First Time Director: How to Make Your Breakthrough Movie

by Gil Bettman

This book explains in precise, easy to understand language everything the novice director needs to know before taking on his or her first professional assignment.

Genres: Nonfiction, Film

385 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2003

Reviews

[Doug Bremner · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you can get past the first few chapters where he says you have to sleep with your producer and then drones on about the usual create the heroic male protagonist this is a pretty good read.

[Brianna Silva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not entirely sure how to feel about this book. It spent a lot of time oscillating between really good, practical advice and then stuff that is like... genuinely messed up and bizarre. O_o

Helpful advice included, but was not limited to:
- Strategies that are specific to the experience of a low-budget, first-time film (most books on directing do not focus on this!)
- Lots of useful terminology and advice for communicating/working with specific people in a film project; i.e. the sound mixer, the first A.D., the producer, etc. etc.
- Personal advice on how to present yourself on and off set to gain the respect you need as a director and not get walked over
- Lots of specific, practical tips on how to break down a script, and how to work with amateur actors to milk the best possible performances

Super weird, sometimes messed up content included, but was not limited to:
- UNIRONICALLY SAYING THAT IT MAY SOMETIMES BE PRUDENT TO HAVE SEX WITH YOUR PRODUCER (sorry I... sorry I.... sorry W H A T ! ! !)
- A strange obsession with Robert Zemechis, the author's friend, who he literally mentions at every conceivable moment he can
- A mindboggling misunderstanding of The Godfather where a key moment in the protagonist's corruption arc is described as a moment of peak heroism (????)
- The whole section about "eye candy"... I have no words. That chapter actually made me angry. I have never heard anyone talk about "eye candy" in a positive way EXCEPT FOR THIS FELLOW
- An actual description of a SEXUAL HARRASSER in Hollywood, named on page 115, who the author speaks about positively, with seemingly no awareness whatsoever??
- Effectively saying that abusing your actors is fine sometimes if it brings out a good performance???? (page 233, 249)

I feel like this author revealed his character a bit in this book, and it's not a pretty picture. But if you can read around the weird and semi-disturbing bits, this book is worth reading for anyone like me, a director at the very beginning stages of trying to break into the industry.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would definitely help a first time director throughout the first film. Lots of practical advice from an experienced director.

[Arthur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this now for a second time.

[Wilson Lanue · Rating 4 out of 5]

You'd be hard-pressed to find a better single-volume introduction to the basics of pulling a film from chaos.

[Zaity · Rating 2 out of 5]

Any insights into directing are clouded by, well, sexist commentary, an almost deliberate lack of acknowledgement of women's place in film and fanboy like reverence to a small set of directors and artists.

This book hasn't aged well.