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Your new movie The
Missing Hand - in a few words, what is it about?
It’s about an unlikely duo who come across a severed hand, and must
decide what to do with it. What
were your sources of inspiration when writing The
Missing Hand? I try to stir clear of any direct
references when writing, but I know I naturally digest inspiration from
what I watch and that inspiration will come out. For this I would say Dr
Strangelove, In Bruges and anything by the Coens. Do talk about The
Missing Hand's brand of humour for a bit? It’s
dark humour. Stuff that wouldn’t normally make you laugh out loud,
but in the context of what we are seeing, the situation is absurd. The
actions of the characters are also unexpected, so that brings about
humour, and also their inability to succeed. The opposite of a good hero. What
can you tell us about your overall directorial approach to your story at
hand? It came down to good casting. I needed to find two
actors who could play off it each other, and I think I succeeded with
Meryl Griffiths and Neil James. Without those two, it would have been a lesser film for
sure. I then steer the ship and just make sure we stay on course, but by
that point the hard work is done.
Do talk about your cast, and why exactly these
people? Well I’ve worked with Neil James plenty of times
before, so once I had Trevor down in the script, I knew I wanted Neil.
Meryl Griffiths, I was just extremely lucky to find her. She is such a talented
actress, and great fun to be around, I’m just glad I put the call out
and she saw the ad. The other two guys was slightly different. It’s much
harder to cast the smaller roles with good actors, and they hardly have
any lines. Radley Mason and I had been in touch, and he was keen to work
together, and Joseph Emms was in contention to play the lead in my previous
film Killer Bird - it’s all about networking. What can you tell us about the shoot as such,
and the on-set atmosphere? It was shot in one day, so we
had to be very focused about what we were doing. We had a rehearsal day,
which ironed out some of the problems that could have arisen on the day.
But overall it was very relaxed, professional and a good day. I tend to
run around like a headless chicken for much of it because I give myself
far too much to do, but the others seemed to enjoy it. The $64-question of course,
when and where will your movie be released onto the general public? I
hope to release it about this time next year - giving it a year at the
festivals to see how well it does. Anything
you can tell us about audience and critical reception of The
Missing Hand just yet?
It’s been good. I am relaxed about this film because it’s not
trying to do or say too much. It’s a bit of fun, with some jokes thrown
in. People seem to ‘get it’ which is great, because that attachment to
the material leaves you a bit clueless. I am excited to show it to more
people. Any future projects you'd
like to share?
Well, Killer Bird is another currently doing
the festival thing, and I am just about to release a short, one take
comedy called Toast online, and I’m just about to start editing a new
one called Two Pound Forty Pence, and I’m currently casting the one
after called Man In A Suit. What got you into filmmaking in the first
place, and did you receive any training on the subject? It
was the prospect of spending my life doing something I didn’t love
doing. I had no choice when it come to filmmaking. I went to University,
and I did lots of side projects to improve my skills. What
can you tell us about your filmwork prior to The
Missing Hand? I’ve made several short films,
which are available to view online. I write a lot too nowadays. Do talk about your production
company 23½ Productions, and the philosophy
behind it? I don’t really have a philosophy behind it. I
started the company because I wanted to promote myself as an independent
rather than just a filmmaker. It gives an audience a brand to recognise
and follow.
How would you describe yourself as a
director? I think that is a question you need to ask the
people I work with. I would hope they would describe me as collaborative
and hard working, but in reality that would probably say I am nightmare to
work with. Filmmakers who inspire you? Filmmakers
who produce work that is not tainted by the need for the industry to make
money. Your
favourite movies?
Fight Club, No Country For Old Men, There
Will Be Blood. ... and of course, films you really
deplore?
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I don’t like ‘hating’ films, because
everything has its artistic merit. But anything that has money as it’s
main priority. Your/your movie's website, Facebook, whatever
else? My handle is 23halfFilms. So you can use that to find
me anywhere. But specifically 23halfFilms.com
Thanks for the interview!
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