Film Directing 110: The Director's Camera

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LEVEL 100 blogs are for film students and first-time directors taking on the directing role for a short film. The series is designed to help and guide new filmmakers through the director’s prep duties, pre-production activities, and principle photography dynamics.

The most powerful storytelling tool is the camera

Understanding the power of the camera and knowing the fundamentals of cinematography is essential for every director.

The director’s goal is to make the audience feel something.

When all the planning is complete and the show moves ahead to principle photography, the director’s ideas must be captured by the camera — along with the help and skill of the filmmaking team.

The director’s ideas are put into a frame. The viewer can understand the director’s intention — the meaning, the emotion, and the story information — in a single composition.

Creating strong images that are carefully designed with intentional storytelling details is the director’s job.

The power and effectiveness of the storytelling lies in the director’s camera choices for:

  • the angle

  • the frame

  • the focus, and

  • the movement

These variables can link together and tell a sophisticated story in one shot, or create a beautifully edited scene comprised of different shots.

Each of these four variables come with universally accepted conventions. Understanding how these conventions impact the audience’s understanding and attention is fundamental for the visual storyteller.

The beginning director must have an understanding of how camera placement and movement can convey the narrative purpose of a shot or a scene.

Firstly, the camera has to have a starting position. Whether it moves or not, the camera must have a reason to be placed where it is. And if it does move, there must be a reason for the camera to end the move where it does.

There are many dynamics to consider, so this will be covered in sections. We’ll delve into greater detail in upcoming posts. Level 200 will introduce advanced techniques. In the meantime…

HOMEWORK:

Every student film director will greatly benefit from a thorough read of The 5 C’s of Cinematography, by Joseph V. Mascelli. It’s so important, I suggest reading it twice.

There is much to learn in this film education classic.

The 5 C’s are:

  • Camera Angles

  • Continuity

  • Cutting

  • Close-ups, and

  • Composition

*Hidden Easter Egg Alert: If you read the 5 C’s from cover to cover, you will find the 6th C of Cinematography. This is one of the most important filmmaking tips you can learn, and it can be applied in almost every shot — static or moving.

When you find it, you’ll never forget it.

Happy hunting!