Overview

Film Directing Fundamentals gives the novice director an organic methodology for realizing on the screen the full dramatic possibility of a screenplay. Unique among directing books, this book provides clear-cut ways to translate a script to the screen. Using the script as a blueprint, the reader is led through specific techniques to analyze and translate its components into a visual story. A sample screenplay is included that explicates the techniques. The book assumes no knowledge and thus introduces basic concepts and terminology. Appropriate for screenwriters, aspiring directors and filmmakers, Film Directing Fundamentals helps filmmakers bring their story to life on screen.* Unique, focused approach to film directing that shows how to use the screenplay as a blueprint for rendering the script to the screen * Features new sections on Organizing Action in an Action Scene , and Organizing Action in a Narrative Scene , to complement the first two edition's emphasis on Dramatic Scenes * Written by an author with 25+ years experience teaching directing and who has worked extensively in the film industry as a director, cameraman, editor, and producer in both documentary and dramatic/narrative films

Full Product Details

Author:   Nicholas Proferes (Professor of Film at the Film Division, School of the Arts, Columbia University where he has taught directing for more than 25 years.)
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Focal Press
Edition:   3rd New edition
Dimensions:   Width: 17.80cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 25.40cm
Weight:   0.772kg
ISBN:  

9780240809403

ISBN 10:   0240809408
Pages:   336
Publication Date:   08 August 2008
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Replaced By:   9781138052918
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Out of Print
Availability:   In Print  
Limited stock is available. It will be ordered for you and shipped pending supplier's limited stock.

Table of Contents

Part One INTRODUCTION Chapter 1 Introduction to Film Language and Grammar -The Film World -Film Language -Shots -Film Grammar -The 180-Degree Rule -The 30-Degree Rule -Screen Direction -Film-Time -Compression -Elaboration -Familiar Image Chapter 2 Introduction to the Dramatic Elements Embedded in the Screenplay -Spine -Whose film is it? -Character -Circumstance -Dynamic Relationship -Wants -Expectations -Actions -Activity -Acting Beats -Dramatic Blocks -Narrative Beats -Fulcrum Chapter 3 Organizing Action in a Dramatic Scene -Dramatic Elements in NOTORIOUS Patio Scene -NOTORIOUS Patio Scene Annotated Chapter 4 Staging -Main Functions -Patterns of Dramatic Movement -Changing the Stage within a Scene -Staging as Part of a Film's Design -Working with a Location Floor Plan -Floor Plan and Staging for NOTORIOUS Patio Scene Chapter 5 Camera -The Camera as Narrator -Reveal -Entrances -Objective Camera -Subjective Camera -Where Do I Put It? -Visual Design -Style -Coverage -Camera Height -Lenses -Composition -Where To Begin? -Working Toward Specificity in Visualization -Looking for Order -Dramatic Blocks and Camera -Shot List, Storyboards, and Camera Setups -The Prose Storyboard Chapter 6 Camera in NOTORIOUS Patio Scene Part Two MAKING YOUR FILM Chapter 7 Detective Work On Scripts -Reading Your Screenplay -The Piece of Apple Pie Screenplay -Whose Film Is It? -Character -Circumstance -Spines for The Piece Of Apple Pie -Dynamic Relationships -Wants -Actions -Acting Beats -Activity -Tone for The Piece Of Apple Pie -Breaking The Piece Of Apple Pie Into Actions -Designing a Scene -Visualization -Identifying the Fulcrum and Dramatic Blocks -Supplying Narrative Beats to The Piece Of Apple Pie -Director's Notebook Chapter 8 Staging and Camera For The Piece Of Apple Pie -Staging The Piece Of Apple Pie -Camera for The Piece Of Apple Pie Chapter 9 Marking Shooting Script With Camera Setups Chapter 10 Work With Actors -Casting -First Read-Through -Directing During Rehearsals -Directing Actors on the Set Chapter 11 Managerial Responsibilities of the Director -Delegating Authority While Accepting Responsibility -The Producer -The Assistant Director -A Realistic Shooting Schedule -Working with the Crew -Working with the Director of Photography Chapter 12 Postproduction -Editing -Music and Sound -Locking Picture, or, How Do You Know When It's Over? Part Three ORGANIZING ACTION IN AN ACTION SCENE Chapter 13 Staging and Camera for Over Easy Action Scene Part Four ORGANIZING ACTION IN A NARRATIVE SCENE Chapter 14 Staging and Camera for Wanda Narrative Scene Part Five LEARNING THE CRAFT THROUGH FILM ANALYSIS Chapter 15 Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious -Overview of Style and Design -First Act -Second Act -Third Act -Summary Chapter 16 Peter Weir's The Truman Show -Overview of Style and Design -First Act -Second Act -Third Act -Summary Chapter 17 Federico Fellini's 8 1/2 -A Masterpiece? -The Director as Auteur -Dramatic Construction -Overview of Style and Design -What Are We Watching for in This Film? -Detective Work -First Act -Second Act -Third Act -Summary Chapter 18 Styles And Dramatic Structures -Style -Narrative, Dramatic, and Poetic Visual Styles -The Variety of Dramatic Structures -Tokyo Story, Yasujiro Ozu (1935, Japan) -Some Like It Hot, Billy Wilder (1959) -The Battle of Algiers, Gillo Pontecorvo (1965, France) -Red, Krzysztof Kieslowski (1994, Poland, France, Switzerland) -sex, lies and videotape, Steven Soderbergh (1989) -Shall We Dance, Masayuki Suo (1996, Japan) -The Celebration, Thomas -Vinterberg (1998, Denmark) -The Insider, Michael Mann (1999) -The Thin Red Line, Terrence Malick (1998) -In the Mood for Love, (Kar-wai Wong , 2001, Chinese) -Little Children (Todd Field, 2006) Chapter 19 -What's Next? -Building Directorial Muscles -Writing For The Director -Begin Thinking About Your Story -Concocting Your Feature Screenplay - Writing Scenes With Actors -Shooting Your Film Before You Finish Writing It -The Final Script -Shooting Without A Screenplay? -Questions Directors Should Ask -About Their Screenplays -Building Directorial Muscles -Conclusion

