Cannes I or Can't I?

 Hey Guys!

   Well, I certainly don't blog as much as I used to - or as much as I'd like to - but there's a small comfort to this, in the fact that my last blog post resulted in a published article online. You can still read this on the Gorilla Film Magazine website, and it came about due to the hard work of my new PR team, Laura Cann and Charlotte Ashton. This was part of a brief press boom, with Ashes articles in both Awesome Online Magazine and also the Derby Evening Telegraph (although the former was somewhat more extensive than the latter). There's also another article in the works, one which came out of nowhere and which I'm very excited about. But more about that soon...

   And on April 28th, of course, we had the Ashes cast & crew premiere in London. A year and two days after the original Ashes shoot got cancelled (and the Stop/Eject shoot came to a close), we were able to celebrate a project completed. The film went down better than expected with our guests as well, and you can experience the event for yourself through these wonderful photographs by the talented Lawrence de Gruchy.

   Since the premiere fell on the day after my birthday, my dear collaborator Neil Oseman gave me a lovely gift (and rather creative Ashes-themed card) from himself and wife Katie Lake:

Somewhat themed Birthday presents from Neil Oseman and Katie Lake

    Which brings me on to my next news update. As I discovered on the last day of the Love & Other Chairs shoot, Ashes is going to be screened at this years Cannes Court Metráge/ Short Film Corner!!

Ashes on the official Cannes Court Metrage online catalogue!

     Not only is this wonderful news for myself and all involved (any festival acceptance is wonderful but this goes beyond that for me), my successful application meant that I was given two free festival passes. If I wanted to buy one festival pass it would cost me at least £250, and these things are very limited, so it's one heck of an offer. 

     But would I accept it? Having never even dreamed of Ashes touching anything related to Cannes, I hadn't planned on going. Not forgetting the fact that I've never left the country except to go to Wales and Scotland, and I've not been on a plane once in my life. Travel was something other people got to do.

    Aside from being a travel novice, I've also only been to two festivals, both of which were small independent ones, so attempting Cannes maze of stalls, screens and beachside meetings would leave me nothing but lost.

    Also - no matter how much I try to accept the fact - because I am a freelance filmmaker, I am frequently close to penniless.

   So I had no intention of going (although it was a nice dream) until I got a phonecall from the afforementioned Neil. I'd offered him my second festival pass, because although they are reserved for Directors and Producers, I was both those things to Ashes - and I knew that Neil would benefit from the pass because it meant he could promote Stop/Eject (and as that project's Producer as well, that is in my best interest too). 

    I'd actually been on the verge of taking a break from filmmaking (a mix of flat-out exhaustion from the ongoing work, with the attitude of some people in the 'industry') when I got the call from Neil. He basically said "Sophie, don't give up. You're too talented... let's go to Cannes".

   And that was that. Without stopping to let it all sink in, I  set about getting a new passport and arranging meetings with potential short film buyers at Cannes while Neil made all of our travel and accomodation arrangements. I made the difficult decision of selling my Fostex and Rode Blimp set to fund my journey (I'm not an expert in sound and tend to hire sound designers with their own kit, anyway). And I needn't worry about getting lost in Cannes, because this will be Neil's fourth time there. I kid you not!

   So there we have it. Here is my admittance of the fact that I am going to Cannes. I am going to fucking Cannes! And we're taking Ashes and Stop/Eject with us (along with some of mine and Neil's separate personal projects which we can't disclose details of yet).

   And of course, I won't forget about my followers while I'm there (although I do not know how many of you there are). Myself and Neil will be joining forces on a little video diaries series over there as well, which we'll share online as soon as we can. Or Cannes...

AU REVOIR!!

Sophie x

Establishing a Life in less than 20 Seconds

Hey Guys,

    As of last week, the colour grade for Ashes was completed, and the sound guys worked late into the night to create a rough score, so that we had a 'work in progress' version done in time to send to Cannes. When I put it in the post to them (travelling further than I've done myself), I couldn't help but think, "God speed, little parcel - and good luck!"

    Since then, the film has been put under proverbial lock and key again, to be opened up again when Ian Cudmore returns from honeymoon (congratulations Ian!) to complete the score. But, as I'm dying to show you my macabre but beautiful little film, I thought I'd give you a sneak peak. So here's my breakdown of the opening credits, and the important part the set dressing played in it.

