Film Director
A film
director is a person who directs the actors and film
crew in filmmaking.They control a
film's artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding
the technical crew and actors.
A new
director working on feature films might earn as much as $200,000 a year, while
the most successful can earn over $500,000 per film plus a "back-end"
percentage of the profits, which in some cases can lift their income to several
million dollars.
Responsibilities
Directors
are responsible for overseeing creative aspects of a film under the overall
control of the film producer.. They often develop the vision for a film
and carry out the vision, deciding how the film should look, in other words
they make their vision come to life. They are responsible for turning the
script into a sequence of shots. They also direct what tone it should
have and what an audience should gain from the cinematic experience.
Film directors are responsible for deciding camera angles, lens effects and
lighting with the help of the cinematographic and set
design with the production designer. They will often take part
in hiring the cast and key crew members. They coordinate the
actors' moves, or blocking and also may be involved in
the writing, financing and editing of a film.
The
director works closely with the cast and crew to shape the
film. Some like to conduct
rigorous rehearsals in preproduction while others do so
before each scene. In either case, this process is essential as
it tells the director as well as other key members of the crew (director of
photography, stunt coordinator, hair stylist, etc.),
how the actors are going to play the scene, which enables them to make any
necessary adjustments. Directors often use storyboards to illustrate
sequences and concepts and a director's
viewfinder to set up camera angles.
The
director also plays a key role in post-production. He or she works with
the editor to ensure that the emotions of the scene and the close-up,
mid-shots and wide or long-shot appropriately reflect which character
is driving the narrative. The director also advises on the (color) grading
of the final images, adding warmth or frigidity to the composition of the shots
to reflect the emotional subtext of the character or environment. The director
also participates and directs the sound mix and musical composition of the
film. In the subsequent promotion of the finished film, if a director is well
known his name and image is used to promote the film alongside the stars of the
film, but having an image is not the primary function of a director, as they
are judged by their creative talent and ability to run a production. It is the
second most powerful "behind the scenes" profession in the movie
industry, after the producer, but the director traditionally has complete
control "on the floor".
