International photographer (Jan-Dec 1934)

Tzvclve T h INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER September, 1934 The Importance of Being a Director By Richard L. Bare [Mr. Bare, Supervising Director, Department of Cinematography, University of Southern California, has just completed producing and directing the two-reel 35 mm. picture of Edgar Aller. Poe's story, "The Oval Portrait," for which he was awarded the Paul Muni Plaque of 1934.— Editor's Note. I fWcv^j 1SREGARDING the unsurmountable barrier IftffO which lies between the making of a profesP'fgPJ sional picture and the making of a non-prek— — ^« fessional one, the director is, or should be, the supreme mainspring which motivates the clock-work of production, no matter whether he is hired to guide the destinies of the stars of Magnanimous Pictures Corporation, or whether he, for the pure and simple fun of it all, undertakes to masterfully dominate the personnel of the Backyard Players Productions. Accordingly, no matter whether it was filmed by the professional studio or by the backyard crank-turners, if the picture turns out to be another "lemon," it is the director who inevitably takes the blame. But if, on the other hand, for some unevident reason the picture is a howling success, everyone from the prop boy to the producer steps out and takes his bow. As for the director, well, he was paid to direct the story and he did it. But this is not a weeping towel for abused directors. Nor is it an expose of the cruel, unjust methods of the art of producing pictures, as a warning to amateurs. It is a symposium on The Importance of Being a Director ... if any. To begin with, let us venture to set forth that the smaller the picture and the less pretentious the production methods employed, the more important the director becomes, relatively, of course. This is laid to the fact that more duties are placed upon his shoulder, and not, as might be expected, to the fact that he receives more glory or salary. When a director becomes important (I mean to the success of the picture) it is usually accounted to the fact that there has been a decided unification of ideas, together with a distinct centralization of directorial control, and a strict adherence thereto. This may sound a little strong, but I am convinced that it is the sane and logical approach to the method which results in the intelligent and congruous motion picture. Briefly, it is the understanding of the author's idea by the director, the imparting of this original unadulterated idea to the actors by the director, and the recording of this same unified thought by the cameraman as the director sees them. The contribution of the film editor will be discussed later. The camera should be as much the tool of the director as it is of the photographer. The director and the cameraman should co-ordinate their functions almost as one. The futility of the separation of director and cameraman is evident when the director strives for a certain idea to be brought out by camera treatment, which is lost simply because the director's ideas were not made plain to the cameraman. Not only that, but many times because the director is not familiar with the technicalities of camera work, he does not realize that the camera is recording the scene in a manner different from the way he sees it. After all, the camera is the supreme medium by which the inherent thought of the author and director are transferred to the audience, and if the director doesn't understand his medium, naturally a poor picture will result. A thorough background of cinematography is necessary for the director who desires to become a good director. And more than ever does this apply to the amateur director. For he is the "important" director, as usually he is practically the whole staff. The person who knows most about picture making is almost invariably chosen to be the director on an amateur production. Manytimes he is the cameraman also, and here is where he has a splendid chance to unify the directorial and camera departments. But the more the amateur film director knows about camera work, the better his story will be directed. Know your medium with which you work. A carpenter would not begin to build a house before he discovered what his hammer and saw were for. Let us suppose that the members of the Backyard Players Productions are assembled for their weekly meeting and the call for new business takes them into the discussion of their forthcoming production. By way of getting started immediately, the group selects the president as director because it was he who wrote the script, and didn't he know more about the whole business of movie making anyway? Right here is where the group makes its wisest selection ; that of choosing the author of the story to be the director. The first obstacle is removed before the picture starts. At least the writer and director will co-ordinate and the ideas will be unified. Next, there must be the camera staff and, for the sake of convenience, we will not have the director be the cameraman also. From here on the director takes immediate supervision over the picture. If the director hadn't happened to be the author of the story, his first duty would be to spend plenty of time reading the script and becoming thoroughly familiar with it. But, since he wrote it, he has the story clearly in his mind and so he turns to other duties. Perhaps the cast has already been selected by the executive body of Backyard Players Productions, but if not, the director arranges for try-out and even a screen test, if the players' photographic possibilities are in doubt. Whatever the director does, he should not cast the story until he is positive. And there are three things to bear in mind at try-outs: How the actor photographs, his or her natural acting ability and what The production staff of the U. S. C. picture, "The Oval Portrait" during filming of interior sequences at MetroGoldwyn-Mayer Studios. Left to right: Boris V. Morkovin, Sam Wood, on looking. Ray Greenhill, at camera; Richard L. Bare, directing; Dick Towle, assistant; Catherine McBride, script clerk; Maxine Adams, Evan Shaw and Richard Salisian, actors. Please mention The International Photographer when corresponding with advertisers.