PRE-PRODUCTION DIARY - #003
Written by James Clarke
I have been asked a few times now what it’s like working with Sam Seeley and Dan Shepherd. Who writes the screenplays? Who has the final say? How does the dynamic work? As three keen filmmakers and photographers, naturally, we all want a piece of the action. In an unconventional fashion we don’t yet have strictly defined roles. No one person writes the scripts and no one person is designated as the director of photography. We each take turns and share knowledge across disciplines.
At this stage, in particular, I think it would be unfair to start boxing one another into confined roles when we each have so much to both offer and so much to learn from tackling each role as a collective. In time, as strengths and weaknesses become more visible and Sunray grows as a platform I have no doubt we will become more specialised in our contributions; but for now we are enjoying the learning curve together, each trying our hand in various areas of production.
“If you ever get the chance to work with people that enable you to thrive, take it, it’s a rare thing.”
The best example of this shared creative process has to be in the screenwriting process. Originally penned as five twenty minute episodes, we made the decision to reduce the episode count down to three but in turn also increased the run time of each episode to roughly forty minutes (so, fear not, you will be receiving the same amount of content as promised, just structured slightly differently to the initial pitch). Three longer episodes allows the story to progress more naturally and allows us to develop the characters in more depth. This format also better fits the beat of our narrative and conveniently it has allowed us to allocate script writing as one episode per creative.
Having different writers for each episode is not uncommon in the realms of television but as a serial drama it is important we manage this correctly as the tone could end up varying wildly if left unchecked. To combat this, before anyone started writing we laid out the beat (story structure) and made sure we were all on the same page. We discussed tone, characters, plot ideas and themes then went away and fleshed out episode drafts. Ultimately the story arch was decided as a collective and the details and dialogue are left to the individual. Afterwards we come together and read through each other's work then pull it apart over Zoom meetings to make sure each episode ties in with the last and has continuity in it’s themes. This process repeats numerous times until we end up with a finished and refined product that we are all happy with.
Lockdown has afforded us the time to get our teeth into this project; a small silver lining on what has otherwise been a dire year for most. Countless hours of Zoom meetings were spent thrashing out the details and eventually Sunray emerged kicking and screaming from a collection of post-it notes into what is now a fully fledged narrative and fledgling brand. Everyday we realise new possibilities and direction, we constantly battle with delivering the fundamentals while also keeping a keen eye on future opportunities. Sunray has become a beast, there is no doubt about that.
“Ultimately, Sunray is all about people, it always has been and it always will be.”
As creatives we are very much on the same level in terms of vision and aesthetic which makes it very easy for us to each take the same stance with regards to the direction of the project. Three often becomes the perfect number by allowing us to bounce ideas off one another and explore new possibilities. In the uncommon event of an outright disagreement, three gives us the option to vote in what is a very British and democratic fashion. The majority of the time this process works perfectly, but having three lead creatives with equal say can sometimes generate heated moments. However, I believe these rare moments show testament to how passionate each of us are about the project and how much we care about the final output.
Having three creatives operating on the same level creates an environment that breeds creativity. It creates an environment that you want to be a part of. It creates an environment where every contribution is valued and fuels further ideas and creative problem solving. There is no competition, no negativity, no ego, just a common goal. Ultimately, Sunray is all about people, it always has been and it always will be. Like minded people working together to bring creative projects to life. If you ever get the chance to work with people that enable you to thrive, take it, it’s a rare thing.