Acorns to Trees

You've been there, we've all been there. . . We're all sat at a bar and someone says  - "I have this wicked idea for a film", In fact I'm sure you've done it yourself more than a few time, I certainly have! 

So that’s it. That’s the reason I’m doing this. I have to follow through.

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How Did I Get Here?

The first time I took my writing seriously, I was stuck in a Birmingham flat during COVID, alone, sad time, I know. However, there was no distractions. Just me and an idea I couldn’t shake it was—a seven-part series about the Irish and Jamaican diaspora in the city.

And guess what. I wrote

I actually finished it.

Now, was I going to be able to shoot something set in the ‘80s? Nope. Were the BBC and such entities going to give me millions to make it? Nope. HOWEVER, it was completed and that what mattered!

Before that, I trained as an actor, which soon fell by the wayside because, in my words, I got a little fed up with being Oliver looking for porridge all the time. I must say, though, I LOVE actors, and I love working with them, but the whole stress of auditioning just wasn't for me. I wanted control, I wanted to plough my own fields, sorry about the rural references. 

So back to Birmingham. I'm living there, and I begin to write my second piece of work, which explored an interracial relationship between two former lovers who meet each other at a resort years after last seeing each other. This one? I still have hopes for it, by the way. I still have that little voice that's telling me, make it!, I should say those little voices aren't always there but when they are you have to listen.

Since then, my work became too studied. I was too busy trying to structure something, trying to get all clever with the whole thing, rather than believing in the intuitive thought of simply making it for the sake of making it.

The trouble with art is, well, It's not just a logical thing. Some people will come up with a formula, and you know what? If that works for them, good luck to them.

However, in my view, it's not that simple. And as an old sawmill owner from my little village back home would say, "Sure, if it was easy, we'd all be at it!"

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So, Why Write a Blog?

So, why write this blog? Why not just quietly work on my script, make my films, and send them to producers?

Because I know how easy it is to let ideas slip away. Because I’ve done it before, more times that I care to admit. 

I am writing—well, selfishly, I am writing it to hold myself accountable to my own targets as a writer and director and to inspire other people that they, too, can follow through on an idea.

(I should also say that I do not wish to become a self-help guy.)

By reading this blog, you will have a firsthand view of what goes into the creation of my work. You'll see how I got things wrong, notes on my script, read-throughs with actors, funding applications—all that goes into making stories.

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Whats on the stove now?

The piece I am working on at the moment is an audio series about a group of young people in the ‘90s/00s who decide to set up a pirate radio station. It’s loosely based on a station I used to listen to when I was growing up.

I should also point out that I haven’t written an audio series before, so I am completely in the dark with it all.

Next week, I’ll let you know how far I’ve come—and, let’s be real, what’s already going wrong.