    One of the main challenges from the script was the fact that we had to establish the characters' (previously) loving relationship straight away, in a film with minimal dialogue and very little set within the 'real' world. There were little things we could do on camera with the actors (such as having them cuddled up and smiling) and with the lighting (a dreamy summer glow made the scene look particularly comfortable). Plus the fact that Adam and Sarah had built up a strong bond over the months leading up to the shoot certainly came across. But the biggest asset we had in establishing the characters was the opening credits.

    This sequence was comprised of cutaways of objects in the room, all of which told the viewer something about the characters. I worked together with designer Gina Hames to cover the room with a mix of masculine and feminine items to also suggest that these were two people cohabiting together. (And for the record, although we worked on a location - which would suggest Art Direction - I'd classify this work as Production Design because a lot of concept art was done in advance, or Set Design because we were able to fully paint and decorate the set).

    And so, with exclusive screengrabs from the film itself, here is a breakdown of the set dressing in Ashes, and how it helped to establish the characters:

Set photo by Jenna Cataldo

    1. The opening shot of the film shows a vintage camera and a handmade card. The camera quickly suggests that one of the characters likes cameras, and that was because actor Adam Lannon saw Mark as an amateur photographer. I wanted the character of Mark to have an interest, near obsession, in capturing the human body; I initially wanted him to be a painter but Adam wanted to expand this by making photography his hobby instead. The fact that it's vintage is purely a stylistic choice (that's actually a camera I own).

    The valentine's card was mentioned in the script. It's supposed to look a bit curled at the edges to show that it was made a while ago (establishing the length of the relationship) but kept out of sentimentality. The fact that it's handmade (in reality, by me) also suggested at the characters' creativity - in this case, Mark's. I even wrote inside the card, not that you see this on camera, in case the actors saw this. The note inside established that Sarah and Mark had been arguing recently, but that Mark loved her and wanted to move past it - an idea I'd discussed with the actors in deciding the point that their relationship was at.

Screengrab from the film itself!

    2. The quickest way to establish the character's long relationship was by showing a lot of photographs of them together. These also supported Adam's idea that Mark was a photographer. A lot of these photographs were taken during Adam and Sarah's meetings in post production, and they made sure to wear different clothes in some of them.

Set photo by Jenna Cataldo

    One of the most disjointing items in this opening sequence was the palmistry hand. This wasn't to suggest that one of the characters believed in palmistry (although Sarah's character was the more dreamy of the two), but to explain why the stone hands appear in her subconscious later one. These latter hands really symbolised the presence of Mark's hands on her, but their presence doesn't jarr as much as they would do if we hadn't seen an ornamental hand at the start of the film!

    In this shot we see a framed photograph of Sarah at a dance class. Sarah's character is a dancer, although one who is struggling to find work, and we wanted the audience to know this about her. Another way we did this was with the presence of dance shoes on the set (see below), which were actually the shoes from The Opening Night, but these are only briefly seen in a wide shot towards the end of the film.

Set photos by Jenna Cataldo (above and below)

    3 - 4. The following two shots showed items on a sideboard. Shot 4 showed some of Mark's stuff, and shot 5 showed some of Sarah's. Sarah's is basically jewellery and perfume bottles, which were visually pleasing, but Mark's possessions say a little more. It's a series of paintings and art supplies - suggesting, as I wanted, that Mark liked to do art in his spare time. But, if you look carefully, all the drawings are of Sarah. This might suggest love, others could read it as an unhealthy infatuation, but either way it shows he likes to observe the human form. It also represents the story of how Mark and Sarah met, which was known to me and the actors - Adam wanted to do a visual project on ballet dancers (be it through the medium of art or photography) during his final year at university, and Sarah was in the class that he went to observe.

A screengrab from the film, which I put on the Facebook page when the colour grade was finished

    And finally, shot 5. In which we first see roses, and the couple is revealed in the mirror through one of my trademark focus pulls. These roses were important - another gift from Mark, one which was inexpensive but treasured enough for Sarah to keep them until they started to fade. Although these are a sprig of wood and paper roses, in Sarah's mind they are transformed into a large bouquet of luscious, fresh flowers (as we see in scene two), which shows how much they meant to her. And the fact that she's a rather romantic character!


    So, there you have it - a whole relationship portrayed in five shots. And who says film design isn't important?!

   There is of course the wallpaper, and the keen-eyed of you might be wondered why we opted for the 'empty birdcage' pattern. But it's getting late, so I'll leave you guys to wonder that.

