Chocolate Pasta and the Auteur Theory

Last Sunday evening at one of our too-infrequent 8 sided dinners, Chef Dave and I wound up talking about how much collaboration collaborative art really demands, and what the role of a "director's vision" should be.

Before I get into the ins and outs of my conversation with M. Dave, I need to compliment him on the outstanding meal he prepared. His parties involve each attendee bringing an ingredient that he has to work into the meal, and he actively encourages people to try and stump him. Sunday, the dishes included:

cheese biscuits topped with BBQ pulled pork and swiss chard,
blueberry chocolate sauce over whole-wheat ziti,
baked ginger garlic chicken with couscous,
stuffed banana squash,
and homemade key lime pie.

Well done Dave!

Now that I look at that menu, I think I actually understand how the conversation came up. What every film, stageplay, comic book, or game needs is a sense of play between the collaborators. Sometimes a director needs a firm hand to bring a complex, specific idea to light, and sometimes the cast and crew need a loose environment in which to experiment and discover, but either way the essential incredient is play.

Keep in mind that play doesn't have to look or feel light. Some of Mozart's symphonies and operas are broody as all hell, and martial arts is the fiercest kind of play I know. Playful perfomance is defined by looseness, openness, and an ease that allows the performer to pay more attention to the context than the work itself. Building that freedom isn't something a director can fake, and a strict, rigid vision will kill it instantly.

One thing Christie keeps telling me is how shocked and amazed she is that I'm open to seeing ways of improving our work. She calls me unattached. In the case of Sam Bailey, that's a huge compliment - because the funny thing is that I know exactly what I want to achieve. At the same time, how may opportunities will I miss if I'm not willing to listen to new ways of getting there?

In my mission statement for 8 Sided Films, I state that "great films are made by teams of talented people united by a common intent". At the same time, what good is that talent if it's not free to express itself? At it's core, a director's job is to make sure the common intent is omnipresent, and then to liberate and inspire people to pursue it together, using the very best resources within themselves. Therein lies the discovery.

Did anyone expect the chocolate we brought to wind up on pasta? Certainly not! At the same time, we were grateful it did.