When it comes to the cast and crew working with an indie film director/filmmaker, which expectations do they have from him/him? do they have realistic expectations or high expectations? which one?
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directing Do cast and crew have realistic or high expectations from indie filmmakers/writer & directors?
- Thread starter JKierskicine1207
- Start date
Vague, indeed.
What do you consider realistic expectations? High expectations? What’s that context here?
What do you consider realistic expectations? High expectations? What’s that context here?
And it’s still extremely vague.
Again, what do you consider realistic vs high expectations?
well having high expectations means as in the cast and crew thinks that director is a master at his craft already like Spielberg and realistic expectations means they understand the director is learning his/her craft and does the best he/she can.
well having high expectations means as in the cast and crew thinks that director is a master at his craft already like Spielberg and realistic expectations means they understand the director is learning his/her craft and does the best he/she can.
Expectations are, for better or worse, a matter of perspective. This is also a pretty broad topic that you’ve reduced to an either/or with two values that are worlds apart.
I’ve never been on an indie set where people assumed the director had mastered the craft on the level of Spielberg. I’ve been on sets with newbie directors who did their research and secured the right crew to do the job, and I’ve been on sets with directors who had no earthly clue what they were doing but thought the exact opposite of themselves and were in over their heads (lots of yelling on set in those cases), and I’ve been on sets with directors who have a few good notches in their belts and know what they’re doing (Spielberg-level masters they are not, but experienced enough to run a good set and make a good film).
So, buried in all this are lots of things that can be considered “expectations”. Reasonable or not, again, is a matter of perspective.
I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect the director to come in prepared, and with the right support (a good 1AD and a good UPM, at minimum) to keep the show running. I also don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect that the director has hired me because I know how to do the job, and to trust me to do it. I have been on sets that had neither of those circumstances, and if you ask those directors, those expectations were unreasonable.
10-hour days could be a reasonable expectation (12s are unfortunately common), but could be considered too high by some indie directors.
Overtime after 10 (or 12) should be reasonable, too, but some consider it high.
10-hour-minimum turnarounds should be a reasonable expectation, but some indie directors may consider that too high.
Courtesy breakfast vs. “come having had”? Same thing.
I’ve been on sets where breaking for lunch no later than 6 hours from call was considered an unreasonable burden on production, and I’ve been on sets where production providing a second meal if we’re on set for more than 6 hours after coming back in from lunch was considered an unreasonable expectation. Both those things, form my perspective, are perfectly reasonable things to expect (take care of your crew).
Is this the kind of thing you’re looking for?
Coming into an indie film with a young, relatively new/inexperienced director, I do have to manage expectations. I know what I’m signing up for (at least, I hope I do) when I sign up for it. But filmmaking is a team sport, and it comes down to a matter of everyone communicating their needs to fulfill their parts.
I truly believe that maintenance of basic human dignity is the one, most reasonable expectation any of us should have going in. Again, that’s considered too high an expectation by some.
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Cast and crew have high expectations of an indie director/filmmaker - no one is
expecting a master at the craft - but cast and crew expect a high level of competence.
Perhaps that's not realistic - but it's they way it is.
The expectations are usually based on the filmmaker's previous work.
During the Lucky 777s Film Challenge (shoot a feature in 7 days, for $7,000), in Las Vegas, the producers selected seven filmmakers from a pool of 30 or 40. I was one of those who got picked. In this situation, the actors had a good idea of the filmmaker's ability. Having feature experience was good, but it was my success completing a dozen 48 Hour Film Projects, that they took note of. They liked that I was adept at working within tight time frames.
Most couldn't complete the Lucky 777, including stand-by alternate directors. Only three of us finished, but the producers/actors were confident I would be one to do so.
My previous projects got me my next projects. Actors and crew knew me from those. There are quite a few filmmakers in town. Most of the actors get familiar with them. A lot of those have a hard time finding people to work with them, so reputation and expectations can cut both ways.