I've just completed a Q&A for a Press Call for THE WATCHER, I thought it was worth sharing here...
Joe O'Byrne
Joe O'Byrne has been described as Manchester's hardest working writer and director. He has built up a highly respected reputation as a top dramatist thanks to his Tales from Paradise Heights series of plays and films, set on an estate entrenched in all the problems of modern life in a poverty stricken community, but also shot through with a flavour of the supernatural. All the tales have been critically acclaimed and have thrilled audiences across the North West.
Joe is currently in pre-production of Strawberry Jack, the latest multi media play set in Paradise Heights, this will premiere later this summer, still chasing a literary agent he is looking at to get all the tales in print over the next year.
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
THE WATCHER is a fantastic addition to the Tales from Paradise Heights canon, working very well on its own as a story, but dovetailing wonderfully into two previous tales – RANK, and the first tale from the series I’M FRANK MORGAN. The three tales are now a wonderful calling card to illustrate how the Tales from Paradise Heights back catalogue should now be a TV series.
Poster Design by Michael O'Hanlon
There is an incredible mood and atmosphere that pervades the film, locking minds with Colin Warhurst was a great experience. Colin worked extremely hard as DOP on the film to create the world of Paradise Heights so graphically illustrated in the previous productions, but Colin also managed to achieve a very unique look to the imagery, stamping his own creative influence on the film. Chris Lane (producer) drove the film forward at a ferocious pace as we had a deadline to meet, but even then his eye on the final quality of the film never strayed, he cut the wonderful trailer for the film. With a beautiful score by Salford composer Barry Thompson and sound design by Barry and the wonderful Holly Kim Wyatt it is a film that will stand the test of time.
So many talented creative’s worked on this, and I am sure it will be a calling card for all of them. The Heights now has a really diverse range of characters brought to life by incredibly talented and passionate thus far ‘unknown’ actors and crew… I owe them all a huge debt. Ultimately this form of art is a collaborative process, without their incredible efforts the work stays on the page.
Joe O’Byrne, Director
Q & A WITH JOE O’BYRNE
Q: Tell us a little about the origins of The Watcher
A: The Lowry approached me earlier this year with a view to bringing Tales from Paradise Heights productions there. They had shown all the previous productions there and were big fans of the work, they wanted to show two existing tales but also wanted me to produce a new piece of work to premiere as part of DIGITfest. With my knowledge of local film talent in the Manchester area it was very easy to get the project off the ground as they were as keen, cross collaboration between us had always been on our wish list, this will be the first of many cross collaborations that will push the creative envelope.
Q: Was the process made easier by working with cast and crew who you knew and had worked with before?
A. There are several ‘permanent residents’ of Paradise Heights that have been with us from the beginning, Ian Curley, Ste Myott, Jeni Howarth Williams, Barry Thompson – so there was already a strong rapport, I knew we’d be singing from the same hymn sheet.
Q: The Watcher is your first film since Lookin’ For Lucky, there was a time when you thought you wouldn’t make a film again, what made you change your mind?
A. The previous film productions I’m Frank Morgan and the feature film Lookin’ For Lucky are great pieces of work, but making Lookin’ for Lucky was a very time consuming task, I wanted to move on to the next tale but the film was bogging me down, and getting little of the recognition it deserved because the terrific cast were ‘unknowns’ and this makes selling your film very difficult indeed, I was discouraged by the whole marketing process and found it very cynical – a creative turn off. I found working in theatre a quicker way of getting story’s out there, reviews, audience feedback etc, helping to establish the name of Paradise Heights on the cultural landscape – all the tales are transferrable to film, but to do that you need investment – having a portfolio of glowing reviews really helps to obtain that investment. Getting behind the camera with the likes of Colin Warhurst, Chris Lane and so many other fantastic creative’s working alongside me brought back all the joys of film making, it was such a buzz, and we knew we had something special...I can’t wait to do it again, it has restored my faith in film making.
Q: What was your inspiration for this film?
Darren McGinn's Excellent New RANK Poster Design
A: The whole I’m Frank Morgan mythos and the horrific event in that first film that spilled over into the play Rank, also setting the incidents that take place on Halloween, with a solar storm and strange goings on around the estate – already featured in Rank. For instance Marek’s incident alone out on Athlone Avenue – heard but never seen in Rank. I wanted to show what he encountered. This allowed me to explore further aspects of the story, it expands fantastically on that and also allowed me to introduce further characters and indeed story threads for future stories, it’s a very densely packed plot – a powerful 24 minutes of film.
