Peter Capaldi On Directing

Capaldi took time out from his ridiculously busy life to tell Making Movies how everything works...

What is the role of the director?
Essentially the director shows up with some idea of what the film is going to be when it hits the screen. His task is to communicate that idea to the people around him who will then ignore it, or go into a huff about it, or tell him its impossible, reject it, come up with a hugely better idea, and if he's very lucky make something that retains the good part (if any) of his original idea and improves it considerably. Or they can just ruin it.

The actual job entails the following:
· Knowing the story of the film as a whole.
· Understanding how each individual scene contributes to that story.
· Understanding how every character and event contributes to that scene and story.
· Making sure that the actors have the information and support they individually need to make the scene work.
· Deciding where best to place the camera to effectively record the scene.
· Deciding which lighting, scenery, costumes etc. effectively contribute to the telling of the story.
· Deciding how open to be to the wisdom of others.
· Getting the days work done.
· Having a vision of the film...
· As well as a thoroughly prepared picture of every scene which you are ready to throw away as soon as better ideas are offered up.
· Pointing the camera at the right place when wonderful stuff happens.

How does the director work the Cinematographer?
This is one of the most important relationships in the filmmaking process. Enormous care must be taken over your choice of cinematographer as it will affect every frame of your film, the atmosphere in which it is made, and the moral of your crew, cast and yourself.