Director Credit?

[ernesth100]

Am i the only one who notices despite the fact that there are multiple large roles in a film that the director gets ALL the credit.

 

[dude stannis]

Or all the blame.

 

[DDS]

You mean like when a director also gets writing and producing credits...because they did the work of all three roles?

 

[NotSoLongAgo]

The director is the boss man. It is, ultimately, his movie. Unless the studio is shadow-directing of course.

 

[dude stannis]

It's not always that simple. You can't in good consciousness say that Fiege or Kathleen would let their directors do whatever they want.

 

[ernesth100]

I mean of course not. But take this for example. Everyone says Batman v Superman is not as good as it could've been and blames Zack Snyder. The fact remains Snyder was director, he didn't write the script. Yet they blame him for the script.

 

[dude stannis]

If you don't think that script was more studio notes than actual script, I don't know what to tell you. 'You' as in a general term, not you specifically ernesth.

 

[NotSoLongAgo]

I mean of course not. But take this for example. Everyone says Batman v Superman is not as good as it could've been and blames Zack Snyder. The fact remains Snyder was director, he didn't write the script. Yet they blame him for the script.

That's because Zack Snyder created the story. The writers don't just go out and write whatever they want. It's Snyder's vision.

 

[dude stannis]

What? It's infamous knowledge that WB told him to shoehorn Batman into his film the day before the comic con announcement.

I don't want to get into a whole arguement here, I like the movie, didn't love it, didn't hate it. But Snyder is a very point and shoot the script director. He's like a Ridley Scott for 14 year olds.

 

[Rocketman]

I think Marvel is the perfect example of it not mattering who the director is. It could be anybody. Feige is honestly running the whole show there. (If anybody really needs evidence, look at all the people who left.)

Studios run these things. If you want to give Snyder any hate, give him hate for Sucker Punch and nothing else. It was his baby through and through. And hell, I like that movie.

There are maybe five big-name directors who get to do whatever they want, and those are your Scorsese's, your Malicks, your Finchers, etc.

 

[NotSoLongAgo]

I think Marvel is the perfect example of it not mattering who the director is. It could be anybody. Feige is honestly running the whole show there. (If anybody really needs evidence, look at all the people who left.)

Studios run these things. If you want to give Snyder any hate, give him hate for Sucker Punch and nothing else. It was his baby through and through. And hell, I like that movie.

There are maybe five big-name directors who get to do whatever they want, and those are your Scorsese's, your Malicks, your Finchers, etc.

It's just not that simple.

 

[elgaz]

A director in a film is not that dissimilar to a director in a business.

They have numerous people operating under them, all skilled in particular areas and working together as a team to achieve their overall vision.

Ultimately though, the Director is the person who is responsible for all this. He/She (with the studio's backing) gets to make the creative decisions, and accept or refuse what is offered to them. As an example, Snyder may not have written the script for BvS, but he did read it and ultimately gave it the go-ahead. That decision rests on his shoulders. He could just as easily have refused it and told Terrio to go and write a different one.

So ultimately, the Director is the one who will get the credit for the film. That doesn't diminish the contributions of everyone else, as they all get their names on screen and hopefully some repeat business, but someone has to be the boss. And in a film where the Director isn't just literally 'directing' but also composing the story, doing part of the casting, coming up with script elements, etc - it's well deserved when they're acknowledged.

The flip side of the coin is when a movie completely bombs, the Director gets the global thumbs down. No-one blames the second unit director, or a joist operator, or a cameraman. Look at M Night Shyamalan as an example of someone whose rep has gone down the drain.

 

[Vchipp]

It just that like everything like art design, editing, cinematography, etc. even though there are people in charge of those areas, the director has the final say on em.