Film production London
Working on short film production is a particularly exciting area of my wide variety of project commissions. As an independent producer, filmmaker and editor, I support many small production companies and freelance film and documentary producers with their short-form productions.
Film production case study
Pamela Roberts, Director of Black Oxford Untold Stories, recently commissioned my production skills and creative services to help her produce her film. This film continued Pamela’s project to share the untold story of Christian Frederick Cole. As the author of ‘Black Oxford Untold Stories’ and the organiser of events such as ‘re-imagining Cole’, she planned to bring his story to life on film and had obtained some funding for its commission. Â In this case study, I briefly outline how we worked together to produce the film.
Pre-production planning
Once we agreed we could create such a film on a limited budget, we began pre-production with long discussions to pool our ideas for the format from our different perspectives. Pamela sent me a copy of the draft script outline she had written, along with suggestions for structuring the story. I then emailed her with creative and technical questions from my filmmakers’ perspective. With more project details and a sense of what might be possible, we agreed on how we could coordinate our knowledge to move forward with this historical film production.
Filming location recces
Pamela had secured permission to film at the three historic locations which Christian Cole’s story revolved around: University of Oxford, Inner Temple (one of the four Inns of Court in London) and the Old Bailey in London. To assess these locations before filming began, Pamela and I first met at the Inner Temple in London for a location recce. I walked around the site and filmed some test shots to capture the historically accurate period details that would help tell the story.
We then drove to the Old Bailey, met their accommodating team, and I also filmed test shots in the Great Hall and Courtrooms. The following week, we did a second recce at Oxford University to visit and photograph the planned historical filming locations and meet the people involved there.
Period costume hire
Pamela had recruited two actors to carry out the roles of the young Cole and the later Cole. To make the film more authentic, we researched what clothes he would have worn at the time. I learned which costumes would best suit the actors’ roles, where we could obtain them, and the cost to hire. We eventually sourced our costumes and props from the great team at National Theatre Costume and Prop Hire in London.
Film production development
Over the following weeks of planning and frequent communication, Pamela developed and adapted the script as we coordinated our ideas for the film’s production. Pamela liaised with her contacts to confirm the filming days when we could access the chosen locations. We then created a list of suitable, historically accurate shots to film for each filming day in Oxford and London. The days leading up to filming were hectic, as we were both juggling many roles while sourcing props and final costumes for the locations and actors.
Film music production
As the film editor on this project, I felt the music needed to convey the right atmosphere and tone. Fortunately, my sister Jacqueline Langham is a very creative music composer and kindly agreed to compose this film’s music. To brief Jacqueline about the Christian Cole film story, I sent her Pamela’s proposed draft script, and we discussed some ideas for the potential music.
After filming, I sent her an edited version of the full film script, read to camera by the actor Prince Plockey. Jacqueline soon composed a beautiful selection of varied and unique music. It proved to be a perfect match for the story and helped me during editing as I selected the right music for the changing situations in the Christian Cole story.
Production filming days
We had two filming days scheduled for this historical film production, one in Oxford and one in London. Both filming days were long but very enjoyable – creative and rewarding. Luckily, we had dry weather and sunshine for both. For each filming day, I secured one assistant and really appreciated their help with everything, including moving a lot of filming kit. For the Oxford filming day, I was assisted by the helpful and talented ex-Goldsmiths student Silvio Ugarelli Lima who also filmed with a second camera. For the London day of filming, the very multiskilled artist, prop maker Marko Waschke helped with the actor’s costume dressing and as a stagehand.
Director of Photography
For both filming days, I set up the required lighting and worked as Director of Photography, directing and filming the shots. I worked with actors Moses Alexander and Prince Plockey to film the scripted lines and shot list, illustrating the story as best as possible within our tight time constraints. The biggest advantage of working with larger crews is that people have specific roles, which means more eyes on set.
A larger team helps to realise your creative vision within the timeframe you have. However, this short film’s tight budget didn’t allow for a large crew or additional help with all the tasks involved. As a London-based freelance filmmaker, I have a wide range of film production equipment, so I had everything required to film and light the single-actor scenes. For this production, I also served as sound recordist.
Film post-production
With the two days’ filming complete, I began the process of the film’s post-production. Post-production is all the additional work required after the production phase to create the finished film. Examples include editing, colour grading, final sound mixing, etc. My priority in any post-production process is to ensure all filmed media files are securely backed up and stored safely.
Once the media files were secured, I transcoded all the filmed UHD media into a suitable format for editing. Over the next few weeks, I edited the short historical documentary. As the edit progressed, I added the beautiful music composed for this film. Once I was happy with the film, I sent Pamela a link to watch it and share feedback. I was delighted to hear she loved the edit, as were both actors who re-enacted Cole’s life story.
Historical film production
This short film is now titled after the person it’s about: Christian Frederick Cole. Christian Frederick Cole, originally from Sierra Leone (then a British Colony), was Britain’s first Black African to graduate at the University of Oxford and went on to become Britain’s first Black African barrister to practise Law in the English High Court. This short historical film production brings his unique story back to life to inspire a new audience and a new generation, and to recognise this vital part of black history in Britain.
If I can help with your film production, please contact me via my website contact form.
You might be interested in viewing these examples of my video productions:
