Running the Show: The Essential Guide to Being a First Assistant Director by Liz Gill

So you want to direct? For many aspiring filmmakers, the most effective path is by learning the work from the ground up and part of that is being a First AD.

The author of Running the Show: The Essential Guide to Being a First Assistant Director, Liz Gill has been working as a First AD since 1994, for directors such as Barry Levinson, Todd Haynes, Kevin Reynolds, Paul Greengrass and Jim Sheridan among others, working on widely-seen films such as Safe, The Omen and Bloody Sunday, and numerous US and UK TV shows. She has also directed two feature films and several TV series. Liz studied at Columbia University and NYU before beginning her career as an assistant to Martin Scorsese. After stints in NYC and LA she is now based in Ireland, where she is one of the top First ADs in the country.

This might not be the best designed or most colorful instructional film making book on the market but clearly it is one of the most insightful. This is real world experience and tips - the kind of info you don't get from film school. It results from the day to day slogging on a film or TV show set, making mistakes and finding how to do it right. In many ways, making big time films is a factory job - you need to know how all the pieces fit together - what the process is, and where on the assembly line things can go wrong.

Whether it's a crew of two hundred shooting a cast of thousands on horseback, or a crew of twelve filming one person in a room, each and every successful movie production requires a strong First Assistant Director (AD) at its helm. In Running the Show, veteran First AD Liz Gill walks you through the entire filmmaking process through the perspective of the First AD, from pre-production, shoot, wrap, and all in between. This essential guide is the only book that gives you the first hand knowledge to become a successful first assistant director.

• Learn how to run the shoot, the set, your department and the cast and crew, from directing the director to training a PA

• Companion website includes sample printable blank call sheets, production reports, schedules and budget templates, along with tons of other valuable documents and materials you can use for your very own movie (www.runningtheshowbook.com) Also at FaceBook - https://www.facebook.com/RunningtheShowAssistantDirectorsPage