Editing Dead Poets Society (section)

==Production==
=== Development ===
The original script was written by [[Tom Schulman]], based on his experiences at the [[Montgomery Bell Academy]] in [[Nashville, Tennessee]], particularly with his inspirational teacher, [[Samuel Pickering]].<ref name="Focus: Samuel F. Pickering, Jr.">{{cite news |title=Real-life professor inspires 'Dead Poets' character |newspaper=[[TimesDaily]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=July 10, 1989 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oGoeAAAAIBAJ&pg=5548%2C1862015 |location=Florence, AL, USA |publisher=Tennessee Valley Printing Co., Inc. |access-date=January 18, 2015}}</ref><ref name="ride">{{cite news |last=Henderson |first=Bill |date=January 12, 1992 |title=Williams and Then Some |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/12/books/robin-williams-and-then-some.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209221814/https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE0DA113BF931A25752C0A964958260 |archive-date=December 9, 2019}}</ref><ref name="AFI">{{cite web |title=Dead Poets Society (1989) |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/67915 |website=[[AFI Catalog of Feature Films]] |access-date=24 February 2023}}</ref> [[Jeff Kanew]] was originally hired as the director, and Kanew had envisioned [[Liam Neeson]] in the role of Keating.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Meil |first=Eila |title=Casting Might-Have-Beens: A |publisher=McFarland |year=2005 |isbn=9780786420179 |location=New York}}</ref> Other actors considered for the role were [[Dustin Hoffman]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brady |first=Celia |date=March 1989 |title=Bring Back the Kids: Hollywood's Littlest Stars and Biggest Egos in their Middle Ages |journal=Spy |pages=107}}</ref> [[Mel Gibson]], [[Tom Hanks]] and [[Mickey Rourke]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Walsh |first=Keri |title=Mickey Rourke |publisher=Bloomsbury |year=2014 |isbn=9781844574308 |location=London |pages=2}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-06-02 |title=Secret Heartbreak, Unbreakable Bonds and Bombed Auditions: 30 Secrets You Might Not Know About Dead Poets Society |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/1046114/secret-heartbreak-unbreakable-bonds-and-bombed-auditions-30-secrets-you-might-not-know-about-dead-poets-society |access-date=2023-02-07 |website=E! Online}}</ref> [[Robin Williams]], who was [[Touchstone Pictures]]'s preferred choice, was ultimately cast, but on the first day of shooting outside [[Atlanta]], Williams did not show, for he did not want to work with Kanew.<ref name="UCTV">{{cite web |title=Dead Poets Society - Script to Screen |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rnXafN336E |publisher=University of California Television |access-date=24 February 2023 |date=March 7, 2013 |via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref> The studio burned down the already-built sets, and replaced Kanew with another director.<ref name="UCTV" />

In late 1988, [[Peter Weir]] met with [[Jeffrey Katzenberg]] at [[Walt Disney Pictures|Disney]]. Katzenberg, who oversaw Touchstone Pictures, suggested that Weir read Schulman's script. On the flight back to Sydney, Weir was captivated, and six weeks later returned to [[Los Angeles]] to cast the principal characters.<ref name="King 2018 430">{{Cite book|title=Fast Times and Excellent Adventures|last=King|first=James|publisher=Constable|year=2018|isbn=9781472123725|location=London|pages=430}}</ref> It was when Weir was given directing duties that filming began in earnest.<ref name="UCTV" /> In Schulman's manuscript, Keating had been ill and slowly dying of [[Hodgkin lymphoma]], with a scene showing him on his hospital deathbed. This was removed by Weir, who deemed it unnecessary, reasoning that it would focus audiences' attention on Keating's illness, rather than on what he stood for.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.writersupercenter.com/studionotes/columns/article2678.htm|title=Dead Poets Society's Tom Schulman on the Art of Surviving Hollywood|publisher=Writersupercenter.com|access-date=March 31, 2015|first=Tom|last=McCurrie|date=March 15, 2004|archive-date=April 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190425125338/http://www.writersupercenter.com/studionotes/columns/article2678.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Early notes on the script from Disney also suggested making the boys' passion dancing rather than poetry, as well as a new title, ''Sultans of Swing'', focusing on the character of Mr. Keating, rather than on the boys, but both were dismissed outright.<ref name="King 2018 430"/>

===Filming===
Filming began in November 1988, and wrapped in January 1989. After filmmakers scouted more than 70 different universities and private schools, they decided that ''Dead Poets Society'' would take place at [[St. Andrew's School (Delaware)|St. Andrew's School]] and the Everett Theatre in [[Middletown, Delaware|Middletown]], [[Delaware]], as well as at locations in [[New Castle, Delaware|New Castle]], Delaware, and in nearby [[Wilmington, Delaware|Wilmington]], Delaware.<ref name="AFI" /><ref name="Cormier 2014">{{cite news |last=Cormier |first=Ryan |date=August 12, 2014 |title=25 'Dead Poets Society' in Delaware facts |newspaper=[[The News Journal]] |publisher=[[Gannett Company]] |location=Wilmington, Delaware, USA |url=http://www.delawareonline.com/story/pulpculture/2014/04/03/dead-poets-society-delaware-anniversary/7252149/ |url-status=live |access-date=January 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225163256/https://www.delawareonline.com/story/pulpculture/2014/04/03/dead-poets-society-delaware-anniversary/7252149/ |archive-date=December 25, 2018 |series=Pulp Culture |orig-year=Originally published April 4, 2014}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Sohrab |date=2024-06-14 |title=The Making of a Classic: The Story Behind the Dead Poets Society |url=https://d23.com/the-making-of-a-classic-the-story-behind-the-dead-poets-society/ |access-date=2024-09-30 |website=D23 |language=en-US}}</ref> Classroom scenes with Keating were filmed in a replica classroom built on a [[Sound stage|soundstage]] in Wilmington.<ref name="AFI" /> To emphasize a film set back in time, storefronts in Delaware towns were transformed, with all modern conveniences removed.<ref name=":0" /> During the shooting, Weir requested that the young cast not use modern slang, even off camera.<ref>{{Cite book |last=King |first=James |title=Fast Times and Wxcellent Adventures |publisher=Constable |year=2018 |isbn=9781472123725 |location=London |pages=433}}</ref> Weir also said that he hid a half-day's filming from Disney executives to allow Williams free range to use his comedic improvisational skills.<ref name=Script>{{cite magazine |last1=Bloomenthal |first1=Andrew |title=Dead Poets Society Retrospective with Tom Schulman, Peter Weir, and Ethan Hawke |url=https://scriptmag.com/features/dead-poets-society-retrospective-with-tom-schulman-peter-weir-and-ethan-hawke |magazine=Script |access-date=24 February 2023 |date=June 6, 2019}}</ref>

''Dead Poets Society'' held two open casting calls, in which more than 3,000 extras were used.<ref name=":0" /> During filming, Williams cracked many jokes on set, which [[Ethan Hawke]] found irritating. However, Hawke's first agent signed with Hawke when Williams told him that Hawke would "do really well".<ref>{{cite news |url= https://nypost.com/2021/08/30/ethan-hawke-robin-williams-was-incredibly-irritating/ |title=Ethan Hawke: Robin Williams was 'incredibly irritating' on 'Dead Poets' set |newspaper=[[New York Post]] |access-date=September 20, 2021 |first=Rob |last=Bailey-Millado |date=August 30, 2021 |archive-date= |archive-url=|url-status=}}</ref><ref name=Script/>