Mysskin is one of the most acclaimed filmmakers in Tamil cinema who has also drawn much praise for his work as an actor. While his thrillers have legions of fans in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere, his performances in films such as Maaveeran and Dragon have also earned several admirers. Recently, the actor-filmmaker spoke exclusively to Cinema Express about the difference between direction and acting.
"Direction is a different ballgame from acting. In direction, you have to be aware of everything. I become aware of even things such as someone having a cup of tea or a person looking at me as they walk past me on sets." The filmmaker highlighted the 360-degree attention required in direction and the important of different senses working in unison, saying, "A director should have 2000 eyes and ears."
The filmmaker added that only one sense should work in acting and the others should be switched off to help focus on the character, as opposed to direction.
He also said that his years-long experience helped him realise how much acting is necessary for a film. "Throughout this film, Vijay Sethupathi did everything in one take and kept asking if his performance was enough and asked for another take to improve his performance. Actually, mistakes happen in a bid to achieve that improvement," Mysskin said about collaborating with the actor for their upcoming film Train.
The filmmaker said that there is an element of 'magnanimity' from a director in deciding what is enough for a film, whereas choosing what is necessary comes with a sense of 'cunningness'. He added that a performance can be enhanced in the dubbing and the rerecording phases, as well as with sound effects and colour correction.
