Well that was the Directors’ Festival 2015! We hope all the members who attended had a fantastic time and enjoyed the sessions, food, drink and company on offer throughout the day.
We’re now collecting together all the content from the various sessions, so that those who were there can relive it and those who weren’t can pretend that they were! We’ve got collected live-tweets from all the sessions, and there will be video content being uploaded very shortly.
Members enjoying Altitude London’s 29th floor.
New Kit in Close Up
Which piece of kit is going to make your life easier? Three companies pitch their wares - Dragons’ Den-style - to directors Cath le Couteur, Anand Tucker, Toral Dixit and Richard Max. Moderated by Broadcast Tech magazine editor, George Bevir.
Riz Wadan demonstrating the Letus Helix and exoskeleton.
Directing for Laughs
How do you make comedy lift off the page and raise the roof? Ed Bye (Red Dwarf, Vicious, The Vicar of Dibley), Ben Taylor (Catastrophe, Cockroaches) and Richard Boden (Blackadder, The IT Crowd) discuss how to make funny even funnier with moderator Christine Gernon (Gavin & Stacey, Up the Women, Grandma’s House).
The audience waiting for Directing for Laughs to begin.
Motion Capture
John Dower introduces Brian Mitchell from The Mocap Academy, as he demonstrates how to use motion capture in action. Sponsored by Audiomotion.
What Can Twitter Do For You?
Directors UK’s Digital Manager Ash Mann was on hand to tell directors how to enhance their public profile through their online activity - and why they should! Have your phones ready...
There were also plenty of opportunities for members to mingle.
Keynote speech: Michael Apted
The award-winning film and television director Michael Apted delivered the first keynote speech at The Directors’ Festival 2015. Michael Apted has had a long and prolific career, directing documentaries, television drama, and feature films for over fifty years, as well as serving three terms as President of the Directors Guild of America and now serving as Secretary/Treasurer. In his address to the Directors’ Festival, Michael spoke about the importance of tenacity, luck and directors’ rights. Introduced by Menhaj Huda.
Michael Apted answering audience questions.
Creative Collaborations: The Editor/Director Relationship
Wolf Hall director Peter Kosminsky and editor David Blackmore have enjoyed a long-standing and fruitful collaboration. They were at the Directors’ Festival to talk about their important creative partnership. Moderated by Beryl Richards.
Peter Kosminsky talking about his and David Blackmore’s work on Wolf Hall.
The Art of Interviews
Award-winning documentary directors Louise Osmond (Dark Horse, Richard III: The King in the Car Park), Vanessa Engle (Money, Inside Harley Street) and Brian Hill (The Not Dead, Climate of Change, The Secret History of Our Streets) discuss how to get the best out of interviews and contributors. Sponsored by ARRI.
Left to right: Louise Osmond, Vanessa Engle and Brian Hill.
Action!
From EastEnders to Mission: Impossible, Casualty to 007. Second Unit Director and Stunt Co-ordinator Lee Sheward explains how to get more bang for your buck when it comes to shooting stunts. Moderated by Steve Smith.
An explosive Lee Sheward.
Animation
Nicolas Ménard and Andy Martin (two of today’s “most innovative creators and talents” - Pictoplasma) talked to Rebecca Manley about their working process, sharing the challenges and joys involved in creating compelling stories using animation.
Left to right: Nicolas Ménard, Rebecca Manley and Andy Martin.
In Conversation with Sarah Gavron and James Kent
Sarah Gavron, director of the highly-anticipated Suffragette, talked to Testament of Youth director James Kent. They discussed how they brought their modern historical stories to the big screen. Moderated by Piers Haggard.
Left to right: Sarah Gavron, Piers Haggard and James Kent.
Keynote Speech: Brian Helgeland
Our second keynote speaker was award-winning writer-director Brian Helgeland. Brian has worked as a screenwriter for many top directors, and also directed a number of his own scripts. He was at the Directors’ Festival to address attendees ahead of the release of his next film Legend. Moderated by film critic Jason Solomons.
Brian Helgeland in full flow.
You can see more photos from the event on our Instagram page.
Directors UK members enjoying the wine and the view.
We look forward to seeing you again next year!
As ever, we’d be extremely grateful to hear any feedback you have about the day. Please feel free to email us at [email protected] with your thoughts.
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