Director/director of photography

By ROBIN MARTIN

Position: Director/director of photography

Name: Nic Finlayson

Age: 36

Employer: Self-employed, represented by Flying Fish production house. Potential employers include TV and film companies and advertising agencies

Qualifications: Studied still photography in Melbourne, then trained on the job. Film courses now offered at Unitec, universities, AUT, South Seas Film and TV School.

Annual pay: From $30,000 to $200,000+


Q. Describe your job

A. I'm responsible for all of the technical aspects of film-making on the jobs I am responsible for - the director's right-hand man. I'm responsible for the style and quality of the images.

I work at Flying Fish as a director and a director of photography (DoP) and operate the camera myself.

Q. Describe a typical shooting day

A. A preproduction day for me involves talking to the ad agency, looking at casting, looking at the location and shots, and preparing the various elements to start a film shoot.

After all those things are in place, the shoot day involves organising a shooting schedule based on the light and availability of actors and so on.

Then we set up for the first shot. That will involve positioning the camera and deciding how it is going to move.

You then light the shot and talk to the actors about their movements, how we will see them, about their performance, what are the subtleties of their performance and what their motivation is.

You'll rehearse that shot until you like it and then you'll shoot the shot. Invariably you'll have to shoot it 10 times to get it right.

Then we'll review that shot, first among ourselves and then with the agency. If it gets the okay, you move on to the next shot and repeat for up to 10 shots a day.

Q. How did you get into film?

A. I trained in still photography in Melbourne, then got a job at TV3 when it started up in 1989, and then moved from TV into film.

Q. Why is your job important?

A. It's important to me because it's mainly about taking pictures, shooting film, learning how to shoot big productions with an eye to getting into feature films.

For our clients the better the product looks, the more humorous or subtle it is, the higher the production value, then the more chance there is of it selling the client's product.

On the bigger projects such as drama and documentaries you are delivering a satisfying experience to the audience. Commercials can, too, to some degree.

Q. What are your strengths?

A. It's based on photography, so the better you are at pictures the better your work will be. There's also a team-leader aspect because often the job of directors is to get the best out of the team around them. If you surround yourself with good people and manage them well, the work will be good.

Q. What do you consider a success in your work?

A. When you come in under budget or on budget, everybody from the production runner to the client walks away happy. But the long-term goal is to be successful in film. So the aim as a DoP or director is to work at the very top echelon of TV commercials and feature films.

Q. What kind of person makes a good DoP?

A. Someone with great social skills, great communications skills and vision. You're required to achieve an excellence in photography, but alongside that you need excellent communication with the director, the producer and the client so your vision is clearly explained to them and they feel they can clearly explain their requirements to you.

Q. Best part of the job?

A. It's the culmination of everything. You're out there in some weird location shooting the stuff, you've got actors involved, you've got cars, helicopters and cranes going on. It's the pointy end, the sharp bit, where you actually shoot the job.

Q. Worst part of the job?

A. When you spend time pitching for a job and don't get it. And the hours - most shoot days are 12 to 14 hours and longer shoots take me away from my family.

Q. Career goals?

A. To develop the reputation to work internationally. In this industry you can do a Peter Jackson or a Keisha Castle-Hughes or a Niki Caro.

You're not constrained by a conventional ladder. If you've got talent you can go places quickly.

Q. What tips would you give to someone trying to get into the industry?

A. Do one of the courses, get your head around what the specifics are in terms of film and TV production, and then go around the production houses looking to do voluntary work or get an internship.