The price of true genius

So Christopher Nolan is a hard taskmaster. Anne Hathaway — who worked with the director in The Dark Knight Rises (2012) and in Interstellar (2014) — says he won’t allow his lead actors chairs when they are rehearsing, or let them sit between takes. When Hugh Jackman wanted a bigger trailer on the set of The Prestige, Nolan made him continue sharing with his co-star, Christian Bale.

I know actors are fragile human beings, but they need to count their blessings. The idea of a tough visionary at the top should be championed, not criticized, and a director like Nolan gets results. He is not only one of the most innovative people in the industry, but also delivers his films efficiently and is known for coming in under budget.

Nolan is not alone in his tough stance. Quentin Tarantino (like Nolan) bans mobile phones from his set so the team is not distracted, and such demands are de rigueur among top directors ranging from the sensible (Greta Gerwig forbade the use of hairspray on the set of Little Women for fear of ruining the period feel) to the bizarre (Wes Anderson would not allow the colours green and blue on Fantastic Mr. Fox because he believed it would ruin the esthetic).

Then there are the perfectionists. On his forthcoming Citizen Kane biopic, Mank, David Fincher made actress Amanda Seyfried film one scene 200 times. Not surprising from the director behind such meticulously crafted works as Fight Club and Zodiac.

History is littered with artistic visionaries unbending in their pursuit of creative excellence. Conductors are notorious tyrants. Georg Solti, known as “The Screaming Skull” on account of the fact that he was bald and shouted a lot, made his orchestras quake with fear.

There is a fine line between perfectionism and bullying, though. Alfred Hitchcock was a master of his game, but his terrorizing of Tippi Hedren on the set of The Birds (he made sure live fowl were tied to her costume, pecking at her body) was abuse.

But the best work often comes from a singular vision, not collaboration. With other businesses, you need to consult stakeholders, but not with the arts. Individuals talented enough to be given total control should be trusted, no matter how tough they are.

The trend, now, sadly, is to move away from that. Too many cooks leads to a diluting of artistic vision as marketeers from middle management without a creative bone in their body throw their thoughts into the broth.

And then there is the growing need for kindness in the workplace. Yes, bullying shouldn’t be tolerated, and there is much to be said for working with charm and persuasion. But if a creative head is always conciliatory, is that really going to yield spectacular results?

WARNER BROS. Actress Anne Hathaway, who played Catwoman in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises, says the director doesn’t allow lead actors to sit on his movie sets.

UNIVERSAL PICTURES Alfred Hitchcock tied live fowl to Tippi Hedren for The Birds.