Matt Taylor on Jaws: Memories From Martha's Vineyard

Terry Interviews Film Community
Terry speaks with filmmakers, producers and composers

Terry speaks to Matt Taylor who put together the best book on a movie I've ever had the privilege of reading JAWS: Memories From Martha's Vineyard.

Terry Wickham: When did you first see JAWS and how old were you? I saw it in Seattle , Washington at a drive-in with my Grandma & Grandpa. I was10 years old and my grandparents were laughing much of the time. Meanwhile, I was terrified.

Matt Taylor: I saw Jaws in 1979, at the Capawock Theater on Martha’s Vineyard. I was just seven, and I can’t say as though I was actually terrified, but I can remember my pulse just absolutely thundering throughout the whole third act. I also remember my little, seven year old legs kicking involuntarily at the seat in front of me during the shots in which Quint is sliding down the afterdeck and kicking at the shark.

TW: I remember after I saw JAWS my friends and I planned on buying a fishing boat to go hunt sharks
when we were old enough (which of course we never did). We read every book and magazine about sharks we got our hands on. Did you have any kind of similar reaction to the movie?

MT: I read and re-read The Jaws Log…more times than I can remember! Beginning, I’d say, around 1980.

TW: I still remember the JAWS game, baseball cards, comic books, Mad/Crazy or Cracked Magazine. That movie was spread all over the world in many different ways. I’m sure you must have had some of that stuff right?

MT: I had the Jaws game. I got it before I even saw the movie. It must have been around 1977. It was the one where you fish the stuff out of the shark’s mouth with the little hook and try not to have the jaws slam shut on you. That’s the only Jaws thing I ever had.

TW: Yes, that's the game I'm referring to. One of my strong memories of JAWS was how long it played in the movie theater. It seemed like 6-8 months that movie was playing. Except for TITANIC or AVATAR, I haven’t really seen that happen too many times since.

MT: I think it would come back every summer for a few weeks. That’s how I finally saw it in 1979…four years after its original release. It was the final theatrical run before being aired on network TV that fall.

TW: When did you first get the inkling of doing a book?

MT: Not really until Fall of 2007. Jim Beller and I talked a lot about it for a year or so before that, but I wasn’t sure how to proceed. In the fall of 2007, I finally figured out an angle, and general conception. Once I knew how I wanted to proceed, I just went at it full-tilt until it was done. Took three years. I had originally planned on one!

From the book JAWS: Memories From Martha's Vineyard

TW: Was the final version of JAWS: Memories From Martha’s Vineyard the same as your original vision for the book or did it evolve to what the book ultimately became?

MT: It’s pretty much the vision that I personally had for the book at the onset. Jim had envisioned something a bit different. I think his original idea was for a book much more centered around the photos—like a true coffee table book. My vision was for something more like a coffee table book turned into a scrap book.

TW: Was it your idea or the publisher's to make the book in the large fold out size it is? That was a brilliant choice as it really showed off those amazing photos and text. Your layout person should win some kind of award.

MT: I pushed all along for the large size that the book is. I wanted it to “feel” like a movie; panoramic, widescreen…cinematic. I personally chose the size and dimensions. I also designed the layout, and knew that a smaller book just wouldn’t have worked because of all of the intricate page designs. And so I also needed the bigger pages to fit more stuff on!

TW: You really had a great idea to approach the people on Martha’s Vineyard to tell their story I’ve never seen another book about a movie do that. How’d you come up with the concept?

From the book JAWS: Memories From Martha's Vineyard

MT: I suppose it was mainly because I knew that so, so many islanders had worked on the production and had all of these great stories that they had never really told before. There were a lot of unsung local heroes of Jaws that deserved to have their stories told. They all had great photos, too.

TW: Was it initially easy to get the people of Martha’s Vineyard interested in contributing? Or did they come along slowly and join as they saw/heard others getting involved?

MT: It was easy for some, more difficult for others. I’d say more difficult than easy. Islanders are not the easiest people to pin down for interviews and for looking at photos and things. They’ll tell you they’re on “Vineyard Time” (i.e. “I’ll do it when I’m ready) That expression makes me want to puke.

TW: How much time did you spend on the Vineyard while making your book?

MT: Three long years.

TW: How long did it take to make the book from start to finish?

MT: Fall of 2007, till Fall of 2010—too long. I felt like Rip Van Winkle when I finally was able to leave my office and step back out into the light; long beard, shaggy hair, tired eyes.

TW: Was there anything significant you couldn’t include in the book because of space or time?

MT: Well, just some stuff about the mechanical shark—technical stuff, really. I sacrificed that material for the more interpersonal stuff about the islanders who worked on the movie. In the end, the book was about them.

From the book JAWS: Memories From Martha's Vineyard

TW: What have been the best responses you’ve got from the book so far?

MT: Too many to count, which I’m really grateful for.

TW: What are your Top-five moments in JAWS? I’ve got a bunch of them.

MT: Quint sees the shark off the starboard transom, and shouts, “Hook me up another barrel!” Then the camera tracks him AND the fins from the stern all the way across the boat, to the bow, where Hooper hands him the Greener Harpoon Gun, and then out onto the pulpit, where he fires the third dart into the shark. That shot, and the accompanying music is like the Mona Lisa to me. I could watch it over and over again. Steven Spielberg’s finest shot ever, I’d say.

TW: Was this book a one time thing or would you consider trying your hand at another one of some kind?

MT: I’ve got several things in the works now. We’ll see what happens.