I previously wrote that I first started directing last year. but that’s not exactly true.
Before I consciously made the decision to become a director, I actually directed some online content for a tobacco company but I don’t really count it as directing experience. I had no creative control or input whatsoever and was only there to execute a series of film as I was told. To be honest, these could have been done without me and would have turned out the same way. I can’t even share these and to be honest they all blend together into one nightmare but I’m mainly talking about two series of films for the same client and product within a year.
That being said, I actually blame myself for this. I had no idea what I was doing and placed myself in a position where it became obvious to everyone involved and never gained the trust of people I was working with and for. Because of this, I was isolated from the client and never actually met them. There was no trust being built whatsoever. Even the crew was painfully aware that they knew what they were doing more than me. They were courteous and professional, but I wasn’t able to really get the best out of them or really even sell them on the project and because of this, I can only describe the experience as painful.
Worst of all, this series of jobs ended my relationship with the agency permanently. I lost my cool in the edit and implied that every comment made by the agency team was objectively making the piece a little worst. While true, I probably should have kept that particular opinion to myself Even 2.5 years later, a creative director from the agency pushed back against Cutters Studios being hired for a large scale advertising campaign because he had a bad experience with us in the past. Now, that guy is a tool and would never survive in an agency outside of Japan but nevertheless, the reality of the job includes dealing with morons like him and I obviously failed in that aspect, with actual consequences for our studio.
What went wrong?
Simply put, I didn’t win the trust of the agency team, the crew, and the client from the beginning. I realized that it was a seriously tough hole to dig myself out of. The creative director and his team needed justifications for every decision and never took my word for anything. Even in the editing process, which is the only part where I didn’t lack experience, they just didn’t listen and wouldn’t allow me to meet with the client directly to try and sell the edit. It became watered down, safe and boring.
What went right?
In spite of that, there are small moments in the final films that I can take pride in. During the shoot, I took time to chat with the talent. The atmosphere on set wasn’t great and it was obviously being reflected in their performance. During breaks, I started to crack jokes with them and tried to make them more comfortable. I think this made it easy and having the talent on my side made me more confident to make calls during the shoots and they progressively got better.
What did I learn?
-Fake it. You may not know what you’re doing, but don’t let the crew, the talent or the client know. If you look like you’re not in control, someone there will take the control right out of your hands.
-Get the talent on your side. If the talent trusts you and feels comfortable around you, you’re more likely to get the performance you need out of them. It also means they’re more likely to listen to you when different voices start voicing their opinions.
In conclusion, basically nothing went right with this project and I may have set my own career back with my attitude. I should have made up for my lack of experience with work, research and planning but I didn’t know any better. This project didn’t make me want to be a director and I didn’t make any move towards that for a long time after, preferring to stay comfortably in the editor’s chair. There were still some takeaways that were invaluable and applied once I decided to give directing another shot.