Directing a Chase Scene

Television director Gil Bettman shows you how to direct a dynamic, exciting chase scene on a low budget.

Directing a Chase Scene

Developed by Jason Tomaric, FilmSkills
ABOUT THIS LESSON
Chase scenes give you the best bang for your buck, especially on a low budget. Veteran director Gil Bettman shares outstanding techniques on how to direct an effective chase scene from story drivers and performance, to choreography and cinematography.
 
  • 21:39 video on how to shoot an effective chase scene
  • Q&A with Jason Tomaric
  • Illustrated supporting content
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
  • What makes an effective chase scene
  • Top mistakes made by directors when directing action
  • How to use the lens to accentuate the action on screen
  • Story drivers to improve the sequence
ABOUT THE LESSON AUTHOR
Jason Tomaric

Jason Tomaric

Director, Cinematographer Los Angeles, California
Jason J. Tomaric is an Emmy, Telly, and CINE Award-winning director and cinematographer of four internationally-distributed feature films, dozens of national television commercials, music videos, and the largest film training content library in the world, published author of 8 books - used in many top universities, and creator of AccuSkills.com, an industry-changing learning management platform. 
 
Jason has worked in Los Angeles and around the world in over 20 countries. His clients include Disney, NBC/Universal, National Geographic, McDonald’s, Toyota, Scion, Microsoft, and Paul Mitchell, with narrative work screened at Sundance, Slamdance, and South by Southwest film festivals as well as on Netflix and on all broadcast networks.
 
Jason has taught and/or guest lectured at some of the nation's most prestigious film schools including UCLA, Columbia College, John Carroll University, Kent State University, San Francisco State, University of Notre Dame, and numerous film festivals.
 
Jason has written eight industry-defining books, all sold in bookstores, and used in film schools around the world. The American Society of Cinematographers hails Jason's books - "There are no wasted words in Tomaric's tome, which concisely summarizes each facet of the director's craft.  It's difficult to think of a step in the process that Tomaric fails to address." 
 
Jason’s DVD training series on Hollywood film production have trained filmmakers in over 40 countries, with distributors in Europe, Hong Kong, New York and Australia.
 
In 2010, Jason launched FilmSkills, which combines the world’s largest film training video library with his proprietary learning management system.  Adopted by 47 universities within the first year, FilmSkills is now the leading industry-standard training solution for motion picture and television production.
 
In 2015, Jason launched AccuSkills.com, an industry-changing learning management platform that bridges the gap between academia and industry.
CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS LESSON
Gil Bettman

Gil Bettman

Director, “The Twilight Zone,” “Knight Rider,” and Author of “First Time Director”
No one would ever see Gil Bettman as the retiring type. Bring Academy Award-winning director Robert Zemeckis to his directing class and Bettman wades right in, challenging his old friend's point of view and sparking a good-natured debate about the best ways to tell a story using a camera. But that's Bettman's style. He has very definite opinions about how to block a camera or talk to actors from his days as a top action director for TV series like “The Twilight Zone” and “Knight Rider.” Bettman learned the value of subjecting all film ideas to the acid test of a free-wheeling debate from Zemeckis himself while working as a screenwriter developing projects for Zemeckis at Universal and Warner Brothers. It's a lesson Bettman wants to pass on to his students as well.
 
With a degree from Harvard (with honors in English Literature), as well as an M.F.A. from UCLA, Bettman has directed a wide range of projects from feature films to music videos and corporate profiles. He recently directed a feature documentary, “The Long Road to Cabo,” for rock icon Sammy Hagar, and published a textbook, “First Time Director,” through Michael Wiese Productions.