The Director
….What does the director do?
Acts as the conductor of the orchestra.
For a director its your responsibility to protect the story that has been given to you and to get the best out of the actors to convey that story to screen. The first day on set is always the beginning of a journey with many talented people.
If things go wrong or are not going to plan, only you can give the direction that is needed in that exact moment. The energy you see on set comes from one single source, the director.
A director must add something to the story that is not written on the page but yet enhances what’s on the page. For example: the traveller walks into the foyer at exactly 12.30am, the clock chimes.
This could also be visualised as:
The traveller in running shoes (cut to shoes, then back to the traveller), panting quickly, walks into the foyer at exactly 12.30am (cut to clock momentarily) and the clock chimes ( cut to clock whilst chiming, then back to the traveller).
The point here is the director can visualise the trainers, clock, the chimes by just reading the script. These additions to the script will be explained to the actor on the day of the shoot.
Storyboards gives the director an opportunity to crystallise ideas visually and to show the cast and crew so everyone knows the idea you have in your head.
There is now an easy way to get everyone on-board, through text via a script, through imagery via stills and through video moving images.
The actors are an extension of yourself, this means they take direction from the director. If they perform poorly, then the direction given must have been poor. They have been chosen for their talent and you are not getting the best out of them. When this happens, take a break re-think your approach and come back to the set with renewed vigour.
The director directs but in truth the director visualises what the essence of the story is and maintains that throughout the production schedule. The director makes the final call on the day, only he or she knows whether the footage is right.
