Directed by

by Bruce Kimmel

Bruce Kimmel began directing at the ripe old age of fifteen. Directed by is his account of his sixty years directing plays, musicals, TV, movies, and more. He covers all of it—how he found what worked for him, mistakes he made along the way, tips on how to deal with actors and other creatives, how to deal with problems that arise that must be solved quickly, and how to keep the work atmosphere as positive as possible. He also talks about the film and theater directors who influenced him and the directors he worked with as an actor.

There are anecdotes aplenty about his hit cult film, The First Nudie Musical, and his second film, The Creature Wasn’t Nice, and its difficulties in post-production. Asked to replace a director on a film called Prime Suspect on a day’s notice, he goes into detail about dealing with an unhappy star whose boyfriend was the director he replaced, how he got the crew instantly on his side, how he was able to at least make a few sequences that he was proud of, while learning that no matter how professional you are and how creative you are, you cannot overcome an incoherent script.

Kimmel also talks about the trend-setting cabaret shows he’s done, the nightclub acts he’s directed, working with kid performers, and his oddest assignment, directing a Hanna-Barbera rap video for kids. He doesn’t shy away from talking about people who were difficult, but mostly he’s lavish in his praise of those he’s worked with. He also talks about his two successful web series, how it was to direct his bucket-list production of the musical Li’l Abner, as well as the world premiere of the Sherman Brothers musical, Levi!, the story of Levi Strauss.

The book is filled with humor and the occasional sense of the absurd, Kimmel’s sometimes peculiar ways of working, and mostly the extreme pleasure he takes in the work. All that and you’ll learn the meaning of JEF.

So, buckle up for this sometimes wild ride through a multi-faceted directing career.

This is Bruce Kimmel’s twenty-fifth book. If you’ve missed the other twenty-four, they’re all available at the big online stores. He is still actively directing, his latest accomplishments being a successful production of the flop musical, 70, Girls, 70 and the award-winning web series, Sami, which is streaming on Amazon Prime. Mr. Kimmel is a proud member of the Directors Guild of America for over forty years.

306 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 20, 2024

About the author

Bruce Kimmel wrote, directed and starred in the cult movie hit, The First Nudie Musical (available on a Special Edition Blu-ray). He also co-created (with David Wechter) the story for the hit film, The Faculty, directed by Robert Rodriguez. As an actor, Mr. Kimmel guest-starred on most of the long-running television shows of the 1970s.

Since 1993, Mr. Kimmel has been one of the leading producers of theatre music on CD, having produced over 180 albums. He was nominated for a Grammy for producing the revival cast album of Hello, Dolly! and his album with jazz pianist Fred Hersch, I Never Told You, was also nominated for a Grammy. He has produced solo albums for Petula Clark, Helen Reddy, Jason Graae, Liz Callaway, Christiane Noll, Rebecca Luker, Brent Barrett, Sally Mayes, and many others. He has a successful record label, Kritzerland.

His musical, The Brain From Planet X (written with David Wechter) has been seen in Los Angeles, New York, the UK, Canada (in both French and English), Australia and other fun places. Most recently, he is the creator/writer/director of the new short form comedy series Sami, now showing on Amazon Prime Video and garnering rave reviews and several festival wins around the country for Best Web Series.

Mr. Kimmel is the author of twenty-seven books – his acclaimed Benjamin Kritzer trilogy (Benjamin Kritzer, Kritzerland, and Kritzer Time), the mysteries Writer’s Block and Rewind, his seven Adriana Hofstetter mysteries (Murder At Hollywood High, Murder At The Grove, Murder At The Hollywood Historical Society, and Murder At The Masquers, Murder at the School Musical, Murder at the Hollywood Division, and Murder at the Magic Castle), Patrick Bronstein Presents, Thrill Ride, his collection of short fiction, How To Write A Dirty Book and Other Stories, Red Gold, his two memoirs (There's Mel, There's Woody, and There's You - My Life In The Slow Lane and the follow up, Album Produced By... More of my Rollercoaster Life). GEE, Simply: A Lifetime of Lyrics, Some Days Are Murder, and its sequel, Tis the Season to Be Murdered, Preview Harvey, the new Benjamin Kritzer novel, Kritzer World, Directed by, Vegas Can Be Murder, and Richard and Me.