How do I become a commercial director?

May 12, 2009 1:46 PM

I want to direct commercials and music videos. What are my options?

I graduated from a 4-year film school in LA last Saturday (hooray), and I know what I want to end up doing: directing music videos and commercials. I realize that there is no straight path to becoming a director, so I'd like to know: what's the best way to develop my career. Do I work any retail job I can and shoot little short films on the weekends? Do I try to intern, or become a front desk worker at any film company? Should I crew on sets or try an work at a post house for a while? (I'm a decent editor)

My skills and experience include:
-Several years of editing experience
-A 5-month internship at a VFX place
-Several short films and spec commercials

It's quite an overwhelming industry out there, so any advice is welcome.

posted by ManyNinjas to work & money (7 comments total)

Learn Final Cut Pro really, really, really well. (Maybe you already know it.)

Shoot your own stuff, make it professional-quality.

Make a great reel, ideally while interning to make contacts.

Find some basic editing work and go from there.
posted by Damn That Television at 1:59 PM on May 12

I'd be surprised if your film school didn't have a career center with people who could help you with this very topic. congrats on graduating!
posted by Think_Long at 2:03 PM on May 12

I believe that, like any job in the film/tv/commercial/video area on the left coast, the secret will be entry level jobs, hard work, and building a network of people that respect your work and creativity...
posted by HuronBob at 3:53 PM on May 12

Let me add a bit... My kid (a punk rocker from a small town in Michigan) got his degree in film and communication... He spent about 5 years working as a production assistant, art dept. assistant, personal assistant to a director, and worked his butt off...

He now has producer credits on 300 and Watchmen...

So, it can be done.... be patient, work hard..
posted by HuronBob at 3:58 PM on May 12

You're right. It's an overwhelming industry. Lots of different paths to directing success, lots of ways to get lost. One fairly obvious thing I'd focus on more if I was "just getting started" again is finding myself the right producer (ie: somebody who values my skills and my vision and who is willing to partner with me in hustling down whatever opportunities are out there, kind of like getting married).
posted by philip-random at 4:12 PM on May 12

I worked in commercial production a lot, and low budget films a little, and watched 2 people in each arena succeed. The important thing is your portfolio.

While I disagree with Huron Bob about entry level jobs, they do have advantages. You meet others who share your interest, so you might find friends who can be your gaffer or sound person for a weekend. You get to see how the experts do it, and if you pay attention, you can quickly figure out why they do things. You can collect things like gel, that commercial people toss away even though it costs a dollar a square foot, and as you work on other people's projects, you develop skills, maybe lighting (which I do), maybe something else, but you get better. Oh, and you get to pay bills, because commercial people pay OK.

That said, I rarely saw entry level work leading to directing, which is considered an artistic job, as opposed to a producer, which isn't. Everyone who I saw succeed developed a portfolio they could sell, and what that looks like varies wildly between where you want to end up. One commercial guy I saw succeed came from photography, did things like cookbooks, was able to find an agent that hooked him up with a commercial producer, easy? no. Another developed what is called "inside prop" skills, worked on his portfolio, now makes commercials (OK, he kind of worked his way up the system)

The feature guys I watched succeed made shorts, found money, made more shorts, found more money....

The lowest people on the food chain are music video directors, so I would start there. Talk to people, find someone who wants a video, sell them on your vision. When you have a portfolio going, you can negotiate a price, until then, probably not.

I didn't succeed, so you probably shouldn't take my advice.
posted by rakish_yet_centered at 7:37 PM on May 13

I work as a cameraman in los angeles and have been asked this question many times over the last 20 years.

The only advice I can give is to re-iterate going out and doing some kick ass demo work and making a spectacular reel. It has never been easier to do so with the level of control we all now have on taking an image and then manipulating it in post.

Get some work wherever you can, commercial house, freelance, production work, knock on all the doors, but if you want to get work as a director, make some product and make it good. It is the only possible way to to gain entry in an exceedingly difficult boys club without selling you soul first.

Also, be nice, there are already way too many evil people out here already IMHO.

Good luck!
H
posted by silsurf at 1:44 PM on May 14