The Stuff They Don’t Tell You : A wicked take on the UK Film IndustryBy Beth Porter
You embark on the journey convinced you cannot fail. Stands to reason, though, most will fail. Look at the stats for a start. The odds of working in the film industry are not great. Equity, the UK actors union, boasts upwards of 50,000 members. About 1-2000 are employed at any one time. But, if you’re really and truly driven, you will succeed. At least you will succeed in making some kind of noise. And, possibly, someone will hear you and offer you a chance for a bigger noise and bigger bank balance. Pick me, you will be squeaking. Pick me! Zoom out to the edge of frame. Your unformed squeak is just one among the thousands of penguin chicks, waiting for a break. How could anyone possibly single you out? You look and sound just like all the others. Oh, yeah? That really pisses you off. I am NOT like all the others, you squeak. Look, can’t you see, I’ve got this wavy thing I do with my feathers. I’ve got this boppy thing I do with my shoulders. I can remove a lens cap and set up a shot while editing the sound-track and dubbing on the Foley feet. I’ve got wit and class, and tonight Matthew I’m going to be Andrea Arnold and Noel Clarke rolled into one. And no other little chick can say that! And, look! Yes, there, over the snowy horizon, come the exhausted hordes of talent spotters, dried fish smeared across their beaks. Looking, searching, desperate to find The Next Big Thing! You’ll show them. You whip out your camera and you start filming them. They are charmed. Delighted. You have dared to break out of the egg-box. Dared to break the rules. Even though there are no rules. You will know just how far you need to go. And you will grasp the helping hand they fling in your face. Just so long as you know, that hand is no guarantee. And, though you may have all the talent in all the penguin colonies in all the world – that helping hand has very little to do with you. Because here’s what they don’t tell you. Let’s talk crews. It’s getting a bit better these days, but for decades the way to advance in the crew-biz was to be born into it. There’s a dynasty of prop-men … and I say men because precious few women were allowed to join their dads, brothers, and uncles on the floor. Chippies all seem to be cousins. And nepotism’s the name of the game for camera and sound teams. In front of the camera the rules run differently, and are far more complicated. There are enough exceptions to throw you off the beaten track. But, believe me, this still goes on. No one denies that to do their job for producers, casting agents need to cultivate relationships with actors agents. Their job being to get the cheapest talent they can within the constraints of a film’s budget. Many actors, even those who’ve been working for decades, have no idea the casting agent can wield so much power in negotiating their wages. To be fair, many smaller productions devolve the role of the casting agent to the film’s producer. But, if an agent is involved, then negotiations become the Clash of the Titan Agents. One of the most effective weapons wielded by actors agents is the buy-on-get-one-free strategy. Well, that’s a bit misleading because agents don’t really bargain their clients to work for free. But, say an agency has an actor on its books who’s in need of a role for whatever reason. The casting agent contacts that agency asking for another of its clients. The agent can tell that the production really wants that actor. So a deal is bargained. The film can indeed have the actor it wants. And, perhaps, at a reduced rate. But only if they agree to also cast the agency’s other actor. You can imagine how the most powerful agencies can parlay such a technique into an empire. Many directors, too, have traditionally been traded in similar deals. Sometimes the process is vicious, other times personal friendships serve as an emollient. Is it fair? Of course not. But that’s the way the game is played and has been played for decades in the film industry. So, you can choose to play. Or, you can take an alternative path. The one they don’t tell you about. What’s made it more possible than ever before is, of course, technology. I remember the passionate debate by film purists against the mavericks at the BBC who wanted to introduce digital editing into drama. You’d have thought they were discussing the end of the world, let alone the demise of cinema. Today, the Blair Witch legacy is measured in box-office gold. Alongside Junior Apprentices, and Junior Masterchefs, are Junior Moviemakers. They’ve mastered software that allows professional looking films of various lengths and themes. Whether they run solo or hunt in packs, they submit their stuff to festivals around the world. They post their stuff online. They learn by doing. And they try to PEEP the loudest of all the chicks in the colony. Sometimes they get singled out for all the world to see. First – read as many film scripts as you can eat for breakfast. Read. Read. Read. Then Analyze. Write down WHY you do or don’t like them. Separate the story elements – plot, character, dialogue. What works. What doesn’t. How does each element contribute to the story. Do this every day. Do this before, during and after you decide to write your own script. Just do it! Second - Try not to lose focus. The film industry is still Big Borg – but the rules are changing. You can help shape that change. What you’ll have to resist are the smarmy words about your talent that make you feel all gooey and powerful. And, of course, the Big Bucks. Those greenbacks they trade for your soul. That’s the ultimate weapon that’s always helped them win the guerrilla war. But, they haven’t met you … have they?! You DO have the power. Guerrillas are top at resistance. And don’t forget: do not be cowed either by fame or money. Both are ephemeral and have nothing to do with your work. They sure don’t tell you that! Beth Porter has worked in both new and old media for over fifty years. She was a successful actress in films and television. She was trained as a BBC script editor and drama producer, and served as development executive for new drama series. Beth re-focused on new media as Executive Producer of international websites for a global online company. She’s been a media journalist, serving for ten years as London Editor of Film Journal International. Her book, The Net Effect, has a forward by David Puttnam and a back-cover blurb by Stephen Fry. Beth is a Lifetime member of Bafta, and a nominating judge of the International Webby Awards. She currently writes a fortnightly media column in The Morning Star. Return from the UK Film Industry to Film Production
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