Be a 1st AD, Be a Better Filmmaker

Walk a mile in a 1st Assistant Director's shoes (you'll probably end up walking a cumulative 7-8 by the end of the day) and you'll learn a lot about directing.  By leaving your creative hat on the rack when you walk out the door for your 3:00 AM call time, you'll be liberated to experience (not simply witness) a lot about how a set breathes, beats, moves, and functions.  A recent project allowed me that great opportunity.

I remember directing past projects, standing there, looking at my watch, wondering, "Alright, why aren't we shooting?

I'd ask the DP, who'd respond: "I don't know, I'm ready..."

Suddenly you'd realize everyone was standing around waiting for someone to move production forward.  -- One of many situations where excess anxiety came out as visible sweat, while I tried to understand why in God's name things weren't moving the way the schedule said they would.

For the uninitiated, according to "The Everything Filmmaking Book," (yes, one of those generic Barnes and Noble specials out there -- don't lie, you've got one too) a first AD's job description is:

"[Someone who keeps] the balance between actual filming and the daily production schedule. [...] They track a film's progress, prepare call sheets, and make sure that everything is on time and within range of the schedule.  They also coordinate with actors and crew to maintain shooting schedules."

Simply put: Everyone on their set has their role.  The director, the DP, actors, make-up, production designer, etc. -- the AD coordinates every department to move through the schedule quickly, efficiently, and as seamlessly as possible (safely) without trading off too much quality in return.

That was a huge lesson: there is a real and distinct trade off between quality and schedule.

The day started off like this: grip and electric appear to be doing their jobs... check.  Make up is setting up... all systems go, extras, actors and director are staged and prepped.  The DP (Nick), was setting up the shot with his crew and I hadn't realized the director in me hadn't been properly exorcised:

"Give them time!  They need time get it just right.  You need some more time? -- Take it!  Have some more time, get it perfect.  How much time would you need?...  Alright you have 5 minutes... 5 minutes are up.  Not done, ok go ahead and take another 5 minutes..."

The director in me was way to sympathetic.  The AD wasn't driving, he was being driven over.  Thankfully Trina (of course, our resident producer/production manager, and once again savior of productions) pulled me aside and talked sense into me.

A DP can spend hours making a shot better, and a director can spend hours working with actors to achieve her vision.  Unrestrained, no doubt the perfectionists and obsessives among us would take another hour on top of those hours to "just nail it," but something inside (or the AD) has to tell them when it's time to stop.

That time to stop became much clearer for me after stepping outside of the creative realm, into the world of the 1st AD.  Things can always be improved, but at some point, less improvement starts taking more time.  Look at the convenient graph below to see what I mean:

When the AD reaches the above point, there's a judgment call -- give them a few more minutes to reach for that forbidden fruit because we're already ahead of schedule?  Take the time gain and save it for a tough shot coming up?  Or GO NOW because we're fighting daylight.

As a director or a DP, knowing that point of diminishing return is extremely valuable.  The trouble of course, is recognizing it and then forcing yourself to stop.  It's a discipline that can be improved the more you're fundamentally attached to it's importance.  If you can cut yourself off, you won't render the AD's job meaningless, but at least you'll be shaving even more precious time off the schedule, keeping moral high, getting everything you need, and making your producer very happy.

Other valuable lessons and practice:

• If the AD doesn't need to tell you what you should be doing next, you're saving even more time and probably doing your job better.  What should you be doing next?  The answer and the urgency to get to what's next is something that being an AD can instill (or a good AD WILL instill on set).
• This one's pretty standard, but it always bears repeating: think your production all the way through in pre-production.  The answers should come fast (a little extra bonus time granted for problem solving).
• Delegate, use resources in parallel, and keep it moving, keep it moving, keep it moving.

Execution is easy to overlook when you're caught up in the creative aspects of filmmaking, but when it comes down to budget, set stress level (and what that does to performance and safety), and getting everything you need before the day is out, execution is as important as it gets.

Charles Rhoads