Hands of Hollywood (1929)

Chapter VIII DIRECTORS It is impossible to give a detailed list of a director's qualifica' tions. Some directors make excellent sea pictures; others excel in society dramas; others in comedies, Westerns, etc. Usually when a director steps out of his special sphere he is not successful. The Director is responsible for the acting of the players, the motivation of the picture, the tensity of the drama, the naturalness of every movement, the meaning of every gesture, the accuracy of the character delineations, the interpretation, the tempo, and the rhythm of the story. He is also responsible for the pictorial beauty of every scene, because he conceives the composition of the photog' raphy. In the last analysis he is responsible for the work of the art director, of the cameramen, of the set dressers, and of every person engaged in the making of a picture. The director's duties have been increased by the introduction of sound and dialog pictures. Now he must listen to the enunciation and modulation of the players' voices as well as watch the action of the scene. The salary ranges from $200.00 to $5000.00 per week. Some' times the directors are hired for one picture only and receive as high as $75,000.00 per picture. Dialog Directors are hired to work with the regular directors. They rehearse the characters in the speaking of lines, teaching them correct tone and emphasis, and they superintend the dialog in the actual making of the picture. All directors rehearse the players before the scenes are taken, but the dialog directors must rehearse the players for a much longer period in talking pictures than in silent pictures. The qualifications usually are the same as those of a successful stage director. The salary ranges from $500.00 to $2500.00 per week, except when a dialog director is also the principal director of [80]