Directing Screen Performances

The core goal of Directing Screen Performances is to teach aspiring directors how to prepare and work with actors. Through a practical exploration of the major approaches to contemporary screen acting, you will learn how to formulate your own effective modes of communication to craft compelling performances.

Directing performances for the screen starts well before the actor is cast and finishes well after the last slate is shot. In this book you will learn how to analyze a script, brief the casting director, rehearse the actors, decide on the visual treatment that enriches their performances, direct effectively on set and finesse the character in the edit. The director’s process is clearly defined and augmented with illustrations, photographs and graphics, and each chapter concludes with practical exercises to consolidate the new knowledge.

Author Biography

Robert Klenner has been an actor, director, producer, university lecturer, and directing consultant based in Australia. He was born and raised in Poland, where he studied film performance under Krzysztof Kieslowski. His career spans over two decades and three continents. He’s directed over one hundred hours of screen drama and has taught directing in the United Kingdom, Australia, Russia, Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia, and Ethiopia. Klenner is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a member of the Directors Guild of Australia.