Shorts
This is a selection of short films I've produced, directed, or produced & directed.
OUT OF TUNE
As part of the UK Film Council's 'Deviate Plus' scheme I was selected to produce the digital short film 'Out Of Tune' with German director Fran Apprich. Shot totally in Belfast it centres around a seedy dancing club, where one of the dancers has lost her dreams, whilst a young girl grows up in the 'normality' of this environment.
Funded by Northern Ireland Screen
SPEEDLE'S TOWER
A combination of an original track and a scored piece, this short film came from a notion of putting a film to some music.
Anna Fitzsimons & Richard Davis of Chewie Films came up with the idea for Speedle's Tower, and wrote the story to accompany the music. As the project evolved the music was re-scored and shaped to go with the resulting images & animation, and Speedle's Tower was the result.
It took 6 months of cold, depth of winter, building and shooting for Anna & Richard to complete this, as part of the Jukeboxes & Triggers project with Seamless Productions, in Belfast.
Funded by Northern Ireland Screen
CATCH OF THE DAY
A couple of years ago I took a couple of man-sized fish down to the River Lagan in Belfast and carried out a bit of humaning. This is the short film about that day.
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Shot for the Stella Artois 15 Second Film Festival.
SUGAR FREE
A short film shot about the machines in our world getting addicted to sugar.
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I shot it for the Straight 8 competition, where you had to use Super 8 mm film, shooting and editing in-camera on a single Super 8 cartridge, and you have to produce the audio without having picture to sync it to. The 1st time you see your film is in front of an audience.
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The film was screened at 'Straight 8 Art' in Brick Lane London 2009.
THE CAT
As part of the Northern Ireland Screen's 'Deviate' scheme I was selected to produce the digital short film 'The Cat' with German director Fran Apprich. It views the relationship between an old couple who have lived a life together but drifted apart.
Funded by Northern Ireland Screen
SPAM
Plastic stars in a meat-related documentary about how spam has infiltrated all of our digital interactions online.
Shot for the Straight 8 Competition, all shot on Super 8mm film and all audio produced without being able to see picture sync.
THE INVISIBLE SUIT
Jeffery wants to be James Bond, and is a gadget freak. His latest purchase is an invisible suit, from an ex-FBI agent. We follow him as he heads outside to see if it really works.
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Shot for the Straight 8 competition, where you had to use Super 8 mm film, shooting and editing in-camera on a single Super 8 cartridge, and you have to produce the audio without having picture to sync it to. The 1st time you see your film is in front of an audience.
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The film was screened at Straight 8 London 2008.
WELLIEBOOT DUDE & THE PACAMAC KID
Set on allotments, two older gentlemen, in their cowboy outfits, face off across their spuds & marrows, water-pistols at the ready ... but their plans were foiled ... how & by who?
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Shot for the Stella Artois 15 Second Film Festival.
This is the Directors cut of the short horror film 'Unsound', the world's first emotional response horror film, where the emotions of the audience control the cinematic experience.
Their heart rate and skin conductance interact with the music, sound effects and scene selections in real time, so that it is a unique viewing for each audience.
We held the world Premiere at SXSW, Austin, Texas, followed by Belfast Film Festival.
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In SXSW it was one of only a handful of Platinum projects in SXSW history, that spanned audio, film & technology. New Scientist wrote an article on it, we had the head of interactive for Coca Cola Global get wired up, and Wired Magazine interviewed us.
We thought we'd created a new form of interactive film making .. and we may have .. but in 2011 the world wasn't ready for it.
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You can check out the behind the prep & behind the scenes photos here
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Directed by : NG Bristow
Written by : Spencer Wright
Produced by : Gawain Morrison & Chris Martin
Production Company : Filmtrip Created with the Support of the Creative Industries Innovations Award : NI Arts Council And N.Ireland Screen
A large chunk of the established film & TV crew in Northern Ireland cut their teeth in the 'Deviate' program that Northern Ireland Screen & UK Film Council funded. It took aspiring writers, directors, and producers in for intensive weekly sessions to learn about film making and to work concepts into scripts, and then produce, shoot, and edit them. Many of these people are now established film makers across writing, directing, camera, sound, editing, art department, wardrobe, acting and many more roles in the flourishing TV and film production scene in Northern Ireland.
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Several of the films mentioned above came through that program, and in subsequent years I was asked to help with the training and preparation for those selected for 'Deviate'. For cohort 4 of that program I was also production manager and 1st AD for the 4 selected films ... a word of advice .. never ever do those two roles at the same time for a film .. much less 4 films .. the films turned out great and won several awards at global festivals and those involved have gone on to great things.
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