Gaining Traction - 'Find A Way... That's What Winners Do!'

Whilst 2012 had me convinced that I'd finally achieved stability in my life and finally find a foothold, I knew I had to take advantage of the time I had found. It passes quicker than people think.

I remember being told by Jonny Persey (director of Metfilm School) that I was still young and all the time in the world, I was barely 22 at the time an it felt only like a couple of weeks ago.

The film and television industry requires much more than just filling in an application, like you'd expect on the typical job market and because I don't have relatives in there or some rich benefactor spoon feeding me a career, I'd like to think... Believe... that a hard working ethic still works in order to reward you with the attention you need to succeed... I force myself to believe that every day and unlike A LOT of people its not just words with me... It's lights, camera, action... Not forgetting the writing of course.

My Screening Listing

I decided to branch out and start putting my work online, primarily a writer but ask anyone, they'll always watch more than they read and I wanted to "show" people what I could do.

This was a smart move... Although, most of the work was always for free, it kept on coming, making myself known not just as writer but a director, editor, cinematographer really started turning heads. People "really" do think making films is easy until they realise they've actually got no clue, whether that be; writing up a story, securing and negotiating locations and actors, scheduling and planning shots, procuring music, editing, grading... I tell you the biggest sentence that annoys me; "Dan, can I be in one of your films, I can act!"
Usually this is bullshit, they don't know the jargon, understand how to take direction, what a call sheet is but most of all expect to be paid whilst they fail to convince me that they'd turn up on time and be committed to a project rather than just a bit of fun.

Cascade Pictures

Anyway, enough rant, over the past year alone, I have shot two films, two promotional campaigns, had two of my films screened a festival for the 1st time, hired to shoot a film festival, taken a co-writer credit for a independent production company, begun filming a web series, considered for a set designer internship for another production company in the U.S and to round it off, my first pitch for a feature script I wrote earlier this year with 'Cascade Pictures' in Central London through the BBC.


It felt phenomenal and scary at the same time (same as I usually feel when I'm filming) but knowing that this could be... "It!" was a new sensation altogether, my family and friends who think I'm nuts for going into this game for as long as I have started to bite their tongues and wished me the best.
Soon enough I was sat in a room behind two people I recognised from their company website, these were key people with experience in distributing some big projects, like 'What Women Want', 'Apocalypto', 'G.I Jane', 'Woman In Black etc. Then another three people appeared, shaking hands then walked me into a board room and gave me ten minutes to give them the ride of their lives with my idea, knowing that they've already read the first ten pages.

Unfortunately, I didn't succeed in the pitch as I left several holes in it as I went... That's the unforgiving thing, really. They were nice enough people but I think they expected me to be an expert pitcher - I wasn't and found a way of addressing that in my own way but... The feedback was they weren't captivated enough... Incorrect, they were, they read other projects and picked mine and I "know" that stories F*****G good but if ONLY I had the power of Bill Murray from that film 'Groundhog Day' to go back again & again until I perfected it.

However, I'm the only person with as much passion for this beastly writing game I know and now the only one who's come remotely close to succeeding... I'm getting there... I can finally feel it now after all these years of anguish... The light at the end of the tunnel is visible and it feels incredible.

I've thrown myself in as writer for two more films already being shot in the next couple of months, emboldened my showreel and now know where to start in pitching my TV series idea thanks to a Q & A session with Nick Fletcher. Christ knows why more people don't get involved at those things but fine by me, more attention and less competition - to hell with 'em.

Furthermore, I have my ticket for the London Screenwriters Festival this year, you know you're serious when you spend almost 300 hundred quid on something and with more things to show a producer etc than your average writer in terms of what I've done, who knows I may even walk out with an agent.
Can't wait to see what happens next year - Bring it on!