Define Your Destination First: A Filmmaking Career Lesson from GPS Navigation
By
Daren Smith
Summary
In this chapter of "A Producer's Path," independent producer Daren Smith uses the metaphor of a GPS requiring a destination to illustrate the essential first step in a filmmaking career: defining your goal before choosing your path. The piece argues that aspiring filmmakers often focus too much on the "how" (routes, tools, techniques) without first clarifying the "where" (their ultimate creative or professional destination). Smith draws on the GPS analogy to emphasize that clarity of purpose must precede tactical decisions, offering practical wisdom for navigating the film industry.
Source
IndieWireDefine Your Destination First: A Filmmaking Career Lesson from GPS Navigationindiewire.comKey quotes
· 4 pulledA GPS cannot give you a single instruction until you tell it where you're going.
Same with asking for directions from a stranger — you'd get the most confused look if, when asked where you're going, you said, 'I don't know…'
A compass is helpful but only in relation to the direction you want to go.
A single spot on a map can have infinite routes leaving it. It's not until you define a destination that a route emerges.
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