Q: The film was made in less than two months, how did you achieve such a fast turnaround?
Chris Lane, Producer, THE WATCHER
Colin Warhurst, DOP, THE WATCHER
A: That’s all down to crew, and in particular Chris Lane driving it - Barry Thompson, our composer is a real night owl, producing wonderful work overnight that Colin Warhurst would then edit too, or indeed vise versa Colin edits a sequence and Barry scores, all helped fantastically by Dropbox, a great internet tool for exchanging large media files online. They would work their magic and I would be able to review it at home, make notes and suggestions and drop it back to them – Holly Kim Wyatt was also able to do some magnificent work on the sound design using the same process. Everyone is highly skilled in their field and they were able to turn stuff around at lightning speed.
Q: The sounds and music are very important throughout the film, were you always aware that this would be important, how did you settle on Barry Thompson?
Barry Thompson, Composer: The Watcher
A: Barry did the radio inserts on Rank, a multimedia play, there was a terrific piece of music we used for the interval on the play and to start the second act. As The Watcher is a ‘sister piece’ to that tale it made sense to start with that same theme and build from there. I sat down a couple of times with Barry, bouncing ideas around, but once he got the flavour he was off. What he produced for The Watcher worked wonderfully, I believe he has a fantastic future as a film score composer – and this was his first score produced for a film, he really has a wonderful grasp of what will work well with the image and the mood of the scene.
Q: What was it like working with child actor Hannah Green, and how did you come across her?
Hannah Green as Stacy Tyler, THE WATCHER
A: Hannah was cast from open auditions, she certainly had the look I was looking for but her presence on screen and set lit us all up. It was her first shoot but she was absolutely amazing. Confident, accomplished, responded fantastically to direction and she was always throwing in suggestions of her own, this young girl is a star in the making and I would encourage any film maker looking for a great child actor to work with her, she won’t let you down.
Q: If you had to do it over again, what would you do differently?
A: Nothing.
Q: What can we expect next for Tales from Paradise Heights?
A: A Tales from Paradise Heights TV series remains a long term aim, The Watcher is a bridge to getting Tales from Paradise Heights in our TV screens. 24 minutes running time and encouraging that several people who attended the premiere at The Lowry said that they could see it being on TV. It's already being compared very favourably to the works of Scorcese, Marquuez and Wim Wenders - company I am very proud to keep thank you very much! In the meantime there is much more to come from The Heights. Strawberry Jack, the next multi media play premieres this summer, I am planning a web based series, two feature films and getting the stories into print in script and graphic novel format. Including work I have yet to premiere there are now seven tales in the series across stage and screen. Initially I had planned to have Ten Tales from Paradise Heights, however as the universe expands I am recognising that there is scope for more, and this again would be across a range of media. I am looking to bring RANK to the Zion Centre later this year – Halloween week and having a whole Halloween event based around the play, to create a much more interactive experience for the audience; it’s really going to be something else and will be remembered for a long time. And then of course there’s Torch...a project that will be absolutely EPIC in tone and scale...then of course there is the West End that remains on our radar and we already have some contacts there eager to bring the series to the capital.
Q: Where do you see the future of British filmmaking?
A: The Revolution Will Be Digitized...fantastic pieces of kit like the Canon 5D Mark II in the hands of the right creative’s produces truly stunning work, passionate creative’s – particularly in the Manchester area – are blazing new paths in getting their films out there, it’s truly empowering.
These film makers have recognised that you cannot rely on our existing film and cinema distribution models. I’m staying off my soapbox here but the stinging betrayals of the past have only succeeded in spawning a new, street wise version of film maker, there is a real revolution taking place – I firmly believe it will bring down the current Hollywood based structure, the internet is our future...streaming etc, collectives working together, pushing the distribution envelope...The Revolution Will Be Digitized...
Q: Who will this film appeal to?
A: The existing enthusiastic Army of Paradise Heights fans but also people who have never seen anything from Paradise Heights before, as each tale can be viewed in its own right you can certainly start here, as you see more you see the links, the characters that cross back and forth and indeed the incidents and places that have shaped this ever expanding community.
We are only just beginning...
Joe O'Byrne
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