SelfHelp Press Kit

8/9/2019 SelfHelp Press Kit

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Pageboy PicturesPresents

SELF HELPProduced & Directed by James PageWritten by Kurt Brookes & James Page

Technical DetailsRED 4K 1.85:1 aspect ratio

Dolby Stereo MixRunning time 16 mins

Contact: James Page, 30 Choyce Close, Atherstone, Warwickshire, CV9 3AY+44 7979 44 11 63

[email protected]


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Self Help Synopsis

Self Help is a comedy drama about a lonely middle-aged oddball learning

to be himself, with the help of a brash motivational speaker, John Power!

Every morning the first thing Geoffrey does is play his Self Help

CD, and puts on a fake moustache and beard. Crippled by a lack of

confidence, he reluctantly attends a seminar given by his idol, the

voice on the CD, motivational speaker John Power, in the hopes of

changing his isolated life, and finding the courage to speak to thegirl he watches secretly. The journey there and back will change

him forever. Self Help is about

learning to be yourself.

And fake moustaches.

Co-Written and Directed by British Film Maker James Page, Self

Help was shot over the late months of 2009 and completed by mid

2010. The story is partly inspired by writers Kurt Brookes and James

Pages experience with the universal struggle to be comfortable in

their own skins, and the mask that many people wear to hide their

real selves.


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Genesis of The Idea

Co-writer Kurt Brookes comments: Self Help started out as a very

different lm, a paper-thin comedy sketch. I put anadvertisement on shootingpeople.org which read

Id direct it myself but Ive got as much enthusiasm

for directing as a fat man has for salad In the hope

someone would reply. Someone did: Im a fat man

and I dont like salad, but I do like your script. That

fat man was Director James Page.

James connected with the bigger themes the script touched on, and

immediately began working with Kurt to develop the script.

Kurt commented I worked with James on the script for a couple of drafts,

really adding depth and pathos to the story, eshing the character out.

I was determined to avoid some of

the things that other short lm makers

do,says James.

I didnt want it to be about a gratingly

earnest, melodramatic 20 something

dealing with his problems.

I wanted it to be a narrative that

audiences would enjoy but also connect with, whilst communicating some

of the more offbeat ideas we had in our heads.


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Putting the Team Together

James worked out the budget, and very quickly realised that he would

need 10k ($20K US) to make Self Help.

And he didnt have that money.

James saw that he could earn just enough to pay for locations, materials,

food and travel, but wouldnt be able to raise the money to pay people

their wages, so James went cap in hand to previous key collaborators,armed only with the script and his

enthusiasm.

Many of the people he approached

were involved in Wasters, an

independent feature James had

Produced and Edited, which went on

to screen at international festivals,

winning awards as it went.

His message was clear: I have no

money to pay you, but if you want to

be part of an exciting project then I

will work tirelessly to make sure the

experience is worthwhile.

Luckily people responded enthusiastically, not least the Cast.


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Casting

Pete Glover, a renowned theatre actor and comedy writer from

Birmingham, had a small but memorable role in Wasters, and Jameswas impressed with the truth in Petes

performance.

Says James: Petes performance was

full of pathos and honesty, and I was sure

he would be able to capture the range ofemotion needed to play Geoffrey

Says Pete: From the rst reading of the

script, I was drawn into the schizophrenic

world of the character and wanted to bring him to life. James and I sat for

many an hour talking about the character and who he was. By the time I

got on set, I felt that I knew him. It is also beautifully written - a part every

actor dreams of. I saw James passion and commitment for the project, so

I knew Id be in safe hands

Chloe Mander came on board to play the object of Geoffreys affection.

On why she took the small but pivotal role,

Chloe explained: I thought the script was

beautiful, it made my mom cry! I was very

excited to be a part of it.

With the majority of the cast in place, James

attention turned to the crew.


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Crewing

James approached Director of Photography

Peter Tainty to shoot the lm. Peter andJames had been to University together,

and had remained great friends. For

Peter, It was an opportunity to work on an

interesting script, with a collaborator on his

wave length.

Peter said: It seemed natural for me to be a part of the project. We have

a similar visual sensibility, and we had long conversations about how the

lm was to look. James had prepared exceptionally well, and is constantly

pushing to achieve the best from everyone, and I really responded to that.

