Directors are a strange breed with a unique and far-reaching skillset. They see the bigger picture yet get hounded by the smallest of details. They geek out on technology but explore the emotional landscape of the human mind. They are leaders and collaborators, tilting at windmills to bring their ideas to the screen.
Yet each director is a universe unto themselves. Their voices, diverse and individualistic, are their most valuable of assets. And it is these voices that we at LMU have had the privilege of nurturing.
Our directors have studied the complexities of visual storytelling, overcome software and hardware that didn’t do what they expected, and have allowed their professors to critique, critique, critique. They have grappled with script rewrites, previz presentations, equipment checkouts and what to offer their hard-working crews for lunch. They have sat long hours in the edit room, belabored over the right way to sculpt a performance, and reworked their ideas over and over again to find the right solution to every challenge flung at them.
Most significantly, our directors have used these three years to make themselves heard, loud and clear. They have explored not just what they have to say, but how to say it as specifically as possible. They have risen to the challenge of every obstacle, hurdle, or seeming failure. They have clawed their way through it all to direct films that say, “Here I Am!”
And here they are, a talented group of skilled visionaries who have the honed their skills, have lots to say, and know exactly how to say it
– Mischa Livingstone, Directing Specialization Coordinator
