I'm a new director and I find that my biggest challenge is describing to the crew and actors how I want the scene to look like. Its like I have a hard time describing it verbally.
how can I be better at communicating my vision?
- Thread starter quirky.indiesanfran
- Start date
im no expert by no means but the best thing to do and im not trying to be rude but do it yourself its your movie its your vision yes its gonna be stressful as hell but when you get that dvd in your hand and your sittig around with friends and family breath a sigh of relief and say its my vision and noone elses
I work in this field professionally, and I am telling you don't do it yourself. There is a reason that hollywood professionals have crew and work with others. It is far more efficient, less problems, and looks better if you have a crew working with you. Back to your question though. How do you communicate your vision better? That's easy. It's called pre-production. Storyboarding, working with your DP, Sound person, Gaffer about, not just some shots, but every single shot. Going through what you want your mood to be and feeling you want to evoke for each shot. Go to every single location with your crew and pick out your shots and blocking at that point. Have rehearsals with your actors, lots of them. Describe their character, the scene, even their back story. What they were doing before the scene so they know where they are coming from.
Good pre-production is extremely important, it is the foundation of the entire piece. Without it your production is definitely going to suffer. You certainly can do it yourself, however, your piece is going to turn out better if you have a crew to help you. That is what they are there for. I hope this helps.
Good pre-production is extremely important, it is the foundation of the entire piece. Without it your production is definitely going to suffer. You certainly can do it yourself, however, your piece is going to turn out better if you have a crew to help you. That is what they are there for. I hope this helps.
Totally agree with Brooksy.
Filmmaking is a collaborative process, each department (camera, lighting, sound, etc) will bring something extra to the table that you couldn't on your own. Yes, as the director it's your vision, and everyone should be working to achieve that as best as possible... and like Brooksy said the key is preproduction.
Even on a no-budget film pre-production is the most affordable part of the film, and skimping on it will make everything else more expensive -- even if that expense is just wasting peoples time through inefficiency.
Break down the script. Make a list of every prop necessary for each scene, then further break down that list to the individual shots. Do the same for cast, wardrobe, locations, sound, etc..
Storyboard EVERY single shot. Plan every shot, stick to your plan. If some brilliant idea for a new shot comes up on set, add it to the list, but still shoot the planned shots. If you're painfully behind schedule already, skip the brilliant new shot and go with the plan.
If something isn't working, don't fight the process to try and make it work, adjust and move on. Shoot for the edit.
By the time you finish post production you will have made three distinct movies.. the one that was written, the one that was shot, and the one that was edited. This is the way it works, it's an evolving thing, accept it, expect it. And finally, once you do reach the edit, don't be afraid to kill your babies.
If you don't catch the last reference, read the dv rebel's guide.
Filmmaking is a collaborative process, each department (camera, lighting, sound, etc) will bring something extra to the table that you couldn't on your own. Yes, as the director it's your vision, and everyone should be working to achieve that as best as possible... and like Brooksy said the key is preproduction.
Even on a no-budget film pre-production is the most affordable part of the film, and skimping on it will make everything else more expensive -- even if that expense is just wasting peoples time through inefficiency.
Break down the script. Make a list of every prop necessary for each scene, then further break down that list to the individual shots. Do the same for cast, wardrobe, locations, sound, etc..
Storyboard EVERY single shot. Plan every shot, stick to your plan. If some brilliant idea for a new shot comes up on set, add it to the list, but still shoot the planned shots. If you're painfully behind schedule already, skip the brilliant new shot and go with the plan.
If something isn't working, don't fight the process to try and make it work, adjust and move on. Shoot for the edit.
By the time you finish post production you will have made three distinct movies.. the one that was written, the one that was shot, and the one that was edited. This is the way it works, it's an evolving thing, accept it, expect it. And finally, once you do reach the edit, don't be afraid to kill your babies.
If you don't catch the last reference, read the dv rebel's guide.
AMEN!
Preproduction is also when you develop that communication with your talent and key crew. Everyone should know exactly what you want before you ever say "Action!" for the first time. In fact, when you get into production all the sad time should be spent problem solving (a light craps out, an actor becomes ill, the weather turns bad, etc.), not communicating how you want things to look or sound.
Also - and no offense - you have to learn the vocabulary; as you stated you're a beginner. Read LOTS of books on filmmaking. I read about editing quite often; I don't edit visuals, but it is closely related to my job as an audio editor/sound designer and I need to be able to communicate clearly with editors. Work as a PA or other crew member on other projects. Watch how the director communicates with his/her crew, you'll learn lots of lessons both good and bad.
Thank you every one for your advice it's really helpful and appreciated. I'm working on my storyboard today. Woo now I know what pre-production is! and do you recommend any specific filmmaking books?
DV Rebel's Guide by Stu Maschwitz
and both of the Steve Katz books:
Film Directing: Shot by Shot and Film Directing: Cinematic Motion
The Rebel's guide covers a LOT of useful information for the entire filmmaking process.. The Steve Katz books cover basically everything you'll ever need to know about camera placement and blocking.
I took a really good course on storyboarding through FXPHD earlier in the year that I would recommend as well.
and both of the Steve Katz books:
Film Directing: Shot by Shot and Film Directing: Cinematic Motion
The Rebel's guide covers a LOT of useful information for the entire filmmaking process.. The Steve Katz books cover basically everything you'll ever need to know about camera placement and blocking.
I took a really good course on storyboarding through FXPHD earlier in the year that I would recommend as well.
There are a bunch of books about sound, but a great place to start is:
Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema - David Sonnenschein
It's more about the art of sound for picture rather than the technology, although it does get a bit technical at times.
You should also lose yourself in filmsound.org for a few days; lots of great articles - history, interviews, glossaries, technique, etc.
Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema - David Sonnenschein
It's more about the art of sound for picture rather than the technology, although it does get a bit technical at times.
You should also lose yourself in filmsound.org for a few days; lots of great articles - history, interviews, glossaries, technique, etc.
"Sound is half of the experience."
Thanks! Do you guys recommend any books based on lighting?
Painting with Light by John Alton
Lighting for Film and Digital Cinematography has good reviews, I think I'm going to add it to my list of things to pick up.. (Although it is rather pricey.. must be a college textbook lol)
and this isn't a lighting book, but should probably be added to my previous list:
The Five C's of Cinematography
Lighting for Film and Digital Cinematography has good reviews, I think I'm going to add it to my list of things to pick up.. (Although it is rather pricey.. must be a college textbook lol)
and this isn't a lighting book, but should probably be added to my previous list:
The Five C's of Cinematography