How to Achieve While Others Are Trouncing All Over Your Silly Shoes

Our short "Golden Foot" has been really great to shoot despite some of the issues we had in pre-production. Those things are past now and I am happy I tried and succeeded in resolving disputes as quickly as possible. This has really been an invaluable experience for me. Believe me, this doesn't mean I'm soft on people when my vision is at stake. Especially, if I can cull together a consensus about how to achieve that vision with other key players. After all, a director's job is to have vision- often a strong one- and then know how to achieve that vision.

Hopefully, I can use my experiences here to help cooperate better with producers in the future though. I know what difficulties producers have to go through because I am a producer as well. Achieving consensus on the most important aspects of the story and on potentially the most expensive parts of production are essential. Making sure the director has a strong ethic and is trustworthy is just as important. These are things I care about greatly and I strive to tirelessly maintain this ethic.

Making sure you are there because you are 'right' for this project should be the first thing that gets realized, or you might end up fighting a losing battle. And being 'right' for a project doesn't mean you are getting a paycheck that you like- it means that your vision is communicable and achievable in this environment. The environment that needs to be present for this to happen is a budget and the key players which will enable your vision to come to life. Without this, a discordant note may always plague meetings and collaboration- even if you don't notice it at first.

If you notice these weaknesses in time- all is not lost. But, realize that a lot of work is forthcoming. The great thing is that a budget is always something you can work towards together, but if you don't have those key players you need, a worthy budget will only further accentuate the failure of your key collaborative relationships.

Once I have a good idea of what is achievable and what it will take to make this film, maintaining my cool and sticking to my guns becomes more important, whether I'm facing criticism from my most trusted confidants or from any level of business associate. But, also, you must learn how to choose your battles strategically. As they say, "...If you're moaning because your feet keep getting stepped on, maybe you need to take off the clown shoes."

...This means that maybe you are taking too many things seriously or being unrealistic- which can only give off the impression to others that you are being melodramatic- even, ridiculous about non-essentials. So, have some priorities that make sense to your cohorts. At least clowns know that they are ridiculous- their job is to be ridiculous. But, yours is to know your limitations- know what's important and know what can be unloaded for the sake of making a better film. Because it's actually not about you ...it's about actually making the film. After all, making a product is REALLY what will earn you more respect in the future. Then, if you wear clown shoes to work, people will assume you have some sort of method to what you are doing and they will question your quirks much less. They may even assume brilliance!

And, of course, this goes without saying, but- know when to seek guidance or when to listen to advice. You're going to get plenty so- get used to it. Of course, we must always listen to others. This is essential! And I'm not talking about standing there while others talk- I'm talking about actually hearing and considering what others say in a conscientious manner. It is the heart of collaborative filmmaking in my view.

All these things that they don't teach you in school- how to be kind and how to actually work with people while other people aren't actually being kind to you. These things are essential to being a professional in the business. But lots of people just get told that they are "great," so they accept it ...until it really matters. Then they wonder why nobody will give them the time of day. Because we are paying attention to the lies and niceties instead of the reality. The reality is you must prove yourself FIRST... and do it while smiling and getting kicked in the rumpus at the same time. That isn't actually unfair. It's actually the way it works. When someone congratulates you or is nice to you- it doesn't mean they really think you are the best, it just means they are being nice. And others being nice says more about who they are instead of who you are... Remember that.