The pros and cons of independence
Don’t get me wrong, I love making movies, I’ve dedicated my life to it, but when it came to making my first feature film Trampoline, it was one of the toughest and most stressful processes I ever put myself through.
I grew up very much in awe of the power of cinema. Movies were, and still are, my life. There’s nothing I love more than buying my ticket, sitting down in the theatre, having the lights dim and then losing myself in a film that’s projected on the massive screen in front of me. It was always my dream to one day be seated in a cinema with my own movie being screened in front of an audience.
Having worked on movie sets for the last three years as a camera assistant I experienced first hand the relationships between directors and their crew. I learned so much from all these shoots that by the age of 25 I was confident enough to try writing and directing my first feature.
Trampoline is the story of a young woman who moves back home after finishing college and must make some big decisions regarding her career and the next step in her life. It is a story that I hope will be relatable to many people in the country my age.
Making an independent movie is incredibly time consuming and being your own boss can sometimes lead to you becoming your own worst enemy. Writing the script I had nobody to answer to other than myself. No studio heads or investors were going to be reading the different drafts and offering feedback, so I would find myself second guessing my writing. I figured out early enough in the process that this can really wear you down if you let it. It’s a bizarre feeling, having to believe in yourself and at the same time be a tough enough critic to get the best out of yourself.
Being an independent film-maker means that you are doing this without any major backing from big financial bodies. So in order for us to fund the film we went to local businesses in Nenagh, where the film is set, and asked for donations. We were lucky to raise a budget of €1,000 thanks to their kind sponsorship.
Having the cast and crew work unpaid meant having to work around everyone’s day jobs. In theory this seemed like a reasonable approach, but when put into practice it was very challenging. I found working the shoot around people’s schedules very frustrating at times. We also only had enough money in the budget to cover shooting expenses, we had nothing for post-production. Thankfully our editor and sound mixer also helped us for free.
All in all it took 12 months from inception to our first public screening, which isn’t too shabby for an independently produced movie. All of this was made possible thanks to the amazing cast and crew who believed in the project and the brilliant teamwork that was put in to making all of this a reality. Over the course of the 12 months, though, there were a lot of ups and downs. Relationships suffer and friendships can get pretty strained at times when it comes to making a feature. Major pressure was on my shoulders given that I was the director and will be held responsible if the film fails.
Trampoline is getting its world premiere at the IndieCork Film Festival on Thursday, Oct 17, followed by a screening at the Clones Film Festival on Sunday, Oct 27. These screenings will make or break us. It’s incredibly frightening but it’s also the part I’m looking forward to the most.
It’s the payoff for all of the hard work and sacrifices that went into making this project. Sitting down in a cinema, watching the lights dim and seeing a movie projected on the big screen in front of a live audience. Only this time the film up on the screen will be ours. Regardless of whether the film is a success or not, at least we tried. With very little money but a lot of love we will be watching our first ever feature film on the big screen. My life-long dream will come true this Thursday, and boy, that sure is one hell of a pro!
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