sound How competent should a director be in: Lighting,Cinematography, Sound

[HowTheyDoThat]

Ideally, you will be familiar with them all, but if not, how much will it harm you:

I can say I like the cinematography in Michael Mann, Mallick, Kubrick, Fincher, etc.....but could not begin to tell you how they lit the set, what lighting apparatus went into the process, why difference lenses are chosen, etc....

If a writer were to direct/produce a script, how important is it to know the skills (sound, lighting, camera) even if they were not going to be behind the camera.

Take Mallick....he has had different D.P.s and Lighting, but he has had the same visual aesthetic since at least Days of Heaven.....

The same with Woody Allen. He has used different D.P.s yet is able to get a look he wants. Its a consistent look since the mid 80s, and he had used different D.Ps and other crew....

I know people like Soderbergh, Kubrick, and Mann have on occasion operated the own cameras, but others are able to communicate/collaborate and get it done.

Would it be enough to find:

A D.P. who's work you like.

A lighting tech who's work you like.

A sound person who's work you like.

And give them a breakdown of the idea (using examples from other media).

 

[ItDonnedOnMe]

Personally I'd say that's fine - they don't need to know the technical approach necessary to achieve their vision, but they do need to know how to communicate that vision to the people who do have the technical skills to execute it.

Lack of vision is certainly a problem, but just having a vision isn't enough. Honestly the worst kind of person to work for is the person with a strong vision for how things should look (or sound), but without the ability to communicate what they want - the "I'll know it when I see it" type of person. They waste an incredible amount of time & resources having the people who are supposed to execute on their vision trying different things, only to say "that's not what I'm looking for, try again" without providing sufficient input on what's not right about it and what they want changed.

 

[Will Vincent]

So far I have worked for a director who did not know anything about the technical side of filmmaking. She did not know what she wanted when it cames to shots, storyboarding, cinematography, sound design, etc.

Sound like a complete lack of planning.