Screenwriting : Script writing to Directing by Simon Hartwell

Yes - I've traveled that bumpy path in the US - I know nothing about the UK.

My college friend is a DGA Director. Yeah, there is a huge leap/ commitment directing as a Hobby (me) versus directing as a full-time Occupation (him).

Everything is different when the thing you want to do is a job versus a hobby.

Just do it.

I have directed. I like to do rough storyboards for my stories yo make sure they work. Added to the fact that I am a camera nerd, it is a small leaps.

To see if it works for you. Try storyboarding your script. See if you actually like working visually.

They are two different skills that need to be learned and mastered. One requires written language, the other requires an understanding of visual language. So you need to learn how to communicate in that language. Getting hired - either as a screenwriter or director - requires that you can demonstrate those skills. Learn how to direct, then make a bunch of short films that demonstrate your skills.

Hi Simon,

And in addition to the insights mentioned above, you have to have the ability to get the most from your performers. Some directors expect an appropriate amount of rehearsals. You have to be firm in your performance expectations/realizations AND everything else in the sound and vision of the shot, and you have to really be able to evaluate those performances in a very high-level and objective way - sometimes on-the-fly, and sometimes after reviewing your content.

I never directed a film, but I did write/direct dozens of newscast episodes in college; dozens of promos for NBC during an internship; a few dozen commercials after that; and a skit-comedy pilot. Sometimes I was so focused on the shot look and timing/pacing that I lost perspective on the performances. Bad Bill!

You have to be able to do those tasks simultaneously, and if you're also the cinematographer - and the lighting person, and the sound person, too - ouch...that's a lot to handle at once, and especially when trying to make high-quality content that sophisticated audiences expect.

Best fortunes in your creative endeavors, Simon!

Directing is very different from writing. You need keen interpersonal skills, because the bulk of the job is communicating your vision to a lot of different people in a lot of different departments who all have different interpretations of your work and personal goals for the project. You need to be able to track a ridiculous number of details at once and manage your time and resources like nobody’s business. It’s the hardest job on set, if you’re doing it right, and the people who do it poorly think their artistic vision is so clear and potent people will just “get it” and they don’t put in the work.