For as long as I can remember, I have had a passion for films. In 2001, I decided to begin a journey that would lead me all the way to producing and directing a feature film of my own.

Here in the UK (and now in its first year in New York) there is a resource called shootingpeople.org. Here you can find an abundance of industry professionals from editors to actors to make-up artists. Although it is easy to find people to work on your film, you do hear a lot of horror stories about projects that have collapsed due to people not showing up or dropping out. A lot of this is due to the fact that producers using shootingpeople.org simply can't afford to pay their cast and crew. Normally you cover expenses and food, and provide a complimentary copy of the DVD for showreels/portfolios. But I also believe that bad people management and motivational skills play a big role in these kind of project implosions.

Last year, I spent most of the summer shooting my first film, a 20 minute short set in a deserted city. Having never managed a large team before, I felt very unsure about the 'right' way to lead and motivate a team. I set aside £1,500 of my own money as the budget, knowing full well that if one of the actors got fed up half way through the shoot, it was game over; big time. I decided (as most filmmakers do) to draw on personal experience. I looked back at my career as a programmer, and thought about the various managers I had worked with, and what made someone a good or bad leader.

Drawing from these experiences was the best thing that I could have done. To this day, people are still amazed at how far some of my crew travelled to work on my film. My Sound Recordist and Director of Photography both travelled four hours each way, travelling down from Telford and Wolverhampton, respectively. But it wasn't as simple as just being nice. There was a lot involved to motivate my crew to give up most of their summer weekends in 2003, get up at 5am every day, and work on hot sets where the temprature would reach 36 degrees celsius. Here is a break down of how I achieved this:

* Personality-Oriented Recruitment

There are a lot of very talented people in the film industry. But talent and personality don't always go hand in hand. When it comes to the crunch, enthusiasm and personality mean a lot more to me than technical skills. Obviously if someone applies for a given position, you will want to ensure they are competant. But after that, I was hiring based purely on the person. When I built my team, I built it around the overall goal: the film. The team had to gel together, learn from each other, and always put the film ahead of their egos. In a good team, people need to pitch in when required and be flexible, because they want the overall product to succeed.

* Honesty

Ever hear of an employee quitting in the middle of a project because their company lied to them or misled them about what they would be doing?

During the crewing and casting I was very honest about the negative aspects of the project. I was a first time director without a track record; I did not have the funds to pay anyone; there were no big name actors to help sell the film; the film was being shot on digital; people would be required to give up weekends as I had a full time job. People are less likely to drop out of anything if they know the score. What goes around, comes around.

* Manners

Imagine if I had yelled at the cameraman because he made a mistake on a zoom or focus pull? That would not have gone down well. It's important to always treat people with courtesy and make the effort to say thank you. One morning my crew got up at 5am and filmed in the pooring rain for hours with me. I made the effort afterwards to push the boat out and treat them all to a Pizza Hut meal, with beers included. I didn't have to do that, but I made sure I let them know they did a fantastic job, and how much I appreciated that.

* Remember motivations differ

My crew didn't join my film for fun, or for me. Everyone has their own motivations. My actors were looking to be in a good film that would help their career/showreel. The Make-Up girl was looking to improve her portfolio so she could hopefully begin to work on paid projects. It might all seem so simple and obvious, but how many times in the corporate world do we see employees who feel they have been trapped, and are not gaining anything except a paycheck? The longer they wait to gain the skill they were promised, the less employable they become elsewhere.

* Roles and Relationships

A friend of mine recently left a teaching career to work in the IT field. He joined a large consultancy company on their graduate scheme and was immediately posted to a client's site where he was promptly shoved into a corner and given Mickey-Mouse jobs as their was no real work for him. He was denied training, lost sight of his goals, and was made to feel like he had commited an offense for bothering his manager with questions. He left after four months and went back to teaching.

As the director of a film, you are the leader; the alpha horse. But never close your doors to questions/uncertainties/ suggestions from your crew. If you stop listening/reacting to them, they won't feel accepted by you. You should always be open to your team. They will respect you more if you can admit when you don't have the answers. It doesn't make you any less of a leader; it makes you a better one. When a leader is more open and more involved with his team, morale is higher, and productivity greater. Likewise, ensure everybody knows their job and what is expected of them. If someone has an issue, attend to it.

In my 4 year IT Career, I have noticed that the problem with poor performers is that their struggles seem to stem from unhappiness, caused by one or more of the issues that I have just raised in this article. When it comes down to it, a happy worker really is a productive worker.

It doesn't matter what you are trying to do. Maybe you are trying to motivate a team of .NET developers to work the weekend; maybe you are trying to motivate actors to shoot a film for no money. Your team are your soldiers. If you know how to motivate and lead them, they will not only follow you into battle. They'll win you the war.