Film Courage: …That being said do you think it’s easier to work on your own or to have
collaborators?
James Kicklighter, Filmmaker: I think that it’s always easier to work on your own but
it’s never better.
I think that I’m so skeptical of anybody who says there are a “Writer, Producer,
Actor, Editor.”
They are not good at all those jobs.
There are one or two that they are good at.
And I think that when people say they are multi-hyphenates of all those things, they
usually are not good at any of them.
Be one or two things and be good at them, that will make your work better.
I can live in isolation and technically can I direct, edit, produce, shoot…technically
I could.
I know how to do all of those things.
But I know what I’m best at.
I’m a good director, I’m a good editor and so I will sometimes do those two things.
And even when I’m editing work that I’ve directed, if I think that I’m not being
disciplined enough or if I’m not being judicious or I’m lost in the woods, I’ll always
bring in a second editor because I can’t be precious about it in my own work because
that looks poorly on me as a director, right?
So you have to be cognizant about those things.
So could you work on your own and do your own thing?
Sure you can but your work is going to suffer.
I think most people who do that there work does suffer.
There are very few examples of people who are successful that I don’t think most people
can pull that off.
Film Courage: But in the middle let’s say.
Starting out maybe they can’t afford…
James: Oh yes, when you are starting out you have to.
Now that’s different.
If you are starting out that’s different.
When I first started out I was producer, director, all of those things.
But if you want to make that transition to the middle (the middle…best place!) you
can’t do that anymore.
You have to set that aside.
You have to start leaning in on and working with people who are professionals in those
areas.
I don’t think you would go to (using the accounting example) a CPA who is also a chef
who is also a Uber driver.
You would probably think that one of those things they may not be very good at.
It’s the same thing with film.
Film Courage: And maybe the need to hire out means you are entering the middle.
James: Right.
Well I think it also shows that you are entering a different mindset because there are two
kinds of filmmakers.
There is the professional filmmaker which I am lucky to be now.
And there are the ones who do it for themselves.
They just kind of make it and they have their regular job and that’s what they do, that’s
totally fine.
Neither one of those are bad or wrong.
But if you are going to be a film professional, you’ve got to work with other people because
they are trained specifically in specialty areas that you are not.
And if I’m trying to do all of those things, I’m invariably going to drop one of those
balls or not do one of those things well because I am not trained.
I am not a lawyer who took the Bar and passed it.
I am not going to write my own contract because I took an entertainment law class in college.
That does not make me a lawyer.
That means that I might understand basic verbalogies and structures but I’m not going to have
myself write my own contract with the company to direct a film because I know that.
That doesn’t make me good at it, that means I know something about it.
I will hire the lawyer that has been trained in entertainment law that passed the bar that
is practicing in multiple states to do my negotiations for me.
It’s the same thing with hiring a crew.
Would you hire a lawyer?
Do you want to do your own legal?
I don’t think so.
I don’t want to do that.
I’m not trained in it.
I’ll screw me over in the end.
Same thing will happen if you try to do everything yourself.