While I know of handful of people who have previously transitioned from high tech to film (witness the highly successful Kip Hagopian, a founder of the iconic Brentwood Venture Capital, who later produced Mel Gibson’s Ransom and a handful of other major films), apparently I’m not the only one currently making the switch.

According to the nearly infallible IMDB, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has been cast as Mr. Fantastic in next year’s Fantastic Four. Despite the site’s usual accuracy, I’m a bit dubious, as, while my cartoon memories are a bit hazy, I seem to recall the character being named Reed Richards rather than the listed Richard Reed. Still, anyone lucky enough to catch Ballmer’s infamous “monkey boy” dance video or his stirring “Developers, developers, developers” monologue can imagine the dramatic potential Ballmer would bring to the role.

Ostensibly, I watch films as producer education. I turn on my DVD player, dim the lights, and pull up a chair, pen and paper in hand, ready to analyze. “What about this film works well?” I ask myself. “What about it would I want to replicate?”

Each time, however, by the time the credits roll, I sit up with a start. I notice that halfway down the first page, my notes trail off as though I’d been hypnotized mid-sentence. And each time, I realize that’s the point of producing films: a good movie can, quickly and completely, suck you into the veracious parallel world behind the screen. A very good movie can let you sit within that world, looking back out at your own life.