On Directing Film [Paperback]

A masterclass on the art of directing from the Pulitzer Prize-winning (and Oscar and Tony-nominated) writer ofGlengarry Glen Ross,Speed the Plow,The Verdict, andWag the Dog

Calling on his unique perspective as playwright, screenwriter, and director of his own critically acclaimed movies like House of Games, State and Main, andThings Change, David Mamet illuminates how a film comes to be. He looks at every aspect of directing—from script to cutting room—to show the many tasks directors undertake in reaching their prime objective: presenting a story that will be understood by the audience and has the power to be both surprising and inevitable at the same time. Based on a series of classes Mamet taught at Columbia University's film school,On Directing Filmwill be indispensible not only to students but to anyone interested in an overview of the craft of filmmaking.

Passion, clarity, commitment, intelligence—just what one would expect from Mamet. —Sidney Lumet, Academy Award-nominated director of 12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Network, and The Verdict Passion, clarity, commitment, intelligence—just what one would expect from Mamet. —Sidney Lumet, Academy Award-nominated director of 12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Network, and The VerdictDAVID MAMETis an Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright as well as a director, novelist, poet, and essayist. He has written the screenplays for more than twenty films, includingThe Verdict,The UntouchablesandWag the Dog, and has twice been nominated for an Academy Award. His HBO film Phil Spector, starring Al Pacino and Helen Mirren, aired in 2013 and earned him two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Directilƒ7