DIRECTING UNIT: STEVE FINN

Steve Finn is a Professional TV Director who has been Directing for over 20 years. Currently working for Eastenders and has done over 100 episodes of the programme. He explained that Directing can have challenging times, Steve had this with 'Moon's Fire' which was that he wasn't originally going to Direct it, the original dropped out and he then had to write up, shot for shot, what he was going to do in that scene since it is such a complex scene.

He explained that being prepared and having everything planned, is the way to keep everything flowing and keeping to schedule. Preparation is key for directing to make a shoot work. He explained that he will have 4 weeks of prep before a shoot. The director works through all the departments and work through each department working up to the block of the scenes and shoot and then on the forth week, the entire crew meet together and the director will talk through the schedule and what he is going to shoot and how.

He told us, the important part of the director is to see the production and see the script come to life, scene by scene, before getting onto set. All the work he described is done in his head. 'Scripts are god at the moment' is what he said but explained that directors are always about pictures.

Directors never have the final say. These are always working for other people, BBC, Universal, Marvel, Disney, etc. these big companies and the producers for them, the people who have put the money towards it are the ones who have the final say. If you didn't have a director, the production wouldn't work and would crash and burn, It's a really important responsibility. Good and bad directors can still teach you how to be a good director. Watching people work is a fantastic way to learn how to direct.

Acting is 'doing'. What the people are DOING is what makes the drama, not what they're saying. Actions speak louder than words. When you get a script, ask yourself 'What are these people doing?'. Do the actions work with the dialogue, does it flow and make sense?

A Master Shot is a wide shot that develops. Not just a wide shot, the Master is a loose shot that develops and if it's a good developing shot, you won't need more coverage or any coverage. A good master shot is one that you want to use again and again and again. Sometimes, the master shot might be so good, you won't cut into it at all. As long as it develops either within the frame or with the frame changing.