Part of an actor's job, in my opinion, is adjust to the characteristics of the director and try to understand to how he tries to work.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
An actor is only a part of the film, not the whole, and very often, he is moulded by the director. That is why a good director can make so much difference to a film.
As a director, you see something in someone; you know it's there, you just got to go get it. You do that with any actor. That's your job.
You can be playing a line some way and the director wants you to change that, or you can disagree. But I always think that the creative conversation between director and actor is what leads to good work.
As an actor, you want a director who makes you feel comfortable in a place that you can really create and try a lot of different things.
As an actor, you're always nervous as to what a director will do with something.
As a director, you have to know what actors are doing. You're the one telling them what to do. The actors' job is to come prepared to the set, but sometimes, if they're beginning actors or people who are non-actors, you have to teach them how to act.
You spend enough time on set as an actor and it's great when a director was at some point an actor or understands acting. They're able to finesse performances out of you that a lot directors can't get.
As a director, it is important to understand the actor's process.
When a subject pops into a director's head, you either fit in there somewhere, or you don't. An actor is only who he is. Especially as you get older, there's not as much of a range of potentially feasible parts.
I do think that's so much a part of what being a director is - in working with actors - to really try and be sensitive to what each actor needs to get to where he wants to be.