Meet Tyler Harden | First Assistant Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tyler Harden and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tyler, why did you pursue a creative career?
I started out in marketing and advertising, with hopes that it would be a way to synergize my logistical side and my love for creating. It turned out to be a bit too monotonous and tied down, so my goal by moving into freelance production was the same. My passion is enabling creators (the Directors I work with) to make the best possible art. As an Assistant Director and sometimes Producer, my role is crucial. I shield the Director from aspects such as time/schedule management, leading safety, enforcing healthy work standards for crew, and general communication between departments. This allows my Director to pull out performances from actors, block the scenes, and dial in the cinematography with the DP.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Like I’ve said previously, while I am a key component in creating the art, I wouldn’t call it mine per se. It belongs to the Writers, Directors, and the Departments in charge of making the shot work (Pretty much every Department). My role is to facilitate everyone working together to make it happen in a achievable and sustainable way. One lesson I had to teach myself was adaptability. There’s a very on the nose analogy that George RR Martin makes in his series “A Song of Ice and Fire”. Essentially he describes three brothers. One is like Copper, always weak and bending. The other like Iron. Hard and unyielding but brittle, and likely to shatter. The third brother is steel. It’s strong, but flexible. That’s kind of how I had to learn to be. I can bend, but I can’t break on set. I can shift schedules, work with department heads to optimize setups, etc. But I won’t have my crew past their designated hours without production comping overtime.

In terms of my “brand/story” I would just say this – I started out doing Commercial work, then later moved to Narrative. I’ve worked on campaigns for Underdog Fantasy, LEGO, Macafee, the DFA, Wesly Financial, and so many more. In the Narrative side I’ve worked on Lioness Season 2, a Feature Film entitled “Marrow”, and numerous Short Films. I’m encouraged by the amount of upcoming projects I have booked, and look to fully move into the world of Feature Films for the duration of my career.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I live in Denton, so a good amount of my time is spent around town here. I love Triptych Coffee, Recycled Books, Picone, and walking around the various parks and green spaces. In Fort Worth, I’m partial to the Kimbell Art Museum, Old South Pancake House, and the Trinity River. Dallas has some of the best concert venues around, my favorite being Trees. I also enjoy attending any and every showing at the Texas Theater.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many I’d love to shoutout. I work with so many talented Directors such as Ean Verdugo, Matthew Rojas, Sean Garcia, Truitt Glover, Sean Furey, Keon Hedayati, and more. I also work with some awesome Producers like Wilson Lemiuex, Andrew Plock, Brandon Salazar, Gopal Bala, Mark Ragunton, Conor Soucy, and Alex Mena.

Instagram: hardentyler01

Linkedin: Tyler Harden

Image Credits
Alexis Merino
Rachel Verdugo