Film Finances and the Trial (1963): Alexander Salkind, Orson Welles, and European Co-Production in the 1960s

Abstract

This article explores the financing and production history of The Trial (1963), produced by Alexander Salkind and directed by Orson Welles. It draws upon the archive of completion guarantor Film Finances to document the complex production ecology of The Trial, an international co-production involving investors from multiple countries with the finance raised through the pre-sale of distribution rights. The production of The Trial was bedevilled by numerous financial irregularities: the combination of Salkind and Welles took the film significantly over budget and left behind large debts to sundry creditors. Film Finances was obliged to pay off some of Salkind’s indebtedness and then spent the next decade pursuing Salkind through the courts in search of redress.