This post was published on the Cornerhouse Livewire website:     
http://www.cornerhouse.org/livewire/livewire-news/bfi-film-academy-film-shoot

   What do window factories, morph costumes, cold countryside moors and a dog have in common? Well, apart from all having the letter 'o' in them, each has some relevance to the BFI Film Academy shoot last week. And what a week it was - I learnt so much about filmmaking, from depth of field to neutral density to dead space, and managed to retain all the information to date (which in itself is a triumph). I experienced working with professional actors who were prepared to embarass themselves in particularly unflattering costumes, lovingly chosen by us. And most of all I had the pleasure of working with extremely talented people; the filmmakers, actors, producers and the other young people on the course. Here's what happened in a chronological breakdown.

    DAY ONE was a training day - getting to grips with the various high-tech, ultra expensive equipment and knocking together a DIY hoover with some pipes and gaffer tape. Seriously though, I'm a big fan of making practical things with a random collection of materials, so I really enjoyed the prop-making session. As for the theory behind sound and camera techniques, I increased my knowledge base by an uncountable multiple and I've said goodbye to the automatic settings on my personal camcorder for good. Getting to know how to give the look of a short film that extra polish is something that I'll take far beyond this project and into anything that I create in the future. Last weekend I storyboarded a short film that I'm making just to add another layer of professionalism to the shoot, and already the shots are looking significantly better than anything I've filmed before.

    It was DAY TWO  and filming began. In the morning, everyone worked on a bedroom interior scene, shot in the Cornerhouse's education suite. It was absolutely fascinating to see the creation of an authentic, believable set (a bedroom) fashioned in a room that wouldn't contain any relevance to the setting of the scene (a room with loads of laptops - though if you're Agent Cody Banks that probably is what your bedroom looks like. Wow, that was a horrible film). Anyway, the buzz on set was so electric that you could have harnessed it and used it to power all the heavy lighting that we had set up. I mean obviously, we're all keen about film but actually filming takes that enthusiasm to the next rung on the metaphorical ladder of, err, film. At lunchtime, the group split into two so that more filming could be done and everyone had a chance to do their preferred role on set.

    DAY TROIS was a taster of the cold weather to come as we filmed in a factory devoid of any warmth whatsoever - yet this was a well worthy sacrifice to work with a full on green screen and my chance to direct. I know that directing is what everyone wants to do, but that doesn't deter me from wanting to achieve it. It felt very strange when I was directing professional actors in their 20s and asking them if they could deliver their lines in a different way, but it was an experience that I'm definitely glad I was able to do. It may not sound genuine, but I really was happy to do whatever on set, as long as I was making a valid contribution - including holding a bit of newspaper up to stop the light bouncing off one of the actor's gaffer taped costume. Speaking of the actors, they were absolutely brilliant; the chemistry between them was evident both on and off set. And they weren't half bad at doing Bane impressions, too.

    Our group filmed in the morning of DAY FOUR for a segment of the film where the driver of the car has an encounter with his cringey father. I have to say this role was played to the upmost perfection by our actor Paul, complete with a stained vest to add to the part. This was great fun but also a challenge for sound - as we were shooting a wide the boom had to be pretty high up to be off shot. A ladder, the solution to most problems in life, became particularly handy in this instance. I also had the chance to be Director of Photography for the first part of our shoot, trying to get the exposure and angles right so that the footage was good. I hope the rushes look okay! One of my favourite parts of this day was seeing a home-made jib in action and the really fluid movement it gives to the camera, so much so that it's inspired me to build my own.

    With the ski jacket deployed and hand warmers at the ready, DAY FIVE was here, by far the most frostbite-enducing day of the shoot. We ventured out into the hills of Glossop (I think) for the final few scenes, and aptly so as it was the last day. I did seriously sympathise with the actors, dressed in comical costumes that really didn't insulate. Every so often we'd huddle in the van for warmth and food, but mostly it was a heavy filming day and personally the most enjoyable, even when greeted by a light dusting of snow. When the wrap came, it was delicious. And when we finished filming, we smiled as the cold was over, but were saddened in our hearts due to the shoot being over. I can't wait to start on the edit.

