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Film directors' most important resource is actors. They aren't like other resources like locations, camera or even money. Work with actors is different in kind than working with any other resource. In acting classes, actors direct themselves. They do pretty well without you so you need to understand they have the ability to do what you are doing for themselves. Instead of looking at yourself as the one that will tell them how to act, think of you and the actor as partners in creating a performance you are both enthusiastic about.

So you aren't as much of a director as you think, but what do you do?

Actor Self-Critique Shortcut

Since actors can already direct themselves, albeit not precisely as you would have, you are ostensibly a shortcut for what they would do themselves. There shouldn't be any coercion or force used when it comes to eliciting a performance. You should just help them do what they would do on their own if they could watch themselves.

Balance Story With Actor Ego

Since actors can already direct themselves and you just play shortcut to that, one of the more important jobs you perform is balancing the story with the actor's desire to enlarge their part. Not every actor wants to self-aggrandize, but many do. You need to be able to reel them in when they go a little too far.

Establish A Safe Environment

In theory you and the actor may have come up with a brilliant concept for the character, but without a safe environment it won't come to life. All good performances involve a certain amount of exploring and with that comes failures along the way. You need to make the set a place that nurtures the actor and gives them permission to fail. You want them to want to try new things even if they don't work; and not be punished for failing.

Single Point Of Authority

Though you can't tell people what to do, you will still be the authority of the production. You are the single person that ultimately is responsible for the end product and the focus of the decision-making process. There may be times when conflicting opinions among actors need to be arbitrated and you are that judge. You decide when the actors can't decide amongst themselves.

Keeper Of The Big Picture

You know the script like nobody else. Actors are rightly engaged in bringing their characters to life, not so much concentrating on the story as a whole. You will be the one to gauge their acting with the whole production in mind. They may want to add some actions as they say a line and you, knowing the script as well as you do, can be a better judge as to whether something works or not.

Perspective They Don't Have

Actors can direct themselves, yes. They can't, however, have the perspective of an outsider. You bring a unique point of view that may not be superior to theirs, but will often complement or modify it. You aren't as attached to the character a single actor plays, so you can keep a balanced outlook. When things aren't coming together your thoughts may be the thing that pulls it together.

Ideas They Wouldn't Think Of

Good actors are full of ideas. They create back stories, come up with blocking bits, and color lines with inflections and rhythm. They can be the greatest source of what ultimately comes across on-screen. That being said, they won't think of everything. There are some things they would never come up with that you might. Your ideas are important, but not more important than theirs per se. It's a game of mutual idea generation and decision-making in which the best ideas win.

It may seem that the actors get to do a lot on their own and you don't have much control over it. You have the ultimate control of casting. You decide whether they are in the movie or not. So be careful in your casting and your work as a director is mostly done. Find actors you get along with, who like to collaborate, and have ideas of their own and the rest will be play.