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An Interview with Tom Jolliffe, Screenwriter

by Mike Haberfelner

July 2020

Films written by Tom Jolliffe on (re)Search my Trash

 

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First of all, why don't you introduce yourself to those of us who don't already know you?

 

I’m Tom Jolliffe. I’m a screenwriter and film journalist based in the UK. I’ve also occasionally taken on other production roles, like producing and may well do more in the future.

 

Do talk about some of your current and future projects for a bit, and how did they fall together?

 

I’ve been pretty prolific in the last two years. I think altogether between films I’ve written which are out, those in pre-production and those currently in development, I’ve written over 20. Up until lockdown I was writing predominantly horror. Most of these were commissions for a number of British indie film companies. Recently, Return of the Tooth Fairy (aka Tooth Fairy: The Root of Evil) debuted on DVD in the UK and it’s due out in mid July in the US too. Later this year, Witches of Amityville starring Emmy winner Kira Reed Lorsch is also coming out.

 

I’ve now moved from horror to doing action films. Renegades (an old boys revenge film) will shoot this fall, starring Lee Majors and a few recognisable British stars like Billy Murray and Ian Ogilvy. There will be a load more names confirmed on that one soon. I’m also working on a film called Backlash (which will probably have a title change) that will star an action legend. I’m very excited about this one, with our hero due to partner with a British cop and take on Yakuza in London. Backlash and Renegades will be directed by action specialist Daniel Zirilli, who really knows his stuff ,and these will be overseen by prolific British producer Jonathan Sothcott [Jonathan Sothcott interview - click here], who is flying the flag for quality genre entertainment in this country with Shogun Films. We also have several more films in development such as Pretty Boy (a biopic of British gangster/fist fighter, Roy Shaw...think Hardy in Bronson), The Star Chamber and Dragon Sword.

 

Now what got you into screenwriting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the subject?

 

I’ve always loved film. I was a little obsessive about it I guess. When I was younger I particularly loved action films or fantasy films. Spectacle, when spectacle wasn’t all CGI. I’d play around with making scripts when I was a bit younger, though I became more interested in writing film reviews. Around 10 years ago I began approaching screenwriting more seriously. I had a few close calls here and there. Nearly moments where companies would fall apart at the last minute or couldn’t find financing. I hadn’t trained as such, though I did study film (theory) and creative writing at University. My study has mostly been in watching a ridiculous amount of films I think.

 

What can you tell us about your past filmwork?

 

When I was struggling to get my scripts taken off me and made (in some cases, even giving them away) I figured that taking more control myself meant if a film wasn’t made, I’d only have myself to blame. I made my first short called Out (crime drama) in 2015. I co-produced with my friend Alex Lawton. He directed and edited it. I wrote it. Between us we sorted all the cast, logistics etc. We had a great cast in it including Shone Romulus from popular UK drama Top Boy, and Joerg Stadler who was the German P.O.W in Saving Private Ryan. Odd guy, intense, but kind of brilliant. We made it and it premiered on the big screen in London. I made a few shorts beyond that, including Winter Hill (a drama, directed by Alex again), The Dark Recess (horror, available on Prime UK) and Estranged (drama), all of which did great on festival circuits.

 

Over the years, how do you think you have evolved as a writer?

 

I think with doing commissions I’ve got better at writing to specifications and demands. I’ve learned about compromise. I’ve also learned the benefiting of drafting, redrafting, redrafting and redrafting (sometimes to the point of insanity). There’s only been one film I felt like I couldn’t get 100% right, called Cyber Bride. I got close, but ultimately there were too many conflicts (without any animosity) between what the producers wanted, what distributors expected, and what a ridiculously low budget can actually deliver on a sci-fi film. That said, between us we got the middle third right and I really enjoy parts of that film.

 

On several of your films, you also have other behind-the-camera (and sometimes even on-camera) duties - is that something you enjoy, or a necessary evil, and being more involved in the film than just writing, how much creative control do you demand and/or get?