    Here are the things I've learned from our week filming with professionals: organisation is key and doesn't hamper creativity; always be prepared for anything; and that come hell or high water, nothing can decrease my passion for filmmaking. Oh yeah, and that you can always rely on some trusty ol' gaffer tape.

     There was a very enthusiastic atmosphere when we looked at British cinema with Freelance Film Educator Maggie Hoffgen on Wednesday night. I think that patriotism has been significantly boosted this past year, especially due to both Olympic and Paralympic Games and the 50th anniversary Bond film, Skyfall. Well, that last one might just be me - but there was a definitive chuckle around the room when we watched that iconic clip from Dr No,  where Sean Connery delivers the line 'The name's Bond, James Bond' in a way that only Sean Connery could.
    When the talk drifted to early British social realist films (like most conversations usually do), I thought I'd try to be knowledgeable about Ken Loach. So upon Maggie asking for examples of his films, I gave his most popular work (and the only one which I could remember), Kes. Then she asked when it was released. It was at this point that I remembered that I hadn't actually seen any of his films. I didn't want to crumble, especially in front of a well-educated film lecturer, and even though it would have probably been much easier to admit defeat, I thought I'd have a guess. "Late-60s, early 70s?" sprawled out of my mouth awkwardly before my brain had chance to apply maximum braking force. Due to this lucky guess (panic over), she kept telling me not to give any spoilers away from the film, and I kept feeling very nervous - by this stage I was in too deep to reveal my guilty secret. It was good that she didn't ask for any more information about the film as I don't think I would have been able to conjour up anything more. Phew. Until next time.

This post was published on the Cornerhouse Livewire website: http://www.cornerhouse.org/livewire/livewire-news/bfi-film-academy-sams-story

   A couple of months ago I got an email from the Cornerhouse, a local independent cinema, saying that an opportunity had arisen to join with 16 other people from the Greater Manchester area for 3 months of intensive, creative learning and production in association with the British Film Institute. Optimistic but not too confident (a short film that I had just recently created had been rejected from 3 film festivals), I sent in my application hoping for a chance of a first step into the industry. When my mum shouted me down saying that a reply had come through from them, I ran down the stairs with feelings of anticipation and dread. Well anyway, the email said that I had got in - why would I be writing about a failed application? 
    To cut to the chase a little, it's been fantastic. Every Wednesday and Saturday I leap on a 25 minute train to the Cornerhouse, where creative intellectuals seem to congregate in some form of arthouse thinktank. As a 16 year-old, would I fit into the Film Academy or would I appear drastically under-experienced? Thankfully, I both felt immensely comfortable with the rest of the group and I wasn't the youngest!
    After the first creative session, which I thoroughly enjoyed (especially the free pizza), I became a little apprehensive that our film idea was barking up the wrong tree, not literally of course. I was relieved to learn that this was a shared feeling within the group and  the leaders, so fortunately the draft was tweaked, making  the short more stylised and not just a dialogue piece, which I feared it might have become. Without going into specifics, the film has the feel of 'The Inbetweeners go Back to the Future', and as our ideas man Mark said "who doesn't want to watch that?" The week of the shoot looks to be one of the most exciting weeks of my life.
    Documentary film making was equally thrilling and especially fast paced, where we collectively turned around a four-minute piece about the art exhibition showing at the Cornerhouse, 'Four'. We were all split into four sub-teams who each had either a camcorder or SLR (our group had the latter) and covered one of the artists on show. The picture at the top shows me and Jorge trying to get all artistique with our shots (it felt cooler than it looks). Whilst I didn't think that editing the footage as a group would practically work, it turned out to be really interesting as each person brought a new cut point or stylistic idea to the table - table being in both the physical and metaphorical sense.
    After 8 sessions at the BFI Film Academy and a growing pile of train tickets sprawling on my desk, I can honestly say that I've loved every minute of it. Each evening/daytime has been of equal interest, varied without becoming irrelevant and quite simply huge fun. It's one of the first times in my life that I've been around people who are as enthusiastic and, I suppose geeky, about film as I am. I'll report back at some point post-Wednesday.