Beating the Entertainment Business at Its Own Game Part III

The Writer-Director Combination and 5 Insider Tips to Thrive

What do Quentin Tarantino, James Cameron, Roberto Rodriguez, George Lucas, and Christopher Nolan have in common? They’re all writer-directors.

Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino was never a loss when it came to making films. Although he never went to film school, he was obsessed with films and fed his encyclopedic knowledge by working at a video store in California for five years. He knew the importance of writing and always wanted to write and direct. Quentin attended acting classes at the James Best Theater Company to up his improvisation & writing chops.

His bank heist movie, “Reservoir Dogs”, was a success and put him on the map as one to watch. “Pulp Fiction”, an ode to pulp novels that Quentin was into, was his writer-director follow-up. A smash hit that also resurrected John Travolta’s career.

James Cameron

James Cameron also knew the power of writing and used that to jump-start his directing career. He famously sold the rights to his Terminator script for a dollar with the provision that he would direct. The success of that movie allowed him to write and direct the sequel, “Aliens” and led to the eventual Terminator 2 movie.

George Lucas

George Lucas had massive success as a writer/director with his film “American Graffiti” which earned him 5 Academy Award nominations including Best Picture and Best Director. He bombed at the box office with his dystopian sci-fi movie follow-up, “THX 1138”.

He had wanted to direct the Flash Gordon movie and was turned down by the major studios. George decided to create his version of a space opera using all of his influences. He did a genre mash-up of Kurosawa, westerns, Knights of the Round Table, and the samurai meet 2001 a Space Odyssey. He wrote and directed Star Wars and the rest is history.

Be a Jack of All Trades

The producer’s job is to know all aspects of production. Knowing the costs for things and who is the best hire for these areas is key. What if you could do more than one thing in the production pipeline?

After seeing Star Wars, James Cameron knew what he wanted to be. He left his job as a truck driver and taught himself the technical aspects of film production at the USC library. He got a job working for Roger Corman Studios on “B” movies. First as a model maker, then art director, and eventually production designer. He was hired as the special effects director for Piranha II and wound up directing that movie before writing the script for The Terminator. Cameron was known to maximize camera set-ups and getting his shots done quickly.

Cameron was also a great artist and was able to visualize characters and environments. His skill was put to good use in the creation of the Terminator and Avatar franchises.

Roberto Rodriguez

Roberto Rodriguez used $7000 raised from medical testing participation to film the action movie El Mariachi. Shot guerilla-style, Rodriguez did just about all production roles except act. Writer, cameraman, lighting, sound, and editor. His journey was documented in his book Rebel Without a Crew. The film was a winner at the Sundance Film Festival and got him a three-picture deal at Columbia Pictures. The Spy Kids franchise, and collaborations with Tarantino, Frank Miller, James Cameron, and Lucasfilm were soon to follow. Talent recognizes talent.

Christopher Nolan

Christopher Nolan was interested in filmmaking as a child. At age seven he borrowed his father’s super 8mm movie camera to make short films. At age eleven he knew he wanted to be a professional filmmaker. Studying English literature at the University College in London also gave him access to filming and editing facilities on campus where he thrived making 16mm films over the summer. After earning his bachelor’s degree in English literature in 1993 he worked as a script reader, camera operator, and director of corporate and industrial films.

His big break in 1998, was his first feature film, “Following”, which he wrote, directed, photographed, co-produced, and edited. Made on a budget of £3,000 it got rave reviews from the New York Times and the New Times LA. This paved the way for his major hit, “Memento” in 2000 and led to his later success with the Batman franchise, Inception, Interstellar, and Oppenheimer.

Being a jack of all trades not only gives you a bigger paycheck but also gives you more artistic control, longevity, and more opportunities down the road. What have we learned? Here is a quick recap.

• Learn to write and direct, and increase your odds of creative control.
  
  

• Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do something.
  
  

• Use genre mashups to create something new (like Lucas did).
  
  

• Be a Jack of All Trades and teach yourself as many aspects of production as possible.
  
  

• Regardless of your budget, do quality work.

  A Bonus tip:

• Talent recognizes talent. If you are that good, an insider will help you out.
  

(Rodriguez's collaborations with Tarantino, Cameron, and Lucas are a testament to that) Are you writing your next film/novel/comic book? Get the must-read ebook here. Practical approaches, tips, and techniques to generate great ideas at lightning speed.

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How to Beat the Entertainment Business at its Own Game Part I

Beating the Entertainment Business at its Own Game Part II

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