The Weight of Hearing 'State Your Intentions'

While consensus is good, in an airplane inflight, where things are moving in real time, it’s an autocracy and there’s only one decision-maker that counts.

Ben Younger

Thursday, December 22, 2022 at 08:43 AM ET

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The Van Nuys Airport (KVNY), in the Los Angeles Basin, has been the scene of much filmmaking—aviation and otherwise. [Credit: Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

The author contrasts the collaborative, consensus-driven decision-making of directing a TV show with the singular, autocratic responsibility of a pilot in the air.
In aviation, especially during emergencies, pilots are solely accountable for critical decisions and "stating their intentions," as Air Traffic Control (ATC) provides information and guidance but does not make go/no-go calls or emergency management decisions.
While pilots can utilize available expertise and help, the ultimate burden of decision-making and responsibility for the flight rests entirely with the Pilot in Command.

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I am currently in Los Angeles gearing up to shoot a TV pilot for ABC. Three weeks out from our first day of filming, there are more than a hundred people working for me to help create the vision and, ultimately, the result that will get this show on the air for what we all hope will be a years-long series.

Every day I ask the same question to multiple people: “What do you think?” In some instances, I have a pretty good sense of what I want (on camera). Other times (for costumes, mainly), I really don’t have a clue. I simply can’t weigh in with any authority on what kind of ballgown a Korean-American woman in her 60s would be wearing to a political fundraiser. And that’s okay. My costume designer does.