    Wish us luck in our festival run, dear followers!


Sophie x

Sophie On: Ashes Post-Production

Hey Guys!

Answering a Q&A after the Trailer premiere

    It's been two months since my last post, and my activity on here has been so quiet that I'm even been getting spam in my comments box (no, Daniyal Memon, I do not want to see hot girls!). And a lot has happened in those two months - the main edit for Stop/Eject has locked, the project is fully funded, and I've even witnessed the final shoot day of Jar of Angels, which has been a long time coming. I've also moved house and office, the latter of which I share with Manny the Guinea Pig and my frequent collaborator Chris Newman (who, for the record, has a new Facebook Page and a fancy website on the way).

   Aside from these, and a couple of edit jobs for clients, I've mostly been working on Ashes, getting it ready in time for the upcoming festivals. Less than a month until the Cannes deadline, so the proverbial race is definitely on.

Neil & me at Undewrire

   So, what have myself and the crew been up to? First off, there's promotion. After the trailer premiered at 5Lamps Films in November 2012 (the photo credit from that day belongs to Chris Newman), myself and Neil Oseman attended an Underwire Festival Networking night in Wolverhampton where both the Stop/Eject and Ashes trailers were shown (photo credit from that night is Neil's). And recently we've had an unexplained but wonderful surge of views on the trailer, averaging at around 400 per day, so we're almost on 5,000. Which is more than any film I've ever uploaded, and more than many of the ones I've worked on!

   The main edit for Ashes came together fairly quickly, with me doing a large quantity in my spare time, and Neil brought in towards the end to edit a 'fat quarter' of the film (yes, that is a textiles term. 'Once a costume designer' and all that!) My main job since then has been designing and organising the all-important press kits, although I have had some great help and advice along the way from Iftkhar at The Definitive Design.

Working on the concept art and lay-out for the Ashes press kit folders

Chris colour grading

   For the other jobs, I've been delegating to other people. The first of these is Chris, who has been working hard on the colour grade - and since I've been hovering over his shoulder in the office, suggesting things, he's ended up being the third credited editor as well.

   On the other side of the film disciplines, technical wizards Ian Cudmore (aka Cmore Trix) and Adam McCready have been dancing with the sound design. So far this has composed of making the recorded sound as neat and clear as possible... then breaking it down and making it almost unrecognisable. I don't understand the language of sound design, but the score definitely speaks for itself, as you will all hear soon enough.

Ian Cudmore and Adam McCready working on the Ashes sound

   Then there are the Visual FX workers, and finding them was somewhat bittersweet for me. On the one hand, this is the first time a film I've directed as had VFX, and I've certainly found the right time to start using them. But of course, I cannot help but think of the man who was signed up to do the VFX for Ashes, our dear friend Carl Cropley, who we lost (too young) last year.

Scott Nolan's super8 filter on Scene Three

   But I'm happy to announce that we currently have two new VFX credits on Ashes. Firstly, after my dilemma as whether to use the super-8 footage from scene 3 or the HD alternative, I was contacted by a very talented man called Scott Nolan who made combined the two, by converting the HD footage to accurately look like Super-8. What a godsend!

John Butler's Visual FX

  Next, after various applicants and responses to my 'VFX Artist' shout-out, we finally recruited John Butler to create some moving blood effects in Scene Two. I won't reveal the words they spell until the final film, but the still shows how effectively John has blended digital and live-action elements.

   And it's not just Ashes itself which the crew has been working on. There's also  'Love Will Tear Us Apart: The Making of Ashes' (named after the Joy Division cover in the trailer), created by our documentarian Lara Elliot. Mostly Lara has been conducting these interviews herself but I made sure Neil recorded one for himself when we did the credits shoot, and I had a fun visit to a London travel lodge last summer where I interviewed actors Sarah Lamesch and Adam Lannon. Here's a preview of those interviews:

Lara Elliot & me interviewing Wan2Talk co-founder Carol Lambert (photo: Lara Elliot)

Screenshot from Neil's interview for Ashes

Nothing but the best location for our actors' interviews (but I'm not sure what Travellodge thought we were up to!)

Chris was distracted during his interview by a director with a light (photo: Lara Elliot)

   Although Ashes itself won't be available for public viewing until well after its festival run, the documentary will be available to watch on Hatch'd Magazine in a few months time.