Reviews

Just bring your talent, add a touch of luck, and the rest you will find in this book. - Milos Forman, film director (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, The People vs. Larry Flynt) <br> This book makes the really complicated business of directing understandable and, more importantly, do-able. - Focus <br> Nick Proferes doesn't tell you how to direct'which would be as silly as telling you what to direct. Instead, he does something much more valuable: He explains how directors actually think their way though the job. ?James Schamus, Associate Professor of Film at Columbia University, producer and screenwriter (The Ice Storm and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) <br> An admirable overview of the nuts and bolts of directing, Film Directing Fundamentals takes a unique approach in discussing the craft...Full of interesting observations, this book could be a welcome addition to the aspiring director's bookshelf. - Videomaker Magazine <br> For the aspiring director looking to develop craft and technique, this book would be a step in the right direction. - Kurt Patrick Turner <br> I am amazed by the simplicity with which Professor Proferes explicates complex ideas. Film Directing Fundamentals is valuable not only for film directors, but also for actors and anyone interested in the creation of dramatic art. ?Andrie Serban, international theatre and opera director, and Professor at Columbia University's Theater Division <br> There are many books on directing, but none in my opinion have the depth and accessibility of Nick Proferes's. This treasure trove of insight and inspiration is a master class from a master teacher that clearly illuminates, step by step, the building blocks necessary to create meaningful cinematic storytelling with dramatic punch. ?Alex Zamm, director and screenwriter (Chairman of the Board, My Date with the President's Daughter) <br> Few of the many textbooks on film directing make the art as clear and accessible - w

Just bring your talent, add a touch of luck, and the rest you will find in this book. - Milos Forman, film director (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, The People vs. Larry Flynt) <br> This book makes the really complicated business of directing understandable and, more importantly, do-able. - Focus <br> Nick Proferes doesn't tell you how to direct'which would be as silly as telling you what to direct. Instead, he does something much more valuable: He explains how directors actually think their way though the job. ?James Schamus, Associate Professor of Film at Columbia University, producer and screenwriter (The Ice Storm and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) <br> An admirable overview of the nuts and bolts of directing, Film Directing Fundamentals takes a unique approach in discussing the craft...Full of interesting observations, this book could be a welcome addition to the aspiring director's bookshelf. - Videomaker Magazine <br> For the aspiring director loo

Just bring your talent, add a touch of luck, and the rest you will find in this book. - Milos Forman, film director (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, The People vs. Larry Flynt) <br> This book makes the really complicated business of directing understandable and, more importantly, do-able. - Focus <br> Nick Proferes doesn't tell you how to direct?which would be as silly as telling you what to direct. Instead, he does something much more valuable: He explains how directors actually think their way though the job. ?James Schamus, Associate Professor of Film at Columbia University, producer and screenwriter (The Ice Storm and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) <br> An admirable overview of the nuts and bolts of directing, Film Directing Fundamentals takes a unique approach in discussing the craft...Full of interesting observations, this book could be a welcome addition to the aspiring director's bookshelf. - Videomaker Magazine <br> For the aspiring director looking to develop craft and technique, this book would be a step in the right direction. - Kurt Patrick Turner <br> I am amazed by the simplicity with which Professor Proferes explicates complex ideas. Film Directing Fundamentals is valuable not only for film directors, but also for actors and anyone interested in the creation of dramatic art. ?Andrie Serban, international theatre and opera director, and Professor at Columbia University's Theater Division <br> There are many books on directing, but none in my opinion have the depth and accessibility of Nick Proferes's. This treasure trove of insight and inspiration is a master class from a master teacher that clearly illuminates, step by step, the building blocksnecessary to create meaningful cinematic storytelling with dramatic punch. ?Alex Zamm, director and screenwriter (Chairman of the Board, My Date with the President's Daughter) <br> Few of the many textbooks on film directing make the art as clear and accessible - while still addressing its complicated nature - as Nicholas T. Proferes' Film Directing Fundamentals. Proferes is a veteran academic with hands-on experience as a professional filmmaker - a combination that is evident on every page of his book and which allows him to present theories that have obvious applications to real-world directing situations. -Jim Hemphill, American Cinematographer Magazine

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