TV and film director David Fincher is something of a legend in his field.
David Fincher has an incredibly unique visual style, both in terms of composition and use of color. He knows how to keep his audience guessing through the use of clever plot twists and strong storytelling and he's never been afraid to buck the Hollywood system or play by his own rules.
Needless to say, aspiring directors can learn a great deal from Fincher. Here are just 10 of his most commonly mentioned or most unique tidbits of advice for those wanting to direct.
1.Don't be afraid to ask for as many takes as you need
2. Make all the decisions, because you'll take the blame anyway
Listen to this portion of the interview here.
3. Look at the scene in different ways with each eye
In this bit of unconventional advice taken from the Se7en commentary, Fincher suggests literally using each eye to consider the parts of every scene.
4. Get out of the way of the material
5. Accept that you might have differences of opinion with your executives
6. Don't attempt to hide your interests
7. If you don't get perfection the first time, try CGI
8. Seriously... get lots of takes
9. Challenge yourself, but within reason
After shooting Fight Club in hundreds of sets and locations, Fincher purposefully took on the opposite challenge of Panic Room, which takes place on a single set. The shoot ended up being a nightmare for the crew.
When asked what he learned from the experience, Fincher told Entertainment Weekly