Peter Berg

They may seem worlds apart, but kissing the hottest girl in your high school and convincing the skipper of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to spin donuts in the open ocean have a lot in common — at least for Peter Berg, director of "Battleship," the blockbuster movie currently filming on Oahu.

They underscore the power of filmmaking and, yes, he’s done both while the cameras rolled.

From his first film — which he wrote, directed and acted in when he was a high school sophomore — to the $200 million "Battleship," the New York native has reveled at what he could put on the screen.

The director told an audience of 100 people, who had gathered Tuesday night to hear him talk about filmmaking, that he wanted "something big" when he decided on "Battleship."

Then in July, Berg found himself aboard U.S. Navy warships during Rim of the Pacific exercises off Hawaii and giving orders to eager commanders. They loaded their big guns with live ammunition for his cameras and sent Tomahawk cruise missiles roaring off their decks.

While aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, Berg even convinced the skipper to put the warship through high-speed turns. The crew of 6,000 men and women buttoned down the Reagan and held on.

"We’re doing high-speed donuts while this crazy French cameraman is flying his helicopter so close to the carrier that the sailors are freaking out," Berg said. "The pilot makes one turn and he comes in closer and the blades of the helicopter are maybe a foot from the bridge and the captain says to me, ‘That was a little close.’"

Berg’s talk, arranged by the Film and Video Association of Hawaii and the Hawaii International Film Festival, was held at the Kahala Hotel & Resort. The 46-year-old director of "The Rundown," "Friday Night Lights" and "Hancock" arrived straight from shooting at Kualoa Ranch, slightly disheveled and definitely tired. His days typically start at 5 a.m. and last as long as the daylight.

But he delighted his fans with details about "Battleship," which stars Liam Neeson, Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgard and Rihanna.

The Universal Pictures film, loosely based on the Hasbro board game, has been described as an epic story that unfolds across the seas, in the skies and on land "as our planet fights for survival against a superior force."

Berg is filming more than 80 percent of it in Hawaii — from Pearl Harbor to 20 miles offshore. The blue water set allowed him to showcase the film’s biggest stars — the warships — and the more time he logged at sea, the more excited he got, Berg said.

"I say that man’s greatest artistic accomplishment today is building these weapons systems, these instruments of death," he said. "It’s incredible how much talent goes into making these ships. They are really remarkable."

Berg, the son of a naval historian, wanted to revisit the strategic importance of Pearl Harbor and turn it into a modern target. But he isn’t making a political statement.

"It’s a big, fun, bodacious action summer film," he said. "Oahu is a huge character. There is a giant naval battle that takes place off Koko Head. There are alien ships fighting off Honolulu and Waikiki Beach with surfers freaking out."