Editing Blow Out (section)

==Production==
After completing ''[[Dressed to Kill (1980 film)|Dressed to Kill]]'', De Palma was considering several projects, including ''[[Act of Vengeance (1986 film)|Act of Vengeance]]'' (later produced for [[HBO]] starring [[Charles Bronson]] and [[Ellen Burstyn]]), ''[[Flashdance]]'', and a script of his own titled ''Personal Effects''.<ref name="Bouzereau">{{cite book |last=Bouzereau |first=Laurent |title=The De Palma Cut: The Films of America's Most Controversial Director |publisher=Dembner Books |year=1988 |location=New York |isbn=0-942637-04-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/depalmacutfilmso00bouz }}</ref> The story outline for the latter was similar to what would become ''Blow Out'', but set in Canada.<ref name="Bouzereau" />

According to screenwriter Bill Mesce Jr., he wrote the first draft of the script after winning a competition in Take One magazine hosted by Brian De Palma, but his version ended up being almost completely changed.<ref>[https://www.shorescripts.com/the-first-screenplay-contest/ Blow Out – The First Screenplay Contest by Will Mesce]</ref>

De Palma scripted and filmed ''Blow Out'' in his home town of [[Philadelphia]].<ref name="Bouzereau" /> The film's $18 million budget was high for De Palma, and Filmways spent an additional $9 million to market the film.<ref name="Bouzereau" /> De Palma considered [[Al Pacino]] for the role of Jack Terry, but ultimately chose John Travolta,<ref name="Bouzereau" /> who himself lobbied De Palma to cast [[Nancy Allen (actress)|Nancy Allen]] for the role of Sally Bedina (the three had previously worked together on ''[[Carrie (1976 film)|Carrie]]''); De Palma initially hesitated—he was married to Allen at the time, and did not want her to be known for only working in his pictures—but ultimately agreed.<ref name="Bouzereau" /> In addition to Travolta and Allen, De Palma filled the film's cast and crew with a number of his previous collaborators: [[Dennis Franz]] (''[[Dressed to Kill (1980 film)|Dressed to Kill]]'', ''[[The Fury (film)|The Fury]]''); [[John Lithgow]] (''[[Obsession (1976 film)|Obsession]]'', ''[[Raising Cain]]'' in later years); [[cinematographer]] [[Vilmos Zsigmond]] (''[[Obsession (1976 film)|Obsession]]''); [[film editing|editor]] [[Paul Hirsch (film editor)|Paul Hirsch]] (''[[Hi, Mom!]]'', ''[[Sisters (1973 film)|Sisters]]'', ''[[Phantom of the Paradise]]'', ''[[Obsession (1976 film)|Obsession]]'', ''[[Carrie (1976 film)|Carrie]]'', ''[[The Fury (1978 film)|The Fury]]''); and composer [[Pino Donaggio]] (''Carrie'', ''[[Home Movies (film)|Home Movies]]'', ''Dressed to Kill'').

Seventy percent of the film was shot at night. "Basically I just shot ''Blow Out'' straight", replied cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond, "... By not diffusing and not flashing as much ... That doesn't mean I necessarily like that look but I think it was good for the picture. You see, I like a softer look, a more diffused look."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Salvato |first1=Larry |last2=Schaefer |first2=Dennis |year=1984 |title=Masters of Light: Conversations with Contemporary Cinematographers |location=London, England |publisher=University of California Press |page=333 |isbn=0-520-05336-2}}</ref> During the editing process, two reels of footage from the Liberty Parade sequence were stolen and never recovered. The scenes were reshot with [[Completion guarantee|insurance money]] at a cost of $750,000.<ref name="Bouzereau" /> Because Zsigmond was no longer available, [[László Kovács (cinematographer)|László Kovács]] lensed the reshot sequences.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=László Kovács |encyclopedia=The Internet Encyclopedia of Cinematographers |url=http://www.cinematographers.nl/PaginasDoPh/kovacs.htm |access-date = March 13, 2009}}</ref>