Why Martin Scorsese Says You Need to Let Your Actors Fail

I think filmmaking comes with a lot of pressure. Every shot and camera move costs money, so you're usually drenched in sweat before the first frame.

That's why it was such an interesting thing to hear Martin Scorsese say that to get better at directing, you have to let your actors fail.

Directing actors can be one of the most intimidating parts of making a movie, especially if you're an indie filmmaker who feels more comfortable hiding behind a monitor or obsessing over lens choices.

So what are you supposed to learn from them failing?

In a recent MasterClass clip, Martin Scorsese drops some profound wisdom on how to work with actors.

Let's dive in.

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1. Step in Front of the Camera and Fail Miserably

If you've never acted before, you probably don't realize how terrifying it can be. You're up there trying to make someone else's imagination a reality. That's a lot of pressure, too.

Scorsese argues that every director should know what it feels like to be on the other side of the lens.

"It's good if he or she gets in front of the camera and fails miserably, and then succeeds a little bit," Scorsese explains.

When you feel that, you know the immediate sense of collaboration it takes to make a movie. Directors need to develop a sense of empathy for the challenges their cast faces. This shared understanding helps you bridge the gap and find that essential spark of connection.

2. Give Them the Freedom to Bomb

The only way you're going to find the character, the voice, or any other part of the person is to try and fail.

Time is always the enemy on a film set, but you need to carve out space to let your actors experiment. Scorsese encourages directors to tell their cast to go ahead and try anything. You can even do this in rehearsal.

Giving actors the freedom to fail allows them to explore their raw instincts. And it allows them to feel like they're part of the process.

And you never want to be mean or shut them down; you want to find it with them.

3. Shoot the "Mistakes" Anyway

Now that everyone is filming on digital anyway, let the cameras roll. Acting is an exploratory process. "There are things I know don't work immediately, but you shoot them, just shoot them because it's a process for the actor to go through," Scorsese says.

Scorsese admits that sometimes a performance choice feels dreadfully wrong on set, but when you look at it later in the context of the edit, it actually works perfectly.

If you let the cameras roll, you have what you need later.

4. Build Unspoken Trust

Scorsese touched on his legendary working relationship with Robert De Niro, noting that their shorthand developed early on with Mean Streets. By the time they got to Taxi Driver , they didn't even need to discuss who Travis Bickle was; they understood the psychological states the character required and just did it.

If you can work with the same people over and over, do it. And if you can build a trust on set, do that too.

You might not have a De Niro on your short, but the lesson remains: invest in long-term relationships with your collaborators. The more you work together, the less you have to over-explain on set.

Then you can work as fast as you need.

5. Work With What You've Got

Look, you're not going to start out with millions of dollars. But you still need to learn the lessons on smaller sets, so you can translate them later.

Every filmmaker knows the painful truth that what you envision in your head isn't always what ends up on the screen. "You may want one thing, but you're going to... wind up with other things," Scorsese says.

This is especially true when an actor is struggling. When you can't reshoot, and you absolutely need the scene, directing becomes an exercise in extreme patience. You have to figure out how to get them to do just enough so you can save the scene with clever coverage in the edit.

Summing It All Up

At the end of the day, directing is about guiding human beings through a highly vulnerable process. Give your cast the room to try, the safety to fail, and the grace to figure it out.

What are your strategies for directing actors on set?

Let us know in the comments!