大象传媒

Ed Fraiman recently directed an adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream, starring Johnny Vegas, Imelda Staunton and Bill Paterson, for the 大象传媒. Other programmes he's directed include , As If and The Bill.

As his top tip, he told us, "The most important thing is to think of the director as a storyteller. Everything you do should be about telling the story." But he had a bit more to say too.

Working with actors
Give them support and encouragement. Remember it can be difficult to expose yourself in front of the camera.

"Make sure your actors don't overact."

Make sure your actors don't overact. They should be natural, as in real-life, and not over-the-top. Ask yourself, do you believe that their characters would act in this way? If the answer is yes, then it's a good performance.

Lighting.
Think about the lighting. Where is it coming from? Is it natural, like sunlight, moonlight, firelight or candlelight? Is it electric, from a lightbulb or a flourescent tube?
Would a particular sort of light help to tell the story? For example, candlelight could be romantic, moonlight could be magical or scary. Flourescent lighting is quite harsh and brutal.

Design
Think about what locations you shoot in and why you've chosen them. You can surprise people's expectations and show that things aren't always what they appear to be. So the outside of a flat could be run down, but the inside of it is someone's home and maybe it's warm and cosy.
With costume, you might have someone who's quite poor, but maybe they put a lot of thought into what they're wearing and they're very tidy and groomed.

Break the rules.
It's a really big note from me. If it helps tell the story, break the rules. So, use things like jump cuts. People don't always have to walk into a scene and then walk out again. If there's a way of doing it quicker with more energy, and that energy suits the style of the story - do it. Break the rules and be confident about it.

Brian has just directed an adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing, starring Sarah Parish, Damien Lewis and Billie Piper, for the 大象传媒. Other dramas he's directed include North and South and Clocking Off.

His top piece of advice is, "Always respect the audience, never patronise or imply that your own vision is too important to listen to others." But he also had the following to say.

Shoot lots of cover (extra footage), its better to have the option to cut even if you decide not to use it.

The collective result of the finished film is more important than any one individual involved in making it.

Nick's topmost tip
Always just listen to the actors when they're acting. Never look at them. It gives you a false impression of what their voice is doing, because you naturally get influenced by their facial expressions.

Getting the best performances
You need to make sure the performance is really honest and true to life, no matter how fantastical the situation might be.

I always find it works to give actors examples of situations they might have experienced themselves, that might help them to get closer to the 'reality' of the situation in a scene.

As a general rule of thumb with any kind of directing that you should be as encouraging as possible and never make the actor feel they are failing if you ask for a second or third take.

"It helps to make the actors laugh."

Always make it clear to them that you and they are on a journey together to get it as good as you can both make it. Rather than saying, "No good, let's do it again," I always say, "That's good, but I think we can do a better one."

It also helps to make the actors laugh now and again. Laughing loosens up the vocal chords and relaxes actors, so they're likely to worry less, and also give a vocally more interesting performance.

Beyond all that stuff, which you'd do for any kind of good directing, you have to talk to the actor about them channelling it all through their voice.

What makes a good director?
A good director makes the actor feel they're paying attention and picking up on everything. They should seem ahead of the game and able to help them actors with things they hadn't thought about, and also able to discuss a part freely and accept ideas from actors in an open way.

I often say to actors, "I don't care who's right, as long as one of us is". The best kind of director is one who balances being passionate about the work with humour.

If, as an actor, you feel you can laugh and enjoy yourself, but still feel confident that you're doing it well and that you're going to get the play finished on time, then I think that's an indication that you've got a good director.

Be realistic about casting.
You work out what the character you're casting is, and look round for the person who's closest to that character. If you've got a part for a bully, you try and find someone who's got a voice that will fit that. You don't go to the thin wiry edgy person and hope you can get it from them.

Plan your time
There's no point in spending hours and hours and hours on a scene if it means you've got to rush the rest of the scenes off in no time at all. That'll just cause misery. If you've got a lot of cast together in a scene, that takes a long time.