Los Angeles, Dec 16 (IANS): Hollywood star Bradley Cooper found it relatively easy to make the transition from acting to directing, because of his long-standing approach to film-making.

"I spent 20 years acting in movies. I was lucky enough that I had filmmakers who recognised that I don't think like an actor - that I actually think in terms of the whole story," Cooper, who made his directorial debut with 2018's "A Star Is Born", told Variety.

"They were generous enough to allow me to come with them on their journey. I was in one role for so many years, (but in fact) I was a sort of quarterback, really getting to know the plays and reading defence."

He believes that directing was a "natural transition" for him, reports aceshowbiz.com.

He said: "I learned how to help the director by being on the field. For me, it was such a natural transition, once I had the courage to write and direct a movie. But when I direct, I don't watch playback. There's no chairs. I've always hated chairs on sets; your energy dips the minute you sit down in a chair. There's no video village."

Lady Gaga starred in Cooper’s directorial debut, and he loved working with the chart-topping pop star. The actor-turned-director previously told Screen Daily, "We were both entering into worlds we didn't know, and each person had been very comfortable in their world for at least a decade - or two, in my case."

"I hope that gave her comfort in the way she gave me comfort. I knew right away we were going to tell each other the truth; there's no reason not to because eventually everybody's going to say what they really think.

“I was convincing her it was working and she was the same about me, so we provided a great barometer (for each other)."