Development , who had previously spent several years as a screenwriter. Gilroy conceived the idea for
Nightcrawler in 1988, after reading the
photo-book Naked City, a collection of photographs taken by American photographer
Weegee of 1940s
New York City residents at night. Often lewd and sensationalized in content, Weegee would sell these photos to
tabloid newspapers. Intrigued by what he described as "an amazing intersection of art and crime and commerce", Gilroy wrote a
film treatment with a "
Chinatown feel". He shelved the idea after the release of
The Public Eye (1992), which was loosely based on Weegee's life. Sometime later, he discovered the stringer profession, and considered it to be the modern day equivalent of Weegee. Unaware of any film that focused on the livelihood of stringers, he began writing a
screenplay. Gilroy spent several years trying to write a plot that would fit the setting, and experimented with
conspiracies and
murder mysteries as central story elements. Eventually, he decided to instead start by designing the characters, and attempted to create a standard literary
hero character. Unable to create an interesting hero, he then envisioned an
antihero as the lead character. Gilroy felt antiheroes were a rarity in films, because they are difficult to write, and usually devolve into
psychopaths; in an attempt to break from the stereotype, he thought of writing an antihero success story. Several films, including
The King of Comedy (1982),
To Die For (1995), and
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), were used as research on how to write antiheroes. Gilroy did not give Lou a
character arc, as he believed that people develop their ideals at a certain point in their life, and that they stay that way regardless of what happens. This is depicted in the opening scene of the film, when Lou attacks a security guard, which informs the audience that Lou is a criminal, and not someone who lost his morality as a result of the job. Lou's backstory was purposefully left out of the script, as Gilroy felt that without one, the audience would create their own backstories for Lou, and become more engaged with the character.
Pre-production (
pictured) became heavily involved in the pre-production of
Nightcrawler, from choosing members of the production crew to watching audition tapes. The production team needed licensed background footage for the newsroom scenes, and the Raishbrook brothers, three real stringers, offered their footage. The Raishbrook brothers were eventually brought on as technical advisers. Gyllenhaal was Gilroy's first choice for the role of Lou. During pre-production, Gyllenhaal was going to star in another film, but that project fell through, allowing time to meet with Gilroy. When Gilroy told Gyllenhaal that he wrote
Nightcrawler as a success story, Gyllenhaal became interested in the film. "This character was beautifully written. The dialogue is pretty extraordinary. Just even the style of the script was an amazing read", said Gyllenhaal. The two rehearsed the script months before filming began, and Gyllenhaal became heavily involved in production, from choosing members of the crew to watching audition tapes. While rehearsing the character, Gilroy mentioned how he saw Lou as a
coyote, a
nocturnal predator who is driven by its never ending hunger. Although some of the crew disagreed with this decision, Gilroy was supportive of the weight loss; Gyllenhaal was respectful and did not alter the script, so Gilroy wanted to reciprocate this generosity. Within the first minute of his audition tape, Gilroy felt confident in the actor's abilities. Gilroy specifically wrote the role of Nina for his wife Rene Russo; this was because he felt that Nina could easily be reduced to a "hard-nosed corporate bitch", but Russo would bring a sense of vulnerability to the character. Although Russo was unaware of Gilroy's intention while writing the script, she was interested in performing the role, as she had never portrayed a desperate woman in a film. Russo initially struggled with the character, because she never saw herself as the victim. In order to accurately portray the character, Russo had to recall memories of when she crossed moral boundaries in her life as a result of desperation and fear. In contrast to the preparations Gyllenhaal and Ahmed took for their roles, Russo did not consult news directors or journalists, as she believed that Nina could be in any business, and did not want to limit her character to one profession.
Filming Nightcrawler was filmed on a budget of $8.5 million, most of which was financed by
Bold Films. Tony Gilroy noted the budget was extremely low, and should have "easily cost twice that amount". Filming was a challenging and busy process, as 80 locations were used, and there were many times in which the crew had to move to multiple locations each night. Howard initially struggled writing a score that fit both the overall atmosphere of the film and Gilroy's expectations. Instead of using what
Consequence of Sound described as "the expected 10 strings and a nightmarish score", Gilroy wanted more uplifting and subversive music. The goal was for the audience to believe that the music is actually playing inside Lou's mind. For example, in the scene when Lou moves a dead body to get a better angle, the music sounds triumphant instead of dark, which is meant to convey how excited Lou is about the shot. Howard describes this as "an anthem of potential for his tremendous success". For shots of Los Angeles, Howard used a subtle electronic sound, while shots with Lou used a more orchestral, clarinet-driven sound. He believed that Lou could go through difficult situations easily and with a certain intelligence, and that orchestral music would best suit Lou. ==Release==