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Want To Be A Film Or Commercial Director? There Are A Few Routes You Can Take To Get There

20 October 2016 by Eelis Niemi

You don't have to live in Hollywood or New York to become a film or commercial director. While these cities do offer the most chances and opportunities to get work and learn the craft, you can gain experience and earn a living practically anywhere in the world. So, how do you become a film or commercial director? There are a few ways to get there.

Studio and Guild Route

The film industry has a number of unions that represent people in pretty much all aspects of film making, and this includes directors. You can sign up with a studio as a production assistant and gain on-the-job training and work your way up the ranks. You could also sign up for the Director's Guild, where you can attend courses, learn from working directors, and earn the hours you will need to become a director.

Independent Films

While not a recent route to success, more would-be and already working directors are opting to go the independent route when making films. As an independent director, you tend to have more freedom of creation and will learn a lot about making a good movie on a low budget to start. Many times when you're first starting out as a director, you will be the film's producer as well until such time as you have established yourself to convince independent producers to sign on or to hire you for their projects.

Film School

Some directors believe the only correct way to learn the craft is by attending film school. This is definitely a good way to learn the industry inside and out and gets you contacts and connections you might not make otherwise. There is a chance that any films you make in film school could be good enough to submit to festivals for consideration.

Marketing or Advertising

If you want to be a commercial director, a good way to start is to learn about advertising and marketing and how the current trends can lead to better sales for your clients. You could either attend school for marketing or advertising or approach an agency for any openings for those who produce commercials or online content for their clients. This will give you a good portfolio should you wish to become a freelance director.

Stage Director

You might not have considered becoming a stage director before turning to film or commercials, but it is a great way to gain experience and learn the industry. Stage directing requires very similar skills to film directing, such as blocking, timing, working with actors, and even lighting and audio skills that many film and commercial directors don't have. Working on the stage is also a great way to place more work into your portfolio for potential future film or commercial work.

To learn more about directing, consider watching and learning from the work of other directors, like John O'Hagan.

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