Was at the BFI last night for the screening of our short experimental documentary “Liza,” which was part of the Upshot Programme. Previously, organizer Claire Geddie had asked if I wanted to introduce the film, and I said yes (you can see the transcript below). I figure, the more times I do it, the more I’ll get used to it. And, it’s good PR for Patrick and me and for The Elektrik Zoo.
But as Claire called me up in front of the 120 people who had paid money to see these films, I lost my confidence, and my voice shook something awful. I also forgot the words, so I had to read from my notes. Bad, Daneeta, Bad!
Patrick abandoned ship after the screening, but I forced myself to stay for the networking. I had just nervously slammed down my one free beer to calm my nerves and was looking around for my first jump into conversations, when in front of me was one of the panel speakers: Katheryn Needham, Head of Sales and Acquisitions at Future Shorts.
It is always such a great pleasure when people of her caliber end up being someone you can just have a chat with. We mostly talked about Australia, which is where she is from. Then we got on to OTT Films, which is another collective here in the U.K. and with which Katheryn is involved. They are much more organized than me with a manifesto and a forum and everything.
I’m getting to the bit about “Down in the Parish.” She asked me what it was about, and I did my 30 second pitch, which I do as much as possible, again to get used to it and to try it out on people. I said “Look, it’s gonna be funny, OK?” And she said that funny meant the healing was beginning. Funny also sells.
As I left the venue, I turned back to her and handed her my only copy of Tokyo Cowboys. I carry one with me everywhere, and I leave it up to the universe to let me know when to give it to someone. I just thought that she might enjoy it being Australian and with Cloudy also being Australian.
On the way past the outdoor section of the NFT, a guy said to me “Congratulations on your film. We really enjoyed it.” Two other paying customers were sitting with him. They shook their heads in agreement. I fumbled about with my cards, giving them each one then ran off over the bridge to meet my Patrick who was waiting at home with a beer and a DVD.
All in all, a good night.
Transcript of the Speech:
Visions of this film had been swimming around in Patrick’s head for about two years. Images of: his mother on a beach in sun-drenched Libya…30 years ago, shot in Super 8 and a farm in the wintry Swedish landscape. He was trying to work out how to fit these seemingly disparate images together. He knew the key was his mother.
But it was Franz Kirmann’s eclectic track “Liza” that brought his vision into focus. This film is an experimental documentary in that no words are spoken, and much of the imagery is abstract. But it does tell a story.
Directed by Patrick Jackson, music by Franz Kirmann, “Liza” is an Elektrik Zoo production. The Elektrik Zoo is a creative collective founded by myself and Patrick back in 2001. We’ve produced five shorts, two music videos and a feature documentary “Tokyo Cowboys.” We are about to embark on our first feature-length fiction film set in my native New Orleans. We are looking for partners and we’ll be in the bar after, so find us because: together we are stronger.
