Hollywood thrives on shoot-outs - that series of standoffs, skirmishes, and power struggles that mark every stage of the filmmaking process. Whether it is a director insisting on a final cut, a star demanding a bigger motor home, a producer holding the line on a budget, or a grip with a gripe, it seems that the world of moviemaking is nothing but Sturm und Drang. All for the sake of control over a few flickering images on a silver screen.

Fundamentally, Shoot Out is about how movies get made. It covers the process from the first pitch to the final cut, and the players from writers, producers, and directors to stars, agents and marketers. And in the hands of two of Hollywood's best-known pundits, Peter Bart and Peter Guber, the story of Hollywood yesterday, today, and tomorrow is told with rare insight, intelligence and candor.

Together Guber and Bart run one of the most popular courses at UCLA, which inspired them to write ShootOut. Every year they invite industry personalities to participate in their program, and it is the stories from these luminaries - as well as the authors' personal adventures - that animate their book.

For film buffs, aspiring filmmakers, students, and anyone else intrigued by the inner workings of Hollywood, this is the quintessential take on the how, who, what, and why of the film business.