On Film-making

(Paperback, Main)

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An invaluable analysis of the director's art and craft, from one of the most revered of all film school directors. Alexander 'Sandy' Mackendrick directed classic Ealing comedies plus a Hollywood masterpiece, Sweet Smell of Success. But after retiring from film-making in 1969, he then spent nearly 25 years teaching his craft at the California Institute of the Arts in Los Angeles. Mackendrick produced hundreds of pages of masterly handouts and sketches, designed to guide his students to a finer understanding of how to write a story, and then use those devices peculiar to cinema in order to tell that story as effectively as possible. Gathered and edited in this collection, Mackendrick's teachings reveal that he had the talent not only to make great films, but also to articulate the process with a clarity and insight that will still inspire any aspirant film-maker.

Reviews

"He doesn't soft soap his audience with advice to lie back and let their inner child do the work. Instead, he offers up the accumulated wisdom of a disciplined and productive career." - The Guardian

Author Bio

Alexander Mackendrick was born in Boston but raised in Scotland. His feature films include Whisky Galore (1948), The Man in the White Suit (1951), Mandy (1952), The Maggie (1954), The Ladykillers (1955), Sweet Smell of Success (1957) and A High Wind in Jamaica (1965). He died in 1993.