How to be a director
I’m currently prepping an independent movie that I am spending my own money on. Hollywood rule number one is to never spend your own money on a project, but if you can’t invest in something you believe in, then burn your money anyway. I’ve been reluctant to make another movie unless a script comes across that I absolutely love, and that script has never surfaced. I think I hate the stories Hollywood wants to tell. They bore the shit out of me.
So with the Canadian Mark Palermo™ I wrote one. I’m assembling my video and commercial crew to make it in the way I want - no fucking interference. Anyone who follows my video work knows this is my modus operandi. I do one for them, I do one for me. Before I do my next studio feature, I just need to do one totally for me...and that may mean for you too. I’m going to make a movie I want to see, period. I think there are enough of you out there curious enough to see what that means.
So as I start my journey, let me help you with yours. I am going to help you aspiring filmmakers by posting advice I wrote a while ago.
How to be a director.
Let me break it down for you, brothers and sisters.
Lets begin with the basics.
The Closed Eye Camera Concentration Pose is a fundamental skill that must be mastered. Notice the light touch Oliver Stone has on the extended eyepiece and the graceful arch of his back. Everything comes together effortlessly. A collared long sleeve shirt creates a nice slimming v-line down the front, making him look like a natural born killer.
After about ten years, you can move on to Angry Director Pose in which the camera sits below you...
Here Mark Romanek demonstrates absolutely perfect form as his hand is extended onto a lens, mouth open, brows pressed. Notice how the video monitor lands right in front of the camera assistant's face, allowing us to take in the breathtaking power of the pose without distracting below-the-line interference.
Yet...you can still infer the assistant is female, thus granting Romanek a liberal, progressive political bent that will be very useful in wooing movie stars like Tom Hanks.
After decades of practice, your Angry Director Pose can reach undreamed levels of intimidation. Here, Stanley Kubrick asks for coffee.
Another critical skill a director must wield is the power to make an imaginary camera with your hands. There are many variations of this technique, but the most simple and elegant I have ever seen is Steven Spielberg's Victory Point.
I have attempted to use the Victory Point myself, but could not wrap my eyes between the points of the fingers, and the mysterious positioning of the thumb adds a level of thematic complexity that is hard to fathom. What is the thumb? Why is he smiling? What does it all mean?
In the hands of a benevolent Spielberg, the power of the Victory Point can bring joy and laughter to the world. However, in the hands of an angry Spielberg, the Victory Point can bring death and destruction. Here, Spielberg balls his fist and brings down a rain of locusts on Brett Ratner.
The Hands of Cinema, as demonstrated by Ridley Scott, is a classic, timeless tool of the director. Peering between your hands at an invisible movie screen brings much joy to actors. Notice the rare pacified look on Russell Crowe's face.
One of the most powerful moves in a directors arsenal, the Hands of Cinema should be used sparingly and in complete silence. Here Steven Spielberg accidentily spreads the fingers of his left hand. Five production assistants died of heart attacks.
When you reach Grand Master status as Martin Scorsese has here, the Hands of Cinema will project beams of light and Leonardo DiCaprio will sit in awe, offering prayers to your Immortal Power.
Now, this is a very advanced technique...
Coppola has broken the Hands of Cinema and uses the remaining energy to turn the photograph black and white. The visual impact of using one palm is so great that Coppola has hypnotized Steve Jobs to pay him money.
Moving along students, study the following closely:
Notice how Naomi Watts is in complete awe as David Lynch weilds The Palm. The sunken headphones add a nice touch as Lynch is sending mixed messages: his ears are open, but he denies her his eyes. This push/pull technique is highly effective at controlling your actors, allowing you to mindfuck and then bang your lead actress, thus achieving ultimate victory for you nerds.
Which brings us to:
Now I love M. Night films, but here he is in poor form. His shoulders are hunched, his face shows slight concern, and he has allowed a man in a sweater to lurch over his shoulder. Even though Night later had the man executed, I still think it was poor form to allow this to happen. In my opinion, the entire Assistant Director department should have been executed as well.
Now here Night is in top form. His tight expensive t-shirt flawlessly shows his biceps and his nipples peek out from a set of well developed pecs. I think it was a good call not to look into the camera otherwise his physique would not have been in perfect alignment. He looks very fuckable.
And finally:
Now at first glance this would seem to be an innocuous photo of David Fincher demonstrating the Closed Eye Camera Concentration Pose, but if you look closely, Fincher is looking through with his left eye. Fincher believes that the left eye is connected to the right creative hemisphere of the brain, so by using his left eye he can process images with more nuance. This true story - I shit you not - is a perfect application of creating a completely insane mystique about yourself and scaring the living daylights out of stoned film students.
