Three Creative Lessons From Making a James Bond Film
The Dr. No film crew set used tight constraints to make something great. All images courtesy of publishing company Taschen.
When the Dr. No film crew set out to adapt Ian Fleming’s 1958 novel into what became the first blockbuster James Bond movie, they walked into a meeting room with the top leaders at a N.Y. production company with a lofty goal. At that time, they didn’t even have a script or a cast. But they had a long-term vision, which was to adapt the novels into an entire series — not just a singular film. Crazy enough, the production company was entirely on board with it.
So director Terence Young and his team went off to Jamaica a few months later, and the result was one of the biggest movies in the history of film. Throughout the filmmaking process, the team went to great lengths and worked under tight constraints to make something truly great and timeless.
While most people in the creative world aren’t making something quite as big as a James Bond film, the reality is that the challenges that a creator faces in the project phase tend to be the same for every professional at every level. (Stars, they’re just like us!)
Here, we share three lessons from the Dr. No book, which takes readers inside the filming process, that you can apply to your next creative project. They include pitching over-the-top concepts, leaning into constraints, and being open to the idea you never saw coming.
The cast discussing a scene with Young in Jamaica.
No. 1 — No script, no star, no problem.
It’s June 1961. Coproducers Harry Saltzman and Cubby Broccoli walk into a New York meeting room full of the top executives in the film industry — with no script and no star attached to their idea to make the first James Bond film. They faced impossible odds for getting a movie made. So what did they do? They didn’t just pitch a movie, they pitched an entire series.
As Taschen’s book says, “In the early 1960s, the traditional path for independent producers was to have a script with a star or stars attached, and to present that package to a studio for financial backlink… What was unusual about the producers’ pitch, and showed their chutzpah, was that they were not trying to find financing for one movie, but for a series. The producers left the building with the money to pay for the first script to be written, and to pay for their lead actor, whoever that may be.”
Takeaway: Sometimes your ideas might feel too big, or it might seem like you’ve run out of ideas and opportunities. But there’s always an option. Maybe it’s the most unlikely one on the table that has the best chance of getting through.
No. 2 — The project is a marathon. But the details are in the sprints.
Projects have tight deadlines, especially when it comes to making a film with a huge crew and sticking to a narrow budget. Add when you’re filming in Jamaica with the natural elements, you’re racing against the forces of nature for the perfect scene or shot.
The sunlight every day posed a huge challenge for the crew. But, the team decided they’d use the unpredictability to their advantage — because that’s what the great creators do. One day, photographer Bunny Yeager was shooting with Ursula Andress (“Honey”). He didn’t have a planned shoot with her, but when it comes to the natural light, there’s no planning for these types of things. Yeager seized the moment. “The sun was behind a cloud, so I just took Ursula nearby to these rocks and we made quite a few pictures there,” said Yeager. “I never knew whether I had her for one picture or for 12. I just shot fast and furious, and I had to just get what I could. Time was on my side there.” (Hint: the shots turned out perfectly.)
Takeaway: With every creative project, you’re likely working with dozens of constraints, whether it’s tight deadlines, budgets, and collaborators aberrations. Instead of letting them stand in the way of the work, these challenges can inspire creativity and bring about an even better piece of work in the end.
No. 3 — Be open to the idea you never saw coming.
Sometimes, two creators will have clashing visions. In the case of Dr. No, editor Peter Hunt wanted to keep the camera rolling as long as possible. His advice to the director, Terence Young? “Don’t be so quick in saying ‘cut.’ Give me something on the end.” (Editor's note: He called Terence a “bad boy.” Only some teams can get away with stuff like that.)
On the other end, Young explained that he hated shooting master shots, much preferring to shoot only the bits that he would plan to use because he knew the rest of the footage would be a waste. And, point taken. The scenes he envisioned were exactly the ones he carried over to the finish line.
But every project creator needs to compromise. Young did admit, “I’m a bit stupid because I should shoot more. Very often you need something for your editor afterwards.” And Hunt concurred that the way the footage came together in the end reminded him of a scrappy comic strip, in a delightfully unexpected way.
Takeaway: Choose when and how you will compromise with your fellow creators. There might be the idea you want and the idea they want, but what if there’s the third option — the one you never saw coming, but are so glad to see?
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