LOS ANGELES: Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said on Friday that a new film about the late Steve Jobs is factually "wrong," while the movie's makers countered it is meant as entertainment -- not a literal retelling of the computer pioneer's life.
Wozniak said the movie "jOBS -- which premiers Friday at the Sundance Film Festival -- erred in its depiction of the characters as well as the relationships between them -- especially the one between him and Jobs.
"We never had such interaction and roles," Wozniak, who quit Apple in 1987 after 12 years, told the tech blog Gizmodo.
"I'm not even sure what it's getting at," he said, adding that the "personalities are very wrong -- although mine is closer."
"The ideas of computers affecting society did not come from Jobs. They inspired me and were widely spoken at the Homebrew Computer Club," he said, referring to a hobby group to which they belonged.
The film, one of two about the iconic Apple founder who died in 2011, is due for release in the United States in April.
"Steve came back from Oregon and came to a club meeting and didn't start talking about this great social impact," said Wozniak, referring to the period in the 1970s before Silicon Valley took off.
"His idea was to make a $20 PC board and sell it for $40 to help people at the club build the computer I'd given away. Steve came from selling surplus parts at HalTed -- he always saw a way to make a quick buck off my designs," said the famously geek-casual-looking Wozniak.
"The lofty talk came much further down the line... I never looked like a professional. We were both kids," he said.
The film's producers responded to Wozniak's comments in a statement cited by Entertainment Weekly.
"The film is not a documentary, nor is it meant to be a blow-by-blow, word-for-word account of all conversations and events," it said.
"The filmmakers have tremendous admiration and respect for Wozniak and all those that are portrayed in the film, and did extensive research in an effort to make an entertaining accurate film that captures the essence and story of Steve Jobs and those that built Apple with him," the statement said.
But the filmmakers acknowledged "that not every single thing in the film is a precise representation of what took place."
The movie "is feature film entertainment about one of the most important, creative and impactful people," their statement added.
Wozniak, who made his criticism after seeing just one short movie clip, conceded that inaccuracies did not necessarily mean the film was bad.
"The movie should be very popular and I hope it's entertaining. It may be very correct, as well. This is only one clip," he said.
"But you'll see the direction they are slanting the movie in, just by the dialogue style of this script," he said.
He added: "Our relationship was so different than what was portrayed. I'm embarrassed. but if the movie is fun and entertaining, all the better. Anyone who reads my book 'iWoz' can get a clearer picture."
- AFP/fa
Apple co-founder says Steve Jobs film inaccurate
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Apple co-founder says Steve Jobs film inaccurate