 

As previously mentioned. When no one was making my scripts I had to turn to producing to get the first one out there. I enjoyed it, even if it was stressful. Casting is something I have a love/hate relationship with. I love when you find brilliant talent who are undiscovered. Many actors appear in several of my films across short, and features, because I’ve been happy to recommend them to the producers making the features. Katie McKenna is a young actress who worked with me on The Dark Recess, and then I put her name forward for Return of The Tooth Fairy. I feel like I could be a future interview question when she makes it big, ‘Do you remember making a short called The Dark Recess?’ She’s incredible and does introspection very well (which is hard. It can be the difference between being a soap actor or a film actor). I’ve also loved certain auditionees who weren’t quite the right fit for what they originally applied for, so I went back to them in another film.

 

As far as acting myself, that was a necessity. I enjoy making virtually zero budget shorts, and the less people you can have on set, the better. The benefit of that, if I work with my brother for example, is he can shoot, cut, light, grade and do sound work. I’m a keen musician, without any aspirations to do it professionally, but I’ve scored a few shorts. Again, sometimes it takes a while to hire someone, get their music back, and it becomes easier for me to do it. I like to work quickly, so does my brother. I have lucked out in having composers share the workload on a few shorts. Ultimately though, one thing I enjoy about the shorts is the pick-up-and-go mentality you can have. As long as your story can fit around having no money, and you have willing collaborators, there’s a fantastic freedom. I do like that control, and I can do things that in terms of feature commission guidelines might be deemed not commercial enough.

 

Could you take us through the whole process of you writing a screenplay, from first idea to final draft?

 

For those ideas that come to me completely out of the blue, I occasionally do out a treatment, or at least a synopsis. For the shorts I’ve occasionally had the rough basis for an idea, a logline and just launched right into the script. I do 1-2 drafts maybe and then it’s either good to go, or it’s in the vault for a time when someone is looking for similar (at which point it may get another draft or two).

 

Commissions are a bit different. Occasionally I get asked if I can write a script based on nothing more than ‘Vikings vs Scarecrow’. Occasionally it’s a little more detailed, or specifics on characters (particularly if they’ve been cast already). I wrote Witches of Amityville with the lead cast all in mind. That went through 4 drafts I think. I’ve had two week deadlines before, and been asked if I can do that. I usually can. The only thing I’ve turned down was a 3 day deadline for a film, but that was because it was too similar to Cyber Bride. I love concepts that excite me, even if they’re utterly ridiculous. So I’ve got Jurassic Island shooting this autumn, I’ve had demonic scarecrows, witches, cyborgs. I love all types of cinema, and ridiculously bad B movies I find enjoyable in the right mood. So writing them is great fun. What I love is the mix. The range of genres and concepts I’ve been able to write has been amazing. Some of which will ultimately get battered by the internet critics, but others which have cult film potential, or acclaim potential. Working with Shogun particularly is providing a bigger platform, which excites me. However if I get a call asking if I can write some batshit crazy horror film that’ll be shot for the price of a watch, I’d probably still do it.

 

Do you restrict yourself to writing for the screen, or are you also doing prose, poetry, theatre, or whatever else?

 

I’ve thought about novels in the past, but maybe later. Film is my first love. Aside from screenwriting I still enjoy writing film-based articles and do so regularly at Flickering Myth. I think, all bias aside, it’s one of the best film sites around and the sheer range of subjects covered (by passionate and talented writers) is amazing. I love being able to write about Andrei Tarkovsky films one week, and Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson the next. We’re kind of given carte blanche, but that’s what film should be about and great film sites should cover a base for everyone.

 

Are there any genres you prefer to work in, and why?

 

I love writing comedy but it’s the one genre that I’ve done the least ironically. I love all genres though, as a viewer and as a writer. I think the beauty of horror for example, is that you can have a little more surrealism. You can toy with the psychology of your character. You can also make the film prescient through metaphor, and on a visual standpoint you can have something like Suspiria. There’s all these deep primary and secondary colours bleeding out the screen. In real world terms it’s illogical, but it’s a horror film and within that movie, it has its own logic.

 

How would you describe yourself as a writer?

 

Fucking crazy probably (laughs). At the moment, because I just don’t stop. It’s insane. Part of me fears that whilst momentum is high, if you take your foot off the gas for a moment, then you lose what’s ahead of you. It’s taken 10 years to reach a point where I can go and find my work on DVD shelves in the shops. I think I’ve become dedicated in a way I was never about much in my 20’s. If you do only get one shot, this is mine. So a 6 month holiday isn’t an option.

