I know as a blogger I’m supposed to ferret out obscure links from publications you’ve never heard of. But here I go again — two links in a row from the New York Times. Still, if you’re a producer you’ll be interested in this sobering piece about Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney’s Section 8, proving that the producing biz is a tough one even if you’re an Oscar-winning director and matinee-idol movie star.

An excerpt:

“[Says Soderbergh,] ‘I think you could make an argument that it is not important to have too much taste as a producer if you are working for a large company. It’s hard to find commercial stuff that doesn’t make you feel bad in the morning.’

As such, producing quality movies, which means securing financing, overseeing scripts and coddling the insecure actress or director on set when needed, has proved a hard education for the two men. ‘There is the weird paradox of having a company like this if the personalities are like mine and George’s,’ added Mr. Soderbergh. ‘If you are going to do something and do it well, you have to apply yourself. But we both have day jobs. It has become overwhelming. We both talk about how can we sustain it. It’s just such a mountain of work.'”

The piece goes on to talk about the financial risks involved in producing and gives another viewpoint on the much-discussed firing of writer/director Ted Griffin from Warner’s Untitled Ted Griffin project. (“‘It is a scarlet letter for the company,’ Soderbergh said. ‘It shouldn’t have happened…’)