This is indeed a very rookie question, but Murphy answered it very seriously.

He thought for a while before saying, "There are countless stories and legends in this world, and humans are the species that are the best at telling stories. Each object has its own story, and everyone has its own story. We perceive the story and we are interested in the story. And for me, the most important thing is how to tell a story and how to tell a special story in an appropriate way."

John understood, "Stories are the most important to movies?"

"Photography, performance, editing, post-production, costumes, are equally important, and all the factors that make up the movie are equally important." Murphy smiled, "but all of this is for telling good stories."

Just like Hollywood movies today, the story is getting simpler and the special effects are getting better and better. It seems that as long as there are visual effects, nothing is a problem, but it won’t take long to cause aesthetic fatigue and deteriorate.

Many times, it is very, very important to tell a good story.

Suddenly a black-haired boy raised his hand, Murphy nodded, "Everyone is casual."

Gal Gadot glanced at Murphy and said, "Murphy is here to communicate with everyone, don't be so reserved."

The black-haired boy smiled shyly and said, "I want to ask, how can I tell a good story."

“Every director has a different style and style, and there will be differences.”

Someone brought a chair over, Murphy said thank you and sat down first, and waited for the people around him to sit on their chairs, then said, "When I was making a movie, I would use one or two words to summarize the theme of the movie. In my heart, I clearly used one word to summarize the theme I wanted to express, and what is the core. Having this concept is very important for the director, because the most common thing the director does is to decide: does the character have long hair or short hair? Wearing a skirt or pants? Having a beard or not? So, when you don't know how to choose, thinking about the theme can often help you make a choice."

Murphy said to these curious and enthusiastic guys, "A good movie should have causes, passages, and results, but it does not have to be arranged in this order."

The men, led by John and Mosen, thoughtfully, fell into a brief silence until the girl named Minna, who was sitting behind them, spoke.

"I am a famous actor in the club." She introduced herself first, and then said, "I heard that Hollywood actors have a very low status, is that true?"

"The status of celebrity actors is not low. Does anyone think Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio have low status?"

Looking around, everyone was shaking their heads. Murphy suddenly changed his tone, "If you haven't reached the upper level, the actors are indeed a vulnerable group than the director."

This is a common scene in the industry.

"Then...then..." Minna stuttered, calming herself down in Murphy's encouraging smile, "There are many directors in Hollywood...there are not very good rumors between directors and actors. You... as a director, will you bully the actors in the crew?"

Hearing this question, many people turned to look at Mingna, especially John and Mosen, and their dissatisfaction was almost written on their faces.

Gal Gadot frowned, Murphy patted the back of her hand comfortably and said, "Most actors are actually a vulnerable group. They are very worried that their performance will be criticized, humiliated, and useless. So on the set, I tried my best to create a harmonious atmosphere so that they knew that even if the performance was not satisfactory, it didn't matter. I hope they would build their own style and confidence."

Mingna had many questions and asked again, "Did you pay great attention to the actor's performance during the filming?"

"When making a movie, the director needs to pay attention to all the details on the set, but this does not mean that he needs to stare at them with all his attention." Murphy has never been an actor's director, and he does not only focus on one aspect. "When the camera starts to rotate, I rarely go directly to the actor's performance, but focus my attention elsewhere. In this way, when something is wrong during the shooting process, I can immediately feel it. Looking elsewhere does not mean that I need to stare at it, but just look at it like I usually look at it."

"Then say that," Mingna was very puzzled, "Is the director helping the actors?"

"Yes?" She is not the only one who has the same problem. "Didn't it mean that the director's direction is also very important to the actors?"

Since he sat here, Murphy was patient, "Actors directing is a part of the director's work, not all. The director's work in this regard is to clearly know what emotions his actors need to convey in this scene or this line, and to cultivate the ability to discover the actors' maximum potential and make them dedicate the best performance. He must have a clear understanding of the personality of an actor and his strengths and weaknesses, so that he can help them solve some specific problems and help them realize their potential."

"So that's how it is." Mingna muttered and returned to silence.

"Murphy." The person in charge named Morson suddenly raised his hand and asked, "What kind of character can make the movie better?"

"The more the villain is," Murphy shrugged, "the better the movie is."

No one expected Murphy to give such an answer, and laughter rang out in the lounge.

A bald young man stood up, "Murphy, as you said, the director needs to be responsible for the overall situation. Which job do you like the most on the set?"

This is no longer a movie topic exchange, it is almost becoming an exclusive interview with the media.

Murphy didn't mind, and said with a smile, "I'm very lucky because I like everything the director does. And the director's task is extremely important, because if one or two things fail to meet expectations, the entire work will be in ruins. Therefore, you must participate in every part of the production process, and you must not forget your original intention for every choice you make."

As he spoke, Murphy also thought of his experience over the past few years and said with emotion, "Once you see the right thing appear in front of you, such as an actress, dressed properly, the lighting is just right, and the words are moving, and you will be so excited that you will almost faint. So you need to coordinate the whole audience. You need to have a clear requirement for any details such as lighting, sound effects, actors' movements, etc., and you need to constantly adjust during the shooting process to achieve the ideal effect. You need to understand that these are the work you need to do. You also need to constantly compare reality with your imagination, and clearly judge when it is feasible and when it is not feasible."

These rookies are constantly nodding. It is not difficult to answer their doubts with Murphy's experience.

Murphy spread his hands and said, "The relationship between the director and other members of the crew should be a cooperative relationship rather than a leadership relationship. Leaders in each department have a skill, so directors should be good at listening and humbly accepting their professional opinions in the field. They are also filmmakers, just like directors."

Mosen raised his hand again, "Which script or star do you think is more important?"

“There was a time when every Hollywood director was striving for a good script, but now,” Murphy sighed and shook his head. “People like to fill the picture with all kinds of close-ups of celebrities, as if they wanted to put them on Mount Rushmore like the president who was next to him.”

When Murphy talked about the script, Moson became more active. "I have been writing a script in the past few months. If I want to impress Hollywood production companies, do I need to pay attention to?"

"Don't get yourself into the trap of the basic principles of script creation advocated by Siddfield."

Seeing him say this, many of these relatively simple-minded students showed doubts. Murphy explained without waiting for them to continue asking questions, "It is well known that Siddfield wrote a book that directs script writing. For some reasons, it has become the Scripture of the Supervisors, not the Bible of the Screenwriters."

Murphy coughed in a low voice, "I am talking about the supervisors, but referring to the film studios who develop outlines, supervise scripts, and give instructions. They have taken Siddfield's class, bought his book, and started criticizing the scripts..."

He spread his hands and shrugged, "For example: Well, you know, the first turn should be on page 12, and yours is on page 17, which obviously doesn't work! Siddfield's rules are so ridiculous. If there is a formula like he said, wouldn't every movie be very popular? Just link a, b and c to create an excellent movie, and the audience will flock, but not every movie will be very popular. Many movies created by his rules can be thrown into the toilet."

Another brief silence in the lounge was then roused to talk. Murphy was open-minded and didn't care at all.

Later, the guys asked some questions about photography, scheduling, venue selection and art guidance, some of which were outrageous, but Murphy also gave questions and answers one by one.

Compared to the celebration party in the restaurant, the discussion ended even later. It was already midnight when Murphy and Gal Gadot walked out of the messy restaurant.

"It's so late." Murphy took Gal Gadot's hand, without any intention of leaving. "You can't rush me back, right?"

It seems that they have never tried any different feelings of having fun in the dormitory of a school apartment.
Chapter completed!