From the Director's Chair with Sean Hodgkinson

ThriveIN5

1) What motivated you to pursue your passion?

I had moved back to Trinidad after studying abroad and after working in tourism, and after being utterly frustrated with government bureaucracy a chance encounter with a local film producer set me on my path.  

2) Who inspires you the most?

I am more inspired by seeing new places and meeting new people, and I guess new experiences in general. I love to travel, my wanderlust is relentless and that energy that I get from that fuels my creativity and drive.

3) How do you handle the various challenges surrounding what you do?

As you get older you learn to handle situations and challenges better, and how I would have reacted ten or five years ago, I would react to a situation differently, now. Life throws curve balls at you all the time, it’s about how you deal and respond to the situation in question.

4) Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Hopefully working on finishing my third feature film, “The Inheritance,” which is a creepy period piece about a British Expat who inherits an estate house.   

5) What advice would you give to someone up and coming?

Grow a thick skin. People will say all kinds of things about you, and they have that right, it’s how you react to what they say and do that will make the difference and its part of the career that we have chosen.

Photo Credit: MARLON JAMES

 

1) How long have you been directing?

I directed my first short in 2012, and I haven’t stopped since then.

2) You recently received many awards for your recent film what are they and explain the feeling of accomplishment.

Sean Hodgkinson with Trafficked Cast

PHOTO CREDIT TTFF

It’s an awesome feeling when someone recognises the work that you do, and its sort of a pat on the back  saying “hey, nice job,” and you kind of feel like you know what you are doing, especially from your peers.  But it’s not the reason to do this, it’s a nice bonus :)

3) You have been doing a lot of film festivals congrats, which one stood out to you more and which one you wish you can be in?

We just came back from TIFF, in Toronto. That was amazing, and the energy was off the charts and the vibe was awesome, that was a great experience. I guess the first film festival we attended here in Trinidad with A Story About Wendy was the most memorable, Heidi (lead actress) and I were so nervous that we stood in the darkened corridor watching from the sidelines and then when the audience started laughing and gasping in the right places we knew we had a winner.

4) How do you think the industry is in your country of Trinidad and Tobago?

The industry is growing, unfortunately, Trinidad is too small to support a fully functioning film industry, and the answer to that is for more co-production opportunities with other countries.

5) What is needed to encourage more film related projects in the Caribbean?

There’s always this talk about local, and how Caribbean people do not want to see local content and that’s total BS. Local films pull huge audiences and viewership numbers, We need more support from the private sector and the television stations to purchase content from local producers as opposed to buying foreign programming.

The Weekend_ Photo Credit John De Lima

6) How do you go about your creative process?

I usually have to create a space that soothes my soul as cliched as that sounds, a sort of nest, so I clean and organise and make sure everything is perfect (and it can take months or a few days) and then I start to write. I just started the process to begin work on my next feature film.

7) From thought to the screen, what is the process like and what excites you more?

That’s exactly it, I see something play out in my head, and then you work with this most amazing team to take that thought/vision and it appears on a screen for others to see. That’s why I do this. I love that feeling.

8) How difficult is it to get funding for your projects and how do you go about it?

Extremely difficult. But that is the industry that we choose and you just have to keep knocking on doors and harassing people till you get the funding.

9) If you had to recreate an old movie what would it be and why?

Hmmm… I don’t like the word, recreate. I would rather use reimagine, probably “The Birds,” a 1963 film from Alfred Hitchcock. One of my faves, it’s about a town that suddenly is attacked by birds for no reason and it’s epic.