Kevin Spacey It Forward" (2000), a patient in a mental institution who may or may not be an alien in "K-Pax" (2001), and singer Bobby Darin in "Beyond the Sea" (2004). The latter was a lifelong dream project for Spacey, who took on co-writing, directing, co-producing and starring duties in the biography/musical about Darin's life, career and relationship with actress Sandra Dee. Facing little interest for backing in the United States, Spacey went to the United Kingdom and Germany for funding. Almost all of the film was made in Berlin. Spacey provided his own vocals on the "Beyond the Sea" soundtrack and
Beyond the Sea (film) in films like "Pay It Forward", "K-PAX" and "The Shipping News". The actor was criticized for his career move; Spacey acknowledged the similarities when Darin integrated into folk music and protest songs. In February 2003, it was announced that production for "Beyond the Sea" was becoming fast tracked with Spacey as lead actor, co-writer, producer and director, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) agreed to cover distribution duties in North America. The following August, with principal photography to begin in just weeks, MGM dropped out as distributor and main financier over scheduling conflicts. To accumulate financing of the film's $25 million budget, which