This article contains weasel words: vague phrasing that often accompanies biased or unverifiable information. Such statements should be clarified or removed. (December 2009)

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking.^[1] They control a film's artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding the technical crew and actors.

A new director working on feature films might earn as much as $200,000 a year, while the most successful can earn over $500,000 per film plus a "back-end" percentage of the profits, which in some cases can lift their income to several million dollars.^[2][3]

Responsibilities[link]

Directors are responsible for overseeing creative aspects of a film under the overall control of the film producer. They often develop the vision for a film and carry out the vision, deciding how the film should look, in other words they make their vision come to life. They are responsible for turning the script into a sequence of shots. They also direct what tone it should have and what an audience should gain from the cinematic experience. Film directors are responsible for deciding camera angles, lens effects and lighting with the help of the cinematographer and set design with the production designer. They will often take part in hiring the cast and key crew members. They coordinate the actors' moves, or blocking and also may be involved in the writing, financing and editing of a film.

The director works closely with the cast and crew to shape the film. Some like to conduct rigorous rehearsals in preproduction while others do so before each scene. In either case, this process is essential as it tells the director as well as other key members of the crew (director of photography, stunt coordinator, hair stylist, etc.), how the actors are going to play the scene, which enables them to make any necessary adjustments. Directors often use storyboards to illustrate sequences and concepts and a director's viewfinder to set up camera angles.

The director also plays a key role in post-production. He or she works with the editor to ensure that the emotions of the scene and the close ups, mid-shots and wide or long shots appropriately reflect which character is driving the narrative. The director also advises on the (colour) grading of the final images, adding warmth or frigidity to the composition of the shots to reflect the emotional subtext of the character or environment. The director will sometimes participate in the sound mix and musical composition of the film. In the subsequent promotion of the finished film, if a director is well known his name and image is used to promote the film alongside the stars of the film, but having an image is not the primary function of a director, as they are judged by their creative talent and ability to run a production. It is the second most powerful "behind the scenes" profession in the movie industry, after the producer, but the director traditionally has complete control "on the floor".

Characteristics of film directors[link]

Ingmar Bergman apparently examines an x-ray film, during work on Wild Strawberries.

The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, while filming a costume drama on location in London.

Here, director William Eubank performs multiple roles on-set as both director and camera operator.