Directors Tell the Story: Master the Craft of Television and Film Directing

by Bethany Rooney, Mary Lou Belli

Overview

The freshest storytelling today is on television, where the multi-episodic format is used for rich character development and innovative story arcs. This exciting new edition of Directors Tell the Story continues to offer rare insight and advice straight from two A-list television directors whose credits include Elsbeth, Tracker, Criminal Minds: Evolution, The Ms. Pat Show, Chicago Med and many more.

Here, in one volume, learn everything you need to know to become an excellent director. Covering everything through prep, shoot, and post, the authors offer practical instruction on how to craft a creative vision, translate a script into a visual story, establish and maintain the look and feel of a television show or film, lead the cast and crew, keep a complex operation running on time and on budget, and effectively oversee editing and post-production. Directors Tell the Story provides behind-the-scenes access to the secrets of successful directors, as well as exercises that use original scripted material.

/ This newly updated edition features:
/ • More roles on set, including on-set writers, producing directors, intimacy coordinators, virtual production supervisors and virtual production designers
/ • New material covering updates to cameras, lighting, and new innovations in sound
/ • Updated “Insider’s Info” sections with advice and tips known only to working professionals
/ • Profiles of top film and TV luminaries
/ • Additional “How I Got My First Directing Job” stories from a diverse range of directors currently in the trenches.

/ Suited to students in both beginning and intermediate level directing and production courses, as well as aspiring professionals, this book proves valuable insight. The work is supported by a fresh instructor and student online resource featuring directing tutorials and video interviews with the authors.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781032849751
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	03/31/2025
Edition description:	3rd ed.
Pages:	388
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Bethany Rooney began her directing career on the 1980s iconic television show St. Elsewhere, where she served as Associate Producer. She has directed more than 250 episodes of primetime network shows, most recently Law & Order SVU, Chicago P.D., Criminal Minds:Evolution, Chicago Med, and Tracker.  She has directed Oscar winners and Emmy contenders Denzel Washington, Hilary Swank, Mariska Hargitay, Angela Bassett, George Clooney, Alfre Woodard, Felicity Huffman, Sally Field, and Robert Downey, Jr., among many others. Bethany graduated from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, earning a masters’ degree. She created and teaches the Warner Bros. Discovery Directors Workshop, NBC/Universal Launch, and the DGA’s Director Development Initiative (DDI). She serves on multiple committees at the DGA, including the National Board and the Western Directors Council.

Mary Lou Belli, a two-time Emmy award-winner, has been directing television for over 30 years in many genres from sitcoms to procedurals to documentaries. Through her teaching, she supports many of the vibrant diversity programs, including the DGA Directors Development Initiative, ABC/Disney, NBC Launch, CBS, SONY, AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women, and Warner Bros. Discovery Directors Workshop mentoring the next generation of directors. She is the co-author of three other  books: “The NEW Sitcom Career Book,” "Acting for Young Actors," "PERFORM: Acting for the Screen.”  Mary Lou serves on multiple committees at the DGA and is a board member of the Alliance of Women Directors, Film Fatales,  Women in Media as well as a long time member of Women In Film. She is currently a Governor at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences  where she has been recently nominated three times for a primetime Emmy for directing as well as an additional Emmy in the Children's Programming category. She was on the USC School of Cinematic Arts directing faculty for 8 years.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments; Introduction; Section One - Prep; Chapter 1   Breaking Down the Script for Story; Chapter 2   Breaking Down the Script for Character; Chapter 3  Scouting Locations; Chapter 4  Organizing the Shoot with the First Assistant Director; Chapter 5   Sharing the Vision; Chapter 6   Blocking and Shot Listing, Part One; Chapter 7   Blocking and Shot Listing, Part Two; Section One Review; Section Two - Shoot; Chapter 8 Directing the Actor; Chapter 9 Below the Line; Chapter 10 All the Other Stuff; Chapter 11 Running the Set; Section Two Review; Section Three - Post; Chapter 12 Visual Effects - Augmented Reality; Chapter 13 Working with the Editor; Chapter 14 Working with the Post Supervisor; Section Three Review; Section Four - Being a Director; Chapter 15 The Demands of the Job; Chapter 16 – Being a Director; Chapter 17 Getting Started; Section Four Review; Glossary; Index

 

Editorial Reviews

"The success of the directors coming out of the Warner Bros. Directors' Workshop has been undeniable. A huge reason for that is because we use this book as its main teaching tool. In my opinion, if you are serious about being a television director, buying this book should be the first thing you do." —Christopher Mack, Vice President, Warner Bros. Television Workshop

"Directing is an amazing and daunting combination of Art and Craft. To become a complete Director requires a total blend of instinct, experience and education. The information, tips and advice these two fine Directors have collected in their books are invaluable and presented in a way that allows the reader to not only understand what is offered, but to use it effectively." —Michael Zinberg, Director

"This is one of the most specific and detailed books about directing television I’ve ever read. As experts in directing both comedy and drama, and hundreds of television shows between them, the authors have deftly translated their years of practical knowledge and acquired skills to the page, giving insightful instructions that will benefit a television director on any level." —Jennifer Warren, Associate Professor of Practice and Chair of Directing Track, School of Cinematic Arts, USC, Chair of Board of Alliance of Women Directors

"As a new director, you are constantly feeling like you want a refresher course on things you've previously learned. The thing I love about Bethany and Mary Lou's book is that it's so accessible. It's packed with so many jewels that you employ throughout every stage of the director's process. I keep the book nearby whenever I'm starting a new project. From an actor's perspective, chapter 10 is invaluable. I wish it was mandatory for every director to read that chapter before their first day on the set." —Regina King, Actress, Director

"Bethany Rooney and Mary Lou Belli’s Directors Tell the Story: Master the Craft of Television and Film Directing... [is] one of the handful of essential volumes written by working directors. Between them, Rooney and Belli have helmed hundreds of hours of episodic television (ranging from episodes of The Wonder Years and Ally McBeal for Rooney, to Sister, Sister and Monk for Belli), as well as several made-for-TV features. This experience permeates every page of their book...The result is a vital addition to any moviemaker’s library." - Jim Hemphill, Moviemaker.com

"The success of the directors coming out of the Warner Bros. Directors' Workshop has been undeniable. A huge reason for that is because we use this book as its main teaching tool. In my opinion, if you are serious about being a television director, buying this book should be the first thing you do." —Christopher Mack, Vice President, Warner Bros. Television Workshop

"Directing is an amazing and daunting combination of Art and Craft. To become a complete Director requires a total blend of instinct, experience and education. The information, tips and advice these two fine Directors have collected in their books are invaluable and presented in a way that allows the reader to not only understand what is offered, but to use it effectively." —Michael Zinberg, Director

"This is one of the most specific and detailed books about directing television I’ve ever read. As experts in directing both comedy and drama, and hundreds of television shows between them, the authors have deftly translated their years of practical knowledge and acquired skills to the page, giving insightful instructions that will benefit a television director on any level." —Jennifer Warren, Associate Professor of Practice and Chair of Directing Track, School of Cinematic Arts, USC, Chair of Board of Alliance of Women Directors

"As a new director, you are constantly feeling like you want a refresher course on things you've previously learned. The thing I love about Bethany and Mary Lou's book is that it's so accessible. It's packed with so many jewels that you employ throughout every stage of the director's process. I keep the book nearby whenever I'm starting a new project. From an actor's perspective, chapter 10 is invaluable. I wish it was mandatory for every director to read that chapter before their first day on the set." —Regina King, Actress, Director

From the Publisher