Our glamorous premiere venue!

    And finally, leaving perhaps the best news until last, both Ashes and Love Will Tear Us Apart will be screened at London's The Lexi Cinema at the end of April. This exclusive screening will only be open to cast and crew, their selected guests, and members of the media. If you're a reporter/successful film blogger and would like an invite (or you know someone who fits that bill) then don't hesitate to get in touch.


   So that's everything you need to know about Ashes' progress. All that's left for you now is to head on over to the Facebook Page for the very first teasey glimpse at the finished film (just don't get your hopes up for a plot-revealing screengrab!)


Sophie x

Sophie On: The Stop/Eject Podcasts

Hi Guys,

   It's a little while since I've done a blog post purely about Stop/Eject, which is odd for saying that my 2012 has pretty much belonged to that film. The latest news is that its post-production funding campaign is going well, with over £1,200 raised, which means we could finally release the Day 5 Podcast.

   Whilst it's a wonderful feeling to see all the shoot days alongside each other, I also felt a twinge of sadness when I finished the final podcast. Because, when it was done, I had completed all my official jobs as co-producer on the project. Granted, there are a lot of unofficial jobs which one has to do without being asked, such as promoting the film throughout the funding process and festival seasons, and giving feedback on things like press kits and merchandise. I've also had some cherished early glances at the film itself in the edit stages. I could technically be working on this film until 2014. But in terms of official 'assigned' tasks, I've completed all of mine.

   The thing is, creating a film is often compared to having a child, but a co-producer can never be more than a foster parent. You can nurture it, watch it grow, even come to love it like your own - but then you need to give it back, happy in the knowledge that you've helped to make it into the wonderful thing that it is today. So overall, I'm not sad; I'm privileged to have worked on such a special little film.

   So, serious part over - here are all the colourful, crazy, condensed shoot days for you all to enjoy:

*

 DAY ONE - The River Gardens, Belper

 BTS Videographer: Brett Chapman

    In the first podcast, we are introduced to the crew, and the efforts taken to assemble the all-important alcove set, in Belper's scenic River Gardens - which is the location for the flashback scene where Kate first meets Dan. This podcast also features an interview with co-writer, Tommy Draper.

DAY TWO - Magpie, Matlock

 BTS Videographer: Brett Chapman

    This was an evening shoot, and I feature quite a bit in this one - mostly teasing Neil for the difficult task of fitting an alcove into a quirky, cluttered little shop! It also features an interview with camera operator Rik Goldsmith, and it showcases the main location of the film for the first time.

DAY THREE - Magpie, Matlock

 BTS Videographer: Dale Murchie

   I had the most footage to condense for this podcast, because we spent the whole day filming in our main location. So all the crew features quite prominently, but none more so than the hilarious, scene-stealing Therese Collins!

DAY FOUR - Strutt's Mill, Belper

 BTS Videographer: Dale Murchie

   This podcast is a little different to the others; it was all hands-on deck, so we didn't have as much b-roll footage as previously. Therefore this podcast features an interview with yours truly, to narrate and tie all of the footage together. It also shows you the efforts went to with our infamous tape cassette props, and the old Victorian mill in which we filmed the basement scene.

DAY FIVE - Magpie, Matlock

 BTS Videographers: Kurt Baker & Laura Iles

    The official 'final' shoot day was another manic one, so rather than showing you the scenes being filmed (although you do get a bit of it), today gives you a warm-hearted look at the crew through a series of talking heads interviews.

 DAY SIX - Willesley Castle & Masson Mills, Roseley

  BTS Videographer: Sophie Black

    This makes me laugh every time I watch it. We we're supposed to be filming on this day, so there's only the cast and skeleton crew left, and no cameras left to get b-roll footage. I happened to have my stills camera on me, which gets a lo-rez video of the exact moment we go down to our wier location... and find out that it's flooded...

   So, there we have it. Every single shoot day from Stop/Eject, on YouTube for the world to see. You can even watch them back-to-back to have a taste of what it was like to be part of the crew. But you won't have the same mixed feelings of exhaustion and wonder at the end of it!

Sophie x

Top 5 Artists to make Music Videos for

Hi Guys,

   In an ideal world, every filmmaker would make a living by doing big-budget Hollywood films, or by having their own films bought and made. But since that's a huge dream - at least to me - I like to think of slightly more practical ways that I could make a business out of 'doing what I do'.

