In May of this year, the NI Screen Aim High trainees decided to make a
short film. Little did we know the commitment that we were putting ourselves
forward for.
Three months later we find ourselves on the eve of the long August bank
holiday weekend, and the two day shoot of our short film, ‘One Night’ (working
title).
Our short has been written by a trainee, is directed by a trainee, produced by two trainees and crewed by trainees. We
have gone through the normal stages that any short film producers do – in an
exceptionally rapid period of time. I have been one of two producers for the
short.
In June we went through a quick fire round of script development on three
short dramas and one factual short documentary. We pitched all four to NI
Screen and at the beginning of July we were left with the chosen script, ‘One
Night’.
What followed was a speedy pre-production including casting, crew finding,
breaking deals on equipment hire, drawing up a budget, redrafting the
screenplay and negotiating locations. With just over 12 hours to go until the
first crew call I have just signed off the final call sheet, production
schedule and unit list.
Although we have found ourselves hugely fortunate to have the support of
fantastic technicians, facility companies and mentors within our reach, it has
by no means been easy.
We have learnt a huge amount in such a short period of time. Personally, I
came from a singularly factual background and had never even formed part of a
crew on a short film before. I sometimes wonder how it is that I have found
myself producing a short drama film. Then I remember that it was my idea in the
first place and I only have myself to blame...
The proof, they say, is in the pudding. Keep following the #onenight story
here and on Twitter to find out if we manage to pull it off...
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