DIRECTIONS: Director Statement [JJ Abrams]

JJ Abrams

 Born in New York and heavily interested in film from a young age, JJ Abrams has become known for his work on both TV and Film; having written, produced and directed many greats such as 'Lost' (2004), 'Armageddon'(1998) and 'Cloverfield' (2008). His directing usually takes a very stylistic approach, although this has been received in a very mixed manner. 

Major directing credits include:

• Felicity (1999 TV Series)
• Lost (2004 TV Series)
• Mission Impossible III (2006 Film)
• Star Trek (2009 Film)
• Super 8 (2011 Film)
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015 Film)

 JJ Abrams is somewhat of a magpie director, commonly referencing inspirations work in his own, either through pop-culture references in his writing or mimicing shots in his directing. Although he believes he has no distinctively personal style, he is well known for films that heavily play on contrasts with colour and light. His films are usually very colourful and he plans very heavily with the art department, preferring real-life effects to CGI.

 He can be criticized for not often planning action sequences but does this hoping for a spontaneous feel and rarely storyboards scenes and plans on-the-day (even sometimes taking ideas from actors). He has a very fast-paced directing style and often has conversations take place whilst moving/travelling to keep the pace up. 

 Tending to have a very stylistic approach to film-making, he often using techinques like snap zooms (also used by director's such as Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon) to very conflicted critical review. However, it's hard to argue that JJ Abram doesn't take a lot of risks in his directing - something that truly makes him stand out to me.

I plan to re-direct the episode of 'The Office' that JJ Abrams directed in 2007, 3x18 'Cocktails'. Whilst the script is somewhat dialogue heavy, 'The Office' typically uses it's faux-documentary handheld style to bring cleverly instil drama into what may typically be quieter moments in another show. I also think that re-directing an episode of 'The Office' presents a challenge within itself because one of the show's most unique features was the way that the camera interacted with the characters and was able to break the fourth wall in a believable and effective style. One of the key things I want to focus on in my directing approach is the way that characters relationships build and change throughout the night and how that is reflected on screen. Certain scenes such as Michael and Jan in the bathroom and the entire exchange where Dwight asks David about the house were immediately set in my head and cutting down the script was a tough task, purely because I was trying to make sure I included enough of a coherent story whilst still using visually interesting scenes.

After agreeing to take their relationship public, Michael and Jan (with Dwight) go as a couple to Michael Wallace's cocktail party.