Unknowingly, I have hopelessly fangirled over Fincher without even truly knowing his identity. Some of my favorite movies to ever exist (Se7en, Zodiac, The Social Network, and Gone Girl), all belong to Fincher, and even as a film student, I neglected to take notice of the Director in each of these pieces. Hitchcock may have been the Master of Suspense, but in each of these movies, nothing can be predicted, which according to Hitchcock, is all that suspense really is: when the predictable is suddenly unpredictable.
In his interview regarding directing secrets, Fincher seems to be polarized in his conversation topic. No matter the question, he always turns it back on his actors and his relationship with his people on set. Regarding Kevin Spacey on the set of Se7en, he almost seems nostalgic and infatuated with his ability to bring the deranged John Doe serial killer to life. Then immediately going onto The Social Network, he regards both Jesse Eisenburg and Andrew Garfield very highly, putting them before himself.
Going back to the initial quote I provided from the nofilmschool.com interview, I immediately picked up the vibe that the Director/ 1st AD/ production staff needs to be all about a strong work-ethic, but also creating trustworthy relationships with the rest of the crew on set. As an AD, I need to be a strong, efficient leader, but also remain approachable.
And now I leave you with some notable memories from my favorite Fincher movies.
