| Banri | Here's the place, right? |
| Izumi | Good morning. |
| Haruto | What? |
| Izumi | Oh my God!? |
| Haruto | What are you doing here!? |
| Banri | …We should be the one askin' you that. |
| Izumi | (…I would have never expected to meet Haruto-kun here.) |
| (Then again, he did assistant jobs during our collaboration. Maybe he's also here to study stage production?) |
| ??? | Good morning. |
| Miyasaki | My name is Miyasaki, from Troupe Andromeda. I'll be your lecturer for these three days. Pleased to meet you all. |
| Without further ado, I shall briefly explain our schedule. |
| During this workshop, I'd like to ask directors and assistant directors to form a pair and direct a scene that is given to them. |
| As for the actors and staff, I have brought these people to help you during this workshop. |
| They will join you on the second day, and on the last day, I will have you deliver your production in front of everyone. |
| Izumi | (I'm somewhat nervous. I've never directed actors I barely know, nor have I had to give instructions to staff before.) |
| Banri | Here's the script. |
| Izumi | (All the lines are abstract, and there are no stage directions…) |
| (Both the setting and situation depend on your production. Your skills are really being put to the test with this…) |
| Miyasaki | For starters, all directors, please try to come up with a stage production plan. |
| Assistant directors, please come here. |
| Since three out of five people here are still inexperienced, I'd like you to start with explaining what it means to be an assistant director. |
| Then, to all the inexperienced assistant directors, what do you think is an assistant director's role? |
| Haruto | … |
| Miyasaki | Settsu-kun? |
| Banri | Hmmm… I guess a role where an aspiring director does miscellaneous work? Something like training? |
| Miyasaki | Wrong. You're far from being the first person who said that, though. How about the two of you? |
| Assistant Director A | An assistant director's main role is to support the director. |
| Miyasaki | It's true, but I hope you don't think that that’s the only thing an assistant director does. |
| In the theater scene, the director is indeed like a king, guiding everyone to the destination. |
| But I personally wish that an assistant director is not treated as merely a servant. |
| Being an assistant director is a respectable profession. They hold an important position in the industry. They can as well be the second brain of the team, and not the director's limbs. |
| That is exactly why, through this three-day workshop, I'd like all of you to support your paired directors with all your might and learn at the same time. |
| Haruto | Understood. |
| Banri | Roger. |
| Miyasaki | Now, I'd like to explain what kind of duties an assistant director has. |
| Depending on the situation, there are indeed times when things are handled by the production staff or the director themselves. |
| During rehearsal, an assistant director's job is to write down all the changes the director makes, and when an actor forgets their lines, it is also the assistant director's job to tell them the promp--the lines. |
| Their job is also to create a scene-by-scene list of the actors that appear, and to arrange rehearsals based on the actors' schedules. |
| Not only that, but they also have to find a substitute when an actor can't go on stage. There are also times when they decide to use music or a background sound effect instead of a substitute actor. |
| It is also an assistant director's job to decide on when to use blackouts, as well as any changes in lighting. |
| During breaks, an assistant director has to tell everyone what time they need to resume rehearsal, compile all the mistakes made during practice, have a meeting with the staff, and prepare for the next scene. |
| There will be some adjustments made during either the D-day or the dress rehearsals. If that happens, it is the assistant's job to inform the staff. |
| Banri | (In our case, Director-chan pretty much handles all of them…) |
| Miyasaki | The assistant director is someone who stands beside the director and has a firm grasp on everything that happens on set. |
| It's safe to say that just like the director, the assistant director can also clearly see the path leading to the destination. |
| We can say that the director is like a naked king, and the assistant director is someone who tells them to wear their clothes. |
| Banri | (I get what he means, but at the same time I don't…) |
| |
| Miyasaki | Now, I'd like you to reunite with your paired directors. |
| Discuss your stage production plan, and present it in front of us. |
| Izumi | What did you do there? |
| Banri | Listened to some explanation about what an assistant director does. How about you? |
| Izumi | I've more or less come up with this plan… It was hard to make one within the time limit. |
| Banri | …I think it's fine, though? Let's proceed with this. |
| Haruto | …I've told you, it’s not going to make any sense at all if we're going with this loose plan! |
| Director A | And I've already told you we can just put it all together on the spot once we group with the actors and staff! |
| Haruto | I've told you it's gonna be a waste of time! You think they'll get it!? Damn it, imagine the complete picture first! |
| What do you want to do in this scene!? |
| Director A | Y-You don't need to be that mad… |
| Haruto | Decide it now, then! |
| Banri | …Looks like they have it rough. |
| Izumi | Y-Yeah… |
