Exploring the Intellectual Dimensions of Fiction Filmmaking

Filmmaking can be seen as a kind of alchemy—a fusion of innate talent, craft skill, and serendipitous moments. However, this mystique is unhelpful, particularly to future filmmakers, as it contributes to the 'cult of the director', keeps creative ‘workers’ in their place, and overshadows the collaborative efforts of those diligently working to complete a film. With a background as both a practitioner and educator in filmmaking, my research centres on the making of fiction, particularly examining which stories are brought to life and who has the opportunity to create them. This research is twofold: firstly, to expose the collaborative nature of fiction filmmaking through a process-led reflexive praxis, and secondly, to explore innovative narrative forms that encourage critical engagement and challenge the boundaries of fiction cinema.

About the Night is a short fiction film that draws inspiration from Ernest Hemingway's, A Clean, Well-Lighted Place (1933). The script was not an adaptation; however, it shared similarities in setting, ambiance, and a focus on characters over plot. I served as both director and producer and collaborated closely with the writer. Our goal was to stay true to the writer's original intentions of rejecting normal conventions of conflict-resolution, not unlike Hemingway. In recent months I have come to realise that what we did was work with the concept of ‘friction’ rather than conflict. This also mirrored the production process, and using Stoneman’s insight (2012), I will unpack the process and demonstrate how filmmakers need space for dangerous creativity, by embracing uncertainty, chance and risk. I will also explore how ‘friction’, as a positive concept, can create evocative radical storylines, and be employed within the collaborative process as a positive innovative force.