Here was someone who knew what they were taking on and had planned

everything accordingly.

With his DoP on board, James set about

securing the services of Casa Films

Antony Meadley to provide the camera

equipment. James had edited Antonys short lm Portal, and Antony

jumped at the opportunity to return the favour. Antony lent his RED One

Camera to the production for free, and acted as DIT on set.

After all positions were lled, a crew of 15 or so prepared for the shoot.


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Shooting

Late September 2009 and a small but dedicated crew descend upon

Tamworth, in the heart of England.

For 3 weekends the crew workedtirelessly, shooting at various

locations around the area; the Castle

Hotel, the local park, and a local

builders merchants, BuildBase.

Director James comments: I knewthe beginning of the story needed a desaturated, earthy, melancholy feel,

whereas when we meet John Power for the rst time, it was important for

there to be a contrast, as if everywhere he went he warmed the room, so

I collaborated with DoP Peter Tainty and Production Designer Amy Carroll

to nd the best ways to achieve this.

One location had a suprise instore for DoP Peter Tainty! recalls Peter

ruefully: We shot in a house that hadnt been lived in for a while, and

nobody knew that it was infested with eas! You could almost hear the

eas rejoicing when they saw me

coming! on the last count I had been

bitten 50 times!.

On a more technical note, Pete

mentions Our equipment was

extremely limited. We had 4 lights,

some battered old gels and diffusion,

had one lense for the majority of the shoot, so it was a real challenge to

achieve the look we were going for


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On his relationship with Director James Page, Pete Glover

commented: James knows what he wants and communicates

very clearly and with patience. He

understand the acting process verywell and always shows a great

respect for the actors work.

Pete continues: On set, he is

organised and focused, which gives

the whole process an energy and momentum. I was also impressed

with his ability to use humour to defuse the many stressful situations

that always occur on set - it was work, but fun work!

Most of all, I was so pleased to work

alongside someone who cared about

detail and worked hard to ensure

that the right shot was captured.

Ive worked with too many thatll do

directors - James is a perfectionist and it shows in the performance

he drew from me and the end result.

DoP Peter Tainty commented: I think our team pulled together

amazingly. When your trying to achieve the best with a tiny budget,

it soon becomes obvious who can

and cannot cope under pressure.

This team of people who worked

damn hard for pizza, tea and biscuits,

definatelycan.


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Post Production

Post began in February 2010, and to James relief all the preparatory

work, excellent casting and crewing meant the film came togethervery easily. Editing took place in the evenings and at weekends, and

on James Laptop computer using Final Cut Pro software.

James comments: I made some cuts for pacing reasons, but I finally

arrived at a cut which I was happy with after about a month.

Music is an important part of

the film in helping to establish

mood and momentum, and

James turned to previous

collaborators, brother and

sister composing team Mary

Anne and Michael Tedstone.

Michael wrote :We read the script and the next day we were still

discussing it, so we realised it must be good!

Continues Mary Anne: Writing the score was a combination of

discussing with James what he wanted to achieve, and our own

perception of the mood of the

film. Working with James was

very easy, he was always very

supportive and gave constructive

criticism that made the end result

better.


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Premire

The film was finally completed and the premire for cast and crew

was at the Royal Cinema in Leamington. The reaction to the film

was overwhelmingly positive; James received a deluge of positive

unsolicited emails the next day from people unconnected to the

production, telling him how much

they enjoyed the film.

Just some of the comments he

received :

Tom, Leamington:

I was at your screening last

night and I just wanna say that It was a really amazing piece of work

and very inspiring.

Marie, Warwick:

I was looking for you after the screening to tell you I really enjoyed

your film. We all have a secret and public self and you brought that to

an extreme which I really liked!

James comments: I am confident now that the film does what I

had hoped. People laughed, were touched and moved. Its the best

feeling in the world for a director and its why I do it.


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Lead Actor Pete Glover:

I love the film. I love the gentle pace and unveiling

of this sad mans little life and troubles. The musicis beautiful and, James has a wonderful eye for the

beautiful in the depths of despair and also the dark

humour in that sadness. He is brave and ready to

take a risk - and thats what makes the film stand out

as something special.