    Therefore, if I could do anything for a bread-and-butter job, inbetween films like Stop/Eject and Ashes, it would be music videos. What could be better? I could treat every single one like a short film, putting my fiction training to good use throughout the year, and creating wonderful collaberative work with different types of artists.

   Making music videos is definitely part of my career I want to expand on, and I look forward to meeting new independant singers and bands to work with. But for now, just for fun, I decided to pick the top five artists I'd like to make videos for; and I challenged myself to create a video synopsis for each of them in less than five seconds. And here's what I came up with:


5 - Charlotte Carpenter

  She's a home-grown talent and all the local filmmakers love her, so I imagine that she'd be really great to work with. She's got a lovely folksy sound and a wonderful, unspoilt quality to her. Plus she's so petite - I'd play with that fact by creating an Alice In Wonderland inspired video, involving green screen and some giant porcelain tea pots.

   http://www.youtube.com/charlottecarpenter3


4 - Lucy Day

   I'm slightly biased on this one because Lucy's one of my oldest friends, but her music's great. Her albums cry out to be used as indie movie soundtracks; I've used her songs on a few of my video diaries and podcasts, and her music worked perfectly on the Costume Advert Light Films created for me. I've actually recorded a live session with her before, but if I got to create a fiction video for her, here's what I'd do; a two-part video which cuts between the intimate style gig Lucy does so well, in a cafe where her audience has candles on the table, and a road-trip round the British coast with Lucy & a VMW campervan, caught on Super-8!

http://www.youtube.com/LucyDayBand



3 - Diana Vickers/ Janet Devlin

   Since these are two artists who came out of X-Factor but kept their originality, I thought I'd put them down in joint third place. For Diana, I'd love to do something really vintage, with her as a 1920s showgirl singing from hoops, or in giant birdcages on stage. With Janet, on the other hand, I'd want to do something really simple with her singing in a woodland like the ethereal nymph that she is.


http://www.youtube.com/janetdevlin 
http://www.youtube.com/dianaofficialmusic


2 - Kyla La Grange

 Kyla is definitely top of my list of people to work with, and not just because her debut album shared a name with my last film! Due to her love of macabre animal skulls and tribal stylings, I'd love to create a fun little video for her with a hint of harmless horror. It would be set with a sandy, desert area in the clearing of a woodland. In the middle of the clearing is an abandoned log cabin where Kyla hides from the 'ivy monsters' of the woodland. Eventually they get to her and convert her with stop-motion ivy leaves. Okay, that's a quirky idea, but it really is the first plot which came into my head for Kyla!

http://www.youtube.com/kylalagrange


1 - Lana Del rey

    It had to be Lana at number one. Everyone seems to be obsessessed with her lately, and wanting to work with her. My main reason is that she cares about her music videos almost as much as the songs they represent, with some beautiful offerings on super-8 and recent collaberations with indie filmmaker Kyle Newman (no relation to Chris!). So I couldn't make anything simple for her - it would have to be a proper short film with a full script and set. My initial thought would be Lana playing the ghost of an abandoned theatre, cutting between her and flashbacks of when the theatre was in full bloom, and she was part of a love story. That sounds a bit Phantom of the Opera, but there's nothing wrong with that.

http://www.youtube.com/LanaDelRey



   Picking five artists was difficult, and I'd make videos for Kate Nash, Florence & the Machine or Evanescence any time, just to name a few!

  If any musicians, bands or singers would like a video making, and if you have your own ideas to bring to the table too, don't hesitate to get in touch!

Sophie x

Sophie On: The Triskelle Pictures Website!!

Hi Everyone,

   I can't believe it's nearly two years since I had my photoshoot with Rei Bennett. I was very happy with the results, and I've used them all the time as promo images, so they've served me well. But the point of that photoshoot - on an extremely windy February day in 2011 - was to create background images for my website.

  I started this blog after my first attempt at building a website failed (it ended up in Latin and I couldn't change it back), and I went through a handful of different website builders without anything to show for it. Then writer Tommy Draper introduced me to Wix a few months ago, and I've been playing with it in my random snippets of spare time ever since.

