NPRO 5000

How a Director breaks down a script

by Michael Sandknop

On Directing

by Harold Clurman

ISBN-13:9780684826226

Publisher:Touchstone

Available on Amazon: $14.52

Available on Barnes and Noble

"What's my motivation?"
This side answers that question for the actors.
Think of it as a "Story Board" for performance.

In my previous post I discussed the example of "Karate Kid"
Here's how the Director starts out.

Here are two videos that illustrate two different "Director's Idea" with the same plot line:
"A little boy want's something from his parent."

Here is an example of my notes for an upcoming
music video I'm Directing.
 It's  is a parody of Madonna's "Material Girl" rewritten
as "Clinton Felonious Girl."

Left side are the storyboards
Right side are the overhead views

As a Parody, while similar in style
the TONE is completely different,
and so is the "Director's Idea"
This is a "mock-up" of how I want the actor's to deliver their performance
which leads to how the audience reacts.

Again this is a mock-up on how it all comes together.
In the case of "Clinton Felonious Girl" I've broken it down each page to 30 seconds.
The song is 4 minutes long, so I have 8 pages.

Here is the original music video of Madonna's "Material Girl"