On Directing Film

By Viqi Wagner

Book Overview

A masterclass on the art of directing from the Pulitzer Prize-winning (and Oscar and Tony-nominated) writer of Glengarry Glen Ross, Speed the Plow, The Verdict, and Wag the Dog Calling on his unique perspective as playwright, screenwriter, and director of his own critically acclaimed movies like House of Games, State and Main, and Things Change, David Mamet illuminates how a film comes to be. He looks at every aspect of directing--from script to cutting room--to show the many tasks directors undertake in reaching their prime objective: presenting a story that will be understood by the audience and has the power to be both surprising and inevitable at the same time. Based on a series of classes Mamet taught at Columbia University's film school, On Directing Film will be indispensible not only to students but to anyone interested in an overview of the craft of filmmaking. "Passion, clarity, commitment, intelligence--just what one would expect from Mamet." --Sidney Lumet, Academy Award-nominated director of 12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Network, and The Verdict This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140127224
• ISBN13: 9780140127225
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.27 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

Hitchcock would have loved this book

Those who think that modern orgies of self-indulgence by directors such as Tarantino and Guy Ritchie are masterpieces, might think again after reading this well written and concise primer on the craft of directing.Mamet's argument is essentially that film is a visual montage of shots presented in logical order, that lead the viewer through the goal directed struggle of the protagonist. Every shot should further the immediate...

I really enjoyed this book

This book, like all the books of Mamet I have read, is very short. It taught me a lot about film making without the need to turn a whole lot of pages. I think there comes a time when even the most faithful Mamet reader says, "I've read enough of this guy's short little books, I'm moving on." I've reached that point myself. Nonetheless I'm glad I read this book and think anyone who is interested in theatre or film will...

Buy this book. It's worth it.

I have found this book to be of great use. I have highlighted much of the text and have been assimilating it since it came out in hardcover. Technology is evolving toward consumer movie making and this book can serve as a point of departure for anyone with a video camera and a desire to tell stories but no pressing desire to become a part of "the industry". His technique is admittedly rigid but is simple to understand...

An arrow in the quiver of any fine writer.

Mamet's plays have been known for exposing gender miscommunication(Oleanna, Sexual Perversity in Chicago), investigating what drives the common man (Glengarry Glen Ross, American Buffalo) and bringing to light our fears and desires (The Duck Variations, Edmond). He has a style of theatre attributed to him, identified by blue collar, swearing, seedy characters. When NYPD Blue premiered it was referred to, by some, as Mamet...