Why Assistant Directing is a great job!
Storytime
When I was a young boy in Vancouver, I was obsessed with hockey. I would watch every Saturday night on Hockey Night in Canada - which of course rarely put Canucks games on, which was my favourite team.
More than being a fan of watching hockey, I really loved making all things hockey. I’d try to figure out how hockey pucks were made, how the ice was smoothed out, how the rink could be turned into a basketball arena overnight.
My Dad and I would design these miniature hockey rinks, with cardboard as the boards and a plastic sheet as the ice. We’d cut out paper to make the center ice line and the blue offside lines. I’d grab a tiny net from a table hockey game, or we would make our own cutting sections of the netting off a bag of oranges or something like that.
The players were chess pieces and the puck was usually a marble. And my Dad and I would make a Zamboni out of wood.
I would play for hours, by myself, with these chess piece hockey players, simulating scoring plays, fights, etc. The act of making this fantastic miniature hockey rink was more thrilling than playing with it,
Assistant Directing was a natural fit.
Those young play days are where I discovered my love of all things “behind-the-scenes”. When I entered the film industry, I found that one department satisfied this absolute craving to be a big part of making the movie and seeing how everything worked. That was the Assistant Directing department.
Every time I worked on a movie, I would geek out at the details. For me, prepping and shooting the movie was as creative as directing the movie itself. Many filmmakers gravitate to the creative side of storyboarding, writing the script, shot planning, acting, etc.
Not me. I like solving the challenges that every movie project offers.
Note: I even refer to a movie as a “project”.
Being an Assistant Director gives me a front row seat - or a backstage pass - to all the "hows" of making a movie.
When I have produced or directed my own work, the skills of being an Assistant Director have served me incredibly well. I know whether a day is going to be too long or too short. I know how to execute a proper stunt, or plan for visual effects, or big party scenes, makeup changes, travel, etc.
Being a great Assistant Director means:
Being flexible and adaptable, as every situation is unique and adjusting on the fly is the only certainty you can count on.
Being meticulously organized.
Being an effective communicator.
Understanding of film departments and needs.
Acute attention to detail.
Agility in multi-tasking.
Ability to work under pressure.
The role compliments not only the skills that I believe are my strengths, but also satisfies that deep desire for constant learning and creative stimulation, job variety (no two days are the same), and community and camaraderie with my fellow crew and the cast.
I am driven every day because I love the leadership and constantly working to make the set just 1% smoother. I love believing in the movie or projects purpose and supporting a creative vision. I love seeing myself as a vital cog in the wheel to help realize this vision.
And finally, Assistant Directing has been the first “career” that I have really felt encapsulates everything else I’ve done: Leadership, building community, helping each other, and constant learning and getting better.
The opportunity to mentor others has really become a passion of mine, now. Whether it’s training new members of my team as 3rd AD’s or Trainees, or teaching at different film schools or online, I enjoy sharing what I’ve learned almost as much as doing it.
What about you? Have you every tried your hand at Assistant Directing? What was your experience like?
Shameless plug: If you’re interested in what it takes to be an Assistant Director, or in improving and developing your logistical skills as a filmmaker, I encourage you to check out my Assistant Directing 101 self-paced online course.
No matter where you are on your filmmaking journey, I wish you luck, and I can’t wait to see what stories you tell.