 

Writers, filmmakers, whoever else who inspire you?

 

My daughter inspires me, because one day when she’s old enough to understand, I want her to think it’s pretty cool that her silly old father has made films people have seen. If we’re at show and tell, I might not be making the money that the banker dad is, but I might have more interesting stories to tell.

Kubrick, Tarkovsky, Bergman, Scorsese, Hitchcock, Kurosawa, Coppola inspire me. Great auteurs inspire me. Not so loved auteurs also inspire me, like Albert Pyun (actually Cyber Bride I like to think of as my ‘Pyun’ film) or Uwe Boll. Guys who did their thing and had a vision. Boll as an example, for better or worse, makes films the way he wants to and has a clear vision of what he wants. Are they good? Well... but you’ll remember him over directors who are functional but not memorable at all.

A lot of the action stars inspire me because they came out from unconventional situations. They weren’t part of drama school cliques or in-circles. Arnie, Sly, Van Damme etc, almost lost everything before gaining that big break. They went right to the edge and then they never gave up. It’s incredible, and in the action genre that’s a fairly common story.

 

Your favourite movies?

 

Blade Runner, Taxi Driver, Withnail & I, Stalker, The Shining, Naked, Labyrinth, Terminator, Die Hard, Heat, Rocky, Chinatown. Just off the top of my head.

 

... and of course, films you really deplore?

 

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I wouldn’t say I deplore any but I have a bug bear about overly expensive films that don’t have the demand (and then turn out badly). Terminator Genysis as an example. They spent huge amounts on that. For all that money too, the film looks cheap, and I always wonder just how so many films can spend well over 200 million and still have crap CGI. On the subject of CGI, over-reliance is also a bug bear of mine. I hate seeing CGI muzzle flashes, squibs, explosions which is almost the norm in action films now. I get put off on lengthy action sequences that were shot in a green studio.

 

I look at something like the last Star Wars too. It’s enormous, it’s bloated and it cost a grotesque amount, but it’s an absolute shambles in terms of structure. A total mess, but films like this are quite common. It gets away with being an appalling mess (Justice League was similar) because it’s Star Wars. To be honest a lot of the Marvel films, particularly some of the big eventsm are also structurally all over the place, or they occasionally grind to a halt for an indulgent moment of fan service. But at least Kev Feige, still knows to make them enjoyable (and they’re well cast with plenty of charisma). I would just love to see a more pulled back focus on making engaging films and being more cost effective. It would also be nice to see money filtering down to more indie film-makers or smaller productions. Skydance keep shitting out Terminator films for well over 150 mill. Let Blumhouse or A24 do a great revamp for 10 million tops. I wasn’t hugely keen on Joker (it’s good but I didn’t think it was game-changing), but it cost peanuts by ‘comic book’ standards and made a fortune. That, is the formula to follow and that’s more interesting than the majority of the greenlit blockbusters.

 

Your website, social media, whatever else?

 

https://www.instagram.com/jolliffeproductions/

https://tom-jolliffe.com/

https://www.flickeringmyth.com/category/tom-jolliffe/

https://www.facebook.com/supertomjolliffe

 

Thanks for the interview!

 

Thanks for having me on.

 

© by Mike Haberfelner


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In times of uncertainty of a possible zombie outbreak, a woman has to decide between two men - only one of them's one of the undead.

 

There's No Such Thing as Zombies
starring
Luana Ribeira, Rudy Barrow and Rami Hilmi
special appearances by
Debra Lamb and Lynn Lowry

 

directed by
Eddie Bammeke

written by
Michael Haberfelner

produced by
Michael Haberfelner, Luana Ribeira and Eddie Bammeke

 

now streaming at

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Robots and rats,
demons and potholes,
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love and death and everything in between,
Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

is all of that.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to
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a collection of short stories and mini-plays
ranging from the horrific to the darkly humourous,
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to the weirdly romantic,
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the twisted mind of
screenwriter and film reviewer
Michael Haberfelner.

 

Tales to Chill
Your Bones to

the new anthology by
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Out now from
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