The director sits on top of the creative tree. They are the one that everyone looks to on set. All eyes are on them — waiting for every decision they make. The director needs to demonstrate strength and assurance. However, underneath that façade, their wellbeing might be at risk.
Mental Health Factors
In the early days of the industry, when a director struggled with pressure, they would be labelled as ‘moody’ or ‘weak.’ In some quarters, these incorrect labels can still be thrown at them. There are reasons behind the labels:
Immense Pressure
Being a director is challenging by its very nature. You are putting yourself out there, in front of an entire crew. Pressure comes with the job. If a shoot drops behind schedule, then that pressure only increases. The budget also adds enormous pressure. If it is an indie project with not much money, it means a director is up against it from the first whistle. If it is a huge budget, then there is the enormous pressure of delivering a project on a big budget. Either way, there is the impending sense of failure with the budget.
There is also the huge pressure to change the shots you have dreamed of. Pressure from producers, crew, and financiers, makes you start questioning the shot design in your head.
Long Hours
Filmmaking is not a 9-5 job. It requires much longer hours during any given week. On most shoots, contracts endeavour to keep all shoots to 10 hours or 12 hours. But these could be overnight shoots. Or if the shoot has fallen behind, the hours might increase. Shoots are frequently irregular hours because of locations or lighting requirements. All of which impacts the mental state of a director.
Compromises
A director always has the entire project in their head. But budget and technical issues will see compromises needed to be made during the shoot. These could be major changes or tweaks. Either way, they are dents in the director’s original vision. It could be easy for them to lose heart and for depression to sink in. When a dream is being compromised, it can eat away at a director’s self-esteem and alter their optimism and zeal for the industry they once dreamed of being part of.
Not Knowing the Answer
A director will be asked several questions by their team during a shoot. They will be expected to know the answer. The all-seeing eye illusion of a director. Directors are also going to have curve balls thrown at them, that they have no idea how to solve because it is a new challenge. But they will be expected to have an answer and then everyone acts on that answer. So, if that action leads to more problems, the entire team starts questioning the director. Are they not experienced enough to know?
The team might feel there are in a worse position because the director did not handle all of the questions as they feel they should have. The director might cave with the knowledge that they have dug a deeper hole for the production because they gave answers that did not work. The questions broke their confidence.
Calm the Inner You
Thankfully, in today’s world, mental health is discussed openly, and the incorrect labels thrown at a director are dissolving. There is now more onus on the solutions. In the case of the director, these solutions will always help:
Be Present
If you look at the bigger picture it can be overwhelming. The trick is to only focus on the present. That means one day at a time. Only look at the schedule for the day you are currently shooting. Just work through the shots for that day. Scorsese said that if he thought about what lay ahead in the entire shoot, he would never have the courage to get out of the car on day one. So, he makes a point of only discussing the day ahead. You shoot one day at a time. That is it.
If at the prep stage, then just calmly write down a list of things you would like to achieve that day. The small wins you get that day will help your mental state.
Do not dwell on the past or worry about the future. Stay in the now.
Talk
No one ever feels better by bottling up their emotions. Look at your team as an opportunity to talk. Confide in those you are closest to in the production, and they will help you through any challenging moments. Instead of taking on the burden of how to solve a decision on your own, talk it through and find the best idea to solve it as a team.
If you have a mentor, then reach out to them when you need to. Their experience will provide the answers you might need to navigate a moment in your production. Ask them if it is okay to drop them a message on set if you are struggling with something.
For those who are members of the Directors’ Forum private WhatsApp and Facebook groups, you have fellow directors to talk to instantly either in prep or on set, to help you with advice. You have a support system in your pocket.
Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone that is essential for your wellbeing. It reduces stress and depression. It also regulates your sleep patterns. It keeps your body in the right state to give you the best chance when working through challenges. It is produced naturally by the body, mainly at night. A deficiency can lead to a lot of the mental health factors mentioned above. To solve this, a check-up with your local doctor will determine if you need to be prescribed melatonin to combat your inability to produce enough naturally.
Watch a Funny Scene
Laughter is often cited as the best medicine. It creates an emotionally positive change in the body and combats stress. So, put on a clip from a scene that you have always found funny. It can be anything. It will make you laugh again and significantly lift your mood. Those funny scenes that you love are bottled medicine for your mental health.
Breathing Break
The word ‘meditation’ for a director who thinks visually, can often illicit images of someone praying or doing it theatrically in a film or TV show. That can put you off trying it. The best way to think of it, is not visually, but internally – give your soul a ‘breathing break’ from life. Close your eyes, breath in slowly through your nose, count to ten, and exhale. Do this three times. Repeat during the day when you need to. For those with an Apple Watch or smartphone there are apps that will prompt you during the day to take a breathing break. This physical action is super important for your mental health because it lowers your blood pressure. It literally calms the inner you.
Wellbeing Room
If you are on set, arrange for a wellbeing room or space that you and members of your team can go to and decompress in for five minutes. No electronic devices or food and drink are allowed. Just a completely quiet space to relax. If you are on an indie set where additional rooms are an issue, arrange to black out the windows of someone’s car on set, and use the back seat as a place to sit and decompress for a few minutes. Away from the decisions and visions of people and kit. It returns you to that natural space of that first arrival on set before you get out of the car and work through the day. It is another chance to collect your thoughts.
Breaks Have the Same Power as Speed
Only pressing your foot to the metal during filmmaking never does you any favours. Easing down to a different speed — idling while you collect your thoughts and take the time to make the decisions you believe in, is so important. When you are energised and revitalised again by the mental health solutions you have in space, then your foot can ease onto the accelerator pedal to shoot the scene at hand.
When you find your healthy work balance as a director, apply it to all of your projects. Athletes have routines to get to their peak. These routines emphasise the importance their coaches place on rest days as well as training days. It equates to filmmaking too – the brakes have the same power as the speed.