Screening date October 12th @3pm.
Tricycle cinema, London.
Tickets £7.50 (single), £18.00 (festival pass)
 Drift's quality is set to challenge all... |
A film festival where the audience get to pick which film they liked. Where best actor/actress is decided by those in attendance. The London Lift-Off Film Festival will be showcasing films from as far away as Hawaii, and close to home as London. Ben Caird's Drift has been selected for the Wednesday screenings and stands firm against very heavy opposition from UK professionals and abroad.
Great performances from Akira Blendis, Hammed Animashaun, JJ Pamphilon, Lis Long, Phoenix Goodrick, and Russell Barnett are not to be ignored.
We talk to the director about the process.
From conception to completion how long was the project?
I started writing in June 2010, shot in October and didn't finalise and deliver the film till March 2011. As I was finishing my MA at The London Film School at the time, I was working on other graduation films during this period so was rather busy hence the length of time between conception to completion.
Why did you make it?
It was the film I directed to graduated with from the MA Filmmaking course at The London Film School.
How did you fund it?
All graduation films are executively produced by the school with the budget of roughly £3600. Anything over this amount is to be met by the students involved. I was however just about on budget. Shooting on film does cost but at film school I shot every project on film and fell in love with the medium. I think it was also the appropriate look for the film so it wasn't just me being dogmatic about shooting on celluloid.
Where did the unique idea come from?
For some reason I write films about people that are rather lost in their lives, needing to overcome some part of themselves to move forward. I grew up in London and have always been fascinated with people living on the canal boats I often walk past. I felt that a story involving these two elements would be interesting to explore.
What were the major pitfalls, if any?
There were no major pitfalls, but you try getting an unleashed Staffy to look straight into a camera moving past on a canal boat at 75 frames per second without sweating...
From conception to completion how long was the project?
I started writing in June 2010, shot in October and didn't finalise and deliver the film till March 2011. As I was finishing my MA at The London Film School at the time, I was working on other graduation films during this period so was rather busy hence the length of time between conception to completion.
Why did you make it?
It was the film I directed to graduated with from the MA Filmmaking course at The London Film School.
How did you fund it?
All graduation films are executively produced by the school with the budget of roughly £3600. Anything over this amount is to be met by the students involved. I was however just about on budget. Shooting on film does cost but at film school I shot every project on film and fell in love with the medium. I think it was also the appropriate look for the film so it wasn't just me being dogmatic about shooting on celluloid.
Where did the unique idea come from?
For some reason I write films about people that are rather lost in their lives, needing to overcome some part of themselves to move forward. I grew up in London and have always been fascinated with people living on the canal boats I often walk past. I felt that a story involving these two elements would be interesting to explore.
What were the major pitfalls, if any?
There were no major pitfalls, but you try getting an unleashed Staffy to look straight into a camera moving past on a canal boat at 75 frames per second without sweating...
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| Unleashed Staffy looking straight down the camera, CHECK! |
Overall were you happy with the film?
Of course whenever you finish a film you see things in it that you would perhaps in hindsight change, but I'm very happy with the film. Regardless of hypothetical changes, what you see is what I went out to shoot.
What would you have done differently?
I don't really think what I might have done differently is important as I'm happy with the film. All I would say is that with a slightly safer schedule, allowances could have been made for picking up little bits here and there that on rushes viewing became obvious. I'm far from unambitious, but I think knowing your limitations and operating within them is the most freeing way to work as a director.
Will the cast be gracing us with their presence at this years event, and are they excited about being in a London festival?
The cast are London based so I very much hope they will be in attendance. I'm no actor, but I imagine showing ones performance in such a great cinema as the Tricycle must be a real buzz.
Do you have any message/advise for those looking to make a film?
Get it down in the script. If it's not on the page, it simply will not be on the screen. With that said, just tell a story that interests you and you're passionate about. That, to me, is what it all comes down to.
Of course whenever you finish a film you see things in it that you would perhaps in hindsight change, but I'm very happy with the film. Regardless of hypothetical changes, what you see is what I went out to shoot.
What would you have done differently?
I don't really think what I might have done differently is important as I'm happy with the film. All I would say is that with a slightly safer schedule, allowances could have been made for picking up little bits here and there that on rushes viewing became obvious. I'm far from unambitious, but I think knowing your limitations and operating within them is the most freeing way to work as a director.
Will the cast be gracing us with their presence at this years event, and are they excited about being in a London festival?
The cast are London based so I very much hope they will be in attendance. I'm no actor, but I imagine showing ones performance in such a great cinema as the Tricycle must be a real buzz.
Do you have any message/advise for those looking to make a film?
Get it down in the script. If it's not on the page, it simply will not be on the screen. With that said, just tell a story that interests you and you're passionate about. That, to me, is what it all comes down to.
Drift is part of the official selection for London Lift-Off FIlm Festival running 10th-12th October 2011 at the Tricycle Cinema in North West London. Click here for tickets, or call the box office now on 020 7328 1000.  |
