The Graduates of Malibu High was conceived as a sequel to Malibu High but was made under the severe financial pressures of low-budget Cannon Films production. With only about $1 million available, much of the budget went toward effects work and the hiring of recognizable actors including Ernest Borgnine, Richard Roundtree, Lynda Day George, and Dick Shawn, even though those performers had relatively small roles. To conserve cash, numerous cast and crew members reportedly accepted limited partnerships in place of conventional salaries, meaning they would be paid from profits only if the film earned them. That arrangement made the chaotic production especially risky: a long, troubled shoot could consume the budget while leaving participants with no guaranteed compensation.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1980s
The Three-Month Shoot That Turned The Graduates of Malibu High into a Production Meltdown
The Graduates of Malibu High / 1980s
The Graduates of Malibu High was conceived as a sequel to Malibu High but was made under the severe financial pressures of low-budget Cannon Films production. With only about $1 million available, much of the budget went toward effects work and the hiring of recognizable actors including Ernest Borgnine, Richard Roundtree, Lynda Day George, and Dick Shawn, even though those performers had relatively small roles. To conserve cash, numerous cast and crew members reportedly accepted limited partnerships in place of conventional salaries, meaning they would be paid from profits only if the film earned them. That arrangement made the chaotic production especially risky: a long, troubled shoot could consume the budget while leaving participants with no guaranteed compensation.
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