Working with difficult crew members

[robd]

Hello,

Often times in Student productions your forced to work in groups and occasionally a member of the group is difficult to work with. This is currently the situation I'm in kind of...I directed a previous project where this person (someone who usually directs but was in a different position in the project) was involved and perhaps their intentions were to not malign but often times he would be giving direction to actors and just generally upsetting the crew by his demanding attitude, so much so that we needed to have a talk about it.

Well now that same individual is in my group again, and I want to nip it the bud , so I'll probably talk with him and reiterate what I said previously but I need to decide what crew position to put him in, hopefully one were they would be the least trouble. I was thinking perhaps A.D., as this person likes to be in control , so they will get to somewhat control the set, but hopefully will work closely with me to achieve a common goal. I was also contemplating maybe a position in the art department (i.e. Production designer, or Art director) in order to limit his interaction with actors and or crew members during principal photography. How would you handle this situation and what crew position would you put them in?

 

[BrooksElms]

How would you handle this situation and what crew position would you put them in?

Great question.

The shoot has probably come and gone by now, but in general, my suggestion is to talk with him and see what he wants. Maybe he'll come up with his own solution that works for you. Is that what you ended up doing?

Ultimately, you're on the track and it's addressing the problem head on, setting clean boundaries and staying on top of things.

I'm happy to be more specific if it still helps. Feel free to send me a direct message.

Best,
B

 

[temerson]

This is film school, right? My advice? Make him a P.A. and tell him if he doesn't like it, then he doesn't have to show up. But you're not going to defend him when it comes time to do crew/team evaluations for your professor.

He'll hate you forever, but it might just make your time working more enjoyable to never have to worry about having him on your team. Sometimes, it's okay to burn bridges.