First-time filmmakers are thirsty for knowledge and keen to improve their Directorial skills at every turn. The following article outlines 6 essentials tips for sharpening your Directorial skills and how they can benefit your next video production:
People Watch
Don’t worry it’s not creepy everyone in Starbucks does it anyway. Get yourself a drink and watch the world before you. Take in the actions of everyday people and how they react to life around them. This can give you great inspiration for situations and actions that your actors can incorporate into your scenes.
Get Some Life Experience
It may sound daft, but much like a method actor will do, you’ll need to experience the subjects and topics you want to bring out in your video production. By gaining some experience of the aspects of life you want your actors to express you can help to give better direction and assistance to their performances.
Educate Yourself
A good filmmaker will try to learn more about the topics they are exploring in their video productions. Whether you’re doing a documentary, a comedy, a horror or a period drama you’ll need to know what exactly you’re film topic is about. Read some books around the subject or even attend a few lectures about the area to give yourself a good understanding of what you’re trying to commit to film.
Read The Book & Subtitles
Everybody criticises a film when it’s based on a novel, but such films can actually be very helpful to a Director. Books provide a script for the film and by analysing how certain bits of scenery and dialogue are represented on screen you can hope to do the same for your video production. Similarly, checking out the subtitles on a film can provide the same thing – a written script of the visuals at hand.
Turn The Sound Off
Have you ever watched a film with the sound off? I don’t mean an old school Charlie Chaplin flick, just simply watching a film with the sound muted. The purpose of this is to allow you to see how much of the dialogue and scene you can actually follow through simple body language and emotion. You’d be surprised how difficult it is to translate a whole movie just through movement and emotion, but the ability to do so is incredibly powerful.
Watch & Take Acting Classes
The reason for observing and taking some acting classes is two-fold. Firstly, you’ll get to see how actors get taught and how they learn their craft, which will help you to better your directions to your cast and secondly, you too can learn how difficult it can be to express certain emotions and situations on set. This will make you more understanding of the demands you’re putting upon your cast,
Summary
There you have it, 6 essential tips for improving your Directing skills and honing your current cinematic abilities to help make your next video production the best one yet.