  Yesterday, finally, I made the finishing touches, purchased a domain name, and so now... drumroll please... here is my official website!

http://www.triskellepictures.co.uk

 I'm pretty happy with it (I may have hummed 'the most beautiful website in the world' to the tune of 'most beautiful girl in the world' a couple of times), although my style of doing things is never going to appeal to those with minimalist tastes. But I'm never going to say that it's finished - I expect it to expand and change, and grow, as I go along and work on more projects. The website at the moment stands as a testimony to here I am today, and I welcome people's feedback on that - typos have already been pointed out to me, and I've corrected them with thanks.

   The keen amongst you will have simply clicked on the link and found the website yourself. For everyone else, here is a little guided tour:

 1) Homepage

   News and updates, many of which will still link to this blog for more information. I was also lucky enough to have reviews written for me by Craig Luck, a previous director of mine, and Chris Laverty from Clothes on Film, which have made their way onto this page.

2) About

    Here's where I ramble on about myself in a bit of a 'luvvie' way, and the title of mini biography is somewhat misleading. But it gives a good overview of how I got to where I am today.

3) Fiction

   A breakdown of my producing/directing experience, including trailers of the most recent films, and a link to the Stop/Eject website.

4) Ashes

   A sub-page to the fiction one, but focusing purely on Ashes so that I have a link to put onto the press kits when we hit festival season. The trailer isn't on there yet (I'm still editing it) but it will be soon, and it's also a place where I can give shout-outs to the cast and crew.

5) Costumes

 

   Featuring photos of my most popular costumes and the advert Light Films Ltd created for me, but also glimpses of costumes made for some of my earlier film projects too.

6) Set Design

   In which I lay out my skills in Production Design and Art Direction (they are different!), but also showcasing some of my early work in Theatre Design, which I don't usually get to show people.

7) Non Fiction/ Corporate

   Not something I've had to do much of lately, but this page explains the corporate adverts/promotional videos I've created in the past, and also talks about my only documentary project to date, Margaret.

8) Weddings

   For those who do want me to film their wedding, this page explains my services and rates. But it also links you to people who do weddings as a day job, and can create something really slick.

9) Music Videos

 

    This is the least developed page, as it's an area of my career I want to expand more. For now it shows you a couple of my live recordings of great musicians.

10) Other Skills

   Every filmmaker has a wide repertoire of random skills, and I didn't want to keep creating pages. So here's a little breakdown of my 'side' skills - such as writing, editing, storyboarding and model making. I also do jewellery making and beading but that's linked to the Costume page.

11) Contact

   My contact details, and a picture of me in my favourite part of Belper. I hope I don't get any creepy phone calls after this, but that is the risk one has to run!

*

   So there we have it, one complete website for you all to enjoy. Unless you don't have a wide-screen computer. Sorry 4:3 crowd, I've catered to you in the past and upset those with modern tastes in the process. I'll make it up to you next time I shoot a Super-8 movie!

Sophie x

(www.triskellepictures.co.uk)

Sophie On: Editing Ashes

Hi Guys,

   A little while ago, when principle photography on Wasteland was coming to a close, and there was only one shoot day left for Jar of Angels to schedule, I breathed a small sigh of relief; surely I wouldn't be able to fit any more film shoots in before the end of the year? Although I'd enjoyed my previous commitments, now was the time to concentrate on the post-production of Ashes and Stop/Eject, and nothing more.

   That lasted a couple of weeks, tops. A job proposition came out of nowhere (I actually got it whilst I was in the taxi that was bringing me home from my holiday), and now I am costume designer on the latest Anglo Klaxon Picture. So I've had to put my passion projects to one side for now; I'm knee deep in this new work and the whole thing shoots next week, so it's a wonderful little whirlwind which will end as quickly as it started.

My edit suite, tackling Scene One(A)

   But before I put Ashes to one side, it was in a pretty good place because the first edit had already been assembled. And the reason it's come to a temporary halt at the same time that I took on the new job, is because I'm currently the editor of Ashes.

   I haven't edited one of my own films since Deep Red Sun in 2008. Around that time I met many people who specialised in editing and had much more experience than me, so I started delegating and instructing rather than being a one-man (filmmaking) band. The Opening Night was therefore edited by the wonderful Laura Healey (then Brimley) in 2010, and other editors came to work with me after that.

    Having extra sets of eyes on projects is always a good thing, but the one side effect was that I lost faith in my own editor's skills. I still took on small paid corporate jobs and happily edited my video diaries, but the idea of editing a fiction film myself felt like treason.

    So why did I end up editing Ashes? To cut a long story short, I know the footage better than anyone else, and I couldn't resist having a go!

