Steven Spielberg To Young Filmmakers: Put Your Real Personality Into Your Stories

For those filmmakers who are not working independently and are hired by someone else in the business, they should learn from their seniors on a film’s set, says Steven Spielberg

Nivedita

Updated on: 11 February 2023 5:37 am

Steven Spielberg

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg, who has directed Hollywood films like Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List, Raiders of the Lost Ark, ET, Saving Private Ryan, and most recently The Fabelmans, recently sat down for a conversation with RRR fame SS Rajamouli. During their interaction, Spielberg shared that young filmmakers should put their real personalities into their stories.

Rajamouli asked Spielberg what according to him is the right way for young filmmakers to move ahead in their careers. To this, the celebrated director answered, “If they (young directors) are using their phones as cameras because you can make an entire film on your phone today, we didn’t have that luxury while we were growing up when you can do that today, I would simply say tell stories that you are familiar with, do what you know.”

He added, “Find this much of yourself to put into that film even if that film is science-fiction or an adventure or something that is fantasy or not realistic. There is still a lot of truth about who the filmmaker is. If you’re in touch with that truth, you put in too much of your personality into those different stories.”

But for those filmmakers who are not working independently and are hired by someone else in the business, they should learn from their seniors on a film’s set. Instead of talking, they should just listen and grab as much knowledge as possible from their experience.

“If you are a young director who has been given a chance to prove oneself professionally, you are given a budget and a short schedule, and you are often given actors who you do not choose yourself, that’s the hardest position to be in,” said Spielberg while adding that such a situation is also a ‘tremendous opportunity’.