Making a movie is a team effort, and sometimes egos get the better of us, so here’s how you can always play nice…
The film It Ends With Us has been in the news a lot lately, and it’s unfortunately not for the reasons those involved in the production would hope.
The film, based on the book of the same name by Colleen Hoover, staring Blake Lively, Brandon Sklenar and Justin Baldoni is the tragic love story of Lily Bloom (Lively) who escapes an abusive marriage and reunites with her first love (Sklenar).
The film has been plagued by drama pretty much since the start of the press tour, much of which is surrounding Blake Lively’s supposed cavalier attitude to the themes of the film, and rumours that she attempted to overrule Justin Baldoni, who also directed, throughout the creative process.
It’s not really my intention to get too down in the dirt with what did or didn’t happen, although I do somewhat feel the hate-train targeting Blake is overblown and unnecessary.
The truth is creative differences and mismatches in working style do happen. Working on a film project is a huge group effort with a lot of moving parts, so I want to focus on what we can learn from this situations.
We’ve all probably had our own experiences working with others where they (or us!) didn’t show our best side, so let’s talk about how to be a good collaborator…
Why it’s important to be a good collaborator
As I mentioned, movies are a huge process and it can take an extraordinary succession of borderline miracles to even get the green light.
Therefore, it suffices to say that it also involves a lot of hopes, dreams, specific visions, and unfortunately, egos. People put their blood, sweat and tears into these things and the production process is far from being easy.
You see many occasions where a poor team dynamic and differences of opinion between decision makers impacts the final product, and you will rarely see a film that had a nightmare production, live up to its potential.
Movies that switch tone in-between or don’t have a cohesive direction, rewrites on the fly, as well as mismatched performances (*cough* Jupiter Ascending cough).
Not everything has to run 100% smoothly, and often won’t on a film set, but it’s important to try to alway be on the same team throughout the process.
It’s hard, it’s long hours and the last thing everyone needs is delays caused by flared tempers and egos flying. So, what can we do to keep ourselves in check and maintain a harmonious working environment?
Be a team player & stay humble
At the end of the day, nobody working on a film is an island – not the actors, the director, the screenwriter, the camera guy – the contributions of even the lowliest person on set are important to the process.
There is no film without those different roles, and while some roles do hold more importance, no single job or person makes the film. It’s 100% a team effort. You live or die by the weakest (or most entitled) link in the chain.
Always remember that you are a single cog in a larger machine and that you are never too important to listen, learn and give respect to others. Having respect for every person on set will make for a much better working environment for everyone.
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Be open-minded
It’s good to go into a project knowing what you’re trying to achieve, however, as with any collaborative process it’s also good to be flexible. If we make ourselves too rigid in our expectations, we’re not leaving space for different ideas.
By listening to your colleagues, you might come up with an even better solution to a problem, a more poignant line, or a more exceptional shot. Bring your ideas to the table, but be willing to try on other perspectives to see which one works best.
Seek to understand, then react
I will admit that I can be a little quick to react sometimes. I was recently working on a project where my collaborator was reworking the outline for a script I’d written and I may have gotten a little precious about the situation.
Of course, there was no major blow out, and it turned out to be a misunderstanding, but it’s a good example of why it’s important not to be too territorial about ideas.
Had I taken a moment to understand his process before assuming that he’d made extensive changes that hadn’t been discussed (as far as I was concerned), then we could have saved a lot of time.
When people come to you with different ideas, it’s a good idea to hear them out before acting (or reacting), because you might just end up loving the final outcome.
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Be assertive
While being a good collaborator does require some flexibility, you can’t bend so far back you completely lose your identity. If you have specific ideas about how things should be, make sure to hash it out in a way that is kind.
You have a stake in this process too, and it’s not fair for other people to steam roll your ideas because they think theirs are superior.
Be willing to compromise, but if you feel really strongly about a particular creative decision and you have evidence to back it up, then you should stick to your guns. Your opinions are just as valid as everyone else’s, so stand your ground if you need to.
Be agile
Have you ever gone out shopping with a really specific idea of what you wanted, only to find that nothing quite lived up to your expectations, meaning you came home empty-handed?
Unfortunately, not every on a film set goes to plan and you have to problem solve on the fly. Maybe your camera breaks, an actor drops out, or your beautiful sunny shot is ruined by an unexpected downpour.
Sometimes things have to change for logistical reasons and there really isn’t much you can do about it. If you have too specific of an idea about how a scene should go, then you’re bound to be disappointed.
At the end of the day, the show must go on, and some of the best shots you’ll ever make will be a spur of the moment decision.
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It’s all about the push/pull
I put this one last because it’s important to remember that being a good team player doesn’t mean no conflict or disagreements. When you have different ideas about an aspect of the production process, sometimes healthy debate can get your creative juices flowing.
I frequently push back on ideas I don’t agree with, but I seek to understand their perspective, and it usually means we come to a happy medium. Other times we come up with an even better idea, which we wouldn’t have been able to do without a little tete-a-tete.
Whenever there are disagreements, you need to remember that everyone has the same goal. To make the best production possible. You’re against the problem, not your team, so do what you can to make it work.
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