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Let's Make Better Films

Learn How Your Actors Think

As a director or producer, you need to be able to understand how your actors think.  As a director, it doesn’t hurt to know how your producer thinks either, so you might want to read this blog.  Both directors and producers, need to know how their crew thinks.  And these days all should know how investors and distributors think, and those involved in the infrastructure elsewhere, like agents. Then there is the audience; let’s check that box too. Heck we need to know about critics too. And Festivals.  The list never ends!

So where do we begin?

Fortunately for us, ActorsAndCrew.com put together this nice list of their recommendations on the Top Ten Books on acting. Perhaps some one can put together the same on:

  • Producing
  • Crew: Casting Directors, Cinematographers, Editors, Production Assistants, Production Designers
  • Film Financing Now
  • Distribution
  • Agents, Managers, Publicists
  • Film Fans
  • Festivals
  • Critics

If we build these lists, I do think it will all get better, albeit not quite at the pace we may so desire.

Categories
Truly Free Film

How COLLABORATOR Happened & Why The Actors Did It

If you couldn’t make it to the IFC Center in NYC on June 18th, you missed having Hal Hartley moderate a Q&A session with Martin Donovan, David Morse, Melissa Auf der Meur, and myself on how Martin wrote, directed, and got his debut feature made.

Ah, but no worries, the glory that is the internet brings the past back to you for your eternal enjoyment.  COLLABORATOR is currently available on VOD and will return to the IFC Center tomorrow July 6th, and then the Egyptian in LA on July 20th.  Please check it out.

 

Certain highlights to check out:

Hal Hartley & Martin Donvan on “What is directing”
approximately 1745- 2250

David Morse, Hal Hartley, Martin Donovan, and me (Ted Hope): “What makes a director someone an actor (or producer) wants to work with”
approx 25:00 – 31:00

For more of Martin’s secrets, check out his interview with Marshall Fine here.

Categories
Truly Free Film

How Does Being An Actor Prepare You To Direct?

On Episode Four of Christine & Ted Talk To Directors At Sundance ’09, Alan explains how being an actor helped him later direct:

Categories
Truly Free Film

What Kind Of Set Do You Want & Can You Ever Know You Are Safe?

Episode Five Of The Christine & Ted In Sundance Show, where Paul Giamatti and Sam Rockwell discuss what it’s like for them on set and what it means for them now that they work all the time.