On Tuesday night, members gathered for a special screening of Blinded by the Light, followed by a Q&A with the film’s director Gurinder Chadha and moderator James Kent.
Gurinder spoke to James about writing the film with Sarfraz Manzoor, finding the perfect cast, portraying the right balance of humour and gravity, and getting music approval from the Boss himself.
If you weren’t able to make it, you can still catch up with all the live-tweets from the evening below.
We’re excited for our member screening of Blinded by the Light, followed by a Q&A with the amazing @GurinderC - moderated by James Kent. Follow #DUKlight for our live-tweets after the film! pic.twitter.com/NCBuYpWpyv
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
We had a fantastic time watching Blinded by the Light, now it’s time for the Q&A with @GurinderC and moderator James Kent! Follow #DUKlight for the tweets.
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder says she wanted to make this film since Sarfraz Manzoor gave her his book, in about 2008. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: We met Springsteen on the red carpet and I realised I had about 10 seconds to try and land a movie deal. We needed his support and approval! Bruce said it sounded good and passed it to John Landau. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: Working with Sarfraz, he was of course very close to the story and I think I was able to help him disconnect from the story at a script level. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder says that she hoped after Bend it like Beckham there would be a lot more opportunity for Asian directors to tell their stories, but that sadly hasn’t happened. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
On casting, Gurinder says she was won over by Viveik Kalra’s soulfulness in the audition. When she played him some Springsteen he just closed his eyes and listened deeply. It later turned out he’d never heard the song! #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: I lay myself bare emotionally when I make films, that’s why the tone can flip from very serious to jovial very quickly - that’s how it can be in real life. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: This film is perhaps more focused on racism than my other films. In part I made it as a response to Brexit, I was shocked by the racism that that unleashed. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
#DUKlight pic.twitter.com/iN9i4W0J1Q
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
James hands it over to the audience for questions. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
A member of the audience from Luton says he was very touched by the film, it brought up a lot of memories of what it was like at the time. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: On getting music approval, Bruce read the script and he said “I’m good with this.” We were later told he was happy for us to have anything we need. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: When you’re directing new talent, you want to bring to their performance the experience they don’t have. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: Viveik deliverered the final speech in take one, I told him we’d treat it as a rehearsal and he nailed it in one. Emotionally, I’m not sure we could have done it again. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Gurinder: When I introduced the film at Sundance, I did the cheesiest thing - I got everyone singing along to Hungry Heart. #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
And that’s a wrap! Thanks so much to @GurinderC and James Kent for a fascinating Q&A - and thank you to everyone who made it down! #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
Blinded by the Light is a real treat, and it’s now available to watch on disc and digital download! #DUKlight
— Directors UK (@Directors_UK) December 3, 2019
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