David Fincher Talks "House of Cards," Freedom of Working With Netflix and Much More

While speaking to DGA Magazine, Director David Fincher discussed his new Netflix series 'House of Cards' and the freedom of working with Netflix:

“This isn't TV, because we don't have the studio, we don't have standards and practices, we don't have people breathing down your neck saying, ‘Remember, kids love bright colors!’ We don't have people militating against collective disinterest. I wanted to create an environment where you go in, point at the left field wall and swing as hard as you can.”

"Netflix has been incredibly respectful. They've actively looked for ways to put themselves in business with people [with whom] they could say, 'Go make the thing we just talked about.' It's how the movie business was described to me in the early 70s at Warner Bros. If you could come in and tell your story, and a reasonable number [to make] it, you'd go do it."

On the subject of his infamous many takes:

"A lot of people had a smile in the corner of their mouths when they said to me, 'Dave, if you think you're going to get 20 takes, you're just not going to make your day.' But I think I averaged somewhere around 35 setups and 14 takes per setup. It's about how you manage your time. Obviously, shooting digitally helps, [House of Cards was shot using the RED camera] because I never had to cut. I could say, 'Go back out and come in again,' and it's amazing the pace you get. It's a Frank Capra trick from way back. Because he could only print so many takes, he used to say, 'Keep it rolling, go out and come in.' What he found was people were more energized, and it gave this effervescence, and I ended up having to do that."