Customer Reviews

Directing Feature Films: The Creative Collaborarion Between Director, Writers, and Actors

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3 star:		(1)
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Mark shows the secrets of how to inspire actors well beyond their natural instincts to create the emotional journey so the camera can capture it; and he works so efficiently!

About 12 years ago, my directing partner (who is also my wife) and I attended an incredible, intensive directing workshop. For three days we ate, drank, slept, and lived filmmaking from script analysis to post-production, under the tutelage of a very intimidating instructor - Mark Travis. I say intimidating because this guy was direct, succinct, focused and INTENSE. Not only that, but he was brilliant. His insights, technique, innovations, and even the simple fundamentals were so solid, and straight-forward, there was NO way you could have walked away from the experience without being a better director. If there every was one, Mark Travis is a virtuoso director... a Mozart of actors, stage and celluloid, if you will.

Now, 12 years, 4 films, 19 theatrical productions, and a handful of awards later, we use this book nearly every day. Be it on the set or stage, or just from inspiration and brush-up, this magnificent book encapsulates everything about Mark's talents. He is no primadonna, unwilling to divulge more than a few vaguaries of his techniques, nor does he preach to you about his own successful career and how wonderful he is. What he does do if layout technique, approach, execution and adjustment in a no-nonsense fashion that yields one of the best "How-To" books on directing (not only film but more specifically actors), and achieving the vision of a director, ever written.

If you are looking for a book to keep in your hip-pocket on the set, or something to refer back to for inspiration, ideas, and fixes, then look no further. This is it.

Mark Travis has written what is in my opinion the best book on directing ever published. I've been a working and very sucessful director for 25 years and I can tell you that the insight contained in this book is fantastic.

If this is your first book on this topic...it's a good start. If you've read any other book about directing...you've read this one.

I've read many books on filmmaking, especially directing. But Mark is one of the few authors that actually was able to talk to me directly. This book has a way to surpass the bull#@!% and talk straight. It shows me how clear directing can be when understood on the level that Mark writes about. I would recommend - and for that matter already have - this book to anyone who's interested in getting down to the core of directing.

I love this book! I'm going to have to buy another one, because I've bent the pages all over in returning to refer to advice again and again. I'm an emerging film-maker, and this book is the secret key that unlocks to door to the skills and steps crucial in directing. It's pragmatic, comprehensive, and applicable. I applied Mark's advice on rehearsals, collaboration, pre-production, and script breakdown to my film and saw immediate deep improvements. The Director's Journey is more than a manual for making great films though, it's a support to the person going through the process. Mark Travis illuminates the psychology, relationships, objectives and pitfalls inherent in this work, and he offers the creative traveler excellent personal guidance.

Directing Feature Films: The Creative Collaboration Between Directors, Writers, And Actors by Mark Travis (an experienced director of motion pictures, television programs, and stage shows) is a welcome and thoroughly "user friendly" resource that carefully and informatively guides the reader through the creativity of filmmaking from the initial concept to the finished work on the silver screen. Offering a wealth of advice and insights on everything from dealing with disputes on-set, to using emotional graphs, to improve communication about acting performance, to working closely with consultants, Directing Feature Films is an invaluable and very strongly recommended resource for all active and aspiring filmmakers.

If you're at all serious about directing, look no further, this is the book. Mark Travis will guide, inform, inspire you...and all done with such a light and humorous touch, as well as great enthusiasm, you can't wait to try it yourself. Really, of all the 1000's of books out there on the subject, this is the best. The information is presented so clearly, you wonder why everybody doesn't work this way. Mark Travis obviously has a deep respect for actors and writers, and how best to work with them in a collaborative spirit . He also appears to have a great wealth of knowledge from years in the business, which he openly shares. I loved this book, and often refer back to it. I'd highly recommend it, and would give it to anyone interested in directing.

If you are searching for a book to inspire, inform and clearly break down the making of a film and the relationship between the many creative entities that go into that process, look no further. Mark Travis has written a literate, thoughtful and experienced guide to how to approach issues relating to written material, casting, performance, production values...really everthing you need to work intelligently on a project. Whatever stage of your career you're in, you will find yourself referring to this book again and again.

Mark Travis graduated from the Yale School of Drama and has directed theatrical films, television programs, and stage shows. His PBS dramatic special Blind Tom: The Thomas Bethune Story won an Emmy, and he has served as a "directing consultant" on a number of feature films and top rated television program. He's also taught a number of seminars and written books, including this one, on the art of directing. His writing style is unpretentious and conversational, his advice is practical and concrete - all the sorts of things you want in a "how to" guide. As he notes, "Filmmaking is not a precise science. It's not even an imprecise science. It's a craft, an art form." He makes no bold pronouncements, no guarantees that he has found "the" way to direct a film, save that he does believe that directors must be passionate about their material, find meaning in it, and become the unifying voice which pushes the project to completion.

This is a practical, informative guide to the directorial process.