The art of movie making is a disaster in the mix. With so many variables in play, we shouldn’t be surprised how movies bomb in the theater. Actually, with so many variables I am amazed at how many movies succeed. From studios to actors to producers to directors to set builders to script writers and rewrites, the possibility for something going wrong seems inevitable. That anything comes together perfect like a puzzle is amazing in and of itself.
David Sandberg, who directed the hit movie, Shazaam!, says movie making is really about problem solving. Just getting Zachary Levi’s character to fly through a shopping mall is one problem. So you shoot three stunt guys dressed in blue pushing an oversized “tuning fork” with Levi attached to it running through the mall. Then you painstakingly erase all the blue pixels from the scene only to realize too late that crew members were seen in the scene. So in come the CGI guys who add gift bags and mops to the crew members and suddenly they’re shoppers and custodians. Problem solved.
One of the most powerful moments in all of Star Trek became more powerful by accident. Admiral Kirk witnesses his son being murdered by the Klingons. The scene called for him to step back and stumble into his command chair, uttering his line, “You Klingon (explicative)! You murdered my son!” Instead, Shatner tripped on the stage platform and fell backward. Staying in character, he uttered his line making his appeal even more emotional than he would have otherwise. The scene went to print. Problem solved.
Getting through life is often a disaster in the mix. Anything and everything that could go wrong usually does. A couple step into retirement to spend the rest of their lives together, only to discover life cut short from cancer. A professional’s career is secure until the market turns and he’s left without a job. A friendship parts way, maybe over unmet expectations or maybe over politics, and both mourn the loss. Or maybe a pandemic breaks out and people either fall ill or divide even more so because no one trusts anyone or the government. Unsolved problems.
5000 people followed Jesus and when they were hungry he fed them. A blind man sat on the road and he cried out to Jesus and he healed him. The disciples were fearing for their lives in a boat on the lake when Jesus calmed the storm. A multitude of people listened, wanting answers to living and Jesus delivered the Word of God. The world needed redeemed so the Lamb of God took away their sins. Problems solved.
Sandberg admits that “every scene has its own problems to solve no matter the scene.” The job of the director is to solve the problems as they materialize. No melt downs and instead, a non-anxious presence. Sometimes the problems end up creating the best solutions for the movie that the writers never imagined.
Not long ago Andy Stanley was attributed to a post on FaceBook. In it he recalls talking to an 87-year-old who lived through polio, diphtheria, Vietnam protests and is still enchanted with life. In the midst of this COVID-19 Pandemic, one might expect him to feel the anxiety and pressure brought on by this disease. He said, “I learned a long time ago to not see the world through printed headlines. I see the world through the people that surround me. I see the world with the realization that we love big. Therefore, I choose (to direct my own scenes): ‘Husband loves wife today;’ “Family drops everything to come to Grandma’s bedside.’” He pats (Andy’s) hand, “Old man makes new friend.” Problem solved.
So life is not about solving problems, it’s about framing your life. But most encounters we experience bring on problems. And we have a choice. We can easily become exasperated and discouraged, throwing our hands up in the air in despair. Or we can make do and reframe the scene to capture a better moment. And who knows, maybe the problems we face create the best solutions for our life that we never imagined.
Soli Deo Gloria!
(i.e., only God is glorified!)