I hope this has helped all of you. Go forth and rule the world.
I think I want to make an independent movie. And work for free. Hmmmm.
ReplyDeleteSNAP! ;O
ReplyDeleteWatts, you are too old to pass this up. Who will revive you the next time you black out during a Tijuana orgy?
ReplyDeletethis is brilliant!!! haha!
ReplyDeleteWhat are you shooting this movie with? 5D? RED? Film?
ReplyDeleteJoseph, cool stuff. Remember "Ramblehead" online buddy reality show? Hope you check out my reels. Cheers.
ReplyDeleteI want to give them all manicures and hand massages for a living.
ReplyDeleteBut what about Michel Gondry's face shield with peering hole?... In other words, the hand-finder. Is that in style?
ReplyDeleteWell Joseph Khan,
ReplyDeleteMel Simon said, in order to get a small fortune, you have to start with a large one.
wow im following comments from another Alan... weird... anyway...
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU!! I have been in production on my first TV series and i need all the new poses i can get. Any worldly advise like this for us college students will inspire generations to come... or atleast ...blogs//
... LOVED ALL THE LOVERS.......zmja.net
Great. My year at Full Sail = A waist of time. This blog is 6 years too late. :-( But thanks JK! Now I'll take a stab at being a rapper. :-)
ReplyDelete-Chancler
This was utterly briliant and hilarious. Thank you!
The guy in the sweater is Scott Rudin. Maybe he should have had him killed.
ReplyDeleteJoseph - as a feature film A.D., I have to point out that Steven Spielberg's five-finger move is actually "CAMERA JAZZ HANDS" and can turn any amateur into a professional director with the correct form. But my all-time fav, is the "L finger cross hairs" where you make the loser "L" with both hands and then put pointer to thumb to create a perfect 16x9 air canvas to make all of your cinematic dreams come true.
ReplyDeleteThanks for making me laugh at the reality of it all.
and stop scaring us stoned college students for fucksake its our muse!!! mean lady.......... fire bad, tree pretty ;)you are right. very fuckable in that shirt...
ReplyDelete...really, the left eye? But when the image is flipped back to normal it becomes the right eye... That David Fincher is ingenious!
ReplyDeleteThe same rules apply to the music industry where Rick Rubin has a
ReplyDeletecult like control over acts ranging from Metallica to Neil Diamond.
This is a accurate description of some of the most important directorial
techniques I have witnessed. Thank you and God Bless!
Great post - thank you! Love to hear more about your new project - film or digital? I've seen some good stuff done on the RED if you can find a good DIT to work with on set / post house that has the right workflow for it.
ReplyDeleteCheers JK - good luck on your film.
ReplyDeleteyou complete me.
ReplyDeleteAnd here I thought you would actually tell us something useful.....
ReplyDeleteMaybe I missed it, but the first rule of thumb is to find your actors weaknesses and exploit them to the fullest. Go back to that weakness any time an actor questions your intentions or camera angle. Then, if necessary, use the Spielberg Hands to make a final, stupefying point. Like a hot knife through butter!
ReplyDeleteMr. Kahn,
ReplyDeleteThank you. Really just thank you. I moved to NYC on Sunday to begin my journey to becoming a director. I want to start off in Music Videos and Commercials similar to you and then make may way into film.
I had my first internship meeting today where I was explained the "greatness of transcribing" and had a minor melt down that I would never make it to where I want to be. I understand starting out low, and I am prepared to do so, but I mean we all have to have moments of complete and utter despair, right? Then I saw an e-mail which lead me to your blog and it seemed that my good karma lead to something.
Thank you so much for your advice and wisdom. I hope you continue to keep us up to date on your progress (you're now in my google reader, a highly coveted honor, kidding) because I would love to keep learning.
And who knows, one day I may be just crazy enough to throw everything I have into my passion. Because really, without passion, is any of the other stuff even worth having?
Thanks again.
Best,
Caitlin G.
PS: Being a woman with really small, carny-like (as in someone who works at a carnival) hands, I also fully plan on having my own signature "Director Hand Gesture" perhaps something to do with those big foam hands used at sports games to give the illusion of great size?
ReplyDeleteI'm open to suggestions.
PS: As an aspiring female director with really small, carny-like ("carny" meaning someone who works in a carnival) hands I also plan on developing and having my own signature Directing Hand Gestures to establish myself more soundly. At this point in time I'm thinking something involving those oversize foam hands used by fans during sporting events.
