Art of Directing

As further research for the Direction unit I came across a video on youtube of some of the top directors discussing their career and what is being a director and the struggles they face.


            

Directors in it:

1. Quentin Tarantino 'Hateful Eight' 
2. David O.Russell 'Joy'
3. Danny Boyle 'Steve Jobs' 
4. Tom Hooper 'Danish Girl'
5. Alejandro G. Innaritu 'The Reverent'
6. Ridley Scott 'The Martian'

Post-Production Audio for Film and Television 

Mark Cross

After reading this book, I was shocked as to how many people are involved in sound throughout the whole production. 

First off, the sound department has to have a lot of communication between each other throughout the production and a lot of trust is needed. The sound department, on set, makes sure that the dialogue and all the ambience sound is recorded properly before being given to post-production. 

Here are some sound department positions: 

• Supervising Sound Editor 
• Location Recordist/Mixer 
• Dialogue Editor 
• SFX Editor/Mixer 
• Foley Artist
• Foley Mixer Editor 
• Music Mixer 
• Music Editor 
• Music Supervisor 
• Re-Recording Mixers 

Most people who work for sound will have their own equipment. This includes; microphones, wireless systems, booms, mixers, audio storage, headphones, cables, tools and cue/log sheets for making notes and logs.

Audience does not realise how important sound design is. If you watched a horror movie with out the music or effects it wouldn't be scary at all. By focusing on specific sounds it can create tension, atmosphere and emotion. With great sound design much of the audience does not notice the soundtrack but it has an effect that we feel connected to the character on screen. 

It is unbelievable as to how many working hours are put into the editing of the sound. When reading the book I came across an example for the CSI series in America. The director, picture editor, composer, and sound designer sit for a 90 minutes meeting watching the episode from start to finish to identify the key moments for music and sound effects. The biggest challenge is the time frame; he has one week to spot, create and deliver his sound effects track, and this could require a 80 hour week work shift. 

When it comes to dialogue is where it is most tricky. When recording dialogue separately to the video, in post production you have to make sure that it all syncs. This is done through; positional reference (where i time) and playback right (how fast). This are the two key elements which will help you sync your dialogue to your video. When you film a scene from different angles, it sounds different, depending on the echo, therefore most of it is recorded on ADR but what could make or break the ADR is the room tones from each scene, and this is what the director depends on. 

Below are charts which put a lot of things into perspective on the crew positions: 

Changing Direction - A practical Approach to Directing actors in film and theatre

Lenore Dekoven 

Here are some tips from Dekoven on what it takes to be a director:

• Patience 
• punctuality 
• Endurance 
• persistence
• compromise 
• intuition 
• personal growth 

After reading Dekovens book, it is extremely clear that excercises with the actors is key. This way, it helps the actors feel comfortable in his/her environment but also they are able to connect with their character.

A quote which I liked:

'I think of the actor's brain as though it were a very advanced computer.' 

This quote is great. With her excercises Dekoven expects her actors to be able to relate/live and breathe their character so at any given moment the actors brain can not only recreate the experience of the character but also reproduce the sensation and emotion connected with the experience.

When reading a script there are 3 read throughs:

1. first read through = purely for entertainment purposes 
2. second reading = identify specific information 
3. third reading = to discover the personal connection to the material

Furthermore, there has to be a strong connection and understanding between the director and writer. The director has to know every little detail and WHY the writer chose that specific detail. Everything is about WHY with directors. 

What actors want from directors?:

Jennifer Lopez 'I want him to push me'.

Morgan Freeman 'What do I want from a director? Get out of the way. What do I not want? Direction.' 

An amazing quote which I will be using from Lenore Dekoven is:

You are the baker and you gather necessary ingredients to produce the chocolate cake... You combine these ingredients in the proper amounts and put them in the oven to bake... each individual ingredient knows what it is supposed to do....however that really all they know. You are the only one who knows what the cake is going to look like. But you must let the ingredients do their thing as the baking takes place.