You are not the Director

[Rykion]

In the same vein that some folks are going to argue with my analogy (of which one will have a comparable background, the other won't), a fairly large percentage of us on this forum don't have film experience. But yet, we nonetheless will debate about the roles of producers and directors in film, and how they do or do not relate to RPGs. Something of which we have very little first hand experience.

The whole purpose of using an analogy is to compare a concept people are not informed about to a concept they are familiar with. It's important that the person making the analogy and the audience have the same understanding of that familiar concept. I think your desk analogy does this. It doesn't matter that not everyone has a computer background, as most will understand the difference between something in use and something being stored. Since the roles of director and producer aren't everyday concepts, and vary quite a bit among individuals in those jobs, the analogy is not very illustrative.

I find analogies are best kept simple, or avoided altogether.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

The DM is like the host and the audience of an Improv show. He sets up the scenario, tosses plot seeds at them then allows the players to do their thing, occasionally throwing in twists to keep them on their toes.

 

[TarionzCousin]

Clive > Drew

Ryan + Colin > Clive

 

[Mikaze]

Ryan + Colin > Clive

While I agree, I'm torn between Mike McShane and Wayne Brady.

 

[Fifth Element]

Ryan + Colin > Clive

Totally agree. Of course, in the UK version you get all three...

While I agree, I'm torn between Mike McShane and Wayne Brady.

Ryan, Colin, Tony Slattery and Paul Merton do it for me. Though they generally insist on at least one person able to sing, so McShane it is.

 

[Raven Crowking]

And thus we entered the era of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" edition wars.......

 

[CleverNickName]

And thus we entered the era of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" edition wars.......

(furiously begins scribbling up a flowchart...)

 

[WayneLigon]

I think the term Director has some bearing on being a GM. It's part of the Director's job to take the script and the actors and bring out the best in both of them. He makes changes to both that hopefully accentuate the positive.

 

[The Shaman]

I think the term Director has some bearing on being a GM. It's part of the Director's job to take the script and the actors and bring out the best in both of them. He makes changes to both that hopefully accentuate the positive.

And if there is no "script" . . . ?

 

[jmucchiello]

My turn. The players are the scriptwriters and the DM is the author of a work the players are adapting to this "film" (as in the Academy Award for best adaptation of an existing work). And like films with 4-8 writers, the resemblance of the finished work to the original material is at best respectful. This explains how 2-hours-to-stat villains end up with only 15 minutes of screen time and how minor characters from the appendix end up taking up 6 sessions. This is independent of the level of railroadiness. Even the best sandbox campaign can go in directions unexpected when the players are introduced to the environment.