Were you brought up in a creative environment and where was it?

My father was a musician in the 70s, I’m sure his dream was for me to follow in his footsteps (hence the name) but unfortunately I am the only one in the family that doesn’t possess musical skills. I remember Saturday mornings being woken by the sounds of Frank Zappa’s Hot Rats – this injection of orchestral schizophrenia into my unconscious under-developed mind explains a lot about my creative processes.

What triggered your desire to make films?

I come from a fashion background. I would write back stories for each of the collections and have a narrative running throughout. I really enjoyed the whole operation but when you are working on a seasonal schedule the vapidness of the industry can limit possibilities with its quick turn over. I felt music promos and short form film making had more longevity for where I wanted my ideas to lay.

How does your knowledge of fashion influence your film work? Would you like to make fashion films?

I have always been interested in the psychology of fashion, there is an identity by what you wear, consciously or not. Fashion promos are a beautiful form of film, I am particularly inspired by Glen Luchford’s Super 8 stuff, he combines the collection, the character and the city together in a rich and textural way.

Your work interweaves reality narrative – especially in your music videos – with effects. How did this approach evolve?

From a young age I have always had a very overactive mind, I would fantasise a lot, mostly in other weird parallel realms – (I still kind of do). These paradoxical worlds of reality and fantasy somewhere merged in my mind state – this is evident in my work. I generally like to shoot live action and in-camera as much as possible then have a little sprinkle of FX for the finishing touches.

Are you happier with detailed storyboards or do you tend to work to a shots list?

I usually work to an extremely detailed shot-list with not much or if any room for improv. I tend to map out the scenes in my mind and have “A-B” camera movement for each line or action.

What part of the filmmaking process do you like the most and why?

The colour grading – this is when I can fully relax and enjoy all the hard work we have done.

What were the main challenges of your work so far and what did you learn from the experiences?

Working to a small or zero budget. I’ve pretty much at one point or another been every position in the crew due to budget restrictions. Having this understanding of how a crew works cohesively has made me the type of director I want to be.

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Rep: Mill+