Editing Michael Curtiz (section)

=== Preparation ===
Curtiz always invested the time necessary to prepare all aspects of a film before shooting. "As far as I am concerned," he said, "the chief work in directing a film is in preparing a story for the screen ... Nothing is as important ... A director can be likened to the field general of an army. He should know more clearly than anyone else what is coming, what to expect ... I believe this as a sound working plan."<ref name=Evening-44>Curtiz, Michael. "The Parade of Oscars", ''The Evening Review'', June 14, 1944, p. 13</ref>

By putting time into preparation, he cut down on delays after production started, which gave him the ability to put out about six films a year until the 1940s. He turned out ''[[Front Page Woman]]'' (1935) in only three weeks, despite its rapid-fire newspaper dialogue with Bette Davis,<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWsPnDypwR8 ''Front Page Woman'' (1935) – trailer], Warner Archive</ref> then turned around and made ''Captain Blood'' almost entirely on the sound stage without having to leave the studio.<ref name=Pitts-2>Ross, George. "Slaying the King's English", ''The Pittsburgh Press'', August 10, 1938, p. 11</ref> (Errol Flynn's duel with Basil Rathbone was shot at Three Arch Bay in Laguna Beach.)