ReplyDeleteI am open to suggestions however.
You lost me at "I love M. Night films". WTF? Your street cred just took a shit.
ReplyDeleteIs the photo of Fincher flipped? Panavision is backwards, thus calling into question the left eye theory?
ReplyDeleteBaseball hats also seem to be a key accessory.
Wow. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
ReplyDeletetriple distilled thought and observation that is pure vodka
ReplyDeleteYour lack of respect to a craft will surly bit you in the ass, lets see how your film will measure up to the handy directors. How far up your ass are your hands?
ReplyDeleteIncreible, demasiado inteligente
ReplyDeleteHaving worked on set with many of the directors you posted here, I had a read good laugh. Excellent use of the photos. Going to send this link on to my fellow set workers in IA Local #52 here in NYC.
ReplyDeleteWhile you make some valid points on directing, I would suggest an alternative theory of when and where to wear hats when directing. When and when not a baret is acceptable etc. Without this, your thesis is meaningless.
ReplyDeleteBonne chance with your feature, JK. Wish I could be of help. stephan
ReplyDeleteJK. This is amazing. FYI - the guy behind M Night in the sweater is Scott Rudin. Just goes to prove that Producer don't make movies good, directors do!
ReplyDeleteGreat article, looking forward to seeing what you come up with on your film. Ironically, Torque inspired my buddy and me to max out a bunch of credit cards and make our first biker film as a retort (seriously). I know it wasn't your fault that Hollywood made you do that bad biker movie, but it did inspire us to have a go at it. "Choppertown" won some film festivals and we've been living off our garage-built biker movies ever since. Now prepping our first horror film to shoot in Seattle on Super 8mm, wish us luck.
ReplyDeletefunny stuff, but if you're going to make the left eyed joke for the Fincher pic, maybe at least flip the panavision logo on the mag so it's not so obviously flipped in post (even though there are other cues that the picture is clearly reversed and that he's actually looking with his right eye)
ReplyDeleteHilarious!
ReplyDeleteAs a trade-mag editor in Hollywood, I see dozens of pix just like this when I visit the photo departments at various studios and PR companies, and you've captioned them perfectly. Very, very funny, man. And if you need a clue to my identity, tell Probst I said hello.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdG8fd2vNjI
ReplyDeleteIf money is so hard to come by shouldn't we be trying to take it out of the equation when it comes to our creative decisions?
As someone who has marketed and sold over 65 movies worldwide, most filmmakers fail when it comes to the story and the concept of their film, and to exactly what sells it to the audience.
I've poured through thousands of set photos and I always throw out the pics of the director next to the pretty camera. After I do that, I usually call to the set and tell them they had better get a ton of pictures of the actual actors doing something on the set in character or else we won't be able to create the key art that sells the movie to the buyers.
great advice,
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine what Woody Allen sticks up when he is directing a film...
If your feature is as good as your blog entry ... you're all set.
ReplyDeleteOne thing. Fincher doesn't just think the left eye is connected to the right hemisphere of the brain, the side responsible for creativity or visualization, it is.
http://painting.about.com/library/blpaint/blrightbraintable.htm
http://painting.about.com/od/rightleftbrain/a/Right_Brain.htm
(what kind of benefit you may or may not get by looking through the camera with your left eye is another matter, though maybe interesting to explore ... )
ReplyDeleteI'm implementing The Hands of Cinema into all of my sales pitches
ReplyDeleteWhat good are hands that can't move in a manner that makes a pretty lady like Watts go gaga over you...
ReplyDeleteWould someone be kind enough to post the theory behind what makes super successful D.O.P, JK, would love to hear your take on it too.
I enjoyed this article, I have not had a good laugh in some time about the art of Film making, in that most people become a Director the moment they stand next to a Camera other than the Fisher Price Kind
ReplyDeleteDude.....you slay me.....funny as hell....How the hell are you? hit me at fred@fredraimondi.com
ReplyDeletePerhaps a few words on Flaring Manson Eyes? One of the hallmarks that separates the naturals from the posers.
ReplyDeleteJust use one hand in a sort of backward C ,,,, IT IS COOL because it shows that you have the imagination to see the whole frame in your head and just need help with the two right side corners ,,,,,,,very adjustable as well ,,,,, can be used for 16;9 and 2.40 ,,,, He He He ,,,, Or just get an assistant ( working for nothing ) to follow you around with a proper Directors viewfinder and a box of lenses .
ReplyDeleteFunny stuff my friend. just stumbled on it and i really enjoyed reading.
ReplyDelete