get out
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IntrotoDirecting.pptxIntro to Directing
Directing
Considered by many as the “author” or auteur of a film. Auteur originated by French film critics Andre Bazín, and Cahiers du cinema (French New Wave Roehmer, Godard, Truffaut, Rivette, Chabrol).
Andrew Sarris and Auteur Theory
Village Voice film critic
Auteur applies to directors only; limits of theory
"At the moment, my list of auteurs runs something like this through the first twenty: Ophuls, Renoir, Mizoguchi, Hitchcock, Chaplin, Ford, Welles, Dreyer, Rossellini, Murnau, Griffith, Sternberg, Eisenstein, Von Stroheim, Buñuel, Bresson, Hawks, Lang, Flaherty, Vigo.
Three Criteria for Auteur
"The three premises of the auteur theory may be visualized as three concentric circles: the outer circle as technique; the middle circle, personal style; and the inner circle, interior meaning."
Role of director
Oversees or (as the French and Greta Gerwig would have it) realizes the screenplay through shots, performances, editing and sound.
Determines the style, tone, emphasis of the film through shots, performances, editing and sound.
Casts and directs actors
Directs creative crew in production (shooting of the film), primarily cinematographer, production designer and sound. In post-production (editing, visual effects and sound design), directs those crew people.
Decides when to “cut”(end a take, or version of a shot) and “move on” (stop doing takes of a shot or setup, and do a new one). Or When to Stop.
NOT Role of director
Write dialogue, characters, setting or plot. If they do, they get writing credit.
Some will shoot/operate camera (Spielberg, Soderbergh, Liman, Ridley Scott, Von Trier). Very rarely credited.
Oversee business, financial or staffing aspects of the film. If they do, they get producing credit.
Oversee organizational aspects of the film. In the theatre, the director should not also be the stage manager. The director should not be the assistant director or production manager.
Most do not have “final cut” or final say on which edited version of the film is released.
Directing is an entry-level Position
“Pick up a camera. Shoot something. No matter how small, no matter how cheesy, no matter whether your friends and your sister star in it. Put your name on it as director. Now you're a director. Everything after that you're just negotiating your budget and your fee.” --James Cameron
Get out (2017)
Jordan Peele (Writer/Director)
Peele started as a cast member on Mad TV. Co-showrunner on Key & Peele (with Keegan-Michael Key).
Get Out was his directorial debut. Grossed over $255 million worldwide.
Won Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor (Daniel Kaluuya).
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Peele on the sunken place
“As I’m writing it becomes clear that the sunken place is this metaphor for the system that is suppressing the freedom of black people, of many outsiders, many minorities. There’s lots of different sunken places. But this one specifically became a metaphor for the prison-industrial complex, the lack of representation of black people in film, in genre. The reason Chris in the film is falling into this place, being forced to watch this screen, that no matter how hard he screams at the screen he can’t get agency across. He’s not represented. And that, to me, was this metaphor for the black horror audience, a very loyal fan base who comes to these movies, and we’re the ones that are going to die first. So the movie for me became almost about representation within the genre, within itself, in a weird way.”
