Joanna Coates is a freelance film director. In addition to making films for the likes of the National Theatre, she and producer Jess Gormley run Wittering Productions, an independent production company....
When it comes to filmmaking, every single project is different. Some of my work is commissioned and some are my own projects, so it’s a real mix; there isn’t really a standard creative process.
I’ve just done a project at the Central School of Speech and Drama – a series of 12 short films for a research project with a professor there. That was really collaborative, whereas on a recent documentary I made at the National Theatre I was able to plan how I approached and completed the project. Sometimes I’ll be asked to make a film about something and I’ll just fill a brief and won’t have much input. Sometimes it’s nice just to do what someone else wants.
I enjoy the commissions because they’re artistically interesting, but it’s not the same as writing and directing a drama of your own. In terms of my own projects, I start with an idea that I believe in, then write a script, show it to people, get a crew and gather some money together from various sources. I then make the film and send it to festivals. At the moment I’m making what I hope will be a feature-length documentary with an Observer journalist. My real ambition is to make a feature film in the next few years.
You can have an idea for years and not really do anything about it, or you might have the idea, write it and then have it waiting to go into production for ages. As long as the idea is robust in the first place, the writing doesn’t take all that long. The actual production lasts a couple of months. It’s a lot of work, but it’s not a very long process because you can’t count on people being available in advance. In film, no one knows what they’ll be doing for the next year.
It’s very hard to find funding for your own projects. Until recently there was the Film Council, of course, but that organisation wasn’t perfect. Of course, it’s really important that people can get help – there are some people who can’t even buy a camera to start themselves off – but I think that the Film Council has created a real passivity. People are waiting to be validated, which is a really bad way to go about making art. No other industry works like that.
My producer and I seek funding for my own short films, the ones that I write and direct. Trying to foster entrepreneurial ideas about filmmaking is really important. It’s much more reliable to have private investors who trust you. It’s harder, but long term it’s much better because you’re not going to be left suddenly high and dry.
You’ll meet people who’ll say, “you can’t do it, it’s not possible”. You have to be realistic, of course, but the people who tell you it’s not possible are the people who couldn’t do it. There’s a difference between constructive advice and negativity. You might get some harsh advice, but sometimes it just comes down to, “if you want to make the thing happen, here’s how”. That’s very different to, “this thing will never happen”. Be careful who you listen to.
Joanna Coates was talking to Jo Caird.
Visit http://www.witteringproductions.com for more information.