   Of course, I won't be the only editor on the project. It's often bad for a director to edit their own film alone because they're biased, plus - confidence or none - I lack the skills to do the whole thing myself. I can cut films together, I'm good at creating pace and mood, but I don't do colour grading, sound mixing, or visual effects. I may not even have final cut. My current edit will basically act as a template for a select set of eyes to study, and possibly reassemble.

   I put the first cut together in about a day, using my storyboard as a guide, and to remind myself how I'd wanted it to look before we started shooting (which meant I could be sensible about omitting takes we didn't need). Having got the necessary shots in order, it gives me chance to step away for a bit, and come back to look for creative ways to tweak it. But already I'm starting to see how the edit could come out very differently in someone else's hands.

    When I re-wrote Ashes last year, I added the scenes set within Sarah's mind because I wanted to write something darkly fantastical - something which I knew would be macabre but beautiful on camera. And it was these fantasy scenes which attracted most of the crew. These scenes gave the project more of a visual justification and allowed used to have a lot of fun with the sets, make-up and lighting.

   I know fantasy like the back of my hand. My Dad raised me on all the 80s classics, cheesy or not, and Lord of the Rings is the reason I got into the world of films. I even wrote my dissertation on medieval fantasy epics. In my teens, I got into the work of Tim Burton - as everyone did - and developed my love of fantasy to incorporate the gothic and twisted too.

Two ways of filming Scene 3: on HD SLR (left) and vintage Super-8 (right)

   So, in spite of the added production values, the fantasy scenes in Ashes were the most straightforward to shoot - and putting them into the timeline was too. There was minimal acting needed in these scenes, so I didn't need to search for the best performances, and DOP Neil frequently nailed the camera moves in one take. (In fact, the only big challenge has been deciding between using the digital footage we shot for Scene Three, or the footage we shot on Super-8 film. There are arguments for both; with the digital footage, we get a sharper look at Sarah's facial features, but we would have to spend money to give it the dreamy vintage depth of the super-8.)

   Confident in my knowledge of fantasy, I didn't actually research the genre at all prior to the Ashes shoot. I was so much more concerned on nailing the drama scenes, partly because we needed to correctly portray the delicate subject matter (yes, we do go on about that a lot, but it's important) and partly because it wasn't an area I'd directed before, and I needed to prepare myself for it. So I found myself drawn more to films such as Shame, Stealing Beauty and American Beauty (the film I watched most this year), all of which let the camera act as an eye observing the human form, and all of which portrayed emotion with beguiling, sometimes changeable pacing.

Tension in Ashes. Photo: Neil Oseman

   So, with myself firmly manning the steering wheel, I spent most of the editing time working on the drama, teasing out the tension and working through take after take of the most emotive, sometimes heartbreaking performances from Sarah Lamesch and Adam Lannon. I revelled in playing with the pace - stretching it out, pulling it in and pushing it out again - so we get to a place where so much is said without words, and then when the characters do speak, no one is a villain,  and both are on an equal footing in a terrible place.

   Okay, so none of that will make sense until you see the film, but my point is that I think I have created a short which is exactly half macabre fantasy, and half drama, so I'm certainly happy with that.

   In general, I think I'm moving away from fantasy, for now, and keen to tackle the next drama script. In fact, I already have one of those in development, although it can't have my full attention for a while. But if that wasn't a case, or if the current editor was one who wanted to move in the opposite direction, they could push the darker elements further. It could be a full-out physchological horror, throwing the realism in at the end as a curveball so that it hits home with a bang. The edit could be a complex multitude of cuts, effects, and sickening tension. And if you need an example of that type of edit, you need look no further than the incredible cut of Feeding Jack, a film by some talented filmmakers that I know. The pre-production for it must have been an intricate labour, but it still inspires me every time I see it:

Feeding Jack (first cut) from Wintermute Studio on Vimeo.

  That's where another - perhaps more specialist editor - could take Ashes. But would this be better? It would be visually more striking, but we run the risk of losing the drama I've been so keen to portray.

   Well, this has been a rather long blog post, but hopefully you should all know where Ashes is at now - and at least it proves I definitely haven't forgotten about it! 

  For now, I'm glad I'm forced to step away from the edit suite. It gives me time to come back with a clearer head; and it's also time to let the other (carefully chosen) people have a look at it too. Whatever the feedback, I'm ready to hear it now; I think I've given the edit a good start.

Sophie x