About the Book
Directing: Film Techniques and Aesthetics is a comprehensive manual that has inspired tens of thousands of readers worldwide to realize their artistic vision and produce well-constructed films. Filled with practical advice on every stage of production, this is the book you will return to throughout your career.
Directing covers the methods, technologies, thought processes, and judgments that a director must use throughout the fascinating process of making a film. It emphasizes low-cost digital technology, which allows cutting-edge creativity and professionalism on shoestring budgets. And, recognizing that you learn best by doing, the book includes dozens of practical hands-on projects and activities to help you master technical and conceptual skills.
Just as important as surmounting technological hurdles is the conceptual and authorial side of filmmaking. This book provides an unusually clear view of the artistic process, particularly in working with actors. It offers eminently practical tools and exercises to help you develop credible and compelling stories with your cast, hone your narrative skills, and develop your artistic identity. This book shows you how to surpass mere technical proficiency and become a storyteller with a distinctive voice and style.
This edition has been streamlined and thoroughly revised for greater ease of use. Other updates include:
* current information on digital technology
* an expanded section on directing actors that cross-references thirty exercises
* new questionnaires to help you pinpoint a film's aesthetic needs and assess where your vocational strengths lie; and much more.
The companion web site includes teaching notes, checklists, and useful forms and questionnaires: www.focalpress.com/cw/rabiger
Table of Contents:
Artistic Identity* The Job of the Director* Identifying Your Themes as a Director* Developing Your Story Ideas* Checklist* Screencraft* Screen Grammar* Seeing with a Moviemaker's Eye* Shooting Projects* Checklist* Writing* The Screenplay* The Process of Writing* Adaptation from Art or Life* Story Development Strategies* Scene-Writing Exercises* Checklist* Aesthetics and Authorship* Point of View* Genre, Conflict, and Dialectics* Structure, Plot, and Time* Space, Stylized Environments, and Performances* Form and Style* Checklist* Preproduction* Interpreting the Script* Casting* Directing Actors* Actors' Problems* Improvisation Work to Explore Acting* Exercises with a Text* Rehearsal and Development* Director and Actor Prepare a Scene* Final Rehearsals and Planning Coverage* Checklist* Production* Developing a Crew* Mise en Scene Basics* Getting Ready to Shoot* Directing the Crew* Monitoring Progress* Checklist* Postproduction* Preparing to Edit* Editing the First Assembly* Editing from Rough Cut to Fine Cut* Editing: Finalization* Editing from Fine Cut to Sound Mix* Titles and Acknowledgments* Checklist* Career Track* Planning a Career* Major International Film/Video Schools* Breaking into the Industry* Checklist* Further Information* Glossary* Select Bibliography* Index
About the Author :
Michael Rabiger has directed or edited over 35 films, founded the Documentary Center at Columbia College, Chicago, and was Chair of its Film/Video Department. Now Professor Emeritus, Rabiger has also been presented with the Preservation and Scholarship Award by the International Documentary Association. He has given workshops in many countries, led a multinational European documentary workshop for CILECT, the international association of film schools. As Visiting Professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, he taught idea development, directing, and advanced production.
When he retired 2001 to write full-time, Columbia renamed its documentary center "The Michael Rabiger Center for Documentary. In 2002 he was made Honorary Professor at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina; in 2003 awarded the 2003 Preservation and Scholarship Award by the International Documentary Association in Los Angeles; in 2005 the Genius Career Achievement Award by the Chicago International Documentary Festival, and also in 2005 was made Professor Emeritus by Columbia College Chicago.
He is the author of the enormously successful, Directing: Film Techniques and Aesthetics (Focal Press), now in its fourth edition, and Directing the Documentary (Focal Press), now in its fifth edition. He is also the author of Developing Story Ideas (Focal Press), currently in its second edition. He is currently writing a biography of Thomas Hardy.
Review :
"Michael Rabiger's book "Directing: Film Techniques and Aesthetics" is the gold standard. His attention to the artistry of directing, not merely the technical concerns, puts him in the first rank. Rabiger's taste, knowledge, and insight are even more finely honed in this new edition. For the novice or the seasoned pro, this book is a joy and a must."
-Jared Rappaport, Chair of the Department of Cinema and Television Arts, California State University - Northridge
"In its fourth edition, Directing remains as fresh and relevant as ever. Rabiger has devised a clear and eminently practical method for film directing which also promotes individual creative expression. By meticulously exploring drama, craft, process and artistic perspective, he demonstrates how to plunge into the heart of a screenplay and emerge with a film that reflects the heart of the director." -Mick Hurbis-Cherrier, Film Professor at Hunter College of the City University of New York, Filmmaker, and author of, "Voice & Vision: A Creative Approach to Narrative Film and DV Production"
"As he has in previous editions of "Directing," Michael Rabiger continues to offer a complete and comprehensive overview of virtually all aspects of directing, from ideas to budgeting, from casting to editing. From my viewpoint there is no comparable book on the market."
-Eric Swelstad, Department Chair - Media Arts, Los Angeles Valley College
"A comprehensive introduction to directing that focuses heavily on the interpersonal and organizational aspects of the craft....For those about to embark on their debut short or feature, Directing offers a thorough manual that keeps one from having to learn everything the hard way." - American Cinematographer
Praise for the 3rd Edition:
"This is the single most valuable guide for both novice and seasoned practitioner...The new edition continues to be the comprehensive text for learning directing, integrating the rapid changes in technology with what was already a superbly detailed step-by-step text." - Jameson Goldner, professor of cinema at San Francisco State University
"This is the only comprehensive book on filmmaking that I recommend to my students", Jeremy Kagan, USC Graduate Film School; Artistic Director Sundance Institute