DoP Peter Tainty:

the pace of the film immediately

pulls you in and keeps you there for

the entirety of the film.

There are layers to the film that will

make the audience ask questions

during and after watching and thats

what we wanted to achieve.

Co-Writer Kurt Brookes:

Over the last few months Ive gone through a range of emotions . I

started off almost petrified; what if its not good? What if I dont like

it? What if people like everything except the writing? Im pleased to

report that I am very happy. The first thing Ive written has been made

into a film by a man who stuck his neck out and put a lot of blood,

sweat and tears in to making an exceptional film


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Directors Statement

For the longest time, like many people, I lacked the confidence to be

who I really am. Also like many people I wasnt exactly surewho I

was. And thats what resonated with me about this story; a man whois crippled by insecurity, who leads a double life, and is searching to

be himself.

What i didnt want to do was make

a po-faced, melodramatic short.

Humour is a big part of my life, andI wanted to incorporate that. The

film has a lot going on; Its at once

weird, creepy and sad, but also

funny and beautiful. And its that combination of feelings that i feel in

my life everyday that i wanted to get across on screen.

I am very proud of the film, particularly considering we had virtually

no money to do it! Through force of will power we got the film made,

and the film says what i wanted to say.

I hope people enjoy it, and perhaps it will give some people a little bit

of weird, creepy comfort!

James Page

Director Self Help


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Geoffrey/John Power

The GirlNatasha

Susan

Waitress

Alan

Written by

Produced & Directed by

1st AD

3rd ADs

Clapper Girl

Script Supervisor

Production Assistants

Director of Photography

1st ACs

2nd ACs

DIT

Camera Equipment by

Lighting Equipment

Hair & Makeup Supervisor

Hair & Makeup Artists

Peter Glover

Chloe ManderAmelia Tyler

Andrea Cobhurn

Katie Holdsworth

Daniel Lucas

Kurt Brookes

James Page

Priscila Lima

Elizabeth Good

Chris Durden

Rachel Leahy

Vitor Guerra

Emma Grove

Katy Page

Peter Tainty

Kelly Li

Paul McGrory

Sylvia Chan

Daniel Lucas

Antony Meadley

CASA FilmsYoho Media

BlueTreeMedia

Curve Films

Grace Tunesi

Laura Goodman

Rachelle Milligan

Art Director

Graphic DesignerCompositors

Edited by

Sound Designer

Sound Recordists

ADR Recordists

Boris Feldman

Ernest Vernon

Lewis Metcalfe

Damian Daykin

John & Joy Page

Rutherfords LettingsTamworth Council

Pam Hemmingss

Lewis Beach

Dale Driver

Chris Cooper

Amy Carroll

Robert PageDarren Hayes

Robert Page

James Page

Paul Darling

Adam Ward

Carl Noble

Gilermo

Robert Page

Alan Watton

Allan Mclellan

Paul Dick Flemming

Darren Hayes

The Castle Hotel

Buildbase NuneatonBluesh Media

Dave Adams

Sacha Andrews

Richard Higson

Chris Chart

Crew

Original Score by

Mary-Anne & Michael Tedstone

Bus Stops

Written & Performed by Katie Dove-Dixon

Pageboy Pictures 2010 All Rights Reserved

Special Thanks

Cast

Supportng Artists


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James Page

Short Biography

James Page is a UK based Film Maker.

He has Edited three features, Dead Trees,

Interview With a Politicianand Wasters,

which he also produced.

Dead Treeswon a Royal Television Society

Award in 2005. Wasterswon Best British Film at the Heart of England

Film Festival in 2009, and is screening at festivals worldwide.

He has edited several short films, the most recent, Small Gifts, was

nominated for Best Short at the EastEnd Film Festival 2010.

He recently completed the RED 4K short film Self Help, starring Peter

Glover.

James is currently developing several projects, including Stay, a

feature adaptation of the internationally acclaimed stageplay by

Graham Farrow.

Contact:

James Page,

30 Choyce Close, Atherstone, Warwickshire, CV9 3AY

+44 7979 44 11 63

[email protected]

SelfHelp Press Kit

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