark Producing Program for 30 years
“What does it take to be a success in this crazy business? Don’t ask me. I just work here. But I know someone who can fill you in on it all… Carol Baum. She has taste, talent, know-how, and a lifetime of experience as a successful working producer. So, crack this thing open and let her show you the ropes.” ––Harvey Fierstein, Actor/Writer, Kinky Boots, Torch Song Trilogy, Hairspray, Tidy Endings
PRODUCED BY CAROL BAUM
Here’s a partial list of Carol’s credits, including those financed by studios (Fox, Disney, Sony), as well as movies financed independently:
A quirky comedy about first encounters and second chances, THE GOOD GIRL focuses on JUSTINE who longs for a life more fulfilling than the one she leads with her boring husband and dead-end job. When a passionate young co-worker catches her eye and steals her heart, her good-girl existence takes a turn for the worse – with unexpected and comical results.
Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zooey Deschanel, John C. Reilly, Tim Blake Nelson
Written by: Mike White
Directed by: Miguel Arteta
BOYCHOIR is about an 11-year-old boy from the wrong side of the tracks who ends up at a prestigious boy choir school back East, where he butts heads with a demanding choir master who eventually takes the boy under his wing.
Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Kathy Bates, Eddie Izzard, Debra Winger, Josh Lucas
Written by: Ben Ripley
Directed by: Francois Girard
After the accidental death of her mother, 14-year-old AMY lives with her estranged father and his girlfriend. While struggling to adjust, Amy stumbles upon a nest of orphaned goose eggs, and nurtures them until they hatch. The geese thrive under Amy’s care until an officious wildlife officer informs them it is illegal to raise wild geese without clipping their wings. Instead of grounding the flock, Amy and her father teach the geese to fly using a hang-glider and modest flying skills and lead the birds to a new home.
Starring: Jeff Daniels, Anna Paquin, Dana Delaney
Written by: Robert Rodat, Vince McKewin, based on the autobiography by Bill Lishman
Directed by: Carroll Ballard
In BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, a strong-willed, popular high school cheerleader, BUFFY, discovers she is the latest in a long line of girls chosen to slay vampires. Trained for battle by a time-worn mentor of “slayers,” Buffy teams up with a high school outsider to defend mankind.
Starring: Luke Perry, Kristy Swanson, Donald Sutherland, Rutger Hauer, Paul Reubens
Written by: Joss Whedon
Directed by: Fran Kuzui
YOU KILL ME tells the story of FRANK, a hired gun with a huge problem – he just slept through the biggest kill of his career. Now, at the order of his angry mob boss, Frank must leave Buffalo, NY, put the vodka down, and sober up in San Francisco. Challenged with rehab meetings, and a bizarre new job at a funeral home, Frank meets the one woman with guts to help him get back in the killing game.
Starring: Sir Ben Kingsley, Tea Leoni, Luke Wilson
Written by: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Directed by: John Dahl
A remake of the 1950 MGM classic starring Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor. ANNIE is getting married and doing it in style with the help of her mother’s flamboyant wedding coordinator, FRANCK. Annie’s father faces the inevitable fact that Daddy’s little sweetheart has blossomed into somebody else’s heartthrob and struggles with the traumas wrought by the two most expensive and fateful words to enter his daughter’s vocabulary” “I do.”
Starring: Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, Kimberly Williams, Martin Short
Written by: Nancy Meyers, Charles Shyer
Directed by: Charles Shyer
CURRENT PROJECTS
Her current projects include:
FAMILY HISTORY MYSTERIES – Based on the book series by Brynn Bonner, Hallmark aired the first film in this franchise about a female genealogist in January 2023 and has ordered development on the second. Partnered with Jane Goldenring.
GARBO – Carol is developing a limited series based on Greta Garbo’s bisexuality and her involvement in the war, with her partner, Howard Rosenman.
ADAM CLAYTON POWELL, JR. & HAZEL SCOTT – A limited series based on the lives of the charismatic and controversial civil rights activist and politician and his equally famous second wife, a jazz pianist, film & TV star, civil rights advocate, and blacklisted artist during the McCarthy era. Partnered with Howard Rosenman.
STARLIGHT FALLS – Nicholl Fellowship Finalist script by Michael Ventre about a hospital for soldiers struggling with battle fatigue (PTSD) during World War II. At the center of the story is the relationship between a feisty nurse and a solider whose cynicism turns to defiance when a formidable colonel arrives with a mission to send them back into combat. Claudia Myers (Fort Bliss) is attached to direct. Partnered with Jane Goldenring.