On Directing Film
Encyclopedia
On Directing Film is a non-fiction
book
by American playwright and filmmaker David Mamet
(ISBN 0-670-83033-X) published in 1991.
's film school. Mamet takes a strong oppositional view to mainstream American filmmaking, method acting
, and general indulgence in art. He cites as his major influence Sergei Eisenstein
and his montage theory
, and makes numerous references to the work of Russian theatre man Stanislavsky.
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
by American playwright and filmmaker David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
(ISBN 0-670-83033-X) published in 1991.
Overview
The book is made up of six chapters, of which the second and fifth take the form of dialogue between Mamet and unnamed students, reflecting that the book was based on classes in film directing held by Mamet at Columbia UniversityColumbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
's film school. Mamet takes a strong oppositional view to mainstream American filmmaking, method acting
Method acting
Method acting is a phrase that loosely refers to a family of techniques used by actors to create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances...
, and general indulgence in art. He cites as his major influence Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein , né Eizenshtein, was a pioneering Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the "Father of Montage"...
and his montage theory
Soviet montage theory
Soviet montage theory is an approach to understanding and creating cinema that relies heavily upon editing...
, and makes numerous references to the work of Russian theatre man Stanislavsky.