It’s been a long while since my last post but I went to see Craig Lucas give a talk today to directors, writers and actors and its blog-worthyness compelled me to come out of blog-hiding. Mr. Lucas, an older man with an ease at making people laugh, shared these jewels of wisdom:
– Don’t work on a script that needs fixing.
– Blame is useless–just get on with the play/movie!
– Directing is about taking care of others and making decisions.
– The 4 enemies of productivity: others’ opinions, drama, the past and worrying.
– Performance is always a compromise.
– Create a space and time for actors to arrive — don’t tell them how to do it.
– Not knowing fuels the work.
– A good play/movie should make you think about your life, not the set dressing, stage direction, acting, etc.
– As a director, experience each performance of your play like the audience rather than as a director checking to see if your actors are following your notes.
– You can’t have an ego about your creative work — what’s more important is to make it better if it needs to be.
– In your work, surround yourself with actors and artistic directors who are seekers to give you another perspective — those that make you answer the hard questions.
– Have as much to learn as I have to give.
– As a director, align yourself with young writers and actors. As writers and actors, likewise.
– Acquire the habit to write even if it means tying yourself to a chair–something he had his boyfriend do to him literally for 4 hours at a time.
– In writing adaptations, make it dramatizable.
– Select moments of silence in the play/movie. It allows the audience to breathe and laugh when necessary without worrying that they are going to miss something.
Working in the logistic laden world of film production, creativity is something that I’ve been out of practice with and have almost forgotten. It’s nice to remember what got me started in the first place.
A big thank you to Karen Kohlhass who invited me to hear Mr. Lucas talk to her directing class students!
The Aspiring Adventuress 